USAID launches $1.15mn project to support persons with disabilities in Vietnam's Bac Lieu
Friday, March 15, 2024, 17:43 GMT+7
The U.S. Mission to Vietnam, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), on Thursday partnered with the Bac Lieu People’s Committee to launch a program to support persons with disabilities in the Mekong Delta province.
The program was first announced during U.S. President Joseph Biden’s September 2023 visit to Vietnam.
“USAID will expand their essential health and social service programs that support persons with disabilities into two new provinces Bac Lieu and Ca Mau, thus raising the number of supported provinces to 10,” the White House announced in a fact sheet on September 10, 2023.
According to a press release by the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi, the Thursday launch officially marked the implementation of USAID’s Disabilities Rights Enforcement, Coordination, and Therapies project in Bac Lieu.
The project supports the enforcement of disability laws, expansion of rehabilitation services and livelihood support to persons with disabilities, and improvement in early childhood disability detection.
The $1.15 million project is implemented by Vietnam Assistance for the Handicapped, a long-time USAID partner, and runs from 2023 to October 2025.
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| A signing ceremony at the launch of USAID's program to support persons with disabilities in the Mekong Delta province of Bac Lieu on March 14, 2024. Photo provided by USAID Vietnam |
“Our cooperation to overcome the legacies of war has been foundational for building trust, demonstrating our commitment, and advancing the relationship between the United States and Vietnam to what is now a comprehensive strategic partnership,” Aler Grubbs, USAID Vietnam Mission director, said during remarks delivered at Thursday's launch.
“Today’s launch of our program for persons with disabilities in Bac Lieu delivers on our two countries’ shared priorities and our support for a strong, resilient, prosperous, independent Vietnam.”
Through the U.S. Leahy War Victims Fund, USAID has worked to improve the lives of people with disabilities in Vietnam since 1991.
To date, the U.S. government through USAID has contributed more than $155 million in assistance to persons with disabilities in Vietnam.
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