Vietnam Hanoi to Spend $2.5M to Build Houses for the Poor This Year

Vietnam’s capital city of Hanoi will spend VND48 billion ($2.5 million) to build houses for more than 3,600 poor households this year as part of efforts to celebrate the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long - Hanoi. Deputy Head of the municipal Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, Nguyen The Hung, said on May 17 that these families include 350 ones who made great contributions to the national revolution. The city has set a target to reduce the poverty rate to 4.5% by the end of 2010 from the current 6.1%.