On August 1, 2022, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chaired a Conference on promoting the development of social housing for workers and low-income people. The Conference was organized in hybrid mode, connecting from the Government’s Office to the People’s Committees of 19 cities and provinces.
An overview of the Conference
In his opening speech, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized that the Party and the State had initiated various housing programs for workers and low-income people. He shared that, currently, nearly 7.8 million sq. meters of social housing has been constructed, allowing hundreds of thousands of low-income households and hundreds of thousands of workers to improve their living conditions. This has been a remarkable achievement.
The Prime Minister expressed his hope that at this Conference, the leaders from the relevant Ministries, agencies, local authorities, as well as the construction businesses would clarify the existing shortcomings and difficulties faced by the social housing development projects, understanding the causes and coming up with feasible solutions.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh speaks at the Conference
Speaking at the Conference, Governor Nguyen Thi Hong of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) shared about several programs that the banking sector had been implementing over the past time. The Governor mentioned a support package of VND 30 trillion for social housing loans, which the banking sector had initiated in 2012 and the program ended in 2016, with the total loan amount of over VND 29 trillion. Currently, the loan outstanding of this package is only VND 7,200 billion. This had been a successful program, helping low-income people to have housing. She added that the banking sector had provided social housing loans in accordance with Decree No. 100/2015/ND-CP on the development and management of social housing. Moreover, the banking sector has determined to implement effectively the 2% interest rate support policy from the State budget, in which social housing projects or the construction of workers’ housing is one of the priority subjects of application.
Governor Nguyen Thi Hong speaks at the Conference
The SBV Governor said that, over the past time, the banking industry has been proactive and responsible for removing difficulties for the COVID-19 affected people and enterprises. Up to now, the amount of lending interest rate and banking fee reduction has reached nearly VND 50 trillion, with the resources of the credit institutions. Moreover, the banking sector has actively participated in the social security programs, supported the construction of housing for the poor, etc. Governor Nguyen Thi Hong asserted that the SBV would continue to manage the monetary policy in a flexible manner to focus credit on production and business activities, with special attention to the housing projects for workers and low-income people.
Toward the end of the Conference, the Prime Minister emphasized that the development of social housing for workers and low-income people is one of the key socio-economic development policies; it is the responsibility and obligation of the whole political system, all of the state management agencies, the businesses and the people.
The Government encourages all economic sectors to develop social housing in line with the market mechanism; besides, the Government has been issuing various support policies for social housing development projects, contributing to maintaining the political stability and the social security.
The Prime Minister requested the relevant Ministries, agencies and local authorities to pay more attention to the development of social housing in line with the overall growth of the residential property market. He also requested the local authorities to develop and implement their own social housing plans for different periods.
The relevant Ministries, agencies and the People's Committees of the cities and provinces are also required to make great efforts and drastic actions to promote social housing projects.
The Prime Minister also called for improved mechanisms and policies so that the development projects on social housing for workers and low-income people would be implemented effectively, etc.
Le Hang