Leave No One Behind and Actions of Viet Nam

During the past two decades, Viet Nam has seen its poverty reduction rate reduce from 58.1% in 1993 to under 10%. However, Viet Nam is faced with many challenges in assuring the sustainability of this result and further reducing poverty in the areas where poverty and hunger are still chronic.

Part of the population is still hovering just above the poverty line, and one shock, be it a natural disaster, economic, or health one, could possibly push that group back under this line. The progress of poverty reduction among ethnic minority groups is much slower, with their poverty ratio being 3.5 times higher than that of the country’s average. Meanwhile, due to fast urbanization, new forms of urban poverty have emerged in migrant and informal sector’s labor groups.

At the forum, two Prime Minister’s decisions that are important for sustainable poverty reduction were introduced. These are the Decision on the Approval of Targets to Implement the Millennium Development Goals in Ethnic Minority Groups in line with post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals and the Decision on the Approval of the Master project “Transferring from one-dimensional to a multidimensional poverty measurement approach for the 2016-2020 period”.

Speaking at the forum, Ms. Pham Thi Hai Chuyen, Minister of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs (MOLISA), said Viet Nam is a pioneer in Asia in applying and implementing the multidimensional approach to poverty measurement. The Master Project is aimed at further improving people’s access to basic social services, especially healthcare, education, housing, clean water and sanitation, and information, and, at the same time, better classifying poor households to tailor support solutions.

“The 2016-2010 National Targeted Program for Sustainable Poverty reduction will promote decentralization and empowerment at grassroots and community levels, and strengthen people’s participation and oversight before, during, and after the implementation process,” she said.

Dr. Pratibha Mehta, United Nations’ Resident Coordinator and United Nations Development Program’s Resident Representative in Viet Nam, applauded the two important Decisions of the Government of Viet Nam in prioritizing the acceleration of the Millenium Development Goals among ethnic minority groups, and in moving towards realizing the Sustainable Development Goals in Viet Nam.

She said the theme of this year’s International Day for the Eradication of Poverty was “Building a sustainable future: Coming together to end poverty and discrimination”. It emphasizes the promotion of people’s proactive role and the adaptability of policies. “Attention should be paid to ensure the harmonization in the design of national targeted programs and that the two programs should promote community empowerment and self-help spirit to build the social infrastructure for community development and sustainable poverty reduction”, she said.

Also at the forum, Deputy Minister Son Phuoc Hoan, Vice Chairman of the Committee for Ethnic Minority Affairs, said: “The Decision (on the Approval of Targets to Implement the Millennium Development Goals in Ethnic Minority Groups in line with post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals) has institutionalized the Millennium Development Goals for ethnic minority people and created a mechanism to monitor, assess and increase the effectiveness of resource collaboration in implementing national programs and strategies to support ethnic minority people.”

He also said the Committe for Ethnic Minority Affairs will promptly develop and promulgate a master plan to implement this Decision. At the same time, the Committee will provide technical support for provinces in order to accelarate the institutionalization of the Millenium Development Goals for ethnic minority people in the 2016-2020 five-year socio-economic development strategies and plans at the national, ministerial and provicial levels. 

At the forum, Ms. Cait Moran, Ambassador of the Republic of Ireland to Viet Nam, said, “Poverty reduction in the Ethnic Minority communities has been front and centre of Ireland’s partnership programme with the Government of Viet Nam since we began our first programme of bilateral cooperation in 2007”.

She also shared information about the Working Group for Ethnic Mintority Poverty issues, which is co-chaired by Ireland and the United Nations, especially the dialogues with the Government on issues ethnic minority related issues.

Participants in the forum included members of the National Steering Committee for Sustainable Poverty Reduction; reprepsentatives of government agencies; political and social organizations; representatives of development partners in the Working group for Ethnic Minority Poverty issues; nongovernmental organizations; and central and Ha Noi’s media organizations.

The forum was co-chaired by MOLISA and the United Nations in collaboration with the Committee for Ethnic Minority Affairs and the Irish Embassy.

For more information, please contact: 

Mr. Doan Huu Minh, Director of poverty reduction project PRPP,   

Tel: (84-4) 39362226, email: huuminhfa2@gmail.com

Ms. Nguyen Viet Lan, United Nations’ Communication Team 

Tel: (84-4) 38500158, email: nguyen.viet.lan@undp.org