National scientific conference with the theme of: “Reviewing and identifying urgent social issues for women and children in ethnic minority and mountainous areas; recommending and proposing content and solutions to mobilize and support ethnic minority women in the next phase”

The conference aims to share and announce the results of scientific research and lessons from experience; create a forum for practical and academic exchanges to discuss urgent issues with women and children in ethnic minority and mountainous areas in the Central and Central Highlands regions, put lessons implementing from Project 8 into practice, as well as propose content and solutions to mobilize and support women in the next phase.

The conference was attended by Ms. NGUYEN Thi Thu Hien – Vice President of Vietnam Women’s Union (VWU); Assoc. Prof. Dr. TRAN Quang Tien – President of Vietnam Women’s Academy (VWA); Assoc. Prof. Dr. DUONG Kim Anh – Vice President of VWA, Ms. HA Thi Oanh – Deputy Head of the Ethnic & Religious Affairs Department of VWU; Ms. TRAN Thi Kim Loan – President of VWU in Thua Thien Hue province, along with more than 100 delegates who are leaders managers, and specialised personnel of Project 8 coming from Vietnam Women’s Union, Departments of Labor – Invalids and Social Affairs, Ethnic Minorities Committee of 13 provinces and cities in the Central Highlands region, representatives of managers and specialists of Project 8 in Hue, scientists, experts from universities, research institutes, press agencies in Hanoi, Hue, Da Nang and the participation of delegates interested in the topic of the conference.

Ms. NGUYEN Thi Thu Hien – Vice President of Vietnam Women’s Union delivered the opening speech at the conference.

The delegates focused on exchanging and sharing 2 main contents at 2 sessions of the conference.

Session 1: Results of Project 8’s implementation in the Central and Central Highlands regions in the period 2022-2024, lessons learned, recommendations and proposals.

Session 1 has collected many opinions from scientists, experts, leaders, and managers from agencies, universities, and research institutes. The discussion results showed that Project 8 has brought positive changes to the lives of ethnic minority women and children. However, it is necessary to supplement content, methods, tools, guidelines, update policies, improve management capacity, operation, and disbursement of activities to improve the effectiveness of Project 8.

Session 2: Urgent social issues for ethnic minority women and children in mountainous areas of the Central and Central Highlands regions.

The main objective of the workshop is to review and identify urgent social issues for women and children in ethnic minority and mountainous areas, thereby providing a basis for proposing solutions and directions for the next phase of Project 8.

At session 2, delegates also agreed on the contents regarding the need to continue to deploy and expand sustainable livelihood support models, focusing on improving digital capacity for women and building specialized education programs for children in ethnic minority areas. At the same time, support policies need to be implemented flexibly and appropriately to the actual conditions of each region, ensuring feasibility and effectiveness.

The national scientific conference with the theme of: “Reviewing and identifying urgent social issues for women and children in ethnic minority and mountainous areas; recommending and proposing content and solutions to mobilize and support ethnic minority women in the next phase” provided a comprehensive view of urgent social issues and opened up new directions to support ethnic minority women and children, contributing to promoting the equal and comprehensive development of the social community.