Foreign non-government organizations (NGOs) have disbursed a total of $2.4 billion for 28,000 projects in Vietnam over the past decade, making up 0.21%-0.45% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). The Vietnam Union of Friendship Organizations (VUFO) released the figure at the third international conference on cooperation between Vietnam and international NGOs with 800 delegates in Hanoi on Nov 28. Poverty reduction and sustainable development projects undertaken by NGOs have helped improve the living conditions of people and lessened the burden on the state budget, said VUFO President Vu Xuan Hong. Addressing the event, Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh said thanks to the support of NGOs, the percentage of poor households fell from 13.7% per in 2008 to 9.6% last year and their income has been improved considerably. He pledged that the government would create favorable conditions for the NGOs’ operations and called for their further support for combating natural disasters, diseases and environmental pollution. Vietnam has established ties with around 950 international NGOs, according to the Committee for FNGO Affairs. (Tuoi Tre Nov 29 p4, Dau Tu Nov29 p2, Thanh Nien Nov 29)
