Vietnam's oldest zoo gets creative to raise funds
Vietnam’s oldest zoo struggles
to meet its daily running cost
of $7,740 a day
Location: Ho Chi Minh City
The 150-year-old zoo
was built in the French colonial era
and has a long history with locals
(SOUNDBITE) (Vietnamese) DIRECTOR OF THE ANIMALS DEPARTMENT, MAI KHAC TRUNG TRUC, SAYING:
"Regarding history and culture, this place was established by the French in the year 1864, so it has a long history that is rooted in the childhood of many citizens in this city and the surrounding areas."
As visitors number dwindled due to lockdown
the zoo called for donations
and received $100,000 within two days
Staff have taken a 30% pay cut
and started growing food for its residents
The zoo has also started selling fertilizer to farmers
and grown flowers to sell to the public
(SOUNDBITE) (Vietnamese) 22-YEAR-OLD ZOO VISITOR, HUYNH THI NHU VI, SAYING:
"I can see that the animals here are not having enough food, and I know that the employees here have taken pay cuts to help the animals, so today I came here to do the same thing, to contribute to improving the situation with the animals’ food."