ADB financially helps VN improve health for the poor

VGP - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on June 22 decided to give Việt Nam a US $60 million loan to help the country improve healthcare services, especially at remote areas lacking good healthcare workers and clinics.

June 24, 2010 4:37 PM GMT+7

Providing medical examination and treatment to ethnic minority groups in Việt Nam – Photo: VNA

Through improving capacity of clinical establishments, health training stations and medical workers, the program would bring better healthcare services to poor people in remote areas, said Sjoerd Postma, the bank’s senior health specialist.

Việt Nam has attained significant health achievements in recent years and is on the way to realize the Millennium Development Goals in this sphere. However, there is distance between rural and urban areas in terms of access to healthcare services, the ADB said.

The ADB’s first regional healthcare development program will be managed by the Vietnamese Ministry of Health and complete by 2015.

The ADB has so far funded Việt Nam’s six healthcare projects.

By Ngọc Vân