The implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action over the past 20 years has brought about positive gender equality progress and contributed to national development, said Vice State President Nguyen Thi Doan.

Economic growth along with social advancements, to which women have made important contributions, over the past 20 years has integrated Vietnam more deeply into the world, she told a seminar in Hanoi on June 24.

Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Pham Thi Hai Chuyen, who is also Chairwoman of the National Committee for the Advancement of Women in Vietnam, said Vietnam has been hailed by the United Nations (UN) for its fulfilment of some UN millennial development goals ahead of schedule, including gender equality and women empowerment goals, adding that the country is devising specific and step-by-step tasks to realise the Platform.

In her speech, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Vietnam Pratibha Mehta stressed that leaders across the world are working on their post-2015 development programmes, with creating a world of gender equality being one of the most important task of this century.

She said equality for women and girls is not only an aspiration but also a responsibility of the governments, UN and all people.

Participants later extensively reviewed measures to materialise goals mentioned in the Platform.

At the end of the event, representatives of the Vietnamese government and the UN committed to continuing mutual support to accelerate gender equality and ensure a society of fairness and equality for all women on earth and to benefit the human race.

The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action was adopted at the fourth World Conference on Women in September 1995 with a single purpose: gender quality and the empowerment of all women, everywhere, becoming the most progressive blueprint for advancing women’s rights.

As a defining framework for change, the Platform made comprehensive commitments under 12 critical areas of concern. Governments, civil society organisations and the public have translated it into concrete changes in individual countries.

The event was co-hosted by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and the UN in Vietnam.-VNA