President Tran Dai Quang presents gifts to poor people from An Giang province (Photo: vov.vn)

Launched in 1999, the program has become popular in society. Over the past 5 years, the Society has donated 10 million Tet gifts worth nearly 148 million USD to the needy people. President Tran Dai Quang praised the Society’s initiative and achievements, saying that the Vietnamese Party and State considers humanitarian policy implementation an important task. He suggested: “The Vietnam Red Cross Society needs to continue reform its operation and build a stronger organization to play a core role in humanitarian work for the poor and disadvantaged in remote, mountainous, and island areas. The Society needs to organize more widespread programs and movements to help needy people, contributing to implementing the Party and State’s welfare policy and activities of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.”

At the program, the Vietnam Red Cross Society and the National Humanitarian Information Portal 1400 launched a SMS campaign by texting TET and sending to 1409. Each SMS will donate 20,000 VND (nearly 1 USD) to the poor ahead of the Lunar New Year festival. The SMS campaign will run until February 24, 2018.