Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc chairs a meeting on the National Programme on Socio-economic Development in Mountainous and Ethnic Minority Areas in Hà Nội on Friday. — VNA/VNS Photo Thống Nhất

 HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc chaired a cabinet meeting on Friday that discussed an investment proposal within the National Target Programme on Socio-economic Development in Mountainous and Ethnic Minority Areas for 2021-30.
According to a report from the Government Committee for Ethnic Minority Affairs, Việt Nam is home to 14.1 million ethnic minority people, or 14.7 per cent of the population. Mountainous and ethnic areas have seen rapid development over recent years but remain the most disadvantaged in the country.
The report proposes that the programme be carried out in two phases in communes and hamlets where ethnic minority households make up at least 15 per cent of all households.
Total investment from 2021-25 will reach VNĐ204 trillion (US$8.68 billion), and over VNĐ210.5 trillion from 2026-30. Funding will come from central and local budgets, policy credit and other sources.
The programme aims to cut the poverty rate in ethnic areas by over 3 per cent each year to 2025, and bring it down to less than 10 per cent of the population by 2030. The average income of ethnic minority households in 2025 will double that in 2019.
The Government Committee for Ethnic Affairs also proposed ten projects in a range of fields.

PM Phúc spoke of the committee’s thorough preparations, adding that this was one of three major national target programmes.
He asked the committee to avoid overlapping with other national target programmes on building new-style rural areas and ensuring sustainable poverty reduction.
He agreed with a proposal to focus on assisting livelihoods and improving the living conditions of ethnic minority groups. He highlighted the need to take advantage of different sources of capital to develop these areas rather than depending on the State budget.
The programme should identify specific solutions to resolve the lack of residential and cultivation land, housing and water for daily use, he said.
Cabinet members also heard a report from the Ministry of Planning and Investment on completing the Prime Minister’s draft decision on a list of enterprises to divest from before the end of the year, replacing the PM’s Decision No. 1232.
PM Phúc requested a careful review of divestment in certain areas and stressed that openness and transparency were paramount during the process to prevent corruption. — VNS