Policy credit makes an important contribution to poverty reduction and socio-economic development.

Comrade Bui Thanh An - Member of the Provincial Party Standing Committee, Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee chaired at Nghe An bridge. Photo: Thu Huyen

Promoting creative economic leverage tools

20 years of formation and development, with the connection and convergence of the entire political and social system participating in the implementation of social policy credit, the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies (VBSP) has creatively promoted its role as an economic lever of the Government, aiming to help poor households, near-poor households and other policy subjects have access to policy credit to develop production, create jobs, increase income, improve living conditions, and escape poverty.

Policy credit capital has grown remarkably, with a stable growth rate over the years, each year higher than the previous year. By November 30, 2022, the total social policy credit capital reached VND 297,738 billion, 41.9 times higher than in 2002, with an average growth rate of 21.4%.

Delegates attending the conference at Nghe An bridge. Photo: Thu Huyen

Over the past 20 years, policy capital has supported nearly 6.3 million households to overcome the poverty line, creating jobs for more than 5.9 million workers; supported more than 3.8 million students to get loans to study, helped buy more than 84,000 computers and online learning equipment for students, built more than 16.8 million clean water and rural environmental sanitation works, built nearly 729,000 houses for the poor and other policy beneficiaries, supported capital to buy/hire-purchase more than 29.7 thousand social housing units...

Social policy credit has contributed to reducing the poverty rate, joining hands with the whole country to build 5,813/8,227 communes (accounting for 70.7%) to meet the new rural commune standards; of which 803 communes meet the advanced new rural standards and 94 communes meet the model new rural standards...

In addition, credit policies support people and businesses affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, restore socio-economic development, and loan turnover of VND 17,960 billion to nearly 280,000 customers.

With its achievements in implementing policy credit for the poor and other policy beneficiaries over the past 20 years, the VBSP has been recognized by the Party and State and awarded many emulation titles and noble forms of commendation.

In Nghe An, after 20 years, policy credit capital in Nghe An has provided capital for 1.3 million poor households and policy beneficiaries to invest in production and improve their lives; thanks to that, 267,800 poor households have overcome the poverty line and have significantly improved their lives; attracted and created stable jobs for 49,000 workers from the National Employment Fund; 10,300 workers have received loans to work abroad; 100,300 households doing business in difficult areas have capital to invest in production and business; 261,700 households in rural areas have received loans to build over 262,000 clean water works and 261,000 standard sanitation works, improving living conditions and improving the environment in rural areas.

Continue to effectively implement credit programs

Speaking at the conference, representatives of ministries, branches and localities affirmed that 20 years of implementing credit policies for the poor and other policy subjects according to Decree 78 of the Government have achieved many outstanding achievements; mobilizing financial resources to create large capital sources, effectively organizing and implementing credit programs. Thereby, affirming the correct policy, creative solutions, deeply humane and suitable to Vietnam's reality, contributing significantly to the effective implementation of policies, goals and tasks set by the Party and State on poverty reduction, job creation, human resource development and ensuring social security.

Trong Phuc Garment Company Limited in Dien Chau district borrowed capital from the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies to pay salaries to workers and restore production after the epidemic. Photo: Thu Huyen

The implementation of policy credit has overcome the limitations of free support policies, created a fundamental change in the awareness of the poor, promoted the will to self-reliance, escape poverty and become rich legitimately.

In his concluding remarks at the conference, Deputy Prime Minister Le Minh Khai acknowledged and commended the achievements of policy credit over the past 20 years, thereby creating livelihoods to support people to escape poverty, aiming at the goal of leaving no one behind in the process of socio-economic development of the country. This is a policy that builds a good connection between the State, through the VBSP, with mass organizations and the poor, promoting the initiative and enhancing the responsibility of the poor to the local government through maintaining contact, guiding how to do business, urging disbursement and debt collection of the bank. The effectiveness of policy implementation shows that the organizational model and credit management method of the VBSP are suitable to the structure of the political system and the reality of Vietnam.

Faced with current shortcomings, difficulties and challenges, in order to effectively carry out the tasks assigned by the Party and the Government, in the coming period, the VBSP will continue to coordinate with ministries, branches, socio-political organizations and localities to actively and effectively implement Directive 40-CT/TW, Conclusion 06-KL/TW of the Secretariat and Decision 1630/QD-TTg of the Prime Minister on the plan to implement Directive 40-CT/TW of the Secretariat on strengthening the Party's leadership over social policy credit; Focus on mobilizing resources to effectively implement social policy credit, especially capital from local budgets entrusted to the VBSP to supplement capital for the poor and other policy beneficiaries...

The Deputy Prime Minister also requested the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies to review and evaluate to propose suitable credit products in the direction of increasing the limit and expanding the loan subjects. In particular, focusing on prioritizing investment capital for ethnic minorities in mountainous areas and particularly difficult areas. Loan subjects should be aimed at large-scale production and business projects, with products created according to the value chain, contributing to creating livelihoods, increasing income and implementing social security well.