HA NOI, 2 October, 2020 – The awards ceremony of the TitkTok video competition “Girls deserve to shine” was held this morning in Ha Noi.  The competition was launched on TikTok from 10 to 31 August 2020 to raise awareness on harmful practices of gender biased sex selection in Viet Nam. The competition was organized by the Center for Studies and Applied Sciences of Gender - Family - Women and Adolescents (CSAGA) in collaboration with TikTok, with support of the Norwegian Government, the Embassy of the Netherlands, and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Viet Nam.

Gender-biased sex selection as a harmful practice remains persistent in society. It has been identified as the major cause of an imbalance in the Sex Ratio at Birth (SRB) in Viet Nam. The skewed SRB in Viet Nam towards more boys has rapidly increased and reached 111.5 boys per 100 girls in 2019 as indicated in the 2019 Census on Population and Housing, against the biologically “normal” SRB of 105-106 boys per 100 girls. The UNFPA’s State of the World Population Report 2020 estimates that for Viet Nam alone, 40,800 female births are estimated to be missing every year, as shown in the unbalanced SRB. Evidence shows that this demographic imbalance is a result of prenatal sex selection based on son preference and low value of girls, which are deeply rooted in the traditional culture in Viet Nam.

The competition targeted Vietnamese individuals and youth groups, and invited submissions of video clips on TikTok platform with the hashtag #SinhcongaiHainiemvui (GirlsDeserveToShine). The video clips should tell stories and messages on the important role of women and girls in society, challenge gender stereotypes against women and gender-based discrimination, promote good practices on respecting women and girls, and share solutions to change the harmful practices of gender biased sex selection based on son preference and low value of girls in Viet Nam.

After three weeks of the competition, there are 1,690 video clips submitted, with 6,821,009 views; 642,613 likes; 14,205 shares and 7,751 comments.    

Addressing the ceremony, Ms. Nguyen Van Anh, Director of CSAGA expressed that: “Every living being present in this world has the right to be treated equally and to receive a merry welcome from the human world. This contest is not simply a campaign or a movement. It must be a concept of respect for the beautiful values of gender equality and human rights. It is such luck that it has received an enthusiastic response from young people. I believe these are positive signs of change.”.

“Norway gives high priority to strengthening and defending global norms on the rights of girls and women. Norway’s actions to address the harmful practices of son preferences and gender-biased sex selection rely on the established partnerships and measures that have proved effective over time. Therefore, it is a great pleasure for us to collaborate with UNFPA - our crucial partner, and CSAGA in this competition. Girls not only deserve to shine, they also have the right to shine. This is about inclusiveness and about universal human rights”, said Ms Grete Løchen, Norwegian Ambassador to Viet Nam.  

The competition was an opportunity for everyone to look at the broader socio-economic context where the value of men and boys is considered higher than women and girls and raise a question on how Viet Nam can change this social norm, and create a society where every girl and every woman can enjoy equal rights and opportunities.

“Let us all be united together to end gender-biased sex selection. Every one of us has a significant role to play, and it is only through such solidarity that we can bring about societal change, as an issue for achieving Sustainable Development Goals, “leaving no one behind.” We are not leaving girls behind,” said Ms. Naomi Kitahara, UNFPA Representative in Viet Nam at the awards ceremony.

After a careful selection process, the organizers announced the following contest winners:

First place:                 Men Thuong 

Second place:             Ta Cong Bang

Third place:               Ha Dungg

                                    Hung Minhu

Consolation place:     Duong Duong

                                    Do Thanh Truc

                                    Duy Anh

Community choice place with the highest votes on TikTok: Mai Trum with 2,9 million views, 270,000 likes, 1,839 comments and 1,976 shares.

On this occasion, UNFPA, together with the Government of Norway, the Dutch Embassy and CSAGA, affirmed their strong commitment and called for urgent action to bring an end to this harmful practice. Together let’s join hands to stop gender-biased sex selection now, for our future generations.

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