about Viet Nam

• The Central Region includes 15 provinces and 1 city, and the total area is 139,000 square kilometers, or approximately 42% of the total land mass of Vietnam.

• The population of the Central Region is 20.6 million, or approximately 27% of the entire nation, while the number of people living under the poverty line in the Central Region accounts for 40.5% of the total.

• The economic development of the Central Region has been slow compared with that in the northern and southern regions, since the people of the Central Region sustained catastrophic damages during the Vietnam War.

• The economic growth of the region has also often been hindered by a high vulnerability to natural disasters such as typhoons and floods, hot and humid climate conditions, and geographic disadvantages.

1. The health situation of the Central Region can be characterized as follows;
   Pneumonia, acute bronchitis, acute pharyngitis, and tonsillitis are frequently diagnosed in overall, as well as malaria and diarrheal disease (especially in mountainous areas).

2. Malaria is the highest cause for hospitalization and is ranked as the fourth leading cause of hospital death.

3. Recent trends in morbidity show increases in traumatic injuries such as intracranial injuries and traffic accident injuries, and increasing incidences of non-communicable disease such as brain hemorrhage, cerebral stroke, and cardiac failure.

As a whole, the proportion of people living under the poverty line is quite high and the health status of the people is below the average. Thus, much remains to be done to cope with the current problems in the health sector of the Central Region.

• Considering the gap in medical service between rural and urban areas, and between the rich and the poor, the Ministry of Health aims to improve the quality of medical service at health facilities at each level, so that all people can enjoy the benefit of quality medical services.

• As one of a poverty reduction strategy in the health sector, to improve the quality of medical service is listed.

From the facts and needs stated in above, JICA's technical cooperation project has launched in July 2005.