Policy credit creates momentum for local economic development

The road to Minh Hoa district, located in the northwest of Quang Binh province, bordering Laos, is far away but now much easier to travel than before. The road is not wide but is paved smoothly, bustling with all kinds of vehicles, making the feeling of emptiness often found in the forest area much less.

Nearly 20 years ago, the entire area of ​​about 1,400 square kilometers had only 20 kilometers of bumpy gravel roads, the rest were muddy dirt roads. The infrastructure was poor, the land was limited, about 50 thousand Kinh, Ba Na, Van Kieu, Chut,... people in the district had a very poor life, often clearing forests to make fields to make a living.

Faced with this situation, leaders at all levels and sectors are very concerned about finding ways to help the people of Minh Hoa escape poverty. With sustainable poverty reduction programs and projects, building new rural areas, especially with policy credit capital flowing in, Minh Hoa land and people have the opportunity to rise up. In Do - Ta Vong village, Trong Hoa commune, mainly inhabited by Bru - Van Kieu, Khua and May people, in previous years they mainly had to rely on monthly subsidies from the State. But recently, many households have boldly borrowed policy credit capital through the district's Social Policy Bank to develop livestock farming, grow hybrid acacia and cajuput trees.

Identifying the policy credit capital source through the Social Policy Bank as a preferential capital source with low and stable interest rates and long loan terms, the Poverty Reduction Steering Committee, local authorities, and the Party Committee of Trong Hoa commune have proactively directed the establishment of a Savings and Loan Group assigned to the Farmers' Association to manage as a bridge to transfer capital to ethnic minority households with plans and real needs for loans to create a "fishing rod" for them to rise up with their own internal strength.

The additional allocated capital is discussed publicly and democratically by the Savings and Loan Group and the village chief, with consideration of each household before and after, ensuring that the borrowing needs of the people are met.

Up to now, 40 out of 86 households in the village have borrowed more than 1.4 billion VND from the Social Policy Bank, accounting for 46.5% of the total households. Most of the people who borrowed capital have promoted it very effectively. People are very conscious in using the loan capital, fulfilling their obligations to the State in terms of debt repayment and interest payment, and there are no cases of overdue loans.

For example, Mr. Ho Khien's household borrowed capital from two credit programs with the amount of 150 million VND to raise cows and grow hybrid acacia trees. Every year, the income from selling cows also brings the family an income of 25-30 million VND,...

Many households boldly borrow policy capital to develop production and escape poverty sustainably.

In the coastal area of ​​Quang Binh, there are four particularly difficult communes located in the coastal plains, namely Phu Hoa, Lien Trach, Ngu Thuy Bac and Ngu Thuy, which have been relying on resources from the national target program for sustainable poverty reduction, including many policy credit programs for direct investment in poor, near-poor and newly escaped-poverty households.

Typically, in Phu Hoa commune (Quang Trach district), thanks to tens of billions of dong in timely investment incentives, the poverty rate has decreased to 5.74%, and the near-poor rate has decreased to 4.42%.

Capital from the Social Policy Bank of Quang Trach district also serves as a "support" to help people diversify their livelihoods, implement models of breeding crossbred cows and raising crossbred chickens, worth hundreds of millions of dong.

In the particularly disadvantaged commune of Lien Trach (Bo Trach district), which is often faced with natural disasters and storms and floods, to reduce multidimensional poverty sustainably, the commune focuses on planting, caring for and protecting forests. This is a stable livelihood, creating jobs for hundreds of local workers.

In particular, in this commune, there are about 400 workers working abroad, bringing high income to each family. Every year, the commune has 30-40 workers participating in using policy credit loans to export labor to Korea, Japan, Taiwan (China), ...

This is the result of in-depth investment by the Social Policy Bank of Bo Trach district, motivating poor people in particularly disadvantaged coastal communes to improve their lives and enrich themselves legitimately.

Loans from the Bank for Social Policies are invested in the right beneficiaries and borrowers and used for the right purposes and effectively, actively contributing to the poverty reduction goal of Quang Binh.

Specifically, from the end of 2019 to March 2025, policy loans have helped more than 9,237 poor households, 12,975 near-poor households, and 18,659 newly escaped-poverty households borrow capital to invest in production and business; attract and create jobs for more than 37,000 workers; 2,900 students borrow capital to study; build more than 141,000 clean water and environmental sanitation works in rural areas; build more than 2,400 houses for poor households and policy beneficiaries; help 263 people who have completed their prison sentences borrow capital for production, business, and reintegration into the community;...

The poverty rate of the whole Quang Binh province has decreased from 6.98% (in 2019) to 3.13% (in 2024). Chairman of the Quang Binh Provincial People's Committee Tran Phong affirmed that this result has the participation of the entire political system, in which the Social Policy Bank has made an important and very effective contribution.

Director of the Social Policy Bank of Quang Binh province, Tran Van Tai, said that after 22 years of operation, from receiving a small capital handover (VND 200 billion), the branch's total capital has now reached nearly VND 5,769 billion, an increase of nearly 30 times compared to the first day of establishment, of which the capital entrusted from the local budget reached VND 294.6 billion, an increase of VND 238.9 billion compared to 2019.

In the past 5 years alone, the bank has implemented 21 credit programs, achieving loan turnover of VND 8,419 billion, with 162 thousand customers borrowing capital.

Information on policy credit is publicly posted at commune transaction points.

Along with capital mobilization, the Social Policy Bank of Quang Binh province has successfully built an organizational model and a specific credit management method that is effective and suitable to the practical conditions of the locality, closely linking policy loans with four parties: "Bank, government, unions, Savings and Loan Groups" to help people. Unions and unions at all levels are participating in managing VND 5,691 billion, accounting for 99.9% of the total outstanding policy credit.

In particular, the regular consolidation and improvement of the quality of Savings and Loan Groups, considered as the "extended arm" of the Social Policy Bank in implementing policy credit, has contributed significantly to the rapid and safe transfer of preferential capital to the right beneficiaries.

Recently, the Social Policy Bank of Quang Binh province has also promoted the emulation movement "the whole country joins hands for the poor - leaving no one behind".

Specifically, the branch focuses on human and capital resources to effectively implement policy credit programs, striving to meet 100% of loans for poor households and other policy beneficiaries who have the need and are eligible for loans.

Along with that, responding to the emulation movement "joining hands to eliminate temporary and dilapidated houses nationwide in 2025" launched by the Prime Minister and the People's Committee of Quang Binh province, the branch supported funding to eliminate temporary and dilapidated houses for 9 poor households with housing difficulties with an amount of 95 million VND.

The Social Policy Bank of Quang Binh province proactively entered a new phase by focusing on mobilizing resources and capital, organizing timely and safe transmission of capital to the right addresses and beneficiaries; consolidating the entrusted activities of associations and unions; propagating the Party and State's policies and guidelines on policy credit to all classes of people,... improving the effectiveness of social policy credit, firmly affirming its role as a bright spot and pillar in the cause of sustainable poverty reduction and new rural construction.

Source: https://nhandan.vn/tin-dung-chinh-sach-tao-luc-day-phat-trien-kinh-te-dia-phuong-post874321.html