Sustainable Development and Ethnic Minority Poverty Reduction in Mountainous Regions

This is the topic of a three-day conference on “Sustainable Development and Ethnic Minority Poverty Reduction in Mountainous Regions” organised in Thai Nguyen province by the World Bank and Thai Nguyen University with the aim of discussing opportunities for sustainable poverty reduction in the region drawing from lessons of successful experiences in Vietnam and elsewhere. Participants included government officials at both central and provincial levels, researchers, business people, development partners and practitioners.

 

Vietnam’s record on economic growth and poverty reduction over the last two decades has been remarkable, with the poverty headcount falling from 58 percent in the early 1990s to 14.5 percent by 2008, and to an estimated 10 percent in 2010. Ethnic minorities constitute the bulk of the absolute poor in Vietnam. Hence, while ethnic minority poverty was only emerging as a concern in the late 1990s, it is becoming a central focus of the poverty dialogue today. 

 

The Northern Mountains, with high levels of poverty and low social development indicators, particularly among ethnic minority communities, are therefore at the centre of these discussions. “While ethnic minorities represent less than 15 percent of Vietnam’s population, they make up almost 50 percent of Vietnam’s poor,” says Victoria Kwakwa, the World Bank Country Director for Vietnam. “Achieving sustainable reduction in poverty in these communities will require a holistic approach with action across several challenges such as livelihoods and market linkages; natural resource management; and education and health in a more synergistic way.”