Creating long-term educational, professional and leadership opportunities for young Hmong and Dao women in northern Vietnam.
In September 2026, three young women will begin a 30-month programme combining formal education, English, tourism, digital skills, practical training, cultural knowledge and workplace experience. The programme will provide each apprentice with a safe home, a personal bursary, professional support and the opportunity to build an independent future.
Why the Programme Exists
Many young Hmong and Dao women fail to complete school. Others attend school without a clear route into further education or professional work. Even when tuition support is available, the cost of accommodation, transport, food and daily life can make continued learning impossible.
Distance, limited professional networks and a lack of local role models can narrow the choices available to young women in mountain communities.
At the same time, the knowledge they already possess is often overlooked. The apprentices bring languages, cultural understanding, practical skills, resilience and experience shaped by their families and communities.
The ETHOS Apprenticeship Programme helps them recognise these strengths and connect them with formal education, English, tourism, digital skills, professional training and leadership opportunities.
Tourism can create meaningful opportunity when local women are trained not simply to assist visitors, but to lead, interpret, make decisions and shape the way their communities are represented.
