Impact Assessment of Poverty Reduction Programs of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam

Do, Thu Trang and Le, Hai Chau and Nguyen, Viet Cuong and Nguyen, Hong Thuy and Phung, Thanh Thu and Phung, Duc Tung (2013): Impact Assessment of Poverty Reduction Programs of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam.

Abstract

The main purpose of this report is to measure the impact of poverty reduction programs and policies of Ho Chi Minh City – the biggest city in Vietnam - in the period 2009-2013 using both quantitative and quality methods. In general, poverty reduction programs have positive impacts on living conditions of poor households. Having access to these programs enables poor/near-poor households to increase income and have better access to decent jobs. In addition, tuition-fee reduction and exemption and health insurance programs help households reduce education and medical expenses. However, there are a number of problems such as limited support fund and poor awareness of the poor/near-poor about the vocational training, unreasonable support mechanism and inconsistency in line departments’ coordination.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Poverty reduction programs, impact evaluation, household surveys, Vietnam
• Subjects: I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I3 - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty; O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development; O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O2 - Development Planning and Policy

References

Bùi, T. Nguyen, C., and Nguyen, H. (2013), “Impact of Education Support Programs on Children’s Enrolment”, Unpublished paper.

Heckman, J., R. Lalonde and J. Smith. 1999. "The Economics and Econometrics of Active Labor Market Programs", Handbook of Labor Economics 3, Ashenfelter, A. and D. Card, eds., Amsterdam: Elsevier Science.

Imbens, Guido W., Thomas Lemieux (2008), “Regression discontinuity designs: A guide to practice”, Journal of Econometrics, 142(2), 615-635.

Lê, V. T. (2006), Cơ sở khoa học và thực tiễn xác định chuẩn nghèo ở Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh.

Nguyen, V. C., Vu, H. L., and Nguyen, T. (2012), “Urban Poverty in Vietnam: Determinants and Policy Implications”, with Vu Hoang Linh and Nguyen Thang, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 12(2), pages 110-139

Nguyen, C. 2012. "The Impact Of Voluntary Health Insurance On Health Care Utilization And Out‐Of‐Pocket Payments: New Evidence for Vietnam," Health Economics, 21(8), pages 946-966, 08.

Nguyen, V. C. (2011), “Estimation of the Impact of Rural Roads on Household Welfare in Vietnam”, Asia-Pacific Development Journal, 18(2), 105-135.

Nguyen, V. C., (2008), “Is a Governmental Micro-Credit Program for the Poor Really Pro-Poor: Evidence from Vietnam”, The Developing Economies, Vol. XLVI-2, pp. 151-187.

Oxfam and ActionAid Vietnam (2012), “Participatory Monitoring of Urban Poverty in Vietnam.” Synthesis Report 2012.

Phung, T., Westbrook, M., Nguyen, C. (2013), “Do the Poorest Ethnic Minorities Benefit from a Large-Scale Poverty Reduction Program? Evidence from Vietnam”, Paper presented in workshop “Poverty Reduction in Asia: Drivers, Best Practices and Policy Initiatives”, The ADB, in collaboration with the School of Economics, Sogang University in Korea and Emory University in the US.

Quach, M. H. and A. W. Mullineux (2007), “The Impact of Access to Credit on Household Welfare in Rural Vietnam”, Research In Accounting In Emerging Economies, 7, 279–307.

Ravallion, M. (1992) “Poverty freak: A Guide to Concepts and Methods”. Living Standards Measurement Papers, The World Bank, p. 25

Sepehri, A., Sarma, S., and Simpson, W. (2006), “Does Non-Profit Health Insurance Reduce Financial Burden? Evidence from the Vietnam Living Standards Survey Panel.” Health Economics, 15(6), pp. 603-616.

Shaffer, P. (2004), “Impact Assessment of the Hunger Eradication and Poverty Reduction Programme (HEPR) and Programme 135”, IDEA International Institute, Final Report, July 2004.

Swain, R. B.; Nguyen, V. S. & Vo, V. T, “Microfinance and Poverty Reduction in the Mekong Delta in Vietnam”, African and Asian Studies, Volume 7, Numbers 2-3, 2008 , pp. 191-215(25)

Tổng cục Thống kê, 2009, “Báo cáo Tổng điều tra dân số và nhà ở năm 2009” Tổng cục Thống kê, 2013, Số liệu thống kê hàng năm và tháng, http://www.gso.gov.vn/default.aspx?tabid=383&idmid=2&ItemID=13495

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) (2010), “Điều tra Nghèo đô thị ở Hà Nội và thành phố Hồ Chí Minh”, Hà Nội.

Van de Walle Dominique (2002), “The Static and Dynamic Incidence of Vietnam’s Public Safety Net”, Policy Research Working Paper Series, No. 2791, The World Bank, Washington D.C.

Van de Walle, D. and D. Cratty (2002), “Impact Evaluation of a Rural Road Rehabilitation Project”, Unpublished manuscript.

Van Den Berg, M. and Nguyen, V. C. (2011) “Impact of Public and Private Transfers on Poverty and Inequality: Evidence from Vietnam”, Development Policy Review, 29 (6): 689-728.

Van der Klaauw, W. (2002), “Estimating the Effect of Financial Aid Offers on College Enrollment: A Regression-Discontinuity Approach”, International Economic Review, 43(4), 1249-1287.

Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences (VASS) (2011), “ Poverty reduction in Vietnam: achievements and challenges”, Hà Nội.

Wagstaff, A. (2009), “Estimating Health Insurance Impacts under Unobserved Heterogeneity: the Case of Vietnam’s Health Insurance for the Poor”, Health Economics, 19(2), 189-208.

Wagstaff, A. and M. Pradhan (2005), “Health Insurance Impacts on Health and Nonmedical Consumption in a Developing Country”, World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 3563, April 2005.

Wooldridge J. M. (2010). Econometric Analysis of Cross Section and Panel Data. The MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts London, England.