The Man Who Revitalised Tuyen Quang Sugarcane

Perhaps, this viewpoint and business philosophy only exists in the mind of businessman Bui Hung Thinh. It sounds simple but it is really deep because if he were not truly devoted, his words are empty to farmers. But with his love for sugarcane and heartfelt sympathy to sugarcane farmers, after more than 10 years leading Son Duong Sugar and Sugarcane Joint Stock Company, General Director Bui Hung Thinh asserted the company's motto: "the business belongs to the people", making the company the common roof of more than 400 employees and over 26,000 of sugarcane growers in Tuyen Quang province.

 

General Director Thinh said “We have passed through a lot of difficulties but there are many still ahead. To turn steep barren hills into green sugarcane farms and white sugar, the company and farmers have to deal with input shortages, volatile prices and capital shortfall. Fortunately, the entire factory staff bear in mind that they are working not only for themselves but also for thousands of farmer households.

 

Son Duong sugar factory with initial processing capacity of 1,500 tonnes of sugarcane a day and investment capital of VND119.57 billion started operations since 1999. In the first years, unstable supply caused the factory to run at 15 per cent of its capacity, resulting to mounting overdue debts.

 

Before existing difficulties and challenges, General Director Thinh and his subordinates had to work hard on steep barren hills. The company has never felt at ease about input supply during the 15-year operation of its factory. To have enough sugarcane, the employees have to work with farmers to work out technical, stock and capital difficulties. Annually, the company actively supplies new best sugarcane varieties, encourages and supports farmers to expand sugarcane growing areas; provides technical assistance and capital for growers and recruits farmers’ family members as full-time employees, repairs and upgrades roads for easier sugarcane transportation, and timely settles money for farmers. Specially, the company directly signs more than 26,000 sugarcane growing investment contracts with farmers in order to ensure highest benefits for them. The company always takes care of growers’ aspirations in order to have timely solutions. Despite being very busy, General Director Bui Hung Thinh still manages to answer direct phone calls from sugarcane growers and goes down to their places to guide settlement.

 

With the company’s appropriate, popular policies, sugarcane in Tuyen Quang province not only grows in plain fields but also roots deeply into hillsides, thus replacing forest crops. The sugarcane area that supplies the company’s facilities expands annually, from 2,700 ha of sugarcane with 7,500 households in 2004, 3,602 ha with 9,228 households in 2010 and 9,313 ha with 26,049 households in 2012 - 2013. The company’s input sugarcane areas are also expanded to Phu Tho, Vinh Phuc, Yen Bai, Ha Giang and other provinces. The stable supply has enabled the company to scale up processing capacity from 1,500 tonnes of sugarcane a day to 1,800 tonnes, 2,000 tonnes and then 3,000 tonnes. Currently, the company is speeding up the construction of the second sugar mill in Ham Yen district, Tuyen Quang province.

 

General Director Bui Hung Thinh recalled: When I came to the company, I was surprised at the aspirations of workers here at his first meeting with them “I only hope to be paid VND300,000 a month to pay for essential needs. Their simple aspiration agonised him night and day. He launched a series of rearrangement plans. And today, the lowest paid employee in the company receives VND2.5 million a month. In the past time, at the present and in the future, Son Duong Sugar and Sugarcane Joint Stock Company determines and unifies the point of view: How to give incomes to sugarcane growers, make a profit for the company, and be an enterprise of the people.

 

As the Party Secretary of the company, what Bui Hung Thinh does not only bring in positive business results, but also develops human elements. He works with unions to express sympathy, raise political awareness, discover and introduce new members to the Party. Despite being a joint stock company, the Party cell of the company enrols 5 - 7 members each year, thus raising the membership to 145 at present.

 

He is always an example of unity and endeavour for a better life. Although he is very busy, he frequently assists ill-fated people. And, what he wants to do most is to cover the land with green, bring sweetness to life, build trust, and create well-paid jobs for employees and sugarcane growers. Bringing sugarcane to people in Tuyen Quang province is his most rewarding accomplishment.