Nghe An: Lending to create sustainable livelihoods for poor and near-poor households

Ensuring social security and creating sustainable livelihoods

The fat cows grazing in front of the house these days are the most prosperous sign in the small house of Ms. Ho Thi Binh's family in Quynh Tan commune, Quynh Luu district. With two young children and a sick husband, Ms. Binh goes to the commune to make bricks every day, earning 130,000 VND per day. However, since the Covid-19 pandemic, her work has been unstable, sometimes available, sometimes not.

“Given the favorable conditions, my husband and I decided to borrow 50 million VND with low interest rates from the Social Policy Bank, invest in barns, buy cows, raise a few more pigs, hoping to escape poverty and develop the economy, although not quickly but sustainably,” Ms. Binh confided.

Ms. Ho Thi Binh in Quynh Tan commune (Quynh Luu) borrowed capital from the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies to raise cows. Photo: Phu Huong

With a large area and many mountainous communes, the number of poor households, near-poor households and newly escaped poverty households in Quynh Luu is quite large. Recently, due to the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic, the lives and incomes of the above households have encountered many difficulties. In that situation,Social Policy BankThe district has given special priority and focused capital resources on these households to meet the people's need for access to capital and economic recovery after the pandemic. The unit has actively taken full advantage of capital sources from higher levels and local entrusted capital sources to promptly meet the lending needs of poor households, near-poor households and newly escaped poverty households, and to create jobs...

“We, together with savings and loan groups and entrusted organizations at the commune and district levels, organize propaganda and guide households to access policies and capital sources, review, prepare documents and disburse funds promptly.”

Mr. Nguyen Van Vinh - Deputy Director of the Social Policy Bank of Quynh Luu district

Since the beginning of the year, the unit has disbursed nearly 170 billion VND, of which 3 loan programs for poor and near-poor households alone are about 70 billion VND, meeting the borrowing needs of the people. Compared to the same period last year, the loan capital for the above subjects increased by more than 7 billion VND, many households borrowed hundreds of millions of VND. With favorable conditions in terms of capital, people have focused on developing livestock, planting acacia... to escape poverty and create sustainable livelihoods. "However, to make good use of loan capital, it is necessary to have the attention of departments and local authorities to help and guide people to do business more effectively; create product output for people", Mr. Nguyen Van Vinh shared.

In Dien Chau district, in the third quarter of this year alone, the district's Social Policy Bank allocated 52 billion VND of new capital and recovered capital to the blocks and hamlets, meeting the capital needs of poor households, near-poor households, newly escaped poverty households and other beneficiaries.policy statueothers have capital for production and business. According to Mr. Nguyen Van Tuan - Director of the Bank, of the 186 billion VND in loans of the unit, loans to newly escaped poor households, near-poor households and poor households alone reached 109.3 billion VND. In particular, debt collection turnover reached 129 billion VND, accounting for 69% of loan turnover, contributing significantly to creating a stable and proactive revolving loan source in the district, meeting the borrowing needs of poor households and policy beneficiaries in the context of difficulties in capital provided by the Central Government. The guaranteed capital has contributed positively to poverty reduction, job creation, social security and new rural construction in the district.

Poor households in Dien Chau borrow capital from the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies to develop the economy and reduce poverty. Photo: Phu Huong

Up to now, the total outstanding policy credit balance in Dien Chau district has reached over 732 billion VND, the loan capital has helped 9,970 poor households, near-poor households and newly escaped poverty households have capital to produce and do business, stabilize their lives, and gradually escape poverty sustainably. From now until the end of the year, we will continue to review poor households, near-poor households, and households with average living standards at the commune level according to multidimensional standards for the period 2021-2025. Take advantage of capital sources from higher levels; actively mobilize deposit capital and revolving debt collection capital to focus on disbursement to meet the loan needs of poor households and other policy beneficiaries, especially loans to restore production after the pandemic.

Mr. Nguyen Van Tuan - Director of the Social Policy Bank of Dien Chau district

Wherever the epidemic is pushed back, the Social Policy Bank will serve there.

Difficulties in capital sources, especially after the negative impacts ofCovid-19 epidemic, will be barriers for people, especially poor, near-poor and newly escaped poverty households to recover and develop the economy. Clearly identifying the need for loans to create sustainable livelihoods for people, immediately after the epidemic situation was controlled and social distancing was relaxed, the social policy bank system promptly coordinated with localities, focused on reviewing, grasping the needs, and disbursing loans to people. Although the poverty rate in our province in 2021 according to published data has decreased sharply, the Provincial Social Policy Bank still increased lending, including lending to new poor households, poor households who had borrowed capital before but needed additional loans to implement production and business plans.

“In the Social Policy Bank system, capital for poor households is always given special priority. In the first 4 months of this year, we have lent 120 billion VND to poor households. At the same time, we have actively lent to near-poor households and households that have just escaped poverty to support sustainable poverty reduction with a total capital of nearly 700 billion VND. Particularly during the complicated development of the Covid-19 epidemic in the province, with the motto "wherever the epidemic is pushed back, the Social Policy Bank will serve there", as soon as there are restrictions on social distancing in any area, we will serve immediately in the spirit of absolutely complying with the principles of epidemic prevention"

Mr. Nguyen Van Vinh - Deputy Director of Nghe An Social Policy Bank

NHCS staff strictly follow the Ministry of Health's 5K recommendations on Covid-19 prevention during transactions. Photo: Thu Huyen

It is expected that from now until the end of the year, the provincial Social Policy Bank system will mobilize resources to continue supporting policy beneficiaries, including lending about 500 billion VND to poor households, near-poor households and newly escaped poverty households, to serve the needs of production and business recovery, contributing to reducing re-poverty in the area./.