VN presentation 1

Viet Nam’s National Targeted Poverty Reduction Programme

Through a Gender Lens

Nicola Jones (ODI) and

Tran Thi Van Anh (IFGS)

VN presentation 2

Type of instrument

Selected Social Protection Instruments in Viet Nam

Social assistance programmes

National Targeted Programme for Poverty Reduction; Programme 135 for improving infrastructure in ethnic minority communities

Pensions for the elderly Social insurance schemes

Health insurance programme which covers all children under the age of six as well as all households below the poverty line

Various commercial and non-profit micro-

insurance schemes Social welfare programmes

Programmes targeted at child protection and

gender-based violence

Social equity measures

2007 Gender Equality Law;

2007 Law on Domestic Violence

VN presentation 3

Gender Insensitive NTPPR

The NTPPR seeks to help poor households and communities through a comprehensive package of support. Access to credit, basic services, agricultural extension services,

land holdings and legal aid, school fee exemptions, vocational training and health insurance

However, NTPPR pays little attention to the gendered nature of poverty and vulnerability.

There are also no gender-specific targets or measurable outcomes, nor any specific provisions for gender training for programme implementers

VN presentation 4

Meets some practical gender needsHealth insurance card is extremely valuable

-Conserve scare resources - Reduces the amount of time women need to be absent from paid work to tend to ill children- Seek health professionals’ advice regarding reproductive health issues

School fee exemption scheme was similarly important

- Allow many children to remain in school for longer, but other barriers remained (costs of clothing, transportation, and the loss of children’s labour)

VN presentation 5

Meets some practical gender needs

- Investment in roads and electricity

- Improve women’s and men’s access to health clinics, schools and markets

- Access to credit Women’s Union stepping as an intermediary for poor women

- Economic empowerment- Enhancing women’s domestic decision-making power

VN presentation 6

But limited impactsLack of a dedicated nutrition component

- Limited inroads into reducing the pockets of food insecurity

- Malnutrition among girls and boys especially in highland communities

Language barriers and other social risks

- Ethnic minority women encounter barriers in accessing market, training and community participation- Positive spill-over effects on intra-household violence appear to have been minimal.

VN presentation 7

Challenges• Coordination between line ministries is

hampered by programme fragmentation and implementation overlap

• MOLISA, mandated with addressing gender inequalities, is under-resourced and lacks the institutional positioning to ensure gender is integrated across sectors, including social protection

VN presentation 8

Challenges (cont)• Lack of gender disaggregated data and practical

training on gender mainstreaming;• Inadequate accountability mechanisms• Under-recognition by senior political leaders of

potential for gender equality to contribute to developmental/ poverty reduction goals

• Relatively weak civil society has rendered civic oversight largely ineffective

VN presentation 9

Policy Implications• Ensure gender differences in economic and

social risks and intersection with ethnicity are adequately reflected in the design of key programme and sector documents

• Ensure food security and agricultural productivity remain core objectives of poverty reduction approaches

VN presentation 10

Policy Implications (cont)• Identify a lead agency to ensure gender is

adequately integrated and synergies maximised

• Promote routine use of gender-disaggregated data in poverty reduction and social protection programme reporting

• Ensure sufficient funding to support this process and related capacity strengthening for staff