| The National Program of Hunger Eradication and Poverty Reduction: Implementation agency: the Center of Job Services and Socio-economic Programs. Objectives: - To facilitate the poor and impoverished households to access to anti-poverty methods through cooperative groups, cooperatives and SMEs. To create jobs and incomes for the poor through development of off-farm jobs and diversification of jobs. To promote different kinds of premises, cooperatives and non-state SMEs, create and stabilize jobs and increase incomes for the employees particularly the poor. Location: nation-wide especially rural and mountainous and remote disadvantaged areas. Beneficiaries: the poor and poor households, communes and regions (the employees in cooperative groups, cooperatives and SMEs are given priorities) VCA Participatory Activities in the program Formulating and implementing the project: “Building the Marketing and Consumption Capacity for the Poor” which is aimed to help them out of poverty, increase income and improve living-standards. Formulating and implementing the project “ Development of off-farm jobs for the poor” which is aimed to create jobs, increase income for the poor and gradually eradicate hunger and alleviate poverty” Participating in formulating and implementing the prioritized credit policy for poverty stricken households, cooperative groups, cooperatives and SMEs. Participating in formulating and implementing the project related to the training of officers who are involved in the hunger eradication and poverty reduction programme. Back to top The National Fund for Employment Assistance · Implementation agency: the Center for Employment Promotion and Socio - economic programs. Objectives: the Fund has been established from the State Budget Account to lend to small-scale projects with prioritized interest rate. This Fund is aimed to bring all available recourses into full play, make the most of land, natural resources, machineries, equipment, plants, technology... to promote business production, create jobs and increase income for the employees. Beneficiaries: cooperatives, cooperative groups, joint-stock enterprises, private enterprises, limited-liability companies... (hereafter called business production bases) who are VCA members at the provinces and cities where the Fund is available. Usage: Purchasing plants and equipment, transportation and fishery products. Supplement the present limited funds and other expenses till the end of the harvest; purchasing materials, saplings and breedings. Credit limit: For a household, the lending is not over 10 million Vietnamese dong with the condition that an additional employee is used. For the business production bases, the lending is not over 300 million Vietnamese dong and another employee is used per not more than 10 million Vietnamese dong Interest rate: In principle, the interest rate is below that of commercial banks. The specific interest rate is determined by the Ministry of Finance in the consultation with the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affaires and the Ministry of Planning and Investment. The current interest rate is 0,5 %. · Procedures: Please contact with the Center for Employment Promotion and Socio -economic programs. Back to top The Program for vocational training for the employees in cooperative and SMEs sector in the period of 2001 - 2005 Implementation agency: The Center for Employment Promotion and Socio-economic program development. Objectives: Long-term objectives: to improve the quality of the labor force and to strengthen the production and business capacity for the premises, cooperatives and SMEs to contribute to the development of the labor force, the consolidation and promotion of non-agricultural jobs and the transformation of the rural economic structure into industrialization and modernization. Short-term objectives: to meet the demand of vocational training for the present employees and the annual newcomers to the labor market in VCA’s members. The yearly long-term formal training quota is between 1,000 to 2,000 while the short-term quota is between 30,000 to 50,000, which meets the targets of vocational training set by the government in the period 2001 - 2005. Scope of training: the Program is to be carried out in 5 years (2001 - 2005) nationwide and gives special prioritises to the localities where traditional occupations and villages exist. Types of Training: Vocational training: including new training and retraining. Improvement and Fostering Training. Trained occupations: Small-scale industrial products, handicrafts and fine-arts. Processing of agricultural products and foodstuffs. Services and businesses. Back to top The Program of Training, Fostering and Improvement for the officers in cooperative sectors (2002 - 2005): Implementation agency: the School for Cooperative and SME Officers and the Semi-public Technical Economics School, the Center for Enterprise Services and Support - a VCA member who is currently Vietnam Partner in a cooperation project between VCA - GTZ (Germany). Beneficiaries: The beneficiaries are the managers, chief accountant and chief of inspection. Overall objectives: gradually to standardize Cooperative Management and Executive Officers, which is a premise for the prolongation and stability of cooperative officers. Specific targets: To train the regulated number of cadres (around 5%) by the Ministry of Education and Training; To popularise policies and lines of the Government and State related to Cooperatives, Cooperative Law and new cooperative models to 100% of non-transitional cooperative managers. To give basic knowledge about cooperative and business management to 30% of cooperative directors, vice directors and their replacements. To provide annually 30% of Cooperative accountants with background accounting knowledge. To improve professional skills for 30% of cooperative inspectors every year. Back to top Cooperation Programs between Vietnam Cooperative Alliance and the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (Hanoi Office) in 2003 A. Propagandic activities to enhance awareness on cooperatives . Organizing 10 seminars on Cooperative development in the market economy - Place of seminars: in 10 provinces and cities of Vietnam - Objective: to enhance the public awareness on cooperatives, the nature and the organization of cooperatives, genuine cooperative models in the Socialist oriented market economy. b. Devising colloquy programs and reports on cooperatives broadcasted periodically on the Central Television Station. - Contents of propaganda: Cooperative principles, nature and values; Roles of cooperatives in the market economy; Experiences in establishment and development of genuine cooperatives, effective cooperative models, symbolic and advanced cooperatives; Good