World Bank (WB) will continue to help Vietnam eradicate hunger and reduce poverty more effectively in the coming years, WB Director in Vietnam Victoria Kwakwa affirmed.
Kwakwa made the statement at a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung on the sidelines of the Mid-term Consultative Group (CG) meeting held in the central province of Ha Tinh June 9. Vietnam is focusing on human development, poverty reduction and social welfare, Hung said, adding that the country expects to receive more financial supports from the International Development Association (IDA), a WB’s agency for the poverty reduction, and more assistance for climate change adaptation. The deputy PM suggested that the two sides would hold more discussions to successfully fulfill the ongoing poverty reduction programs in Vietnam. Victoria Kwakwa also applauded the country for merging policies with social welfare programs. The country, which has spent nearly VND1.81 trillion ($87.44 million) on a sustainable poverty reduction program in 2011, aims to increase average income of poor families to 3.5 times and cut the poverty rate to 2% per annum by 2020.
Vietnam reports 3.05 million poor households and 1.61 million near-poor ones, accounting for 14.2% and 7.53% of its total population, the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) said. (Cong An Nhan Dan – People’s Police June 10 p1, news.gov.vn June 10)
