Program 1719 Effectiveness

With the motto "doing it well, prioritizing difficult areas first", the National Target Program on Socio-Economic Development of Ethnic Minority and Mountainous Areas for the 2021-2025 period (Program 1719) has brought about practical results, changing the face of ethnic minority areas.

As one of two localities in Lao Cai province to receive a Certificate of Merit from the Prime Minister for its outstanding achievements in implementing Program 1719. Previously, Thac Tien village faced many difficulties, but thanks to the effective implementation of Program 1719, it has contributed to changing people's lives. Now, the whole village with more than 230 households has a well-off life; the whole village has only 4 poor households (basically due to illness and disease, unable to work). Village roads and alleys are all concreted, most households in the village have built spacious houses.

Mr. La Tai Quan's family owns 50 hectares of cinnamon, selling for 2 - 3 billion VND each year.

“Before, I didn’t care about economic development so poverty haunted me forever, but since I learned to grow cinnamon, my life has become more prosperous and happier,” Mr. Quan shared.

Not only Mr. Quan, most of the villagers grow cinnamon, small households have 1 - 2 hectares, large households have 50 - 100 hectares; typical households are Dang Nho Quyen, Dang Nho Vuong..., earning billions of dong every year.

In the new, spacious wooden house, Mr. Giang A Sinh in Tau Duoi village, Tram Tau commune could not hide his joy. The house cost more than 250 million VND, of which 60 million VND was supported by the National Target Program and the province's support; 40 million VND was borrowed from the Social Policy Bank according to Decree No. 28 of the Government ; and relatives supported money and materials worth 150 million VND. The house was certainly built according to the correct standards, in accordance with the traditions of the Mong ethnic group.

"I am very happy and excited! Having a new, spacious place to live will be a great motivation for my family to confidently develop the economy and soon escape poverty," Mr. Sinh shared.

Since the implementation of Program 1719, Lao Cai has promptly completed its leadership and management apparatus, and issued appropriate mechanisms and policies in a timely manner. Lao Cai is one of the leading provinces in proactively building policy frameworks and innovative approaches to meet practical requirements.

After nearly 5 years, the province has achieved many outstanding results: the rate of poor ethnic minority households has decreased by an average of 6.35%/year, exceeding the target assigned by the Central Government; the average income of ethnic minority areas is over 33 million VND/person/year, more than 2 times higher than at the beginning of the period; essential infrastructure has been significantly improved (100% of communes have car roads to the center, 99% of households have electricity, 93% of households have clean water). In particular, Lao Cai has completed the goal of eliminating temporary and dilapidated houses 6 months ahead of schedule with 14,438 new, solid and spacious houses.

Along with infrastructure development, the province also focuses on investing in education, considering it the “key” to sustainable poverty reduction. Currently, the province has 17 ethnic boarding schools, 175 semi-boarding schools, and 147 secondary schools with semi-boarding students; many schools have been invested in modernly, becoming quality educational centers in the highlands. Nearly 8,000 people have been educated in the recent period.

The above results show the clear effectiveness of combining the resources of Program 1719 with local education policies. Visiting Bac Ha Boarding Secondary and High School for Ethnic Minorities, it is easy to see the spaciousness of the classrooms and dormitories. Nutritious meals and new books have become the motivation to encourage students in the highlands to nurture their dreams.

During the implementation process, Lao Cai has drawn many valuable lessons. Firstly, it must be public, transparent, and have people's supervision to ensure that policies reach the right people.

Second, being flexible in approach, instead of just relying on public land fund, the province has switched to supporting "legalization" of land use rights right at the existing place of residence, helping thousands of households live in peace.

Third, diversify the domestic water supply model to suit each terrain: Low-lying areas have centralized works, high-lying areas use scattered tanks, and stream areas install pipelines.

Fourth, promote the role of the community in managing and operating the project, reduce maintenance costs, create solidarity and shared responsibility.

The results achieved in the 1719 Program in Lao Cai are not only numbers and projects, but also changes in the thinking and beliefs of ethnic minorities. The results and lessons learned will be an important foundation for Lao Cai to enter the 2026 - 2030 period with greater determination, mobilizing more resources, striving to basically have no more poor households by 2030.

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/hieu-qua-chuong-trinh-1719-post881685.html