VietNamNet Bridge – Protecting the interests of female workers and improving the quality of vocational training for women were among the major topics discussed by the 12th National Women’s Congress yesterday.

Protecting the interests of female workers and improving the quality of vocational training for women were among the major topics discussed by the 12th National Women’s Congress yesterday.– VNA/VNS Photo

Speaking at the congress’s second session, Nguyen Trong Dam, Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, noted that of the 53.27 million paid workers nationwide, 25.8 million were women, accounting for 48.48 per cent. (The figures were compiled by a General Statistics Office survey in the third quarter of last year.)

He said job generation for women has been a priority for the Government in recent years.

The National Fund for Job Assistance, which provides credit for job generation, helped create jobs for around 105,000 workers in 2016, about 60 per cent of them women.

The fund also earmarked VND62 billion (US$2.69 million) last year to offer job assistance to over 1,000 members of the Viet Nam Women’s Union (VWU).

Since 2011, Viet Nam has been sending 80,000-100,000 workers abroad each year, and 35-40 per cent of them have been women.

Dam also said that his ministry sees improving quality of and access to vocational education as a “breakthrough measure” in improving the lot of women in the country.

He said the ministry will focus on issuing legal documents guiding implementation of the Law on Vocational Education, improving technical standards on the operation and management of vocational education system and improving the capacity of State management agencies in the field.

The ministry will improve the efficiency and quality of vocational training, especially for adult women in rural areas. It will also hold mobile job fairs in rural areas, thus increasing women’s access to employment opportunities.

Trinh Thanh Hang of the Viet Nam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL) said protecting the legitimate rights and interests of women was the responsibility of the confederation and the VWU.

The VGCL has adopted a resolution on mobilising female workers and an action programme on gender equality with specific goals, she said.

The VGCL and the VWU are actively reviewing and offering recommendations on amendments and supplements to legal documents related to female officials, cadres and workers, she added.

In the near future, both organisations will continue to perform their roles as advisors in law building and enforcement, especially involving female workers.

Gender equality, women’s advancement, population, reproductive health, family and children will be other areas that they offer their view and insights on, she said.

The VGCL will continue listening to women’s aspirations, holding dialogues with employers, and proposing relevant laws and policies, she added.

New central committee

Later yesterday, delegates at the congress elected 161 members of Central Committee of the VWU for the 2017-2022 tenure. Nguyen Thi Thu Ha was re-elected as chairwoman of the VWU for the new tenure.

Earlier, the congress adopted a proposal that the VWU Central Committee will have 171 members.

The remaining 10 members of the committee will be elected later. The new central committee convened their first session in the afternoon.

Also yesterday, participants contributed ideas for the congress’s documents, including a draft political report and the union’s charter.

Many delegates presented their reports and recommendations on women’s affairs, women’s movements and the union’s operations.

The congress is set to conclude today.

VNS