The National Committee for Vietnamese Persons with Disabilities, taking responsibility for issues related to about 7.8 million people with disabilities across the country, was officially debuted yesterday in Ha Noi.

The committee was founded to consult the Government and connect ministries and relevant agencies to deal with people-with-disabilities policies.

The committee's establishment followed the decree's approval by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in October 2015.

Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Pham Thi Hai Chuyen was assigned to lead the committee.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam said offering opportunities for people with disabilities to integrate into the community was the responsibility of every individual in our society.

"Treasuring people with disabilities makes our lives more meaningful," he said.

The committee's goals between 2016 and 2020 are to effectively perform domestic policies and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Statistics of the committee show that people with disabilities account for 7.8 per cent of the country's total population. And about 15 per cent of people with disabilities belong to the poor-household list. [In Viet Nam, a poor household is defined as having an income below VND500,000 (US$22) per head per month.]

The number of people with disabilities in the country is predicted to increase due to several causes, encompassing traffic accidents and work accidents.

VNS