Recently, the Central Committee of the Vietnam Women's Union held a mid-term review workshop for Project 8 "Implementing gender equality, solving urgent issues for women and children", sharing results of promoting gender equality, proposing effective gender mainstreaming solutions, solving urgent issues for women and children in ethnic minority and mountainous areas.
Ms. Ton Ngoc Hanh - Alternate member of the Party Central Committee, Vice President of the Vietnam Women's Union chaired the workshop.
4 contents, 8 goals of Project 8
The National Target Program on Socio-Economic Development in Ethnic Minority and Mountainous Areas for the 2021-2030 Period, Phase 1: 2021-2025, has been approved by the Prime Minister, assigning the Vietnam Women's Union to preside over and coordinate with ministries, branches and localities to implement Project 8.
Project 8 “Implementing gender equality and solving urgent issues for women and children” (Project) is one of 10 projects under the National Target Program for ethnic minority and mountainous areas, period 2021 - 2030. The project is chaired and implemented by the Central Committee of the Vietnam Women's Union.
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Alternate member of the Party Central Committee, Vice President of the Vietnam Women's Union Ton Ngoc Hanh chaired and directed the workshop. Photo: Vietnam Women's Union[/caption]The project operates with 4 contents:
The first content is to propagate and mobilize changes in "thinking and doing" to contribute to eliminating prejudices and gender stereotypes in families and communities, harmful cultural practices and some urgent social issues for women and children.
The second content is to build and replicate models of changing "thinking and working methods" to enhance women's economic power; promote gender equality and solve urgent problems of women and children.
The third content is to ensure the voice and substantive participation of women and children in socio-economic development activities of the community; monitoring and criticism; supporting women to participate in leadership in the political system.
Finally, equip knowledge about gender equality and skills to implement gender mainstreaming (GGM) for officials in the political system, village elders, village chiefs, religious dignitaries and prestigious people in the community.
Project 8 aims to raise awareness, change prejudices, care for material and spiritual life, protect and care for women and children, achieve gender equality and focus on effectively solving some urgent problems of women and children in particularly difficult localities. To implement the project, the Women's Union at all levels in the province promptly arranged personnel, directed and implemented the project; established a Project Management Board. At the same time, strengthen coordination with all levels and sectors in organizing the implementation, guiding the grassroots to deploy specific contents.
Initial results of the project's halfway stage
At the workshop, Vice President of the Vietnam Women's Union Ton Ngoc Hanh said: After half of the operation, up to now, most provinces and cities have established Project 8 Executive Boards; 100% of Women's Unions have assigned 1 Union leader in charge and 1 focal point to advise on the implementation of specific tasks of the Project.
After 3 years of implementation (from 2021-2023), 40/40 provinces in the Project 8 area have been allocated central budget and have issued implementation plans. The core contents and targets of the Project Phase 1 have achieved positive results with 4 key contents related to propaganda and advocacy activities to change "thinking and ways of doing" to contribute to eliminating gender prejudices and stereotypes in families and communities, harmful cultural practices and some urgent social issues for women and children";
Focus on building and replicating models of changing "thinking and ways of doing" to enhance women's economic empowerment; promote gender equality and solve urgent problems of women and children"; Implement training, education, capacity building activities, coordinate model building to "Ensure the voice and real participation of women and children in socio-economic development activities of the community, monitoring, criticism; support women to participate in leadership in the political system"; And implement activities on "Equipping knowledge on gender equality, skills to implement gender mainstreaming for officials in the political system, village elders, village chiefs, religious dignitaries and prestigious people in the community"...
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Overview of the workshop. Photo: Vietnam Women's Union[/caption]In the early stages of implementation, the project still encountered difficulties in regulations and guidelines related to financial mechanisms, implementation content guidelines, coordination, inspection, and monitoring of gender equality implementation; specific/effective methods of communication/family education to address issues such as gender bias; and in reality, urgent social issues that arise and continue to need attention and resolution...).
However, the mid-term assessment survey of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Women's Union shows that the implementation of the Project has achieved many positive results.
Annual activities are designed and implemented in line with the Project's orientation requirements, being comprehensive and suitable to the actual situation. At the local level, the Women's Union at all levels has made efforts to coordinate with authorities at all levels and relevant sectors in implementation. The models and activities have been welcomed and supported by the people and recognized by local Party committees and authorities. Most provinces and cities have set a target of striving to achieve 100% of the Project's basic targets in Phase I by 2024.
Specifically, the Association at all levels established and maintained 7,623/9,000 Community Communication Teams (reaching 84.7% of the target of phase 1)/61,685 members who are male and female, prestigious people in the village/hamlet/hamlet/village...
Supported 184/500 livelihood groups, cooperatives, and cooperatives to apply science and technology in production, connect product consumption markets (reaching 36.8% of phase 1 target)/2,208 women as owners/or participating in management; established and consolidated 1,462/1,000 trusted addresses (exceeding phase 1 target), supported and advised about 12,971 women and children in ethnic minority areas...
Organized training to improve capacity to implement gender equality for officials at all levels with 250/480 sessions for 12,789 district and commune officials (achieving 52.1% of phase 1 target), 570/1600 training sessions for 35,604 village/hamlet/hamlet heads, prestigious people in the community (achieving 35.6% of phase 1 target)...
Assessing the results of the Project, looking towards the goal by the end of 2025, Vice President of the Vietnam Women's Union Ton Ngoc Hanh requested ministries, branches, localities and Women's Unions at all levels to continue to have activities to direct and coordinate the implementation of a number of contents related to supporting the removal of difficulties and obstacles from the implementation reality (a number of regulations on management, use and settlement of the budget; difficulties in areas, subjects and a number of contents of regulations on activities that are not suitable for reality...); Focus on providing specific instructions on activities, indicators for implementing gender mainstreaming and monitoring and evaluating the implementation of gender equality in projects and sub-projects for the leading ministries and branches; People's Committees of provinces/cities continue to pay attention to directing and removing obstacles in the mechanism and process of coordination in making and approving plans and budgets for implementing the Project;
Ms. Ton Ngoc Hanh also requested the Women's Unions of provinces and cities to continue to promote their leading role, proactively advise and coordinate with departments and branches to implement the annual Project and monitor and evaluate the implementation of gender equality in the program; Step up inspection and supervision of the implementation of Project 8 and monitor and evaluate the implementation of gender equality in the Program; speed up the implementation progress and complete the indicators of the Project phase 1 according to plan.
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