German broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) featured the story “Vietnam’s fight against hunger – a success story” on its website on May 27, highlighting Vietnam’s efforts to achieve the UN Millennium Development Goals, including economic development, poverty reduction and hunger eradication.
The story cited a report published by the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on May 27 , which states that the country has achieved more in the fight against hunger than any other in the world.
While one third of the population suffered from malnutrition in the 1990s, today this number has dropped to ten percent, no small feat as DW pointed out .
The article argued that the thirty-five years of war against French and US forces badly damaged the country's infrastructure. After the war, Vietnam ’s economy faced a number of difficulties, with a per capita Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of less than 100 USD. As a result, a quarter of the population faced food shortage.
Gerhard Will, an expert at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, told DW that the Communist Party of Vietnam made a sound decision when it launched its Doi Moi (Renovation) policy in 1986.
The Doi Moi process has showed positive results since 1990s, Will said.-VNA
