Budget priorities risk gender equality

Officials in central Thanh Hoa Province's Rung Thong Town explain business regulations to local women. Greater effort should be made to ensure gender equality and women's rights in business and politics, a conference in Ha Noi heard yesterday. — VNA/VNS Photo Dinh Hue

HA NOI – The selection of priorities to ensure the budget would endanger the investment made in women and gender equality, UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) representative, Viet Nam, Suzette Mitchell warned yesterday.

Gender equality was not only an important development target but also a basis for other development goals, she told a conference to promote a national gender-equality strategy for the next 10 years in Ha Noi yesterday.

Gender equality created the right dynamic for strong socio-economic development, she said.

Mitchell emphasised the importance of maintaining the achievements already made in gender equality, especially as Viet Nam was becoming a middle-income country.

Party Central Committee's Commission for Mass Mobilisation deputy director Nguyen The Trung said 10 years of implementing the national strategy for Vietnamese women had advanced their role in society.

The gender gap had narrowed, he said.

Women were now engaged in every field, especially the political system.

Viet Nam always had a female Vice President and 25.76 per cent of National Assembly deputies were women, the highest rate in eight ASEAN parliaments.

Strategy

Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs minister Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan told the conference that a draft national strategy for gender equality for 2011-20 had gone to the Government.

It was intended to ensure equal opportunities and benefits for both men and women in political, economic and socio-cultural fields, she said.

The strategy also aimed to the raise the number women deputies in the National Assembly and People's Councils to more than 30 per cent between 2011-15 and more than 35 per cent by 2020.

In addition, it was planned to provide vocational training for half of Viet Nam's rural women workers and create new jobs for at least 40 per cent of workers regardless of gender.

Minister Ngan proposed that next year's 11th National Party Congress set clear directions for implementing future gender equality targets.

Both the Party and Government agencies needed to facilitate human and financial resources to ensure gender equality, she said. — VNS

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UN pledges help to Vietnam in gender equality

The top representative of the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) in Vietnam , Suzette Mitchell, affirms the UN will help Vietnam improve its record in gender equality and the empowerment of women.

At a December 8 conference in Hanoi on ways of pushing a national strategy on gender equality for the period 2011-2020 on December 8, Mitchell emphasised the importance of maintaining the achievements already made in gender equality, especially as Vietnam is becoming a middle-income country.

She also highlighted the nation’s first-ever national strategy on gender equality. However, she said that the selection of national priorities to ensure the budget will endanger the investment made in women and gender equality.

Gender equality is not only an important development target but also a premise to achieving other development goals and creates the right dynamic for strong socio-economic development, she said.

Nguyen The Trung, the Deputy Director of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Mass Mobilisation, said that Vietnamese women’s role and position in society has been lifted after 10 years of carrying out the national strategy for the advancement of women during the 2001-2010 period.

The gender gap in society has been narrowed, said Trung, adding that women are now involved in every field, especially in leading roles and political management.

Vietnam always has a female Vice President and women make up 25.76 percent of the country’s NA deputies in the 2007-2011 term, the highest rate among eight ASEAN parliaments, he stressed.

However, the conference pointed out the shortcomings in social life which have hindered economic growth, social progress, equality and sustainable development.

The Minister of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs, Nguyen Kim Ngan, said that the draft of the national strategy on gender equality for the 2011-2020 has been presented to the Government. The strategy aims to ensure equal opportunities and benefits for both men and women in political, economic and socio-cultural fields, she said.

The strategy also aims to the raise the rate of women deputies in the National Assembly (NA) and People’s Councils to over 30 percent during the 2011-2015 period and over 35 percent in the following five years.

It also targets providing vocational training for half of rural women workers and create new jobs for at least 40 percent of workers of each gender.

She proposed that the 11 th National Party Congress set out clear directions for implementing gender equality targets in the future. The Party, as well as Government agencies need to facilitate human and financial resources to ensure gender equality, she added./.

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Strategy seeks to promote reading across Viet Nam

Young people read books in Thong Nhat Park in Ha Noi. A proposed national strategy aims to improve libraries across the nation while also promoting reading among younger generations. — VNS Photo Truong Vi

HCM CITY — Setting up a modern network of libraries with professional librarians and various kinds of books around the country by 2020 is part of a proposed national strategy to nurture the reading habit.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's Library Department has unveiled a draft of the strategy which will also seek to develop the ability to use the information obtained from books and the internet.

A mobile library service will be developed in rural and mountainous areas for residents' benefit.

The Government will also build more libraries in northern mountainous and Tay Nguyen (Central Highlands) provinces, upgrade existing ones and also increase their number of books.

Libraries in large cities like HCM City, Ha Noi, Da Nang, Can Tho, and Hue will be developed to international standards.

All libraries will use information technology.

Private libraries will be encouraged.

The department said more than 40,000 libraries, including those at universities and schools, were in existence 2009.

However, the reading habit has yet to become widespread, Vu Duong Thuy Nga, the department's deputy head, admitted.

She listed a number of shortcomings.

Too few books

Libraries may have been built but they do not fully meet the demands of people.

The average number of books per person at public libraries is low.

High-schools students go to their school library just once a week on average because of a shortage of librarians and the small size of libraries.

There are not enough quality books and magazines in libraries, especially in rural and mountainous areas.

Most ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, and rural residents still lack easy access to books, newspapers, and magazines.

Nga said an important reason for reading being unpopular is schools and universities' failure to make it a central element of learning.

Students are not taught how to use libraries effectively and get information, she said.

But also, not enough good books are published because the failure to enforce copyright means there is no incentive for writers.

Early encouragement

At a seminar held in HCM City on Thursday, philosopher and researcher Bui Van Nam Son suggested that the reading habit should be inculcated in primary school.

Primary schools should focus on providing opportunities for children to read books and cartoons, he said.

They should upgrade their libraries and book-reading corners and organise exhibitions of books popular among students, he said, adding parents should read or tell stories to their children before bedtime.

Dr Quach Thu Nguyet, dean of the LiMA Life Management Academy, called for investing further in upgrading the country's network of libraries.

Good books should be introduced to the public through the media, she said, adding Viet Nam should dedicate a day for people to read along the lines of international reading day, April 23. — VNS

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