Socialist Republic of Vietnam

Ha Noi, May 11 (VNA) -- Five projects, referred to as Programme 135, will be implemented this year under the Government's socio-economic development programme for poor communes in mountainous and remote areas, says the Committee for Ethnic Minorities and Mountainous Areas (CEMMA).

At a conference to review implementation of Programme 135 in 1999 and 2000, and to discuss ways of implementing it in 2001, held by the Government in Ha Noi from May 10-12, CEMMA reports that the five projects deal with the building of infrastructures, the construction of communal centres, the re-zoning of residential areas, the stabilization and development of agro-forestry production in combination with processing and selling, and the training of personnel for communes, villages, and hamlets.

Prime Minister Phan Van Khai and Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Cong Tan were present at the conference. Leaders from 49 provinces having communes classified as poor met with representatives from ministries, sectors, and central as well as local organizations at the conference.

Under the Government's decision, the Sedentary Farming and Resettlement Project, the Project in Support of Poor Minorities, and the Programme on the Building of Communal Clusters in Mountainous Areas, will be joined in Programme 135. Therefore, there will be 2,325 communes nationwide listed as beneficiaries to the programme.

The conference discussed ways of implementing Programme 135 in the coming time, including the encouragement of sedentary farming and resettlement in targeted communes, the boosting of socio-economic development, the building of effective poverty elimination models in minority group-inhabited communes, and the provision of training to grassroots officials.

Programme 135, which started in July 1998, was intended to improve the lives of poor minority people living in remote mountainous areas. It was created to help these poor communities lift themselves out of poverty by aiding them in their development of more efficient economic practicies, thus contributing to ensuring social order and national security.

The Government has increased budget allocations for infrastructure construction in communes related to Programme 135, from VND 508 billion in 1999 to VND 700 billion in 2000. They asked ministries, sectors, and localities to integrate other programmes and projects into Programme 135, including the Programme on Resettlement, the Programme to Plant Five Million Hectares of Forest, and the Programme on Giving Priority in Healthcare and Education Provision to Programme 135 Communes. Mass organizations from central to grassroots levels have sent officials to the communes to provide villagers with knowledge on efficient business practices so that they may develop a household economy and build models for poverty eradication.

As a result, two years of investment was poured into the construction of 5,035 infrastructure facilities in poor communes, with 4,867 having been put into service. More than 41 percent were transport and communications facilities; 25.7 percent, schools; 6.25 percent, water supply sources; and 0.68 percent, medical stations.

Chronic food shortages have been alleviated from poor communes, with the number of households classified as "poor" being reduced by about 5 percent a year. Villagers have gained access to safe water, thus helping in the control of a number of fatal diseases. They have also been given access to valuable cultural and information services.

Implementation of Programme 135 in the past two years has showed some limits in the mobilization of resources, caused mainly by a lack of efficient management and the failure to exercise democratic regulations on the part of some localities.

Representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs; the Ministry of National Defence; and provinces and districts beneficial to Programme 135, will present papers on implementation of Programme 135.--VNA