| Materials : Country/Review Paper
The office of the National Co-ordinating Council
on Disabilities of Vietnam (NCCD)
Country report
Poverty alleviation among
persons with disabilities in Vietnam
by Mr. Nghiem Xuan Tue
Standing member of NCCD-Vietnam
and Director
The office of the National Co-ordinating Council
on Disabilities of Vietnam (NCCD)
Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA)
Currently, Vietnam has more than 5,1 million people with disabilities, a
account of 6,4% of total population, of which male with disabilities is
63,5% and 36,5% for disabled women. There are 69% of disabled people who are
in the working age from 16 to 55/60 years old. More than 87% disabled
persons live in rural areas and 13% live in urban areas. There are different
ratios on disabilities categories such as 36% of people with physical
disabilities, 26% of the visually impaired, 10% of dumdeaf people and the
rest include intellectually and mentally retarded persons. The main reasons
for disabilities come from inborn, consequences of war, traffic accidents,
occupational accidents, disease and illness...
People with disabilities in Vietnam make up a large ratio who are mostly
located in the countryside, remote and far-away areas. Their education
background, expertise, and technical skill are at low level so their
lives are difficult. On average, 70% of disabled people depend on their own
families. These are the most vulnerable groups, so they need to be included
into national and local poverty alleviation programs. They should be
provided with training, vocational training, job generation for the purposes
of stable lives and full integration, participation.
The Government of Vietnam launched the national poverty alleviation
programs in 1993 throughout the country. Over the past 10 years, Vietnam has
been achieving great effectiveness for poverty alleviation programmes
bolstering economic growth and reducing the remarkable number of poor
households. Vietnam has been receiving high appreciation and appraisals from
international community and national agencies. The poverty rate was seen in
1993 as 34% of total population and as 9,08% at the moment.
Majority of disabled people live in poor households. Besides, attention,
assistance in the local and national poverty alleviation programmes are
provided to disabled persons, they are offered opportunities to access
poverty alleviation projects designed for households with disabled members
or for disabled people themselves. These projects have been implemented in
all regions, all parts of the country from remote, far-away areas,
mountainous, countryside areas to cities, urban areas.
People with disabilities in remote and far-away areas are given loans
from National Fund for employment through Bank for Social Policy. They are
also provided with technical assistance to facilitate them or their
relatives in raising castles, poultry, tree plantation in accordance with
lands and climate of respective localities. There has been involvement of
disabled persons in gardening, shifting from less-yelding plants to
economically-valued fruit-trees...People with disabilities can directly get
involved in castles and poultry raising and tree planting. In case of severe
disabilities, they are supported by their relatives to get daily work done.
For instance, northern provinces like Lang Son, Cao Bang, Ha Giang, Lao
Cai.....have seen the effective development and growth of fruit-trees namely
preach and plums.....while highland and agricultural provinces have been
focusing on planting fruit-trees like litchi, longans, grapefruit,
oranges,.... In highland and mountainous areas, agriculture land are
allocated to disabled persons by local authorities in order to facilitate
farm-based economy. They can even plant herds, medical plants, fruit-trees,
perennial timber plants....At the same time, they also raise castles,
poultry namely buffalo, goat, pig, chicken, duck, goose and bees....
They are also attending training courses on cultivation techniques,
planting, raising and also attending short-term courses on economic
management, production development.
In general, during the past 10 years, the income per head has been
on the remarkable rise, in line with continuos development of production.
Generally speaking in both countryside and mountainous areas, there have
seen significant improvement of the lives of disabled persons.
Significantly, the
model “ cow bank” has been spreadingly developed in every provinces
nation-wide since the disabled persons in localities have hands-on
experiences in cow raising and the availability of food sources for cow
raising in paddy fields, dikes and mountain slope. Disabled people in
each commune, districts are listed, given a female cow from “ cow bank”
project. If the borrower is strongly capable of working, they can
raise cows directly, if not, their family members should be
responsible to assist them. When female calf is born, it is paid back to the
bank once it is 10 months old. Then the female calf will be given to the
later recipient with disabilities in the second waiting list, and the mother
cow belongs to the former client. The mountainous province of Ha Giang, for
instance, was given 910 cows, of which 300 cows are given to disabled
persons. Up to now, the number of cows has increased to more than 2500.
Disabled persons now owns 2 to 3 cows by themselves, some even have more
than 4 cows. Through this project, disabled persons get direct benefits.
This model has created more dynamism, actives and confidence for the
disabled persons, so they would strive to overcome their disabilities for
full integration, and equality.
Examples of
typical disabled persons in the poverty alleviation programs have been
broadcasted in mass media to introduce experiences and expertise to peer
disabled people nation-wide. The experiences have shown that
empowerment of disabled persons and public awareness raising are important
to ensure the success of the projects. Once grass-roots have right
understandings, they will support, encourage, and assist disabled persons to
overcome difficulties and ensure the feasibility and sustainability of the
projects. At the same time, right awareness and understandings among local
authorities will get the poverty alleviation programs for disabled persons
implemented reasonably, legally, well-addressed, right received cases
and develop the solidarity for the community. The inclusion of disabled
persons in local poverty alleviation programmes will make the programmes
better and more effective, actually traditional handicraft villages,
disabled persons are included in the “self-help” groups or local production
co-operatives with non-disabled persons. As for the severe ones, they can
take production materials home from the co-operatives in order to limit
their movement and mobility. The people with disabilities are very
hardworking and industrious, they focus their own mind and spirit doing
their jobs, so their products are well recognised and better than that made
by normal people at times. Some of them have remarkable income that can feed
themselves and support their families.
In urban areas,
disabled people have involved in production activities and been working in
businesses, enterprises, production centers for disabled workers. All these
centers get tax and production site prioritised....if they employ enough 51%
of disabled workers within their company staffs. However, the main
difficulties and obstacles come from low level of education since only 3% of
disabled people are educated . Therefore, job opportunity is hardly
available to them.
Currently, there
are more than 400 businesses and production enterprises of disabled persons
with more than 20,000 disabled workers. The Vietnam Association of Business
and Enterprises of Disabled Persons (VABED) was established in 2003. The
purposes of the Association is to protect legal rights for disabled persons,
develop more business and production enterprises of disabled persons in
order to create more employment for disabled persons, to participate with
policy makers revising the law in accordance with social and economic
situation and on behalf of disabled persons to expand relationship with
related agencies, international organisations for co-operation, experience
exchange, and product introduction..
In some offices,
businesses, disabled persons have suitable occupations namely telephone
operators, administrative staffs, security guards, and computer typers....
Youth with disabilities are actively studying computer, information
technology in order to get suitable employment. Disabled persons who has
degree and skills or good education will find job easier..
We have drawn an
experience in Vietnam, e.i. to carry out the poverty alleviation programmes
through empowerment, social security and sustainable livelihood programmes,
each nation should have:
- adequate and strict system of law and policy
- increased awareness of the public, whole society on workability as
well as participation of disabled persons. Disabled persons can make good
products, better than those made by normal people.
- loan resources
- training courses and programmes provided for disabled persons and
inclusion of disability-related issues in local and national poverty
alleviation programmes.
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