Any household whose per capita income per month is below VND200,000 (US$12.5) in rural areas and below VND260,000 (US$16.25) in urban areas is classified as poor, according to the country’s new criterion regarding poverty.

While introducing the programme to the public, Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Thi Hang unveiled that close to VND43.5 trillion will be earmarked for the programme, which is seven percent higher than the sum spent in the 2001-2005 period.

The sum will include the State budget allocation, local funds and contributions from the international community, Mrs Hang said.

In the 2006-2010 period, the programme will be supported with new policies regarding legal support and monitoring activities. It will also be supplemented with new projects, including projects to provide poor people with vocational training and build fundamental infrastructural facilities in communes facing extreme difficulties, coastal areas and islands.

Toward the target, the State will continue to assist those poor people with educational and vocational training fees, and health insurance cards.

The State will also continue to implement credit policies in favour of poor households, allocate farming land and supply drinking water to poor ethnic minorities, and carry out agriculture, forestry and fishery promotion programmes.

Addressing the press briefing, John Hendra, Resident Coordinator of the United Nations in Vietnam commented that by approving the 2006-2010 poverty reduction programme and the second phase of programme 135 that promotes socio-economic development in underdeveloped communes in mountainous, rural and remote areas, Vietnam has reaffirmed its commitment to reducing poverty to achieve its set development goals as well as Millennium Development Goals.

Mr Hendra also renewed the UN's pledge to assist Vietnam's poverty programmes through sharing international experiences in the field and providing technical assistance in capacity building.

The UN will assist the Vietnamese Government in mobilising different capital sources, including those from international donors to maximise the effectiveness of the two programmes to benefit the poor.

The national poverty reduction programme was completed at the end of 2004 - one year ahead of schedule, bringing the number of poor households down to 7 percent (according to the old criterion) compared to the 10 percent target for 2005. It was recognised by the international community as "one of many successful stories in economic development".

The programme has helped 4.3 million poor households access credits, 51,000 other poor households attain farming land, and 2 million disadvantaged people start business.

Millions of poor people were offered free medical checks-up and exempted from school fees.

Also in this period, over 1,000 infrastructural facilities including electricity, transportation, schools and health clinics were built in nearly 1,000 underdeveloped communes.

VNA/VOVNews