Deputy PM calls for greater attention to the elderly
(VOV) - Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam chaired a conference of the National Committee on Aging in Hanoi on March 1 to review its activities and set orientations for this year.
According to a report by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA), Vietnam is entering a period of aging population with the rate of old people accounting for 10% of total population (equivalent to over 9 million people).
Many policies and laws are adopted to improve the elderly’s quality of life. However, there remain limitations in disseminating information on these laws while healthcare services for the elderly are not much improved due to the shortage of health workers and poor infrastructure.
A small proportion of the elderly in rural areas, mountainous and border areas are still living in diffcult circumstances.
Under Government Decree 136 which took effect from January 1, 2014, the social subsidy rate increased from VND180,000 to VND270,000.
Addressing the conference, Deputy PM Vu Duc Dam urged the relevant ministries, agencies and localities to well implement policies of caring for the elderly and focus on a national action plan for the elderly in the 2012-2020 period.