Policy credit - "Pillar" for sustainable poverty reduction

Over the past 20 years, preferential loans from VBSP have truly become an important “pillar” in the poverty reduction effort in Hoa Binh province. Thanks to this loan source, tens of thousands of poor households, near-poor households and other policy beneficiaries have overcome difficulties.

VBSP officers always accompany the poor and other policy beneficiaries

One day in mid-June, we had the opportunity to participate in a transaction session of VBSP Mai Chau district at the Pa Co Commune Transaction Point. This is one of the communes in a particularly difficult area with over 600 Mong households. Ms. Mua Y So (in Cang hamlet) came to the Transaction Point at the Commune People's Committee to pay off a loan of VND 50 million without rolling over the debt or borrowing more capital because she could cover her living cost. A few years ago, her family only had 1 breeding cow and her main income came from more than 1 hectare of corn land. Recognizing the potential of breeding cows, Ms. So's family boldly borrowed VND 50 million from VBSP to buy another pair of breeding cows. With suitable grazing conditions and abundant food sources, the pair of cows grew quickly. Ms. So shared: "People here were still very poor in the past, luckily, thanks to the State loan, they were able to buy seedlings and livestock to raise and develop their economy. Now the cows and pigs have developed, their family have had stable incomes, so they could pay off all debts to the bank.

A few years ago, Ms. Sung Y Nong's family also boldly borrowed VND 50 million from VBSP to raise cows and made brocade. In the past, Ms. Nong's daily work was at the fields. Now, beeswax painting and brocade weaving are his jobs that bring stable income to her family. "Thanks to policy loans, my family has restored the brocade weaving profession to sell products abroad, gaining my income of VND 10-15 million each month" Ms. Nong shared. This was a high and stable income for Ms. Nong's family to improve her economy. Mr. Phang A Cha Vice - Chairman of the People's Committee of Pa Co Commune said: In recent years, with the attention of the Party and the State, the appearance of the countryside has become more and more prosperous and people's lives have been improved on a daily basis. In particular, policy credit has played an important role in poverty reduction in the commune. Preferential loans not only help many households get out of poverty but it also helps households enrich themselves with new economic development directions, such as: community tourism, growing tomatoes, Shan Tuyet tea, beans.

Currently, in Pa Co commune, there are over 400 households taking loans from VNSP to develop their economy and improve their quality of life. The positive transformation of the disadvantaged land of Pa Co is proof of the rise of many other rural areas in the province when policy credit has covered it. Mr. Nguyen Minh Hung - Director of VBSP Hoa Binh Provincial Branch said: Currently, the branch is implementing 20 policy credit programs. Directive 40-CT/TW has really created breakthroughs in the province. In the past 10 years, the entire branch has disbursed over VND 13,922 billion with more than 679 thousand poor households, near-poor households and other policy beneficiaries taking loans. To date, the total outstanding balance of policy credit programs has reached over VND 5 trillion, an increase of 1.7 times compared to before Directive No. 40-CT/TW. From policy capital sources, many poor households, near-poor households and other policy beneficiaries in Hoa Binh have had sufficient conditions to invest in economic development and sustainable poverty reduction. It can be affirmed that policy credit continues to be considered one of the important "pillars" in the system of poverty reduction policies in the province.

Viet Dao