JOINT CIRCULAR No. 819/2004/TTLT-UBDT-KHĐT-TC-XD-NNPTNT GUIDING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF DECISION No. 134/2004/QĐ-TTg dated July 20, 2004 of the Prime Minister on certain policies to support production land, residential land, housing, and drinking water for poor households of ethnic minorities with difficult living conditions

JOINT CIRCULAR

Issued by the National Committee for Ethnic Minority Affairs - Ministry of Planning and Investment - Ministry of Finance - Ministry of Construction - Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development No. 819/2004/TTLT/UBDT-BKH-BTC-BXD-BNN dated November 10, 2004 guiding the implementation of Decision No. 134/2004/QD-TTg dated July 20, 2004 of the Prime Minister on certain policies to support production land, residential land, housing, and clean water for poor households of ethnic minorities with difficult living conditions

----------------------------------

Pursuant to Decision No. 134/2004/QD-TTg dated July 20, 2004 of the Prime Minister (hereinafter referred to as Decision 134/TTg) on certain policies to support production land, residential land, housing, and clean water for poor households of ethnic minorities with difficult living conditions and the guidance of the Prime Minister in document No. 1401/CP-NN dated September 28, 2004 regarding the organization and implementation of Decision 134/TTg; the Joint Ministries: National Committee for Ethnic Minority Affairs, Planning and Investment, Finance, Construction, Agriculture and Rural Development hereby guide the implementation of the Decision as follows:

I. GENERAL PROVISIONS

1. The policy to support production land, residential land, housing, and clean water for poor households of ethnic minorities with difficult living conditions must ensure the principle of direct support to individual households. Households benefiting from this policy must directly manage and utilize the support to stabilize production and living conditions, alleviate poverty, improve education levels, preserve, and promote the cultural identity of ethnic minorities. In special cases where there is no longer a need to use the land, they must transfer the right to use production land, residential land, and housing through local authorities to allocate to other poor households of ethnic minorities.

2. The assessment of poor households of ethnic minorities without sufficient production land, residential land, and facing difficulties with housing and clean water must be conducted at the grassroots level of villages and communes, ensuring transparency and democracy through mass organizations, reviewed by the People's Committee of the commune, reported to the People's Committee of the district, town, city under province (hereinafter collectively referred to as the People's Committee of the district) for verification and consolidation, then reported to the People's Committee of the province (hereinafter collectively referred to as the People's Committee of the province) for decision.

3. The level of support for production land, residential land, housing, and clean water for poor households of ethnic minorities with difficult living conditions, engaged in agriculture and forestry, shall be implemented according to the provisions of Decision 134/TTg as the minimum level. Depending on the capacity of each locality, the People's Committee of the province may decide on a higher level. In cases where the support level according to previous decisions

4. The policy to support production land, residential land, housing, and clean water for poor households of ethnic minorities shall be implemented using the following sources of funds:

- The central budget ensures expenditures according to the support standards set out in Decision 134/TTg;

- The local budget allocates no less than 20% of the central budget support standard;

- Legal sources of support funding raised by localities from enterprises, social organizations, communities...

Management costs, surveying, and issuance of land use rights certificates for households shall be covered by the local budget, with specific amounts determined by the People's Committee of the province and shall not be deducted from the support provided to households.

II. OBJECTS AND SCOPE OF APPLICATION

1. Support Objectives

a. For household families Households of ethnic minorities eligible to benefit from the policy stipulated in this Circular must meet the following conditions:

- They are poor households as defined in Decision No. 1143/2000/QĐ-LĐTBXH dated November 1, 2000 of the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs on adjusting the poverty standard for the period 2001-2005; engaged in agriculture and forestry but lacking or insufficient production land, residential land, and facing difficulties with housing and clean water;

- They are ethnic minority households (including households with only one spouse being an ethnic minority member) who have settled in the locality; spontaneous migrants included in the local resettlement plan; spontaneous migrants who have returned to their original place of residence before the effective date of Decision 134/TTg, confirmed by the People's Committee of the commune;

- Households of ethnic minorities that have been supported with production land, residential land, housing, and clean water according to previous regulations, but remain poor households lacking sufficient production land, residential land, and facing difficulties with housing and clean water, shall still benefit from the support policy under Decision 134/TTg.

b. For village and hamlet communities Villages and hamlets are organizations defined in Decision No. 13/2002/QĐ-BNV dated December 6, 2002 of the Ministry of Home Affairs on the operation rules of villages and residential wards, having at least 20% of households being ethnic minorities currently residing and facing difficulties with clean water.

