§ Mr. AshleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what aid has been given to Vietnam in the last five years; and what is its current gross national product per head.
§ Mrs. Chalker[holding answer 20 June 1991]: Britain has provided no direct bilateral aid to Vietnam in the last five years. Since May 1990 over £1 million has been committed in support of projects by British nongovernmental organisations to assist with community development and the reintegration of boat people returning from Hong Kong. Since 1986 the United Kingdom has provided some £2.4 million towards EC food aid to Vietnam and our contribution through the European Commission's pilot scheme for the reintegration of returning boat people will be more than £1 million. No reliable data exists for Vietnam's GNP but it is estimated that in 1988 GDP per capita was approximately US$ 150–200.