The coverage of social assistance inVietnam is expected to expand over the coming years in linewith Government plans for further strengthening socialsecurity. This raises the question of whether the governanceand administrative arrangements for social assistance at alllevels are sufficiently robust to handle a larger program.This note provides a rapid assessment of the arrangementsfor delivering Vietnam's main social assistanceprogram, social assistance under Decrees 67 and 13, andproposes options for further strengthening in the short andmedium term. It aims to make a timely contribution to theongoing policy discussions about strengthening socialassistance as part of the implementation of the SocialSecurity Strategy 2011-2020. The note reflects findings fromvisits to Ha Giang Province and Ho Chi Minh City in July2010. It finds that the current delivery mechanisms forsocial assistance are basic, with limited human resources,no caseload management and no integrated database that wouldallow tracking of beneficiary numbers. While such basicgovernance and administrative arrangements may beappropriate for a small program such as social assistanceunder Decree 67 in the past, the expected increase inbeneficiary coverage implies that program administrationwill have to be systematically strengthened andprofessionalized to ensure effective implementation.Moreover, the development of a modern system of socialpolicy in Vietnam will also require the expansion of skillsin social work, in particular of those currently involved indelivering social assistance and who will remain the maininterface to current and prospective beneficiaries at thelocal level.
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