Gender imbalance of 1.38 million males forecast by 2026

Tra Vinh (VNA) - Vietnam is forecast to face a severe gender imbalance by 2026, with an excess of 1.38 million males, according to the General Statistics Office.

Speaking at a recent workshop involving nearly 200 women and collaborators in population affairs in the Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh, Dr Mai Xuan Phuong, Deputy Director of the General Office for Population and Family Planning’s Communication-Education Division, said the imbalance has been on the rise and will be sustained in the years to come, with the sex ratio at birth increasing in both urban and rural areas.

Phuong attributed the situation to a number of factors, including a preference for boys, inefficient social security policies, and the advent of sex-selective technology. Sex selective abortion is a pressing issue now and will be into the future, he stressed.

The consequences of having too many males and a shortage of females of marrying and childbearing age, and of discrimination and sexual violence, are far-reaching.

The implementation of population policies and awareness-raising campaigns are key to resolving the issue, Phuong added./.