It is crucial to incorporate the enforcement of child rights into socio-economic plans and State budget allocation, particularly in the next five years, Vice Chairwoman of the National Assembly Tong Thi Phong said at a conference on November 23.

Chairwoman of the National Assembly Tong Thi Phong speaks at the conference on comprehensive development policy for children in Hanoi on November 23. 

Vietnam has taken specific action programmes to prevent children from being exploited, sexually abused and trafficked and to help them stay away from drugs and crime, she told the conference on comprehensive development policy for children in Hanoi.

Vietnam has multiple legal provisions and provides special care to protect rights of vulnerable children such as orphans, abandoned children, homeless children, children with disabilities and those with HIV, she said.

Phong also emphasised the need to clearly identify the shortcomings and the causes of the shortcomings in enforcing the rights of children and seek solutions to tackle these issues.

Vietnam needs to adopt comprehensive development polices for children aged 0 – 8 and improve legal systems and policies relating juveniles, she added.

Vietnam was the first country in Asia and the second in the world to ratify the International Convention on the Rights of the Child, said Chief Representative of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Vietnam Rana Flowers.

Vietnam can be proud of what the nation has achieved in enforcing children’s rights, notably incorporating the convention’s provisions and principles into the national laws, policies and programmes, Flowers said.

Over three decades after the convention was ratified, Vietnam has made many achievements in promoting and protecting the rights of children, she noted.

The conference was held by the NA’s Committee for Culture, Education, Youth and Children; the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs – the leading agency for child issues; and the UNICEF.

The conference took place as Asia-Pacific countries preparing for the Asia-Pacific Regional Conference on Early Childhood Development in Hanoi from December 4 – 6.

It aimed to raise awareness among policy makers of the threats to young children’s present and future environments, as well as opportunities to protect these environments.