The past ...
Legends of the earliest Vietnamese society describe women as giants, both stronger and more capable than men [Arlene Eisen, Women and Revolution in Viet Nam. London: Zed Books, 1984] This is represented in the images of Lady Trieu (Ba Trieu) and the Trung sisters (Trung Trac and Trung Nhi). In 43A.D. the Trung sisters, with female generals and lieutenants, led an army of 80,000 to conquer Chinese occupation.
Throughout the centuries these women remained a strong part of Vietnamese legend which in the 18th century described Ba Trieu as '9 feet tall and able to walk 500 leagues in a single day' [David Marr, Vietnamese Tradition on Trial. Berkeley University of California Press].
The imperial rule of China dominated in the north of Viet Nam. This brought with it the influence of patriarchal Confucianism. This male domination was combined with strong gender roles and division of labour under feudalism. Women did all the household labour and a great deal of agrarian and manual activities.
The earliest document relating to equality between men and women is from the Le Dynasty, and is the Hong Duc Code dated 1483, that provided women with equal inheritance rights, the right to divorce and protection from violence.
Strong socialist politics this century led to the enshrinement of gender equality in the first Constitution of Viet Nam in 1946 which states in Article 9: 'All power in the country belongs to the Vietnamese people, irrespective of race, sex, fortune, class, religion…and that women are equal to men in all respects'. The Constitutions of 1959, 1980 and 1992 further refine and highlight the rights of women.
The Viet Nam Women's Union (VWU) was established in 1930 and remains one of the oldest and largest national organisations of women in the world, with a current membership of around 11 million members. From its outset, the union has encouraged and supported women to participate in the cause of national defence, construction and development.
In 1980 Viet Nam signed the Convention on All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and ratified this document in 1982. Two years later, the National Committee for the Women's Decade was established and then expanded in 1993 to become the National Committee for the Advancement of Women (NCFAW). This is the national machinery for the development and monitoring of women's policies in Viet Nam.
"Rural women are the majority of the rural population and also face the most difficulties. We have made this group our first priority in our platform of action."
Ms Ha Thi Khiet, Chairwoman of Viet Nam Women's Union and the National Committee for the Advancement of Women, on International Women's Day 1999.

The present ...
The international document from the Fourth World Conference on Women held in Beijing in 1995 was adapted into a National Plan of Action and signed by the Prime Minister of Viet Nam in October 1997. The document covers 11 critical areas of concern for women in Viet Nam:
* Jobs, poverty alleviation, hunger eradication;
* equal opportunities in education and training;
* improved health care;
* enhanced role and position of women in leadership mechanisms and decision-making;
* protection and promotion of women's rights;
* enhanced role of the family;
* role of women in environment and sustainable development;
* intensified information and communication activities on equal rights;
* contribution to peace;
* enhanced national machinery; and
* protection of the girl child.
"Housework is not only done by women" - one of nearly 40,000 entries in a UN gender poster competition for school children. Nguyen Thi Ha Trang, 9-years-old

This document has many specific targets for government departments, and has been disseminated widely with Committees for the Advancement of Women established in each Ministry and province, to ensure the implementation of the document. Many of these committees have already developed a Ministerial or Provincial Plan of Action for the local or government level. These are essential documents to consult when planning development projects.

Equity at home and in the workplace:
* Women spend on average 3 hours per day on housework and men spend on average 12 minutes (UNDP: 1996)
* Rural women work an average of 12.5 hours per day (1997).
* Women in north, north-central and mountainous areas work an average of 14 hours per day.
* Single poor women work an average of 16 hours per day.

The majority of women in Viet Nam live in rural areas and gender issues are integral to rural development. The labour sector structure in 1995 indicated that women made up 75.6% of the agricultural workforce, compared to 71.6% of men. In addition, they are also the main carers in the family and the organisers of the rural household.
Given the long hours women spend in the home, and the paid or unpaid labour force outside the home, time is the scarcest resource for most rural women. This must be a major consideration when planning activities that will impact on women's time. A gender sensitive approach to development projects analyses time use and the division of labour in a community before planning any activities, and works towards creating a more equitable situation for households.

Leadership body
Equity in decision-making:
In 1975 women comprised 32% of the National Assembly. This high percentage was due to the number of men in the front line during the American War. After the war ended, the percentage of women in high decision making levels decreased as women returned to the home and men returned to their previous occupations. The Government of Viet Nam has now set targets for the increased representation of women at all levels of decision-making. The National Assembly elections in 1997 were highly successful in increasing the percentage of women from 18.5% to 26.2%. There is now a need to address the representation of women at the grassroots level in management and decision-making, and to assist People's Councils to work towards the government target of 25%.

Equity in education:
Compared with other countries in the region, statistics illustrate a high rate of adult literacy in Viet Nam for men and women, and a high rate of primary school enrolment for girls and boys. However, gender disparities remain in access and attainment of education, especially for ethnic minority girls.
To address this critical issue, UNDP, with Japanese funding, is supporting a pilot project on literacy and vocational training for ethnic minority girls and women in the provinces of Vinh Phuc and Yen Bai.

Mainstreaming gender in the UN
UN agencies in Viet Nam are guided by National Government policy and initiatives in the area of gender and women's concerns. These include (1) Article 24 of the Constitution of Viet Nam which states "Women enjoy equality with men in all spheres of activities political, economic, cultural, at home and in society...There should be equal pay for equal work"; (2) Decree 163 in 1998 states that the Viet Nam Women's Union should be consulted and involved in any discussions on policies relating to women and children at all levels of government; (3) Directive 37 in 1994 of the Party Central Committee states that all levels of the Government and Party should aim to have at least 20% of positions filled by women. It requires all branches of the state apparatus to improve their gender awareness, develop plans for training and retraining women cadres, increase the number of women employees and formulate policies to develop women's skills; and (4) the National Plan of Action for the Advancement of Women in Viet Nam by the Year 2000.

Prepared by UNDP, June 1999
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