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Laos: National Assembly session focusses on poverty reduction
By Lao News Agency
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12-14-06, 8:57 am
(KPL) -- Members of the National Assembly, on the second day session of the 2nd National Assembly meeting (Sixth Legislature), yesterday continued to share their concerns on the implementation of the the government's poverty reduction plan. The plan which has been implemented since 2000 was considered ineffectively implemented and is scheduled to continue to work until 2010.
During the day, the deputies concentrated all their efforts on discussing and considering the next five year plan on rural development and poverty reduction. They highlighted a number of points, both good and weak, and on a number of constraints that several localities and remote areas faced during the past few years. They said that a number of localities and remote areas have not had access to roads, the living condition of people there are still not improved, trade and production are not strongly promoted, the extension of educational opportunity has been limited, and dispensary and the supply of clean water have not been sufficiently provided.
The meeting also considered that the present situation of the development level between urban and rural areas are still different due to the investment for regional development and the GDP of the people in the respective regions are still not equal.
The deputies also said that 80% of the Lao population are still living in the remote areas and used agricultural production as their main work. They asked the government to enhance its policy and the mechanisms to support technical assistance and fund resources for rural development.
Mr Onneua Phommachanh, Minister to the Prime Minister’s office said that by 2010, poverty will have been alleviated in all poor districts, grouping small villages into larger villages. “The majority of village groups will be developed into small towns, focussing on rural areas where there are still various social problems that need to be completely resolved, as well as rural around the revolutionary base,” said Mr Onneua.
The National Committee for Planning and Investment said that in order to address the poverty problem, the government has established the poverty reduction fund in 2003 which use US$ 20 million of loan from the World Bank to solve the poverty problem in 47 poorest districts. Today, 1,250 agricultural production project to reduce poverty has been implemented in 21 districts of 5 provinces.
From Lao News Agency
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