UNICEF and Viet Nam celebrate 40 years of cooperation for children

"Viet Nam and UNCEF have a long history of cooperation and trust, which has contributed to the improvement of people's lives in general and children's in particular, said Minister of Labour, Invalid and Social Affairs, Pham Thi Hai Chuyen.

The past four decades have seen enormous progress for children in Viet Nam. The mortality rate of children under five years of age has reduced by 80 per cent from 1986 to 2014. The percentage of people who have access to improved drinking water has increased twofold, from 41 per cent in 1986 to 92 per cent in 2014. Most children now go to school and many more have access to adequate health care. High immunization rates helped eradicate polio and maternal and neonatal tetanus. Viet Nam has also witnessed steep increases in the uptake of the polio and hepatitis B vaccines.

Some important children's rights milestones have also been achieved in recent times, including the passing of the new Law on Child Adoption, the ratification of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the establishment of the country's first specialized children's court – the Family and Juvenile Court, the recognition of social work as a profession, the introduction of six months maternity leave and the ban on advertisement of breast milk substitutes for children less than 24 months old.

"Viet Nam's commitment to children's rights - and subsequent actions to make them more than just theories – have help most children in this country along the road towards a healthy, secure and productive future", said Daniel Toole, UNICEF Regional Director for East Asia and the Pacific.

Despite the substantial progress of the past 40 years, the children of Viet Nam still face considerable challenges. Persistent disparities exist between regions, urban and rural and hard-to-reach mountainous area where most of the ethnic minority are living. The child mortality rates in Northern Mountainous areas and in Central Highlands are close to three times higher than the national average. One in every five children under five years of age is stunted in Northern Midlands and Mountains areas. Less than half of ethnic minority households having access to adequate sanitation. Social issues such as migration, family breakdown, drug abuse, commercial sex work, violence against children have become more prominent.

"UNICEF will continue to support Viet Nam in public advocacy to devote commitment, policies and resources to realize children's rights, especially to the most vulnerable children including migrants, children with disabilities and ethnic minority children living in hard-to-reach, hard-to-serve areas. We will continue to expand programme partnerships for children, including engagement of other UN agencies, corporate sector and civil society actors", said Youssouf Abdel Jelil, UNICEF Representative in Viet Nam.

The United Nations Resident Coordinator, Pratibha Mehta, also spoke at the ceremony. She highlighted the strength of the partnership between UNICEF and other UN Agencies, under Delivering-as-One Approach, as well as the joint commitment between Viet Nam and the United Nations to increase the relevance, effectiveness and efficiency in the context of the rapidly transforming middle income Viet Nam.

For further information, please contact:

• Nguyễn Thị Thanh Hương, UNICEF Viet Nam, (84-4)-3558 1474 , số máy lẻ 0225 hoặc 0904154678; email:ntthuong@unicef.org
• Nguyễn Xuân Hòa, Ministry of Labour, Invalid and Social Affairs, (84-4)3747 6316, email: pkehoachtonghop@gmail.com.