High-ranking talks on the Social Protection Floor (SPF) between the United Nations (UN) and the Vietnamese government took place in Hanoi on October 14.

Attending the talks were Michelle Bachelet, former Chilean President and Chair of the UN Social Protection Floor Advisory Group, Vietnamese Minister of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan and John Hendra, UN Permanent Coordinator in Vietnam .

Speaking at the event, the MoLISA Minister welcomed Michelle Bachelet’s visit to Vietnam to prepare for the implementation of the UN Initiative on Social Protection Floor.

Affirming Vietnam ’s consistent policy of ensuring and developing social security, Ngan shared the overall objective of the country’s 2011-2020 socio-economic development strategy in which Vietnam strives to become a middle-income country with the harmony of economic growth, social progress and equity, with continuously improving living standards and a diversified social protection system.

The talks offered a chance for Vietnam to access the basic contents of the UN Social Protection Floor Initiative, in order to share experiences and strengthen cooperation between Vietnam and the UN in the process of building and implementing the country’s 2011-2020 Social Security Strategy and the Social Security Project for 2011-2015, she added.

Michelle Bachelet said her visit aims to collect ideas for the compilation of a global report on social protection and Vietnam -- with its recent experiences in extending health insurance to more beneficiaries and readiness to implement its social security strategy -- will be a good example to be described in the report.

The UN official expressed her belief that the SPF will be an useful tool for Vietnam to reach the goals anticipated in the national social security strategy. She also said that the UN is ready to support the Vietnamese government in this field.

According to the UN, the SPF is a basic set of rights and transfers that enables and empowers all members of a society to access a minimum of goods and services in the fields of health, safe water and sanitation, education, food, housing, and asset/saving information.

The SPF emphasises the implementation of a comprehensive social security policy to ensure minimum services and income transfers for people, especially vulnerable groups, during their lives./.