Hanoi (VNA) – The NationalAssembly’s Council of Ethnic Affairs has proposed issuing a new set of criteriafor delimitation of ethnic minority and mountainous areas in service ofbettering the making of policies for the regions

During a conference held in Hanoi onDecember 26 to review the enforcement of the NA’s resolution on socio-economicdevelopment in ethnic minority and mountainous regions, the council reportedthat the political security, socio-economic situation and social safety andorder in ethnic minority and mountainous regions have been basically stable.

However, several localities faced difficultiesdue to natural disasters, flooding, climate change, drought and salineintrusion, particularly in Yen Bai, Lai Chau, Lao Cai, Son La and Mekong Deltalocalities.

Vice Chairman of the NA Council of EthnicAffairs Nguyen Lam Thanh said socio-economic programmes under the watch of thecouncil cost upwards of 4.5 trillion VND (200 million USD) this year, but disbursementreached only 46 percent as of September 2017.

NA deputy Dinh Duy Vuot from Gia Lai saidpolicies and projects in ethnic minority and mountainous regions overlap andare inappropriate for different ethnic groups and regions.

This year, the council oversaw a project to delineateethnic and mountainous regions according to development level, laying afoundation for issuing policies in line with the Law on State Budget, Law onInvestment and the Law on Organisation of Local Administration.

Concluding the event, NA Vice ChairwomanTong Thi Phong asked the council to continue offering feedback on povertyreduction policies, and effectively implement the Programme 135 on developing villages,hamlets and communes in difficult situations.

Ministries, agencies andlocalities were asked to work with the council and the Government’s Committeeon Ethnic Minority Affairs to monitor the implementation of ethnic minority policies.-VNA