Vietnam will create more opportunities for children to accessinformation, voice their opinions, join social activities and be part ofdecision making processes.
These are part of the goals laid outin the National Programme of Action for Children (NPAC) 2011-20 draft,compiled by the Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs thatwas submitted to the Prime Minister for approval last December.
Theprogramme, the third of its kind in Vietnam, is aimed at creating equalopportunities for development for children and ensure basic children'srights, such as the right to participation, said Nguyen Hai Huu, head ofthe ministry's Child Care and Protection Department.
It will cost an estimated 1.25 trillion VND (62.5 million USD) to implement the plan.
Disadvantagedlocalities, including Tra Vinh, Quang Nam, Dak Nong, Ha Giang, Lai Chauand Dien Bien, will be given priority with a fund allocation of 10billion VND (50,000 USD) per year, showing the Government's committmentto eliminating inequality.
The right to participation wasmentioned in the two last programmes but was vaguely described and hadlittle practical impact due to a lack of legal regulation, Huu said.
"Organisationof forums for children will, for the first time, be legally formalised.A national forum will be held once every two years, with provincial andmunicipal events held annually. Children will be given the opportunityto access discussions with leaders at all levels," Huu said.
Anofficial from the Central Office of Ho Chi Minh Young PioneerOrganisation, Tran Van Tuan, said children would benefit from greaterunderstanding, skills, and experiences gained through participation inactivities at school, at home, or through other social events.
"Childrenwill play an increasingly active role and could potentially help theirparents, teachers and policy makers make better policy decisions inareas that directly affect them. This has been proved through a numberof activities conducted by the organisation in primary and secondaryschools," he said.
Despite evidence that honouring this right isbeneficial to children, exercising it has faced many challenges inVietnam, said Le Hong Loan, chief of UNICEF Vietnam's Child ProtectionSection.
Children's voices often have been ignored, adhering totraditional Confucian teaching methods meant children were given littleopportunity to express their opinions, she said.
"Vietnam stilllacks skilled staff and a mechanism to ensure implementation of theright. Additionally, it needs to make clear which agencies areresponsible for listening to the opinions of children and taking theminto account in decision making processes," she said.
Head of theVietnam Association for Protection of Children's Rights' CommunicationDepartment Nguyen Thi Lan Minh said the "Junior Reporters' Clubs,"initiated by UNICEF and the Youth Association in 1998, was an effectivechannel for children to voice concerns.
However, the club wasunable to sustain operations in a systematical scale or expand, and thereporters had difficulties accessing information because manyorganisations failed to cooperate.
In addition, parents werereluctant to allow their children to participate in such activities andinstead wanted them to spend time just studying, Minh said.
Moreover,poor computer and foreign language skills were also barriers forVietnamese children to share opinions particularly in internationalforums.
Some children, however, have reaped the benefits of moreopportunities for social participation. Eighth grader Ngo Thu Thuy ofHanoi's Chu Van An Secondary School said that she has been involved inand enjoyed many activities at school and in her district.
"Iknow that I'm luckier than many other children who don't have enoughfood to eat or enough money for school or who have to work from an earlyage," she said.
In addition to ensuring the right toparticipation, the national programme for the next ten years will alsofocus on raising the quality of education, healthcare and recreationalservices for children. It is also expected to address unresolvedproblems, such as the high rate of malnutrition among children under theage of eight, and the complex issues of maltreatment, abuse,exploitation and neglect of children.
UNICEF official Loan saidthe organisation appreciated Vietnam's efforts regarding children in thelast ten years, including increasing the rate of access to healthcareand education services, reducing the fatality rate and reforming childprotection models.
The population's development gap has createdinequalities among children, especially for minority children and thosewith disabilities. The country's socio-economic development has alsocreated new issues, including child labour violations, the prevalence ofchild trafficking and the increased HIV/AIDS rate.
Huu said the programme has mobilised the cooperation of relevant ministries.
"Each ministry will design detailed programmes on certain issues to realise the objectives set in the NPAC 2011-20," he said.
Asof 2009, Vietnam had a total of 23,600 children, accounting for 27.5per cent of its population. Research by UNICEF and MoLISA revealed thatin 2007, about 28 per cent of Vietnamese children were living in povertyas defined by a range of factors, such as proper nutrition and accessto healthcare, education, housing and clean water./.
