(VOV/VOVworld) - According to the National Target Program on Sustainable Poverty Reduction, 10% of poor districts, 50% of disadvantaged coastal and island communes and 30% of disadvantaged ethnic minorities and mountainous communes will see higher standards of living by 2015. Under the program which was announced today/Wednesday by the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, the National Ethnicity Committee, the UNDP and the Irish Embassy, the average income of poor families will increase by 1.6 times compared to 2011. Families in poor districts and communes and extremely disadvantaged ethnic minority and mountainous villages will be 2.5 times better off. The program will costs about 1.3 billion USD. Nguyen Trong Dam, Deputy Minister of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs says: "The program underlines the government’s resolution to reduce poverty levels by 2015. The funding has been approved by the National Assembly and the government. Of the total, 74% will come from the central budget and the rest from local budgets and other resources".

To mark the occasion, an Irish and UNDP funded program on poverty reduction was launched to help the 8 most disadvantaged localities. The project will generate more jobs for agricultural workers and provide more social support for disadvantaged groups.