A labour official has said Vietnam should increase policy dialogues with the host countries of women migrant workers and better the provision of information to improve workers’ knowledge of gender and labour laws.

Nguyen Thanh Tung, deputy head of the Workers’ Management Division under the Department of Overseas Workers’ Management told a seminar on “Empowering Vietnamese women migrant workers” in Ho Chi Minh City on Nov. 14-15 that this is part of activities to increase the protection of legitimate rights of Vietnamese female migrant workers.

Relevant agencies and local authorities should put crackdown on labour exporters’ violations in labour export and their failure in protecting the rights of Vietnamese workers, including female ones, he added.

According to Cao Thi Hong Van, head of a committee to support women in economic development under the Vietnam Women’s Union, while working abroad, Vietnamese women face many challenges, including family breakdown, low spirit and pressure of sending money home to pay debts.

Besides, they also face challenges in language, culture and climate differences, work abuse and the risk of human trafficking.

There are about 500,000 Vietnamese workers working in over 40 countries and territories who send home 1.7 billion USD every year.

Of the workers, 251,000 are female. Taiwan receives the highest number of Vietnamese women workers, who account for 61 percent. It is followed by Malaysia and the Republic of Korea , with 20.9 percent and 4.4 percent, respectively./.