Government leader appreciates NGOs' cooperation with VN
(11/19/2003 -- 18:11GMT+7)
Ha Noi, Nov. 19 (VNA) - "The Vietnamese government has appreciated international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) for their effective cooperation with and valuable assistance to Viet Nam's development process. Viet Nam will continue to create favourable conditions, including improving legal environment for NGOs' operation in Viet Nam," said Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan at an international conference on Viet Nam-NGO cooperation.
The three-day conference which opened in Ha Noi on Wednesday is being attended by 500 Vietnamese and international officials.
In his speech, Deputy PM Khoan noted that international NGOs, through their cooperation with Viet Nam, help foreign politicians and people acquire a better and correct understanding about the land, people and policies of Viet Nam.
The Government leader pointed out that international NGOs have made significant contributions in resolving economic and especially social issues throughout the country as well as providing practical assistance to the most needy regions and communities.
Speaking about how to create conditions for NGOs' effective operations, the Government leader asked the Committee for Foreign NGO Affairs, and relevant Ministries, agencies and sectors to review, revise and update relevant legal documents in a bid to simplify licensing and project approval procedures, including the approval of assistance. At the same time, Khoan stressed, supportive measures will be taken to improve the efficiency of cooperation mechanisms.
The Deputy PM asked international NGOs to pay attention to helping Viet Nam realise priority issues. They include making the land and people of Viet Nam better known to the people in the world, thus helping strengthen the friendship between Viet Nam and other countries and solicit more assistance to the country. Working with Vietnamese agencies and localities in designing and implementing practical projects that are in line with Viet Nam's socio-economic development priorities, including poverty reduction, job creation, the improvement of healthcare services, including the building of medical clinics in Ha Noi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang city, and Thua Thien-Hue, education, epidemic prevention, elimination of drugs and prostitution, environmental protection, disaster mitigation and overcoming the consequences of wars. Khoan recognised that Viet Nam and NGOs needed to gradually expand development assistance by introducing long-term and integrated projects with more sustained funding focused on capacity building for communities and officials involved in poverty reduction and development programmes. Strengthening the Government-NGO-people tripartile cooperation mechanism, and joining Viet Nam's efforts in soliciting world public opinion in support of the country, thus driving back wrongful and slanderous claims against the country were also important measures which need carrying-out.
Viet Nam has so far set up ties with 514 NGOs from 26 countries and territories in Europe, North America and the Asia-Pacific region. Of them, 400 NGOs have regularly embarked on cooperation programmes and projects with Vietnamese partners.
The partnership between Viet Nam and NGOs has expanded widely in diverse ways and in various areas, covering: rural development, community-based development, economic development assistance, social issues, healthcare, education, job creation, environmental protection and the sustainable management of natural resources, disaster mitigation, and overcoming the aftermath of wars.
According to incomplete statistics, international NGOs have over the past decade granted funding to 16,000 projects in Viet Nam, disbursing over 700 million USD. In recent years, NGOs' annual disbursement was above 80 million USD.
At the conference, participants will discuss issues relating to rural sustainable development, job generation and income increases, the resolution of social issues, assistance to small and medium-sized enterprises, and the improvement of the legal environment necessary for NGOs' operations. They will issue a joint statement instructing INGOs' future operation in Viet Nam.
The participants will visit a number of NGO-funded projects in Thai Nguyen, Quang Ninh and Hoa Binh provinces.
