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New Evidence from Jarai People in the Central Highlands, Vietnam

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New Evidence from Jarai People in the Central Highlands, Vietnam International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering (IJRTE) ISSN: 2277-3878, Volume-8 Issue-2S6, July 2019 Multi-Dimensional Poverty in Vietnam: New Evidence from Jarai People in the Central Highlands, Vietnam Nguyen Bang Nong From 1992 to now, Vietnam has changed concepts and Abstract: Ethnic minorities in Vietnam account for only 14% methods of poverty measurement. In 1990s, the concept of of the total population of Vietnam, but the proportion of poverty poverty in Vietnam was based on basic human needs, and accounts for more than 52% of all poor households in the country. poverty measurement was determined to be poor if the Based on an empirical research, the paper focuses on a specific expenditure was below 1.16 million VND per person per year, ethnic minority group, Jarai people. Research results have shown and was hungry if the amount of Kcal consuming was less that multidimensional poverty is not easily implemented in the context of changes in natural and social environments. Therefore, than 2.100 Kcal (also known as food poverty.) multi-dimensional poverty is both theoretical and scientific From 2015 onwards, Vietnam no longer measured food challenges, and creates obstacles to policy implementation in poverty. The poverty issue is now defined regarding income order to achieve efficiency in Vietnam’s commitment to (under $30.00 US and $38.00 US per person per month for implementing the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) of the rural and urban areas) and access to basic social services United Nations. (education, health, housing, clean water and toilet, and access to information), which was called multidimensional poverty Key words: Vietnam, Central Highlands, Jarai people, ethnic (Prime Minister of Vietnam 2015.) This multidimensional minorities, multidimensional poverty. poverty line is also consistent with the criteria of MDG of the United Nations. I. INTRODUCTION Based on the new poverty measurement concept, this paper is to evaluate the multidimensional poverty status of indigenous Vietnam is a multi-ethnic country with 54 ethnic groups. ethnic minorities in the Central Highlands, Vietnam. This Vietnamese (Kinh) people is majority ethnic group, the paper also analyses in detail about the Jarai people in Ia Glai remaining ethnic minorities with a population of 13.4 million community, Gia Lai province of the Central Highlands, people, accounting for 14.60% of the nation’s population. Vietnam. The study of the Jarai people shows more specific Indigenous ethnic minorities in the Central Highlands have a poverty, and difficulties and challenges in reducing poverty in population of 2.47 million people (Phung et al. 2016.) indigenous ethnic minorities in the Central Highlands. In the first national survey on poverty in Vietnam in 1992 Therefore, this paper argues that sustainable development of conducted by the General Statistics Office of Vietnam, the indigenous ethnic minorities faces with many barriers by national poverty rate was 58%, in which poor ethnic themselves and state’s policy. Based on in-depth research in minorities account for 86% (Socialist Republic of Vietnam the Jarai community, readers can see the micro-view in the 2002.) Most poor people lived in rural, remote and remote overall picture of poverty and poverty reduction in Vietnam. areas. At that time, the Central Highlands region was one of For the general overview, the paper uses data which are taken the two regions of the country with the highest poverty rate from the socio-economic survey of 53 ethnic minorities with 92% (Baulch et al. 2002.) conducted by the Committee of Ethnic Minorities (Committee Until 2018, the national poverty rate was only 9.8%, and for Ethnic Minority Affairs 2016). The specific data of the ethnic minorities accounted for 72% of the national poverty Jarai people are collected by authors from 2015 until now. rate. The poverty rate in the Central Highlands still had only In the Ia Glai community, we chose 100 households randomly 24.1% (Pimhidzai 2018.) to do survey by questionnaires. A group of three researchers, According to report of Vietnamese government, Vietnam including two Jarai people, helped us in doing questionnaires. has achieved many global MDG 2030 including poverty Furthermore, we did many in-depth interviews and focus reduction. However, poverty reduction and sustainable groups. Interviewees were women, men, young people, head, development still play an important role in the 2016-2020 and officials of the community. Basically, we combined Social and Economic Development Plan (SEDP) and the quantative and qualitative research to dig deeper into history, 2011-2020 Social and Economic Development Strategy life and economic activities of Jarai people in this community. (SEDS) in Vietnam government. All targets of the global The Jarai people is one of indigenous ethnic minorities in the MDG will be fully and further integrated into 2021-2030 Central Highlands with a population of more than 425,187 SEDS and 2021-2025 SEDP (Prime Minister of Vietnam people (Nong 2018.) The Jarai people has a unique culture 2018.) with “king of the water, king of fire” (Dournes 2018), and one of the ethnic groups creating the Gong culture in the Central Revised Manuscript Received on July 22, 2019. Highlands that has been Nguyen Bang Nong, MA (Anthropology), Publications in ethnic recognized by the UNESCO in minority people in Vietnam. 