The live television programme, organised jointly by the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee (VFFCC), Vietnam Television and Ho Chi Minh City Television was attended by Politburo members: National Assembly (NA) Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Hanoi Municipal Party Committee Secretary Pham Quang Nghi, and Ho Chi Minh City Municipal Party Committee Secretary Le Thanh Hai; as well as Secretary of the Party Central Committee (PCC) and Head of the PCC Mass Mobilisation Commission Ha Thi Khiet; Vice President Nguyen Thi Doan; Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan; NA Vice Chairman Huynh Ngoc Son; and President of the VFFCC Huynh Dam, along with a number of senior officials and representatives from international organisations, foreign embassies, and enterprises in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
Addressing the ceremony, NA Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung spoke highly of significant achievements gained after ten years of implementing the ‘Day for the Poor’ campaign. He also thanked the sponsors and called on all Vietnamese people to continue contributing to the charity programme.
According to the Organising Board, the ‘Day for the Poor’ campaign has actively contributed to the national objectives of poverty reduction and sustainable development. From the funds raised for the poor, localities across the country have helped build and repaired nearly 73,700 houses for the disadvantaged and generated jobs for millions of poor people, in addition to providing them with free medical check-ups, healthcare services and education. A number of social security programmes have also carried out thousands of welfare projects such as building bridges, classrooms, and clinics.
This year's ‘Joining Hands in a Great Circle - For the Poor’ programme, the 10th of its kind, received enthusiastic response from agencies, units, businesses, and benefactors at home and abroad donating more than VND 6.6 trillion to help the poor in 2012.