Quynh Luu District Social Policy Bank plays a good role as a 'midwife' for poor households

Help people escape poverty and become rich

As a household in difficult circumstances, with capital borrowed from the District Social Policy Bank, Mrs. Bui Thi Kinh's family, Tan An hamlet, An Hoa commune, Quynh Luu district, not only dug a well and built a toilet that met standards, but also received favorable conditions.preferential loanseconomic development, poverty alleviation and gradual stabilization of life.

“With a loan of 20 million VND from the Clean Water and Environmental Sanitation Program of the District Social Policy Bank, for the past 3 years we have had clean water to use, our quality of life has gradually improved, and our health is also more assured,” Ms. Kinh said excitedly.

Not only that, in 2020, she continued to borrow 50 million VND to build a fish sauce processing facility. After less than 2 years, the facility has been operating stably, the products are not only sold in the commune but also consumed in many communes in the district; from a poor household with many difficulties, now after deducting expenses, each month her family has an income of 10-15 million VND. Not only stabilizing her life, from the results she has, she plans to save up and borrow more to develop production and increase income.

2003, Transaction OfficeVietnam Bank for Social PoliciesQuynh Luu district was established. From the two initially handed over credit programs, namely the Poor Household Loan Program and the Job Creation Support Loan Program with a total outstanding debt of 31.6 billion VND, up to now, the District Social Policy Bank is implementing 15 credit programs assigned by the Government.

Transaction session at the People's Credit Fund of Quynh Luu district. Photo courtesy of Thu Huyen

Over the past 20 years, nearly 93,400 poor households and other policy beneficiaries have borrowed capital from the Social Policy Bank; of which nearly 2,800 households in disadvantaged areas have capital to invest in production and business, hundreds of policy beneficiaries have borrowed capital to work abroad, enriching themselves, their families, and society... Credit capital has contributed to helping more than 14,000 poor households overcome the poverty line. It can be said that social policy credit has really played a good role as a "midwife" to support poor households and policy beneficiaries to escape poverty, integrate into the community and gradually become rich.

Mr. Nguyen Quy Thai - Director of the Social Policy Bank of Quynh Luu district said: Fortunately, with over 10,000 households receiving preferential loans from the Loan Program for students in difficult circumstances, the area no longer has students dropping out of school due to not having money to pay tuition fees. In addition, more than 1,800 workers have received loans of over 62 billion VND, thereby supporting job creation, maintaining and expanding jobs, helping people.create livelihoods, escape poverty and have stable, regular income.

“Not only do loan packages provide livelihood solutions for the poor and other policy beneficiaries, helping many households not only escape poverty but also become well-off households, but people also receive preferential loans to improve their quality of life from loan packages for clean water and environmental sanitation, preferential loans to buy or rent social housing; build new or renovate and repair houses to live in,” said Mr. Nguyen Quy Thai.

Lending and effective loan management

As a State credit institution, operating not for profit, implementing preferential credit for the poor and other policy subjects, over the years, the unit has had many solutions to focus on mobilizing financial resources, in order to increasingly better meet people's borrowing needs.

Ms. Ho Thi Binh, Quynh Tan commune, Quynh Luu district develops livestock farming with loans from the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies. Photo: Phu Huong

By June 30, 2022, the total policy credit capital managed by the District Social Policy Bank reached nearly 692 billion VND, an increase of 21.9 times compared to the first day of establishment, with an average annual growth rate of over 10%. Thanks to that, the basic capital source promptly meets the demand for loans to develop production and business and serve the essential needs of the lives of poor households and other policy beneficiaries, contributing to sustainable poverty reduction, ensuring social security and building new rural areas in the area.

Mainly lending directly with entrustment through organizations such as the Farmers' Association, Women's Union, Veterans' Association and Youth Union, in recent years, through joint documents and signed entrustment contracts, the Quynh Luu District Social Policy Bank has closely coordinated with these socio-political organizations to propagate policies; guide the establishment and direct the activities of savings and loan groups; evaluate loan subjects; guide borrowers to prepare documents, loan procedures and use capital for the right purpose, check and supervise the process of using loans; urge debt collection, interest collection; mobilize borrowers to deposit savings... Currently, these organizations are managing 666 billion VND, accounting for 99.7% of total outstanding debt.

In addition, at the commune level, there are 33 Poverty Reduction Committees and 338 village chiefs who have been actively participating in directing, inspecting and supervising work.credit activitiespolicies at the grassroots level. Along with the commune transaction points that publicly post all relevant contents, the 476 savings and loan groups operate on the principle of voluntariness, mutual support, and mutual assistance in production and life, committed to using loans for the right purposes, repaying debts and interest on time, which has also brought about very clear results in lending and loan management.

Leaders of the People's Credit Fund of Quynh Luu district gave gifts and encouraged students in difficult circumstances to borrow capital from the People's Credit Fund of the district. Photo courtesy

After 20 years of operation, the District Social Policy Bank has built and developed a compact, lightweight, cost-saving management and operation apparatus, socializing the main credit activities with the motto of people knowing, people discussing, people doing, people checking. The Quynh Luu District Social Policy Bank has made every effort to ensure that the Government's policy credit capital is strictly managed, loans are given to the right subjects, borrowers receive loans promptly at their place of residence, saving maximum time and costs, and receiving the people's support.

In particular, as a special credit institution lending to poor households and policy beneficiaries, who are disadvantaged, vulnerable and at high risk; therefore, in recent years, Quynh Luu Social Policy Bank has always attached importance to and implemented many solutions to continuously improve credit quality, thanks to which, up to now, total overdue and frozen debt only accounts for 0.16% of total outstanding debt, 23/33 communes have no overdue debt, of which 20 communes regularly have no overdue debt.

Evaluating the performance of the District Policy Bank, Mr. Nguyen Van Thuong, Vice Chairman of the District People's Committee, Head of the District Social Policy Bank Representative Board shared: Quynh Luu has a large area, large population, and many poor households and policy beneficiaries.

"The activities of the Social Policy Bank have created opportunities for the poor and other policy beneficiaries to access capital sources."state credit program,contributing to preventing usury in rural areas, helping the poor and other policy beneficiaries to have conditions to develop production, improve their lives, and assert their position in society. In recent years, in the district, the average annual poverty rate has decreased by over 3%, and we have had 100% of communes meeting new rural standards," said Mr. Nguyen Van Thuong./.