Various activities will be held in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to mark the 30th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

In Hanoi, a series of activities will take place in the pedestrian street around Hoan Kiem Lake from November 16-17, including a ceremony, a photo exhibition and the opening of a library providing documents on the convention at the Hanoi Children’s Palace. Games will be held to explore the convention.

Children from a number of localities across the country will gather to discuss and seek solutions to problems facing children at a national conference at the International UN School.

Meanwhile in Ho Chi Minh City, a screen at Landmark 81 tower - the country’s highest building - will show photos of inspiring smiles of children.

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child was adopted in 1989 and ratified by 196 countries, becoming the most widely-recognised convention on human rights in history.

Vietnam was the first Asian country and the second in the world to ratify the document in 1990. Over the past three decades, the country’s strong political commitments on observing the rights of children have helped improved the living conditions of millions of children across the country.

Children have been protected by law and enjoyed priorities in health care, education services and welfare policies.

However, more efforts should be made on both national and global scales to better protect children from abuse and effectively deal with risks of child right violations.