An online meeting launched the em vui digital platform on Tuesday. — Photo Courtesy of Institute for Social Development Studies.

HÀ NỘI — A platform, designed to support children and young people from ethnic minorities, has been launched to share knowledge and skills on child marriage and human trafficking. 

Em vui, which translates as "I'm happy", can be accessed via www.emvui.vn and is also available on popular social media platforms such as  Facebook, Tiktok, Zalo, Youtube, Instagram and Twitter.

The forum is designed to be a friendly, reliable and informative space where ethnic minority children and young people can learn and exchange information. It is also a platform for them to voice their concerns to policymakers, creating feedback that will allow more suitable and effective policies to be put in place.

Em vui is part of a project of “Enhancing awareness of ethnic minority children and young people on human trafficking and child marriage through digital technology” (EMPoWR), co-funded by the Delegation of the European Union and Plan International in Belgium.

The project is a product of collaboration between many organisations; the Institute for Social Development Studies (ISDS), Plan International in Việt Nam, the Department of Children under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, and other agencies.

The program will eventually be rolled out in 52 communes across four provinces - Hà Giang, Lai Châu, Quảng Bình and Quảng Tri - between 2020 to 2023.

The scheme will primarily support young people aged between 10 to 24. The digital space will educate them on social networking and online safety skills, as well as providing information about support services relating to child marriage and human trafficking.

The head of ISDS and director of the EMPoWR project, Khuất Thu Hồng, said that em vui would foster a safer environment for children and young people to grow up in.  

Individuals, organisations and agencies could add to the resources that would then be shared with children and young people across the country, she said.

Lê Quỳnh Lan, an official from Plan International Việt Nam, said that under the organisation’s five-year programme, it wanted to help support two million girls in Việt Nam with their schooling and decision-making, to help them "shine". 

The EMPoWR project, and particularly the em vui digital platform, would help realise the organisation’s commitments in promoting gender equality and child protection, particularly for those from ethnic groups. — VNS