VietNamNet Bridge – Young people in Viet Nam don't have enough skills and knowledge to contend with the challenges they are about to face: economic insecurity, HIV/AIDS, pollution, migration and rapid urbanisation, UNICEF representative Lotta Sylwander said yesterday, Feb 28.

High school students read leaflets on reproductive health care and HIV/AIDS prevention in northern Nam Dinh Province. (Photo: VNS)

But on the other hand, denying their rights to quality education, healthcare, protection and decent jobs would perpetuate the vicious cycle of poverty and exclusion that had robbed them of their chance to fully develop their capacities to be healthy and productive members of society, she said.

Speaking at the launch of a UNICEF publication, State of the World's Children, Lotta said she appreciated the enthusiasm and confidence of Vietnamese adolescents to obtain the latest trends, as well as their roles in the country's development.

However, they faced a unique set of challenges and those challenges were expected to intensify over the next decade and many of the children weren't properly equipped to cope.

"Stakeholders at all levels in Viet Nam must work together to ensure that adolescence truly becomes an age of opportunity," Lotta said.

"The United Nations in Viet Nam stands ready to support the Government with a concerted response under One UN Initiative."

This year, the UNICEF's annual report was themed "Adolescents – an Age of opportunity," emphasising the imperative of investing in adolescents the meeting was told.

International Organisation of Migration representative Florian Forster said youth migration was one of the key challenges for Viet Nam's adolescents as migration flows (mostly from rural areas to urban ones) were dominated by people aged 15-24, the majority of which were female.

The migration could give young people the chance to access employment, education, marriage and to experience new things, but it posed high risks of homelessness, unemployment and economic and sexual exploitation due to lack of experience.

For example, without adequate education and knowledge of work conditions, young people would be more liable to become victims of human trafficking.

Youth migration was an important part of the nation's growing urbanisation process, he said.

"Besides the impact on the urbanisation process, this youth migration also influences the age and gender structure of the population at regional and provincial levels."

Viet Nam UNAIDS representative Eamonn Murphy said that urban migrants were vulnerable to economic and sexual exploitation, drug abuse and unsafe sex due to their limited sexual understanding, putting them at risk of HIV infection.

A survey showed that only 42.5 per cent of Vietnamese youth aged 15-24 had comprehensive knowledge of HIV transmission, far less than the national target of 95 per cent by last year.

In Viet Nam, it was estimated that the number of HIV-infected teenagers aged 10-19 accounted for 8.3 per cent of total infections.

National programmes to support adolescents were needed, Murphy said. Healthcare services needed to be more accessible for the young, because at their ages they hesitated to use services related to reproduction or HIV/AIDS.

The young also needed proper education to improve their life skills and awareness so they would be more likely to change their behaviours, for example using condoms to ensure safe sex.

The international agencies said that thanks to committed investments in early childhood (children up to 9 years old) in Viet Nam, the lives of many young children had been saved and in many cases significantly improved. However, Viet Nam could not risk losing these children as they became adolescents and young people.

The international agencies urged the nation to complement improvements for young children with stronger investment and action to support them in education, health, employment and participation.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News