Leveraging resources to ensure every citizen has a warm and joyful Lunar New Year.

On the afternoon of January 12th, a nationwide online conference was held to implement tasks related to labor, war invalids, and social affairs in 2022.

Attending the conference at the main venue were: Comrade Vu Duc Dam - Member of the Central Committee of the Party, Member of the Party Committee of the Government, Deputy Prime Minister; Comrade Dao Ngoc Dung - Member of the Central Committee of the Party, Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs; and representatives from relevant ministries, departments and agencies.

Overview of the online conference at the Nghe An branch. Photo: Thanh Nga

At the Nghe An provincial venue, the attendees included: Bui Dinh Long - Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, Doan Hong Vu - Member of the Provincial Party Committee, Director of the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs; along with representatives from various departments and agencies, and representatives from the Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs offices of 21 districts, cities, and towns.

Spending over 35.9 trillion VNDsupport for disadvantaged workers

The Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs delivered the opening remarks at the conference. Photo: People's Army Newspaper.

Over the past year, amidst numerous disruptions caused by the pandemic, the Ministry of Labour, with its motto of "Unity, Discipline, Innovation, and Development" and six key areas of guidance and management, has demonstrated a proactive and creative spirit in successfully implementing all assigned tasks. Specifically, it has concretized the goals regarding labour, war invalids, and social affairs assigned by the National Assembly into 18 targets, 15 main groups of tasks and solutions, and 73 specific tasks, assigned to units under the Ministry and the Departments of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs in provinces and cities for implementation.

In particular, the sector has coordinated to successfully achieve the "dual goal" of both preventing and controlling the Covid-19 pandemic and supporting economic recovery, removing difficulties for businesses, and assisting people and workers severely affected by the pandemic. The total budget for implementing Resolution 68/NQ-CP nationwide was over 35.9 trillion VND, supporting over 31.28 million beneficiaries..Implementing Resolution No. 116/NQ-CP, support has been provided to over 12.8 million workers to date, with a total support amount exceeding 30.5 trillion VND.

In addition, the government also provided relief rice to the people, mobilized enormous social resources from organizations and individuals, and distributed millions of "social welfare packages" to support people during the pandemic.

Warm jackets and hundreds of gifts were donated to students at Luu Kien Primary School (Tuong Duong). Photo courtesy of Nguyen Son.

Also during the past year, the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs has effectively improved the work of drafting and strictly enforcing laws in the fields of labour, war invalids and social affairs. It has promptly implemented solutions and policies on labour and employment, supported the development of the labour market, and improved the quality of human resources.

However, overall in 2021, the labor market still faced many difficulties, with the unemployment rate this year higher than the previous year, specifically: the unemployment rate for working-age people in urban areas remained high at 4.42%; and the underemployment rate for working-age people in urban areas was 3.33%.

The work of sending workers abroad for fixed-term employment has also been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, as many countries have closed their borders, implemented social distancing measures, and stopped accepting workers. It is estimated that approximately 45,000 workers will be sent abroad under contract throughout the year.

Ensuring everyone has a warm and joyful Lunar New Year.

Providing aid to the poor in Tan Ky district. (Photo: Archival image)

Speaking at the conference, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam affirmed: 2021 was a year of many special changes due to the pandemic; however, Vietnam still achieved a growth rate of 5.59%, which is a good figure compared to the general level of the region and the world.

In particular, over the past year we have made unprecedented efforts in ensuring social security, especially in areas under lockdown due to the epidemic, and in hospitals treating patients with Covid-19. In addition, the Ministry has advised on the issuance of Resolution 68/NQ-CP on supporting workers affected by the epidemic and Resolution 126/ND-CP amending and supplementing Resolution 68/NQ-CP dated July 1, 2021, which have been implemented in great detail and optimized in their execution.

To continue effectively carrying out tasks in 2022, the Deputy Prime Minister suggested that, regarding employment and vocational training, a strategy is needed for on-the-spot vocational training and job placement, as well as for sending workers abroad.

Regarding child protection, the Deputy Prime Minister said: “Almost every year there are heartbreaking incidents, but last year there was an incident that caused public outrage when a child was abused to death. Therefore, the child protection network needs to be strengthened. Especially in the context of the complicated pandemic, children have to stay at home for a long time, which can easily have a negative impact on their psychology.”

"To adapt to the new situation, we absolutely need digital services to ensure payment processing and the storage of industry-wide data. Furthermore, in many areas, without digital technology, we cannot effectively monitor and implement policies," the Deputy Prime Minister suggested.

"Especially with the Lunar New Year approaching, we must strive to utilize resources to best ensure social welfare for those facing difficulties due to the pandemic. We must try to ensure that all citizens have a truly warm and joyful Tet holiday," Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam requested.

Also at the conference, Comrade Dao Ngoc Dung - Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs - stated: Last year, the sector strived to coordinate with other ministries and agencies to successfully complete its tasks, especially in the difficult context of the pandemic. In 2022, in the trend of developing Industry 4.0, the sector is determined to undergo digital transformation to build data fields to effectively carry out its tasks.