Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Job skills program for former heroin addicts likely to be axed


The National Assembly Monday criticized a project which provides job training to former heroin addicts.
Under National Assembly Decree Number 16, addicts who have finished detoxification are divided into two categories, those likely to succumb to heroin again and those ready for a job in the community.
From the decree’s release in 2003 until March 31, 2008, a total of 32,228 people have qualified for job skills training, the government reported.
However the figures are misleading, according to National Assembly Committee of Social Affairs, as the number of true volunteers in the group is very low.
HCMC has spent approximately VND1,222 billion (US$76 million) on the job skills project but only successfully rehabilitated 16,000 people, Nguyen Van Thuan, Chief of National Assembly Legal Committee, said.
The future of the job skills project will be decided at the third session of the lawmaking body, expected on May 6.

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