Thu Sy Fish-pot Making Trade Village

The fish-pot making job is a long-standing traditional job of Thu Sy commune, Tien Lu district. There are three villages including Tat Vien, Noi Lang and Ba Hang villages doing this job with the high specialization. It requires three villages of two provinces to complete a final fish-pot, of which Tat Vien and Noi Lang specialise in pot making, Ba Hang specialises in making lids, and Hoi Dong village in Ly Nhan district, Ha Nam (About 10 km away on the other side of the Red River) specialises in making bottoms. This division has been formed for a long time and has become a custom, which is difficult to change.

          The fish-pot making job attracts about 500 labourers of Thu Sy village including all kinds of people, even handicapped people with two intact hands. However it is only the second job at harvest break. The annual production output of the trade village is about 650,000 products; the turnover is approximately VND 2 billion per year and the average income per labourer is VND 250,000 per month. The fish-pot is used at low-sunken areas to catch fish and prawn. Currently, 2/3 of the markets are surrounding provinces. The fish-pot making job is totally manual, requiring small investments but the technique for preparing rattan fibre and weaving requires high skills. The job is not highly potential but can still exist in many upcoming years.