The implementation of administrative sanctions according to the Decree shall apply in areas such as security, public order and safety; customs; taxation; trade; environmental protection; protection of aquatic resources; mineral resource protection; quarantine of animals and plants, health care, and other related fields within the exclusive economic zone and continental shelf of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (excluding seaports).

The policy to support production land, residential land, housing, and clean water for poor households of ethnic minorities engaged in agriculture and forestry shall be implemented nationwide (except for the support of production land and residential land for poor households of the Khmer ethnic group in the Mekong Delta provinces, which will have separate policies).

III. SPECIFIC PROVISIONS

1. Regarding housing:

a. Households facing difficulties with housing and eligible to benefit from the support policy are those specified in point a, clause 1, section II of this Circular and must meet one of the following conditions:

- Not having housing or currently living in rented accommodation (not state-owned);

- Housing is extremely temporary and dilapidated.

b. Level of support

The central budget supports 5 million VND per household. The local budget supports no less than 1 million VND per household and funding from contributions of enterprises, political-social organizations, communities, and individuals. If the household's housing needs exceed the support level, the household must cover the difference themselves.

For localities with forests and annual plans for logging natural forest wood, priority should be given to supplying wood for housing for ethnic minorities; for provinces with natural forests but without annual logging plans, they must establish plans and solutions, report to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for consideration and decision by the Government. The quota and method of supporting wood for housing for households shall be decided by the Provincial People's Committee based on guidelines from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Costs for logging and transporting wood to villages (if applicable) shall be covered by the local budget.

c. Implementation provisions

- Construction of houses supported by policy must comply with the local residential planning. In cases where households eligible for support are located in areas prohibited from construction, areas at risk of landslides, flash floods, protective zones for transportation, water conservancy, power, cultural heritage sites, and other protected areas according to the law, the provision of housing support must be carried out concurrently with relocation to another area.

- The Provincial People's Committee shall direct relevant agencies to introduce and guide the people on house models and styles suitable for the customs and traditions of each ethnic group, within their financial capacity, and ensuring environmental hygiene conditions for the people to choose and decide. House construction must adhere to the principle that households build themselves, with state support and community assistance.

- Households entitled to benefits under Decision 134/TTg in the Mekong Delta and Central Highlands regions who have taken loans to purchase houses on installment terms pursuant to Decision No. 105/2002/QĐ-TTg dated August 2, 2002 regarding policies for households in flood-prone areas to buy house foundations and residences in residential clusters in the Mekong Delta region and Decision No. 154/2002/QĐ-TTg dated November 12, 2002 of the Prime Minister concerning policies for ethnic minority households in place and households entitled to policy benefits in the Central Highlands to buy houses on installment terms shall still be eligible for support under Decision 134/TTg and in accordance with the guidelines of this Circular. The State budget funds provided for support under Decision 134/TTg can be used to repay previously borrowed funds for house construction. Repayment of the loan will be carried out in accordance with the guidelines of the Ministry of Finance.

2. Regarding drinking water

a. Households facing difficulties with drinking water and eligible for support under this policy are those specified in point a, Clause 1, Section II of this Circular and must meet one of the following conditions:

- Located in areas with existing drinking water systems but unstable sources, unable to construct backup water tanks;

- Located in areas without flowing water sources requiring groundwater or rainwater extraction but unable to construct tanks or dig wells;

b. Villages facing difficulties with drinking water and eligible for support are those specified in point b, Clause 1, Section II of this Circular, capable of exploiting water sources for daily use but not yet invested in and encountering difficulties in constructing water supply facilities.

c. Implementation provisions

- For households of ethnic minorities facing difficulties with drinking water sources, the central budget will provide each household with 0.5 tons of cement (minimum grade 300 kg/cm²) at the village level for building water tanks or provide VND 300,000 per household for well digging or creating alternative water sources; for households unable to build tanks or containers, based on available funding, local authorities will organize the distribution of plastic, steel, or cement containers for the people at the village level.

- For centralized drinking water supply projects, the Provincial People's Committee shall organize and direct implementation similar to infrastructure construction under Program 135; support funds according to Decision 134/TTg and integration with other target programs.

