The Government has recently proposed a national target program on socio-economic development for mountainous and ethnic minority areas in the 2021-2030 period with total investment of VND 273 trillion (nearly US$ 13 billion). 

The program is expected to help narrow the development and
income gap between ethnic minorities and the national average.

 The program is devided into two implementation phases, with the first and the second starting from 2021 and 2026, respectively.

Viet Nam houses 53 ethnic minority groups with over 14 million people in three million households in 51 provinces and cities. 

The majority of ethnic minority habitants live in the Northwestern Region, Central Highlands Region, Southwestern Region, and South Central Coast which occupy three quarters of national land area. These regions play an important role in national defense and diplomacy, water and electricity supply, are rich in minerals, diversified ecosystem. 

Ethnic minority groups, however, are struggling with difficulties including low manpower quality, low socio-economic development, modest social service access, and the highest poverty rate due to geographic conditions, bad weather, poor infrastructure, low starting points, climate change, and serious environmental incidents, and high production costs.

The proposed program, which integrates 100 policies on ethnic minoritie,  was submitted to the National Assembly this morning for consideration and approvalpass the program.

Ha Ngoc Chien, Chairman of the National Assembly's Ethnic Affairs Council said once the program approved, it would help solve the shortcomings in the implementation of the current policies and narrow the development and income gap between ethnic minorities and the national average./.