2005. Published By: Retrieval Number:B11140782S619/2019©BEIESP Blue Eyes Intelligence Engineering DOI:10.35940/ijrte.B1114.0782S619 597 & Sciences Publication Multi-Dimensional Poverty in Vietnam: New Evidence from Jarai People in the Central Highlands, Vietnam country. Rural areas had twice as many poor households II. LITERATURE REVIEW compared to urban areas, 22.7% compared to 11.7%. Of the provinces in the Central Highlands, Dak Nong, Gia Lai and Research on poverty began in Vietnam in the 1990s. Macro Kon Tum were the three provinces with the highest poverty studies on poverty began in 1992 about living standards rate, nearly 28% in the region. Lam Dong province had the surveys conducted by the General Statistics Office, United lowest rate of poor ethnic minority households with about Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Swedish 6.6%. International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) and The above results are consistent with many previous studies the World Bank in Vietnam. that are poverty in Vietnam largely concentrated in rural area, The first studies of poverty were mainly quantitative analyses and ethnic minorities. based on surveys of living standards. Among them were The average income of ethnic minorities in the Central Living standards during an economic boom: The case of Highlands was about $1.50 US per person per day. This Vietnam edited by Haughton et al. (2001). In this book, the average was higher than the Vietnamese government’s authors compared poverty reduction in Vietnam through two regulation, and met the requirement of MDG 2030 (less than research periods, 1992/1993 and 1997/1998. The research $1.25 US per person per day.) results showed that the poverty reduction rate of Vietnam Among indigenous peoples in the Central Highlands, the decreased from 58% to 37%. The authors argued that the Sedang people had the lowest income, about $29.55 US, cause of poverty reduction was the shift career from compared with the Brau people, about $56.35 US (Table 1). agriculture to non-agriculture sector, or rising rice price. Thus, the difference between the highest and lowest ethnic However, the research results also show that poverty remains group was two times. highly concentrated in rural areas (45%), and ethnic In the education indicator, the highest percentage of minorities accounted for 75% of the total poor households in households with members over 15 years of age who did not the country (Haughton 2001). graduate from lower secondary school was the Jarai people Baulch et al. in the study on poverty reduction of ethnic (50.30%), the lowest was the Gie-Trieng people (27.60%). minorities in the Central Highlands found that these people For ethnic groups with a non-attendance rate between 5 and had the highest poverty rate in the country. Based on the 15 years, the Jarai people had the highest rate (17.40%), and analytical data, the authors pointed out that the causes of the lowest was the Gie-Trieng people (4.40%) (Table 1.) poverty were high due to low education, multiple births, and In the health indicator, the highest proportion of households less access to public health services (Baulch et al. 2002). with members aged 6 and older without health insurance is Van de Walle and Gunewardena (2001) in their research Ede (36.50%), the lowest is Brau (2.40%). Thus, this result paper about Sources of ethnic inequality in Vietnam pointed showed that, although the Vietnamese government had a out main effects to poverty ethnic minorities in Vietnam policy to provide free health insurance for all ethnic including household size, education, geographic living minorities, particularly children. However, the results of this condition, and owning forest land (Van de Walle and study showed that there was a difference between policy and Gunewardena 2001.) current practice in Vietnam for ethnic minorities in the Anh Tuan Bui et al. in the study of poverty of ethnic Central Highlands (Table 1.) minorities in Vietnam also said that ethnic minorities had a In housing issues, the research results showed that there were very high poverty rate compared to the majority (Vietnamese differences in the quality of houses (solid, semi-permanent, or Kinh people); particular ethnic minorities in the Central simple) and living area per capita (less than 8m2 per person). Highlands, Vietnam. The poverty rate in this region was even The Brau people have the lowest percentage with quality increasing compared to other provinces in the country due to housing (20.00%), but they have the highest rate in living area ineffective poverty reduction policies.
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