The action month, from November 15 to December 15 each year, is held nationwide following the Prime Minister’s Decision No 1696/QĐ-TTg, dated October 2, 2015, on approving the national action program on gender equality during the 2016-20 period.

This is the fifth year the ministry has chaired the implementation of the action month.

The action month will create a campaign promoting information dissemination on gender equality and gender-based violence prevention and control nationwide with the hope of making a positive change in society on implementing gender equality and gender-based violence prevention and control.

Deputy minister Le Van Thanh delivers a speech at the meeting.

Addressing the launch ceremony, Deputy Minister Le Van Thanh said the highlight of the implementation of gender equality in Viet Nam is the completion of the legal framework and policies on gender equality, which has created conditions for women to get better access and participate more in various fields of social life. The rate of female business ownership reached 27.8 percent in 2018, the highest in Southeast Asia, and ranked 6 out of 57 countries with a large percentage of women owning businesses. The rate of female National Assembly deputies during the 2016-21 term is 27.2 percent, higher than the Asian figure of 19 percent and the global rate of 21 percent. Viet Nam was ranked 97th out of 144 countries by the World Economic Forum in terms of the rate of females taking part in politics. Viet Nam is one among ten countries in the world implementing best goal five on gender equality and women’s and girls’ empowerment.

However, besides these achievements, challenges remain in ensuring real gender equality. The gender inequality issue and violence against women and girls still occur in many regions and sectors; women and children are also subject to human trafficking, sexual abuse and suffer many types of violence outside their families.

Deputy minister Le Van Thanh said an equal society is a society without violence and abuse against women and children. That goal will become a reality if all ministries, sectors, localities and the whole community proactively commit and have practical and concrete actions.

Together with the launching of the 2019 national action month on gender equality and gender-based violence prevention and control in Quang Ngai, thousands of activities will be held nationwide in response to the action month with the participation of hundreds of thousands of people across the country./.