Nghe An launches National Action Month on Population

On the morning of December 6th, in Quy Hop district, the Provincial Steering Committee for Population and Development, in coordination with the Quy Hop District Steering Committee for Population and Development, organized the launching ceremony for the National Action Month on Population and the commemoration of the 62nd anniversary of Vietnam's Population Day (December 26, 1961 - December 26, 2023) in 2023.

Attending the launching ceremony were delegates from the Ministry of Health: Hoang Thi Thom - Deputy Director of the Population Department; Pham Hong Quan - Director of the Project 818 Management Board and other members of the delegation.

Representing Nghe An province were: Mr. Nguyen Ba Tan - Head of the Provincial Population and Family Planning Department; Mr. Cao Duc Trung - Standing Deputy Secretary and Chairman of the People's Council of Quy Hop district; Mr. Hoang Van Thai - Vice Chairman and Head of the Steering Committee for Population and Development in Quy Hop district; representatives from the Provincial Steering Committee for Population; and representatives from districts, cities, and towns in the province.

Speaking at the launching ceremony, Comrade Nguyen Ba Tan - Head of the Population and Family Planning Department - pointed out the difficulties and challenges in population work in Nghe An.

Currently, Nghe An remains a province with a large population (ranking 4th nationwide), a high birth rate (ranking among the top 6 provinces with the highest birth rates nationwide), and a high rate of having a third child or more, with the risk of further increase.

Furthermore, the gender imbalance at birth and the aging population are at alarming levels. The quality of the population does not match the province's potential. In particular, issues related to pre-marital, adolescent, and youth reproductive health care; healthcare for the elderly, mothers, and children still face many difficulties; and the problems of malnutrition, stunting, and congenital defects in newborns still require significant attention.

Based on the above reality, it is necessary to have a clearer understanding of the importance of effectively implementing current population work. This includes continuing to proactively and effectively implement Resolution No. 21 of the Politburo, the spirit of the 13th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam on population work, and the Prime Minister's Vietnam Population Strategy to 2030.

National Population Action MonthIn 2023, with the theme "Participating in premarital counseling and health check-ups for family happiness and the future of the country," the campaign aimed to promote and encourage all young people to participate in premarital counseling and health check-ups before marriage. This not only demonstrates concern for one's own health but also fulfills a responsibility towards the future, family happiness, and the well-being of society as a whole.

Speaking at the launching ceremony, Deputy Director of the Population Department Hoang Thi Thom acknowledged and highly appreciated Nghe An province's population work. Notably, the province has always been at the forefront in providing timely advice, proactively seizing opportunities, and prioritizing key issues to decisively direct and effectively implement the development and replication of models and best practices in population and development, contributing to stabilizing population size and improving population quality.

Besides the achievements, the Deputy Director of the Population Department also pointed out the difficulties, especially since Nghe An province still has a high birth rate while the whole country has reached replacement level. In this context, Nghe An's population work needs to carry out a "dual task": striving to reduce birth rates while simultaneously improving the quality of the population.

To effectively organize activities in response to the National Action Month on Population and implement population work tasks in Nghe An in the coming period, the leaders of the Population Department requested the Department of Health (with the Population and Family Planning Sub-Department as the direct advisory body) to urgently develop and defend a plan with the Department of Planning and Investment and the Department of Finance regarding activities and local budget investment for population work in 2024 and subsequent years. This is especially important for programs, plans, and projects on population that have been approved by the Provincial People's Committee, in order to ensure sufficient resources to achieve the goals and targets of the local population work each year.

The province also needs to promote the proactive, creative, and resilient spirit of the locality, focusing on the decisive and coordinated implementation of solutions and activities related to communication. In the short term, the focus should be on the goal of reducing birth rates and improving the quality of reproductive health and family planning services.

Regarding the population sector, it is necessary to mobilize and secure the support of Party committees and authorities at all levels, the participation of various departments and organizations, and especially to promote the role of the Steering Committee for Population and Development at all levels… At the same time, it is important to continue to pay attention to, encourage, and motivate all staff working in the population sector to overcome difficulties, promote solidarity, overcome challenges, and strive to complete the assigned tasks.

At the launching ceremony, representatives from the Project 818 Management Board - Ministry of Health presented 15 gifts to families who have effectively implemented the population policy in Quy Hop district.