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Australian Ambassador to Vietnam, Robyn Mudie (sitting, left) and UNFPA Representative in Vietnam, Naomi Kitahara (sitting, right), sign an agreement on the joint project "Supporting interventions to eliminate violence against women and children in Vietnam under COVID-19 emergency context". — VNS Photo Hong Minh

The aim is to strengthen the national prevention and response mechanisms to address the issue.

The joint project, named “Supporting interventions to eliminate violence against women and children in Vietnam under COVID-19 emergency context”, with the involvement of the Government of Australia and the United Nations agencies (UNFPA, UNICEF and UN Women) in Vietnam, also aims at ensuring that all Vietnamese women and children, including those most vulnerable, can live a life free of violence.

The scheme will receive financial support of AU$2.5 million (US$1.7 million) from the Australian Government. This is part of Australia’s AU$10.5 million contribution to support Vietnam’s response to COVID-19.

The project will raise public awareness – among women and girls, men and boys, parents/caregivers, children and adolescents - about the increased risks of violence in the home, quarantine centers and other institutions.

Increased support for victims of violence will be delivered in four cities and provinces of Hanoi, Quang Ninh, Da Nang and HCM City - the locations most affected by COVID-19 over the past months.

It will help ensure survivors have access to integrated and essential services. Innovative approaches will be introduced in communications and service provision work taking to account of special circumstances of COVID-19, in partnership with supermarkets, pharmacies and hotels.

It will be co-implemented by Vietnamese partners including the ministries of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs; Culture, Sports and Tourism; Education and Training for the period from June 2020 to May 2021.

“During the COVID-19 pandemic, job losses and enforced home isolation have caused rates of violence against women and children to soar in (many) countries around the world,” said Robyn Mudie, Australian Ambassador to Vietnam at the project launch.

“Domestically, Australia has increased budgets to address family violence that has occurred as a result of COVID-19. Today, Australia pledges its support to the Government of Vietnam to secure greater safety for women and children in its COVID-19 response,” she said.

According to Naomi Kitahara, UNFPA Representative in Vietnam, the Peace House Hotline 1900 969 680 (a shelter run by the Vietnam Women’s Union) and the Sunshine Hotline 1800 1769 (as supported by UNFPA in Quang Ninh Province in partnership with KOICA) have received twice as many calls for help over the past few months compared to period in previous years.

“It has been reported that risks of physical abuse, sexual abuse and child sexual abuse and exploitation have increased substantially,” she said, on behalf of the UNFPA, UNICEF and UN Women.

Kitahara added that school closures and social distancing measures exposed children to increased isolation and to substantial protection risks, threatening their safety and ultimately – their right to grow up and learn in a safe and protected environment away from harm.

“Ending violence against women and children should be a priority for everyone. There is no way for Vietnam to achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals without addressing the issue of violence against women and children,” she said.

“It is about making sure that everyone is part of the country’s sustainable development process, leaving no one behind. We trust this new project will make a great leap forward to eliminate violence against women and girls in Vietnam.”  VNS

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