Minister: more effective co-ordination needed for Programme 135

Programme 135, designed for extremely-disadvantaged communes, has brought new improvements to communes, but drawbacks remain, Minister-Chairman of the Committee for Ethnic Affairs Giang Seo Phu told the National Assembly Standing Committee during a question-and-answer session in Hanoi on March 13.

Road building as part of Programme 135
Road building as part of Programme 135

Launched in 1999, the programme has gone through three major stages, he said, adding that, it still responds to difficulties caused by severe weather conditions and access barriers.

In particular, the delay and lack of funding to the programme seriously hinders the progress of projects.

The minister said designing medium and long-term financing plans for the programme for the 2016-2020 period and beyond will help address this problem.

He proposed streamlining the agencies involved in making policies for ethnic minority groups, while underlining the role of local authorities in implementing projects and plans.

At the session, he also clarified issues involving resettlement in disaster-prone areas, free migration, vocational training, housing and land production for ethnic groups.