These were some of the findings of the UNICEF "An analysis of the situation of children in Viet Nam-2010" report, the summary of which was presented in Ha Noi yesterday.
The analysis was carried out between 2008 and 2010 by the United Nations Fund for Children (UNICEF) in collaboration with the Government and represents an important milestone in documenting, analysing, and understanding the situation of children in the country. The document focused on child survival rates, child development and education, child protection and child participation.
The document, adopting a human rights-based approach, is intended to serve as an up-to-date and comprehensive reference for all stakeholders involved in promoting childhood well being, and supports the development and implementation of policies and strategies to further realise the rights of Vietnamese children, according to Lotta Sylwander, UNICEF Viet Nam Representative.
"The analysis paints a very positive picture for children in Viet Nam. The country's strong economic growth and socio-economic policies have led to major improvements in all areas of children's lives", said Sylwander.
The analysis said that a comprehensive range of national policies, programmes, strategies, decisions and standards have been developed.
Meanwhile, Sylwander empha-sised the challenges that remained. "The single most important message of the situation analysis relates to the need to reduce disparities in outcomes for children. In particular, ethnic minority children, children with disabilities, children affected by HIV and AIDS all continue to suffer from unequal access to social services, threatening their ability to grow into healthy and productive members of Vietnamese society."
According to the analysis, infant and child mortality halved between 1990 and 2006, but disparities persist, with mortality rates being much higher among ethnic minorities, who are very poor and living in remote regions. The overall mortality rate was estimated at 75 per 100,000 in 2008 but remains four times that among ethnic minorities and those in remote rural, mountainous areas.
Significant improvements in recent years related to early childhood care and development have been seen, with primary school enrolment exceeding 90 per cent for all major groups except ethnic minorities, which stands at only 80 per cent.
Ethnic minority children face major obstacles in the attainment of a quality education caused by language barriers. Most of them do not speak Vietnamese when they start school, while their teachers lack skills in ethnic minority languages, the analysis found.
Dang Nam, deputy director of Bureau for Protection and Care of Children under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs.
The analysis had pointed out challenges and difficulties facing Viet Nam in implementing effective programmes that ensure the survival, development and protection of all children in the country. —VNS
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