Vietnam sent 23,195 workers abroad in the first two months of this year, reaching 18.56% of the annual plan, according to the Department of Overseas Labor under the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs.

Vietnam leads 15 countries in the number of workers sent to Japan. Photo: VOV

Japan continues to be the leading destination, receiving 17,067 Vietnamese workers, followed by Taiwan with 4,294 and South Korea with 419. These three markets account for over 90% of Vietnamese workers sent abroad each year.

Other markets such as China (229), Singapore (154), Hungary (93), Romania (165) and others have also seen an increase in the number of Vietnamese workers.

Currently, more than 500 labor export businesses have sent workers to more than 40 countries and territories.

Since 2010, more than 1.4 million workers have been sent to work abroad. On average, about 120,000-143,000 workers go abroad each year, sending home remittances worth US$3.5-4 billion.

In 2024, the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs has identified improving the quality of Vietnamese workers going abroad under contract as a key task. The ministry will find more high-income markets suitable for the qualifications and skills of Vietnamese workers in addition to existing markets.

They will strengthen information dissemination, guidance and training for enterprises to actively prepare labor sources and train workers' vocational skills and foreign languages before they go abroad.

In addition, the ministry will actively monitor and collect information on Vietnamese workers going abroad in order to address any emerging problems, safeguard the legal rights and interests of both workers and enterprises and provide more support for workers to smoothly reintegrate into the domestic labor market upon their return.

The country plans to focus on the three key markets to send 125,000  workers abroad under contract in 2024: Japan, with an estimated 63,000 workers; Taiwan (China), 48,000; and South Korea, 8,500. In addition, priority will be given to sending workers to potential markets in safe, high-wage occupations.

In 2023, Vietnam sent nearly 160,000 workers abroad under contract, reaching 133.3% of the yearly plan. This is the highest number of workers sent abroad in over 10 years, according to the ministry.