The Irish government has pledged to fund nearly EUR13.3 million for a poverty reduction program (Program 135) in Vietnam in the 2013-2015 period under an aid agreement recently signed in Hanoi. The funding will benefit ethnic minorities in the four northern mountainous provinces of Ha Giang, Cao Bang, Dien Bien and Bac Can, the two central provinces of Thanh Hoa and Quang Ngai, the Central Highlands province of Kon Tum and the southern province of Tra Vinh. The program is expected to improve the living conditions of the locals in disadvantaged areas and narrow the development gaps separating ethnic minority groups and the Kinh majority. (http://baodientu.chinhphu.vn [1] Dec 13, vietnamplus.vn Dec 13)
