Mr. Nguyen Manh Dung, Secretary of Youth Union

Mr. Vu Thanh Liem, Director of Central Center for Adolescents and Youth

Representatives from the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Home Affairs and Youth Union

Management Board of Hanoi University of Labor and Social Issues

Representatives of young people, particularly, students of Hanoi University of Labor and Social Issues

Ladies and gentlemen;

Good morning to you all.

On behalf of the United Nations Population Fund in Viet Nam, I would like to thank the Central Center for Adolescents and Youth of the Youth Union for organizing this important event. 

Viet Nam is changing rapidly and so are its young people. Viet Nam has entered a demographic bonus period, registering the largest cohort of young people in the country’s history. According to the 2014 Inter-Censal Population and Housing Survey, over one third of Viet Nam’s population are young people aged 10-29. This demographic window of opportunity presents an important human resource for the country and reminds us that investing in young people is critical for the country’s sustainable development.

Not only is the number of young people large, but a rapid change in sexual values, norms and behaviors among Vietnamese young people has also been documented. Young people are getting married later and have more pre-marital relationships. They also often live away from their families due to work or study. More and more young people move to urban areas to find work. Therefore, we need new kinds of programs to support their sexual and reproductive health.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Viet Nam has made impressive progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The coverage of SRH services and information including family planning has been expanded and the quality of services has been improved in the country. However, the SRH/FP programs are traditionally targeted for married couples; no specific national program addressing the growing needs of unmarried young people has yet been implemented. Young people in rural areas or ethnic minority communities often have difficulties accessing SRH information and services, too.

The evidence shows most Vietnamese young people still lack vital knowledge and life-skills to negotiate safe and consensual relationships, and face considerable barriers to accessing SRH services. Sexuality education at schools remains limited. This is part of the unfinished development agenda of Viet Nam, which requires more investment and political commitment.

Distinguished guests,

We need to finish the unfinished business. That means ensuring continued and sustained efforts that focus on addressing the unmet SRH needs of young people by ensuring universal access to comprehensive and high-quality SRH information and services for young people, and establishing the kinds of services that reach all young people.

In order to ensure that young people have access to high-quality sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services and information, we need to implement new approaches that address young people’s needs and increase their ability to make positive decisions about their sexual health. These approaches need to be founded on the knowledge that young people can make responsible, healthy decisions when they are well informed and have a supportive environment. The supportive environment means that information and services pertaining to their specific needs and perspectives are easily available for them.

This is why we support this competition for young people to propose the types of SRH programs they see would work best. We, the organizers and decision-makers, must encourage and stimulate innovative solutions for promoting SRH services and information for young people. We must foster young people’s involvement in designing SRH programs, where young people themselves will decide what kinds of services and information would be appropriate for them and would be effective to address their needs. This is a way to ensure that Viet Nam will have SRH programs that meet the needs of young people, and that all young people will have the knowledge and skills they need to become healthy and productive adults.

I would like to assure you that UNFPA stands ready to support you in this process. By working together, we can make universal access to sexual and reproductive health for all Vietnamese young people a reality.

Thank you very much for your attention.

I wish you all good health, happiness and success.