Gender equality and women’s liberation are not only a global trend, but have also been the traits of Vietnam’s cultural and historical traditions.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and delegates at the meeting. Photos: VGP

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh gave the remarks in a meeting with female representatives from businesses, government agencies, and the entertainment industry today [March 7], ahead of the International Women’s Day on March 8.

According to Chinh, in Vietnam and the world, there has been a growing number of women holding leading roles in every aspect of life.

Chinh mentioned the examples of women during the history of national construction and defense, with names such as Ba Trung, Ba Trieu, or General Le Chan.

During the patriotic war, Chinh highlighted the sacrifice of Vietnam’s heroic mothers and female revolutionary fighters who contributed to legendary Vietnam’s strength and become the symbol of the country’s revolutionary heroism.

“At present and in any circumstance, Vietnamese women have always been promoting the traditional value and qualities, namely, intelligence, dynamism, creativity, and kindness, which help them make significant contributions to the country’s process of modernization, global integration, and development,” he said.

Prime Minister Chinh gives remarks at the meeting.

The prime minister mentioned the record-high proportion of women in the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam at 9.5% and 30.26% of the National Assembly deputies.

To further recognize the growing role of women in socio-economic activities, Chinh said the Party and the Government have been focusing on policies to ensure gender equality and women's development.

In this process, Vietnam has been a member of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly, while taking steps to translate policies into legislation to protect lawful rights and benefits of women, he continued.

Vietnam currently ranked 60^th globally, fourth in Asia, and top in the ASEAN Inter-parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) in terms of women’s participation in elected bodies; third in ASEAN and 47^th out of 187 countries and territories in gender equality in management positions in public agencies.

In addition, Vietnam stood at 65^th out of 162 countries and territories in the Gender Inequality Index.

Chinh, however, admitted more works need to be done to bring a better life for the people, and for women to have opportunities to contribute to the country’s development.

The prime minister and delegates at the meeting.

“There have been cases of women being abused or discriminated, or many are having a difficult life that needs better attention from the society, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic,” he said.

To ensure the goal of sustainable development and nation prosperity, the women would hold an indispensable role, Chinh stressed. For this, he called for the Government to better focus on the development women workforce during the era of global integration.

“Vietnam aims to ensure the effective realization of the national strategy on gender equality in the 2021-2030 period so that both women and men have an equal chance to contribute to every aspect of social life, and enjoy the benefits from socio-economic development,” Chinh said.