After five years of implementing the National Target Program (NTP) for socio-economic development in ethnic minority and mountainous areas for the 2021-2025 period, localities across Gia Lai have recorded marked progress, with living standards among ethnic minority communities.
Reporters from Gia Lai Newspaper and Radio & Television spoke with Mr. Trần Văn Thanh, Deputy Director of the Department of Ethnic and Religious Affairs, about key achievements and future directions.
* Mr. Thanh, during the 2021–2025 period, what have been the most notable outcomes of the National Target Program for socio-economic development in ethnic minority and mountainous areas?
Mr. Trần Văn Thanh. Photo: NVCC
- During the 2021–2025 period, the National Target Program has delivered comprehensive and far-reaching changes across rural, mountainous, and disadvantaged areas.
The program has contributed to restructuring the local economy towards sustainability, supporting poverty reduction, and improving both material and spiritual living standards for residents.
The total state budget allocated to Gia Lai province for implementing the program exceeded VND 4,302 billion (approximately USD 176 million).
With these resources, authorities provided residential land for 234 households, housing support for 3,070 households, vocational transition assistance for 6,109 households, and decentralized clean water access for 9,505 households.
In addition, 19 centralized water supply projects were built, alongside investment in 21 projects for planning, resettlement, and population stabilization.
The program also included forest protection contracts covering 506,662 hectares, support for 513 livelihood diversification projects benefiting 8,146 households, investment in 535 rural transport projects, and maintenance of 268 infrastructure facilities, among other initiatives.
As a result, the poverty rate among ethnic minority households has declined by more than 4% annually. All communes now have asphalt or concrete roads leading to their centers; schools and health stations are solidly constructed and fully equipped; and every hamlet and village has a community cultural house. These outcomes have laid a strong foundation for sustainable development.
* During implementation, how has the NTP impacted the awareness and self-reliance of local people?
- Beyond tangible material support, the program has driven a clear shift in mindset and self-reliance among ethnic minority communities.
Through access to support policies and direct participation in projects, residents have gradually moved away from dependency and passivity towards greater initiative in economic development.
Many households have actively applied scientific and technological advances, shifted to crops and livestock better suited to local conditions, established production linkages, joined cooperatives and associations, and adopted a more market-oriented production approach.
More importantly, the program has strengthened the spirit of self-reliance and resilience, reinforced trust in ethnic policies, and created a solid platform for sustainable development in the next phase.
That said, challenges remain. Ethnic minority areas are extensive, with dispersed populations, difficult transport conditions, and linguistic and cultural differences that complicate communication and mobilisation. In some localities, implementation of sub-projects has been slow, disbursement rates remain low, regulatory obstacles persist, and beneficiary lists do not always fully reflect actual needs.
Thanks to funding from the National Target Program, students at Canh Liên Semi-Boarding School for Ethnic Minorities (Canh Liên commune) can study and live in spacious, clean dormitories. Photo: D.Đ
* On December 11, 2025, the National Assembly issued Resolution No. 257/2025/QH15 to integrate three National Target Programs into a single comprehensive program. How do you assess this decision?
- I consider the National Assembly’s Resolution No. 257/2025/QH15, which integrates the three National Target Programs into one unified framework for the 2026–2035 period, to be a strategic, breakthrough, and timely move.
Previously, the separate implementation of these programs led to fragmentation and overlap in objectives, policies, and resource allocation, reducing overall effectiveness. Integration will help unify goals, concentrate resources, and narrow development gaps between regions—particularly in ethnic minority and mountainous areas, which remain the country’s core poverty zones.
The integrated program will follow clear guiding principles: enriching the people, strengthening the nation, and ensuring a prosperous and happy life for all. Importantly, existing policies will not be reduced. Instead, investment will be more sharply focused on ethnic minority and mountainous areas, prioritising projects with direct impacts on livelihoods, infrastructure, education, healthcare, and daily life.
This presents a major opportunity for the program to act as a lever for improving quality of life, strengthening public trust, and promoting innovation in governance and the effective use of public investment.
* What key lessons should be carried forward to ensure the program’s effectiveness in the 2026–2035 period?
- To maximise the effectiveness of the program in 2026–2035, the Government and relevant ministries need to further refine mechanisms and policies to ensure coherence and practicality, streamline administrative procedures, and allocate resources in a more focused manner. Priority should be given to projects that deliver direct and long-term benefits to people’s livelihoods and living conditions.
At the same time, beneficiary localities should strengthen the capacity of grassroots officials, enhance inter-sectoral coordination, and promote the role of communities and residents as central actors in project implementation. This is a decisive factor in ensuring depth, sustainability, and lasting impact.
