Socio-economic development program for ethnic minority areas: Prioritizing urgent issues

In 2025, the province will prioritize solving urgent issues to promote sustainable development of ethnic minority areas.

Outstanding results

In 2024, the National Target Program for Socio -Economic Development of Ethnic Minority and Mountainous Areas in the province set out 26 important targets. By the end of 2024, 23 targets had met the set plan. One of the outstanding targets was the rate of households using the national grid and other suitable power sources reaching 99.99%.

In Gia Lai , the rate of households using the national grid and other suitable power sources reaches 99.99%. **Photo: Ha Duy**

Mr. Pham Anh Cuong - Head of Technical Department (Gia Lai Electricity Company) said: "To meet the electricity needs of people in remote communes, resettlement areas, the Company coordinates with local authorities to grasp the electricity needs to promptly invest in bringing electricity to people's homes. In addition, the Company also inspects and repairs degraded power lines, instructs people on how to use electricity properly to ensure safe and stable power supply. With electricity, the appearance of ethnic minority areas has also completely changed. People have more conditions to develop their family economy, improve their material and spiritual life, and contribute to ensuring security and order in the locality".

In addition, with the effective integration of capital from national target programs and the mobilization of non-budgetary resources in the form of "State and People working together", up to now, the rate of villages and hamlets with paved roads to the center has reached 99.92%. In Klăh 1 village (Ia Der commune, Ia Grai district), 100% of the roads in the village have been asphalted and concreted.

Mr. Rơmah Blot shared: “The village has 150 households, of which 90% are ethnic minorities. When being propagandized and mobilized, people all agreed to donate land to build roads. From dirt roads about 5 m wide, villagers voluntarily moved the fences to each side about 1.5 m more to build concrete roads, spacious asphalt roads, making it easier for people to travel and transport agricultural products.”

Another important target that Gia Lai achieved last year was reducing the poverty rate among ethnic minorities to 4.39%, exceeding the target by 1.39%. This is an impressive result after the tireless efforts of authorities from the provincial to the grassroots levels. In Krong Pa district, the poverty rate reduction in 2024 was 3.49% (exceeding 0.49%); of which, the poverty rate reduction among ethnic minorities was 4.82% (exceeding the target by 0.43%).

This result was achieved thanks to nearly 50 projects supporting the development of community livestock production under the National Target Program on Socio-Economic Development in Ethnic Minority and Mountainous Areas, with nearly 480 poor and near-poor households benefiting.

Mr. Nguyen Tien Dang - Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Krong Pa district - said: "In the past time, the district has proactively implemented projects and sub-projects under the program in a timely manner and integrated resources to support people in economic development, gradually rising out of poverty".

In addition to the economic sector, cultural and social indicators also achieved results such as: the rate of solidly built schools and classrooms reached 94.5%; the rate of ethnic minorities using hygienic water reached 97.7%; the rate of ethnic minorities watching television reached 100%; the rate of 5-year-old kindergarten students going to school reached 98.2%; the rate of primary school age students reached 97.1%; the rate of secondary school age students reached 93.4%; the rate of people aged 15 and over who can read and write fluently in Mandarin reached 84.2%; the rate of ethnic minorities participating in health insurance reached 90%; the rate of villages with community houses reached 97.8%...

Promoting economic development in ethnic minority areas

Road construction in Mrong Yo 1 village, Ia Ka commune, Chu Pah district. **Photo: NH**

On March 6, Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Duong Mah Tiep signed and issued Plan No. 514/KH-UBND on the implementation of the National Target Program on Socio-Economic Development in Ethnic Minority and Mountainous Areas in the province in 2025. The plan assigns specific responsibilities to each agency, unit, and locality for each task and component content of the program; at the same time, focuses on coordination, inspection, supervision, guidance, and urging of implementation to ensure progress; effectively promote resources in implementation.

Accordingly, in addition to other regular support activities, in 2025, there are a number of urgent contents that are prioritized for implementation. First of all, it is to support the promotion of business start-ups, startups and investment attraction in ethnic minority and mountainous areas (content 3, Sub-project 2, Project 3). In particular, with the task of organizing investment attraction activities, fairs, promoting and consuming products, the Provincial People's Committee assigned the Department of Ethnic Minorities and Religions to organize 5 training courses on related contents; the Provincial Farmers' Association organized 1 agricultural market and 3 training courses on promoting product consumption; the Provincial Youth Union organized 1 program to promote and introduce start-up products of ethnic minority youth and commended exemplary start-up youth in ethnic minority areas; the Cooperative Union organized 2 training courses on investment attraction activities, fairs, promoting and consuming products; The Department of Industry and Trade organized 1 fair and 2 market sessions to introduce products from ethnic minority and mountainous areas.

In 2025, Gia Lai will focus on promoting business start-ups, product promotion, and connecting consumption for people in ethnic minority and mountainous areas. **Photo: Ha Duy**

Regarding the work of supporting the construction of startup and business start-up models, in 2025, Chu Pah district will support 1 model; Mang Yang district will support 5 models, and Phu Thien district will support 1 model.

According to Ms. Nguyen Thi Bich Thu - Director of the Center for Industrial Promotion and Trade Promotion (Department of Industry and Trade): Organizing the introduction of products of ethnic minority and mountainous areas will help people get acquainted with business activities, thereby becoming more confident in economic development. At the same time, it will help businesses, cooperatives, and production and business households promote and connect the consumption of typical products and agricultural products of ethnic minority areas to customers.

In order for the plan to be effectively implemented, the Provincial People's Committee requires strengthening the mobilization of non-budgetary resources and enterprises to participate in support and investment projects of the National Target Program for Socio-Economic Development in Ethnic Minority and Mountainous Areas; effectively using policy credit capital; integrating with the implementation of the National Target Program for Sustainable Poverty Reduction, the National Target Program for New Rural Development and other programs and projects.

In particular, focus on training and improving the capacity of cadres working on ethnic affairs and cadres working on poverty reduction at district and commune levels; training and improving the capacity of the community in applying new knowledge and new techniques to develop production, suitable for ethnic minority and mountainous areas; promoting the role of prestigious people, the ability to participate, monitor and evaluate of the community.