The Ho Chi Minh City authorities have launched a large project to help reduction of in urban areas in the city from now until 2016.In ceremony to kick off the project, the People’s committee said the project will be implemented with a cost of $2 million, which is a non-refundable ODA aid from the United Nations Development Program (UNPD).The project aims to collect, study, analyze and provide information related to poor households, especially immigrant ones, in the city.Based on the database created from such information, the People’s Committee will devise policies and program that help further alleviate poverty in the city.Such database will also serve the building of the city’s social and economic development plans, authorities said.Currently, the poverty threshold is set by the Government at VND12 million ($571) per year per capita.Early this month the city Steering Board for Hunger Eradiation and Poverty Reduction recognized that District 6 has become the first district to get rid of poverty, overtaking wealthy localities including Districts 1 and 3.Over the past three years, the authorities of District 6 have every year helped more than 1,000 families improve their income.In 2010 the district had about 4,500 families with 23,600 members with per capita income of less than the poverty threshold, according to the board.According to a nationwide survey of poor households in 2011 by the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, HCMC ranked first of the 8 provinces and cities having the rate of poor households of less than 5 percent.Accordingly, the city had the poor household rate of 0.006 percent, followed by Binh Duong with 0.01 percent, Dong Nai with 1.24 percent, Ba Ria-Vung Tau with 2.95 percent, Danang with 2.98 percent, Hanoi with 3.14 percent, Tay Ninh with 4.27 percent, and Quang Ninh with 4.89 percent. (tuoitrenews.vn Jan 12).Southwest region raises living standards of Khmer people.Local governments in the southwestern region have done well to raise Khmer people’s living standards, said the Southwestern Region Steering Committee at a meeting in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho on January 9 to review achievements in 2012 and work orientation for 2013.A Khmer pagoda in the Mekong delta province of Soc Trang (Photo: U. Phuong).According to the committee, local governments have created strong and effective policies. They focused on building infrastructure in 287 communes and villages at a cost of VND110 billion ($5.2 million); reconstructed 12,000 dilapidated houses; financially supported families on the poverty line with VND10 billion ($480,066) and gave more than VND20 billion ($960,133) to resettlement families.Bui Ngoc Suong, deputy head of the committee, said every year the ratio of poor households has reduced by three percent and the percentage of Khmer students increased year-on-year. In addition, stable political and socioeconomic conditions and growth of solidarity between people has created a good and healthy environment for living and learning.The region will try to implement effective policies and eliminate hunger, reduce poverty, create literacy programs and find measures to raise education and living standards. (saigon-gpdaily.com.vn Jan 10)
