International conference on gender opens in Hanoi

Participants attend the 4th Gender Focal Point Conference in Hanoi (Source: VNA)

Delegates from 18 countries and many international organisations are gathering in Hanoi for the 4th Gender Focal Point Conference, which is jointly held by the Colombo Plan Gender Affairs Programme and the Vietnam Women’s Union (VWU).

The event, held annually since 2016 to garner global support to address main challenges to women and children, takes the theme “Gender Empowerment, Sustainability and Resource Mobilisation” this year.

Addressing the conference, Chairwoman of the VWU Nguyen Thi Thu Ha affirmed that Vietnam always supports and actively participates in multi-lateral mechanisms for women, including the Colombo Plan.

She urged participants to share their experiences and good practice in promoting gender equality, and join hands to strive for the cause of gender equality, development and peace in the region and the world.

Vietnam’s Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Le Tan Dung stressed that gender equality has always been among the strongest commitments and top priorities of the Vietnamese Government.

He noted that the country’s Gender Inequality Index is 0.304, ranking 67th out of 160 countries. The ratio of women in the country’s parliament, at 27.06 percent, is among the highest in the Asia-Pacific region. Vietnam also has the first Chairwoman of the National Assembly. In addition, Vietnam has one of the highest female labour-force participation rates at 71.2 percent, and 26.54 percent of the country’s enterprises are run by women.

At the same time, the country still faces numerous challenges from traditional to newly-emerging ones, such as violence against women and girls, the Fourth Industrial Revolution’s impacts on women’s jobs and economic positions, among others, according to the Deputy Minister.

He said the Vietnamese Government is taking many measures to address those challenges.

The 4th Gender Focal Point Conference is the venue to participants to discuss urgent global and regional issues facing women and children, with a focus on sustainability and resource mobilization to ensure the sustainability of established networks and organisations./.

VNA