Further giving priority to balancing local State budget for policy credit

Not only focusing on economic development, the goal of “leaving no one behind” has also been implemented effectively by Binh Duong province through the local Social Policy Bank system. In fact, over the past 10 years of implementing the 11^th Party Central Committee’s Secretariat’s Directive No. 40-CT/TW dated November 22, 2014, on enhancing the Party’s leadership in social policy credit (briefly called Directive No. 40-CT/TW), Binh Duong has mobilized many resources to effectively achieve poverty reduction goals and improve the local people’s quality of life.

Credit capital on sharp increase

Under the Directive No. 40-CT/TW, all-level Party and authorities of the province have paid attention to allocating the local State budget resources entrusted to the Bank for Social Policies to provide loans for poor households and other policy beneficiaries. As of June 30, 2024, the local total credit capital reached over VND 4,733 billion, nearly 3.5 times higher compared to December 31, 2014. Of the total figure, the local State budget capital entrusted to the Bank for Social Policies was over VND 1,967.6 billion, an increase of nearly 30 times compared to December 31, 2014.

Nguyen Loc Ha, Member of provincial Party Standing Committee, Vice Chairman of provincial People's Committee awards the certificates of merit to outstanding collectives in implementing Directive No. 40-CT/TW

From the established loan sources, policy credit programs were effectively implemented, focusing on loans for employment creation, poor households, near-poor households, newly escaped poor households, supporting students with financial difficulty with study loans; clean water and rural sanitation program; loans for employers to pay wages during work stoppages, wages for production recovery, and social housing. Over the past 10 years, the total outstanding loans from policy credit was over VND 4,732.5 billion, with 84,008 clients having outstanding loans, an increase of 3.5 times compared to 2014.

Policy credit activities in the province have positively contributed to helping 27,497 households escape poverty; creating jobs for 227,166 workers; providing 9,844 students with loans to cover their study expenses; constructing and repairing 158,324 clean water and sanitation facilities; building or purchasing 778 social housing units; there have been 237 employers borrowing capital to pay wages during work stoppages and for production recovery, benefiting 124,103 workers…

Thanks to the local recommendation, Lu Dinh Dong from Tan Hung commune’s hamlet 1 in Bau Bang district was granted VND 50 million in loan from Bau Bang district’s transaction office of the Bank for Social Policies. Mr. Dong shared that with the loan from the Bank for Social Policies, he boldly invested in producing decorative wooden products. Currently, his products are very diverse and attractive, with steadily increasing orders each year. As a result, his family has a stable income.

Quality of policy credit improved

Over the past 10 years, in addition to the efforts of the Bank for Social Policies, the entrusted method combining the system of the Bank for Social Policies in the province with political-social organizations receiving trust, playing roles in social supervision and managing some tasks in the policy credit process, helping ensure that credit resources were delivered to the right beneficiaries in a timely and effective manner. This entrusted method also mobilized the collective strength of political-social organizations, community and society to join hands in supporting the poor and other policy beneficiaries. The entrusted activities from the system of the Bank for Social Policies in the province facilitated political-social organizations in gathering forces, increasing membership, enhancing both quantity and quality; improving the work of political-social organizations, and gaining support from the local authorities and people. As of April 30, 2024, entrusted political-social organizations managed 1,727 savings and loan groups across the province, with 84,203 members borrowing over VND 4,685.5 billion, the  average outstanding loan of VND 56 million per member.

Thanks to the loan from the Bank for Social Policies, Lu Dinh Dong from Bau Bang district’s Tan Hung commune has invested in producing decorative wooden products, bringing his family a stable resource of income

Possibly speaking,  with the support of the entire political-social system, policy credit was effectively implemented from urban areas to rural regions. The timely delivery of policy credit resources to the poor and other policy beneficiaries helped address fundamental issues in the lives of many households, expanded economic opportunities for numerous families and provided additional chances to escape poverty and improve their living standards and income.

To continue implementing Directive No. 40-CT/TW effectively, Hoang Minh Te, Deputy General Director of Vietnam Bank for Social Policies, has suggested all-level authorities of the province to further define goals and tasks, and allocate adequate and timely financial resources for policy credit. This should be done by integrating social policy credit programs into public investment decisions, national target programs and other programs, projects within the economic-social development plan for the period of 2021-2030. Provincial People's Committees should also direct the effective implementation of surveys to identify poor households, near-poor households, newly escaped poor households, households with average living standards, and beneficiaries of other credit policies as a basis for the Bank for Social Policies to provide loans…

Reported by Thanh Hong-Translated by Kim Tin