With the National Assembly’s strong policy direction and the determined involvement of the entire political system, I am confident that the 2026-2035 National Target Program will generate more substantial changes in ethnic minority and mountainous areas, steadily improving quality of life and further strengthening public trust in the Party and the State.
Pham Thi Tam Anh, a 12th-grade English major at Hung Vuong High School for the Gifted in Gia Lai province, has won a consolation prize in Literature at the 2025–2026 National Excellent Student Competition, marking her third consecutive year on Vietnam’s national honor roll for the subject.
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Quy Nhon University on January 22 convened a high-level discussion on adopting English as a second language across its academic programmes, bringing together university leaders, lecturers, students and senior specialists from the University of New South Wales (Australia).
Young members of the Communist Party are taking on expanded responsibilities at the grassroots level, spearheading legal education, community support and cultural preservation initiatives across several localities, according to local Youth Union officials.
Gia Lai Province’s Vice Chairman Lâm Hải Giang on January 21 urged contractors and relevant agencies to accelerate construction of a multi-level boarding school project spanning seven border communes, insisting the work must be completed by July 30.
The provincial Science and Engineering Fair for secondary students, held from January 13–15 by the Department of Education and Training (DOET), showcased 120 projects from 235 students, reaffirming growing interest in scientific research across schools in Gia Lai Province.
Specialists from Ho Chi Minh City University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital on January 19 piloted endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) for patients at Hoang Anh Gia Lai University Medical Center in Hoi Phu Ward.
Gia Lai recorded a strong performance at Vietnam’s 2025-2026 National Excellent Student Selection Exam, with 120 of its 178 participating students winning awards across nine subjects, according to the provincial Department of Education and Training.
Gia Lai province has rolled out a broad package of grassroots healthcare measures under Project 7, a 2021–2025 initiative aimed at improving physical fitness and stature among ethnic minorities while preventing child malnutrition, local health officials said.
Spas and beauty clinics across central Vietnam are reporting a sharp rise in customers as women accelerate skincare and cosmetic treatments ahead of the Lunar New Year. Many facilities in Pleiku, Quy Nhon and nearby areas are extending opening hours and requiring advance bookings to meet demand.
The Quy Nhon Youth Club has begun providing home-based tutoring and financial support to disadvantaged children in Quy Nhon Ward, offering targeted assistance to families facing severe hardship.
More than 1,300 12th-grade students from Vietnam’s Gia Lai province participated in a technology project experience event on January 18 at FPT University’s Quy Nhon campus, where they explored student-developed innovations and learned about career pathways in the digital era.
A seminar aimed at improving mathematics teaching competencies for secondary school educators was held on January 18 at Asia Pacific International School Gia Lai (APC Gia Lai), bringing together more than 100 teachers from across the province.
Gladiolus growers in western Gia Lai are growing increasingly anxious as prolonged cold weather threatens to delay flowering just weeks before the Lunar New Year, a critical sales period for the ornamental crop.
The Youth Union of Gia Lai Power Company has delivered a “Lighting Up Rural Roads” project to residents of Duc Hung hamlet in Ia Nan commune, installing 15 solar-powered streetlights valued at 22.5 million VND (approximately USD 915).
A small coffee shop in Gia Lai province is attracting growing attention from young people with a non-profit consignment corner for handmade products, offering artisans a sales platform while giving customers a distinctive cultural experience.
Gia Lai province is intensifying efforts to send local workers abroad under contract, aiming to improve employment, raise incomes and enhance workforce quality, as it targets dispatching about 2,000 workers overseas in 2026.
More than 4,000 high school students in Gia Lai province took part in a university admissions and career counseling programme for the 2026 intake, held on January 11 at Hung Vuong High School for the Gifted in Dien Hong Ward.
A science centre in Vietnam’s Central Highlands has launched a trial of a locally designed wind tunnel model, giving visitors a rare, hands-on view of the aerodynamic principles underpinning modern aerospace technology.
Tuy Phuoc Commune in Gia Lai province on December 25 handed over a newly built house to a local resident, marking the first completed home under the “Quang Trung Campaign,” local authorities said.
Traffic police across Gia Lai province are tightening enforcement against six major categories of violations identified as leading causes of traffic accidents, a strategy authorities say is improving road safety and public compliance with traffic laws.
A section of Trần Hưng Đạo Street running in front of the Hồ Chí Minh Statue with the Ethnic Groups of the Central Highlands at Dai Doan Ket Square, Pleiku Ward, Gia Lai Province, has been opened to traffic around the clock.
The Gia Lai Provincial Youth Union has launched a coordinated campaign to support the construction and repair of homes for young people and disadvantaged households affected by severe storms and floods, mobilizing financial aid, volunteer labor and social resources.
