INFORMATION ON MASTER’S THESIS

1. Full name : DO THI THANH HUONG 2. Sex: female 3. Date of birth: 16/4/1974 4. Place of birth: Tuyen Quang 5. Admission decision number: 1700/QĐ-XHNV-KH&SĐH dated 19/11/2009 of the Rector of University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University in Hanoi 6. Changes in academic process: None (List the forms of change and corresponding times) 7. Official thesis title: Factors affecting the population quality of Pa Then ethnic minority in Quang Binh District, Ha Giang Province 8. Major: Sociology 9. Code: 60 31 30 10. Supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Kim Hoa, Dean of Faculty of Sociology, University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University in Hanoi (Full name, academic title and degree) 11. Summary of the findings of the thesis: The thesis is a study into the population quality of Pa Then ethnic minority (with less than 10,000 people in total) in Tan Bac Commune, Quang Binh District, Ha Giang Province. The author selected 11 indicators related to physical, mental, spiritual and structural aspects of the population to measure the population quality using the following formula: PQI = 1/11 (I1 + I2 + ...... I11) = 0.554. This is an average level. The study analysed four factors affecting the population quality, including: - Social Policy: The Party and State have policies for ethnic minorities in order to narrow the gap in living standards between the mountainous ethnic people and Kinh people in deltas. The ethnic minorities are given health insurance and free medical treatments. For recent years, the locality has had no epidemics and the public health has improved. Pa Then ethnic minority has good awareness of the work on population and family planning and each family has from one to two children. The district has achieved universal lower secondary education but school facilities are poor. About 69% of households have televisions but they can only catch the central television channels. Socio-economic development objectives and programs of the province are disseminated to ethnic people mainly through the commune officers, hamlet chiefs, and staff of mass organisations in hamlets. - The natural environment: the weather conditions are harsh in the study area. Sometimes the temperature drops low for one to two months. Nearly 50% of households still use water from streams or open ducts which affect the public health. - Customs and traditional practices: The festival of Pa Then fire dance (in the 10th month of the lunar calendar) is both entertaining and spiritually worshipping. This is a prayer ceremony for good health and good harvests and to ward off disease. Pa Then ethnic people have their own cultural traditions and arts and procedures related to marriage, dress and others that have had positive impacts on their spiritual life. - Economic and social conditions: 99% of households do farm work with low income. 39.1% of households suffer from food shortages during the cultivation seasons. 17.2% of households live in temporary houses. These facts have affected the population quality. To improve the population quality for Pa Then ethnic people in Ha Giang, it is necessary to strengthen the training of scientific and technical knowledge in production and animal husbandry and expand the market for ethnic weaving products. It is also necessary to invest in construction of facilities for communication channels to reach people effectively. (Summarize them with stress on the new findings, if any) 12. Practical applicability, if any: The study analysed the factors that affect the population quality of Pa Then ethnic people and contributed recommendations to the authorities to develop policies to improve the population quality of ethnic minorities in general and Pa Then ethnic people in particular 13. Further research directions, if any: 14. Thesis-related publications: (List them in chronological order) Do Thi Thanh Huong (2012) Some factors impacting the life of Pa Then ethnic people in Quang Binh, Ha Giang, paper presented at the seminar The role of sociology in the development of society of the Vietnamese Sociology Association held at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University in Hanoi on 26 May 2012.