experiences in supporting and promoting cooperatives in localities. B. Programs to improve the organization and capacity of Cooperative Alliance from the Central level to the provincial level. a. Setting up a pool of researching experts to formulate a program on improvement of organization and capacity of Cooperative Alliance from the Central level to the provincial level. The program will define the targets, responsibilities, structure, solutions and measures to improve the organization and capacity of Central Cooperatives Alliance and Provincial Cooperative Alliances in the long and medium terms. b. Organizing training courses to improve the competence, knowledge and experiences of promotion and supervision officers in the Municipal and Provincial Cooperative Alliances. C. Program on Cooperative Audit. a. Continuing researches on cooperative audit. b. Organizing seminars, workshops on cooperative audit. c. Carrying out experimental audit in some primary cooperatives. d. Devising project of implementing cooperative audit in reality of Vietnam. e. Organizing training courses of cooperative auditor. D. Other Activities: a. Summarizing competition writing about cooperatives organized by the Enterprise Newspaper. b. Carrying out research on establishment of Credit Guarantee Funds for cooperatives. c. Publishing magazine of cooperative economy. d. Organizing seminars on special subjects like Environment Cooperatives in the traditional profession villages... Back to top |
ONGOING PROJECTS • Vietnam - Germany project of Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion. • The Project of Development of Organic Products to Support the Poor in Vietnam. • The Project of Cooperative Development in Northern Provinces of Vietnam. • The Projects of Micro-finance Renovation in Credit Cooperative. • The National Program of Hunger Eradication and Poverty Reduction. • The National Fund for Employment Assistance. • The Program for vocational training for the employees in cooperative and SMEs sector in the period of 2001 - 2005. • The Program of Training, Fostering and Improvement for the officers in cooperative sectors (2002 - 2005). • Cooperation Programs between Vietnam Cooperative Alliance and the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (Hanoi Office) in 2003 Vietnam - Germany project of Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion. Donor : German Government Project Partner : Vietnam Cooperative Alliance (VCA) Implementation Partners: - Business Promotion and Service Center (BPSC) - Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) - Directorate for Standards and Quality (STAMEQ). Starting time: October 1994. Objectives and Target Groups: The overall goal of the Project is to strengthen the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in particular and the Vietnamese private sector in general. To do so, the Project aims to promote business development services in the fields of management training and consulting, Internet-based information services, software and other IT services, quality control, environmental management and social and labour standards. The main beneficiaries of the Project are growth-oriented private small and medium-sized enterprises; i.e., enterprises with domestically and internationally potential competitiveness and job creation sustainability. * Activities of Project: - Provides Tailor made CEFE style training to entrepreneurs (Competency based Economies through Formation of Enterprises). - Internet-based information Services. - Export Promotion Services (tradefairs, exhibitions, trade promotion activities..) Back to top The Project of Development of Organic Products to Support the Poor in Vietnam Donor: the Netherlands Organisation for International Cooporation (NOVIB) Implementation agency: The Center of Cooperatives and Non-State Enterprise Development Support for.(?) Project Objectives: to support the poor, especially poor women for the benefit of creating jobs, increasing income, eradicating hunger and reducing poverty through expansion of production and marketing of organic products. On-going activities: Guilding the project beniciaries to define production standards and then select an efficient and appropriate mode of production. Providing the beniciaries with knowledge about technique and experience in organic products through training courses, seminars and group gatherings. Providing consultancy services to identify and solve dificulties in technique and organisational apparatus raising in the process of production. Support to furnish preliminary necessary materials to produce organic products. Helping the producers to set up and operate interior inspection groups to gain the harmonisation of quality in the process of production. Helping to find potential customers and markets for organic production. Back to top The Project of Cooperative Development in Northern Provinces of Vietnam Donor: KF Project Center -Swedish Cooperative Alliance. Implementation agency: The Vietnam Institute for Small-scaled Enterprises and Cooperatives (VISEC). Project Location: Thanh Hoa Province Objectives: Helping target cooperatives to be democratically and efficiently organised by legal procedures, which is the premise for the expansion of this model to other regions in Vietnam. Project phases: the Project is divided into 3 phases: Phase 1: organising training courses in organisation and management in target cooperatives. Phase 2: organising training course in cooperative development compaign at the local level. Phases 3: making appraisal and plans for the project in the next phase in other localities. Back to top The Projects of Micro-finance Renovation in Credit Cooperative Implementation agency: the Department of International Relations. Sponsor: the Asian Credit Cooperative Union (ACCU) Implemetation Period: From March 2002 to June 2002 in Hung Yen Province. From September 2002 to late 2003 in Thai Binh Province. Project Objectives: Increasing the awareness of the importance, significance and benefits of micro finance in the financial activities and daily life. Enabling the poor to access financial resources and guiding them to use the funds efficiently. Havested Results: 22 centers of Hung Yen Province Peoples Credit Fund and 456 self-help groups (from 5 to 7 members) have been established with the participation of 3,151 members and the mobilisation of 715,575,000 VND since the project’s debut. The members not only borrow from but also lend to the fund. By March 2002 the total lending of the 22 centers reached 362,500,000 VND of which 249,400,000 VND was reimbursed and 113,100,000 VND is the remainder. The activities of the 22 centers have been consolidated though the diversification of credits and lendings and the application of PEARLS in business appraisal. |