Changes in Profession in Some Suburban Communes of Hanoi Transformed into Urban Precincts

Abstract

The process of urbanization, occurring since 1995 through the transformation of some suburban communes into precincts of Hanoi, has caused many urgent concerns, including the changes in profession for effected farmers. Based on fieldwork data collected in Trung Kinh Thuong and Nhat Tan villages, the author shows different ways of dealing with such problems practiced by the villagers when they lose their cultivated land. The people in Trung Kinh Thuong village have begun renting out rooms in their houses or the whole house and have started small-scale businesses for themselves. The people in Nhat Tan village still grow peach trees, but they have had to move their trees to alluvial land. This article reveals that it is very difficult for the effected farmers to have successful changes in professions. It is strongly recommended that this matter be carefully examined if agricultural land continues to be taken and used for constructing urban and industrial centers.