USD21 million project to enhance rights of disabled people in Vietnam

The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs has just approved a USD21 million project to help local disabled people with support from the US Agency for International Development.

The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs has just approved a USD21 million project to help local disabled people with support from the US Agency for International Development.

Disabled people at a timber factory in Thua Thien-Hue Province.

The project will be carried out in five years in some provinces including Thai Binh, Thua Thien-Hue, Quang Nam, Binh Dinh, Binh Phuoc, Tay Ninh and Dong Nai.

The project will focus on realising policies, building legal support and communication programmes to assist the disabled community.

Programmes and organisations operating for the sake of disabled people will also be supported by the project.

The project will also pay for improving medical treatment for the disabled and help them better integrate with society.

The total investment of the project is USD 21.2 million, including USD 21 million in ODA loans and USD 0.2 million of Vietnam's counterpart capital.

Statistics from the ministry showed that by June 2015, there are approximately seven million disabled people in Vietnam, accounting for 7.8 per cent of the total population.