Winners of the Generation Equality Fairy Tales Competition

The competition invited all legal residents in Viet Nam, especially children and the youth, with no age limation, to submit their works to show their understanding and share their voice toward ending gender stereotypes.

Opening the awarding ceremony, Ms. Elisa Fernandez, UN Women Head of Office in Viet Nam said: “The competition aims not only to empower women and girls and reduce gender inequalities in literature, but also to be a platform for future generations to access to literary texts with gender equality messages and break down the systemic barriers and social norms that hinder women’s and men’s, boys’ and girls’ and other genders’enjoyment of their full potential and capabilities.”

The winning stories deal with issues related to gender stereotypes and traditional roles of men and women in the Vietnamese society, the unequal share of childcare and domestic work and barriers to the full development for all genders, among other issues. The winners will have a chance to work with a professional team to develop their stories into a comic book or a video animation.

Winners of the competition include:

• Second place: Pham Trinh Yen Chi
• Third place: Le Thi Nhu Thuy and Bui Giang
• Prospect place: Tram Le & Minh Quang and Vu Thanh Thu

Sharing about the contest, Ms. Nguyen Thi Bich Lien, ChildFund Viet Nam Country Director said: “I am so glad that ChildFund Viet Nam can be a part of this inspiring initiative. The competition is well received by the public, which is a strong evidence of how the young generation nowadays cares about the gender stigma elimination and wants to contribute to the positive change for gender equality. ChildFund Viet Nam is working towards creating a world in which children have equal opportunities to develop their full potential without any barriers. By supporting this contest, we once again to share our strong commitment to breaking down any barrier to children’s and youth’s development based on the gender norm.”

Speaking at the warding ceremony, Ms.Réachbha FitzGerald, Deputy Head of Development, Embassy of Ireland said: “We are delighted to collaborate with UN women and Child Fund Viet Nam who are real champions for gender equality here in Viet Nam. The Embassy of Ireland in Viet Nam shares with our hosts a commitment to gender equality as a core value, and one that is central to Ireland’s work in Viet Nam.”

The competition ran from 17 October 2019 to 27 November 2019. It was part of activities to commemorate the Vietnamese Women’s Day, the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign 2019 and the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action 2020. Finalists were selected by a jury composed of a professional writer, child rights and gender equality experts and communication experts.

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Media Contact:

Hoang Bich Thao, Communications Officer, UN Women Viet Nam, Email: hoang.thao@unwomen.org

Nguyen Thi Kieu Trang, Communications Manager, ChildFund Việt Nam, Email: trangnk@childfund.org.vn

Note to editors:

About ChildFund Vietnam

ChildFund Vietnam is the representative office of ChildFund Australia – an independent and non‐religious international development organisation that works to reduce poverty for children in developing communities.

ChildFund began working in Vietnam in 1995 and works in partnership with children, their communities and local institutions to create lasting change, respond to humanitarian emergencies and promote children’s rights. Projects are implemented across the northern provinces of Bac Kan, Cao Bang and Hoa Binh, where the majority of people are from ethnic minority groups, often the most vulnerable or marginalised sections of the population.

With a focus on education, water and sanitation, sustainable livelihoods, child rights and child protection, food security, and maternal and child health, including HIV prevention, ChildFund Vietnam also prioritises building the resilience of young people, by giving children and youth the opportunity to take part in sports, vocational education and life skills training, and supporting their participation in local decision‐making processes.

About UN Women

UN Women is the United Nations entity dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. A global champion for women and girls, UN Women was established to accelerate progress on meeting their needs worldwide.

Website: https://www.unwomen.org/en; Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/unwomenvietnam/

About Irish Aid is the Government of Ireland’s official aid program administered by the Development Cooperation Division of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, working globally on behalf of the Irish people to address vulnerability and reduce poverty and inequality in some of the poorest and most marginalized communities in the world. The Irish Aid program is an integral part of Ireland’s foreign policy. Ireland’s development cooperation with Vietnam is set out in the Mission Strategy for Vietnam and the Mekong Sub-region (2017-2020) and provides annual funding of over €7 million, focusing on reducing poverty and inequality, supporting equality and diversity, and promoting respect for human rights.

Embassy of Ireland in Viet Nam: www.dfa.ie/vietnam;

Embassy of Ireland Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/irishembassyinvietnam/