3. Production land and residential land

a. Households without sufficient residential land and eligible for support are those specified in point a, Clause 1, Section II of this Circular and must meet one of the following conditions:

- Lack residential land;

- Have residential land but below the threshold stipulated in Decision 134/TTg or below the local threshold (for cities, towns, and townships), based on the residential land fund of each locality and specific conditions, the Provincial People's Committee shall consider and resolve.

b. Households without sufficient production land and eligible for support are those specified in point a, Clause 1, Section II of this Circular and must meet one of the following conditions:

- Lack production land;

- Have production land but below the threshold stipulated in Decision 134/TTg (less than 0.15 hectares of paddy fields for two crops or less than 0.25 hectares of paddy fields for one crop or less than 0.5 hectares of upland fields) or higher thresholds set by localities as previously defined by the Prime Minister;

Resolution for households with insufficient production land as stipulated above shall be determined based on specific conditions by the Provincial People's Committee.

c. The production land fund and land for housing include various types of land as stipulated in Article 3 of Decision 134/TTg

d. Support levels

Land reclaimed, agricultural and forestry farms allocated to households for production, land transferred from households with excess land, and concentrated reclaimed land transferred to households shall be supported by the central budget at an average rate of VND 5 million per hectare. Depending on local conditions, higher support levels may be provided.

IV. MANAGEMENT, DISTRIBUTION, AND SETTLEMENT OF SUPPORT FUNDS

1. Project Proposal and Budget Allocation

The Provincial People's Committee shall base its decisions on the assessment results of households from districts, compile, approve project proposals, and prepare budget estimates for program implementation, sending them to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Finance, and the Committee for Ethnic Minorities for consolidation and submission to the Government and National Assembly for approval to supplement targeted funds from the central budget to implement the policies stipulated in Decision 134/TTg.

Based on the supplementary budget with specific targets supported annually by the National Assembly and the Prime Minister, and local government budgets and other sources, the Provincial People's Committee develops detailed allocation plans for each district to be submitted to the Provincial People's Council for decision. According to the Resolution of the Provincial People's Council, the Provincial People's Committee assigns the budget in detail for each policy to the districts, the District People's Committee decides on the allocation and notifies each commune in detail for each policy and each household benefiting according to the list approved by the competent authority. The Commune People's Committee informs each household about the policies they are entitled to, the level of support...according to the list approved by the competent authority.

2. Distribution and payment of support funds

Based on the quarterly budget assigned by the Prime Minister to each province, the Ministry of Finance implements targeted supplements to the local government budget according to the progress of implementation. For provinces, based on the budget assigned by the Provincial People's Committee to the districts, the Department of Finance processes targeted supplements to the district budget. The District Finance Office coordinates with the State Treasury to manage and distribute funds according to the targets for beneficiaries according to the progress of implementation.

The distribution and payment for each policy and each beneficiary are carried out in accordance with the guidelines of the Ministry of Finance.

3. Accounting and settlement

The state budget funds allocated to implement poverty reduction policies for ethnic minority households under Decision 134/TTg shall be accounted for and settled in accordance with the guidelines of the Ministry of Finance.

V. IMPLEMENTATION

1. The National Ethnic Minorities Commission is the permanent coordinating body responsible for coordinating with the Ministries and sectors: Planning and Investment, Finance, Construction, Agriculture and Rural Development to assist the Prime Minister in summarizing, monitoring, urging, inspecting, and reporting on the implementation as prescribed;

2. Relevant Ministries and sectors shall, based on the tasks assigned in Decision No. 134/TTg and Circular No. 1401/CP-NN dated September 28, 2004 of the Prime Minister, coordinate with the National Ethnic Minorities Commission to implement related contents.

3. Provincial People's Committees and municipal people's committees directly under the central government:

- Are directly and fully responsible for directing and organizing the implementation of the policy. Publicly announce the criteria and beneficiaries of the policy. Organize surveys, develop and approve projects to resolve housing, production land, housing, and drinking water issues for poor ethnic minorities within their jurisdiction and submit them to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Finance, and the National Ethnic Minorities Commission for consolidation and submission to the Prime Minister for decision.

- The project must clearly reflect the sources of support from the Central Government budget, local government budget, raised capital, and completion time.

- Based on specific conditions, the Provincial People's Committee strengthens and enhances the Steering Committee for Program 135 at all levels to implement Decision 134/TTg or establish a new Steering Committee for implementing Decision 134/TTg if necessary; the permanent office of the Steering Committee is the Ethnic Affairs Office of the province or city;

- Implement regular reports every three months, and submit annual summary and evaluation reports to the National Ethnic Minorities Commission and relevant Ministries and sectors;

- Based on this Circular, the Provincial People's Committee specifies and guides in accordance with the characteristics and conditions of the locality to effectively implement the policy.

VI. IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

This Circular takes effect fifteen days after its publication in the Official Gazette.