More disabled people gain access to supportive policies

People with disabilities join a music performance in the central province of Binh Dinh. (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) - The number of people accessing the State’s and community’s priority policies and programmes is increasing, said Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung.

Minister Dung was speaking at the anniversary to mark the International Day for Persons with Disability on December 3.

Vietnam has around 6.2 million people over the age of two with disabilities, making up 7.06 percent of the country’s population.

Of those, 28 percent are severely disabled, 58 percent female, 28 percent children and 10 percent living in poverty.

Most live in rural areas and many are victims of Agent Orange.

Minister Dung said the State, the Party and Vietnamese people have paid much care to persons with disability.

Vietnam ratified the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disability in 2014.

In March this year, the country ratified the International Labour Organisation’s Convention 159 about jobs for persons with disability.

It strongly confirmed Vietnam’s commitment to ensuring the disabled would not be discriminated at work.

In November, the Secretariat Committee issued Instruction 39 about the Party’s leadership of affairs related to people with disability. The National Assembly later ratified the amended Law on Labour with many adjustments relating to disabled people.

Minister Dung said that every year, millions of disabled people receive an allowance from the State and all of provinces and cities have rehabilitation centres.

Organisations for them have also been expanded.

This year, more than 17 trillion VND (735.4 million USD) from the State budget was allocated to provinces and cities to implement policies for people with disability, according to the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs./.