These are part of the goals laid outin the National Programme of Action for Children (NPAC) 2011-20 draft,compiled by the Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs thatwas submitted to the Prime Minister for approval last December.
Theprogramme, the third of its kind in Vietnam, is aimed at creating equalopportunities for development for children and ensure basic children'srights, such as the right to participation, said Nguyen Hai Huu, head ofthe ministry's Child Care and Protection Department.
It will cost an estimated 1.25 trillion VND (62.5 million USD) to implement the plan.
Disadvantagedlocalities, including Tra Vinh, Quang Nam, Dak Nong, Ha Giang, Lai Chauand Dien Bien, will be given priority with a fund allocation of 10billion VND (50,000 USD) per year, showing the Government's committmentto eliminating inequality.
The right to participation wasmentioned in the two last programmes but was vaguely described and hadlittle practical impact due to a lack of legal regulation, Huu said.
"Organisationof forums for children will, for the first time, be legally formalised.A national forum will be held once every two years, with provincial andmunicipal events held annually. Children will be given the opportunityto access discussions with leaders at all levels," Huu said.
Anofficial from the Central Office of Ho Chi Minh Young PioneerOrganisation, Tran Van Tuan, said children would benefit from greaterunderstanding, skills, and experiences gained through participation inactivities at school, at home, or through other social events.
"Childrenwill play an increasingly active role and could potentially help theirparents, teachers and policy makers make better policy decisions inareas that directly affect them. This has been proved through a numberof activities conducted by the organisation in primary and secondaryschools," he said.
Despite evidence that honouring this right isbeneficial to children, exercising it has faced many challenges inVietnam, said Le Hong Loan, chief of UNICEF Vietnam's Child ProtectionSection.
Children's voices often have been ignored, adhering totraditional Confucian teaching methods meant children were given littleopportunity to express their opinions, she said.
"Vietnam stilllacks skilled staff and a mechanism to ensure implementation of theright. Additionally, it needs to make clear which agencies areresponsible for listening to the opinions of children and taking theminto account in decision making processes," she said.
Head of theVietnam Association for Protection of Children's Rights' CommunicationDepartment Nguyen Thi Lan Minh said the "Junior Reporters' Clubs,"initiated by UNICEF and the Youth Association in 1998, was an effectivechannel for children to voice concerns.
However, the club wasunable to sustain operations in a systematical scale or expand, and thereporters had difficulties accessing information because manyorganisations failed to cooperate.
In addition, parents werereluctant to allow their children to participate in such activities andinstead wanted them to spend time just studying, Minh said.
Moreover,poor computer and foreign language skills were also barriers forVietnamese children to share opinions particularly in internationalforums.
Some children, however, have reaped the benefits of moreopportunities for social participation. Eighth grader Ngo Thu Thuy ofHanoi's Chu Van An Secondary School said that she has been involved inand enjoyed many activities at school and in her district.
"Iknow that I'm luckier than many other children who don't have enoughfood to eat or enough money for school or who have to work from an earlyage," she said.
In addition to ensuring the right toparticipation, the national programme for the next ten years will alsofocus on raising the quality of education, healthcare and recreationalservices for children. It is also expected to address unresolvedproblems, such as the high rate of malnutrition among children under theage of eight, and the complex issues of maltreatment, abuse,exploitation and neglect of children.
UNICEF official Loan saidthe organisation appreciated Vietnam's efforts regarding children in thelast ten years, including increasing the rate of access to healthcareand education services, reducing the fatality rate and reforming childprotection models.
The population's development gap has createdinequalities among children, especially for minority children and thosewith disabilities. The country's socio-economic development has alsocreated new issues, including child labour violations, the prevalence ofchild trafficking and the increased HIV/AIDS rate.
Huu said the programme has mobilised the cooperation of relevant ministries.
"Each ministry will design detailed programmes on certain issues to realise the objectives set in the NPAC 2011-20," he said.
Asof 2009, Vietnam had a total of 23,600 children, accounting for 27.5per cent of its population. Research by UNICEF and MoLISA revealed thatin 2007, about 28 per cent of Vietnamese children were living in povertyas defined by a range of factors, such as proper nutrition and accessto healthcare, education, housing and clean water./.
