Distributing leaflets and conducting awareness campaigns on population issues in Thanh Xuân Ward. Photo hanoimoi.vn

HÀ NỘI — Sex ratio imbalance at birth is becoming one of the major challenges for population work and sustainable development in Việt Nam.

Hà Nội is leading localities nationwide in decisively and in-depth implementing measures to gradually restore the sex ratio at birth to its natural balance.

According to biological norms, the natural sex ratio at birth fluctuates between 104 and 106 boys per 100 girls. However, in Việt Nam, this ratio has exceeded the balance threshold for many consecutive years.

According to the Department of Population under the Ministry of Health, in 2024 the sex ratio at birth in Việt Nam remained at 111.4 boys per 100 girls. Data from major medical facilities show that this trend has not slowed.

At Hà Nội Obstetrics and Gynaecology Hospital, which handles more than 40,000 births each year, statistics up to September this year indicated that boys accounted for around 60 per cent of newborns, while girls made up only 40 per cent.

Notably, sex ratio imbalance at birth is concentrated in northern regions and the Red River Delta, including Hà Nội and neighbouring provinces.

Some localities have recorded sex ratios approaching 120 boys per 100 girls, an alarming level indicating deliberate intervention in the reproductive process.

Sex ratio imbalance at birth is not merely a medical or demographic issue but stems from social value systems. The mindset of valuing sons over daughters and the belief that sons carry on the family line and serve as the main family pillar remain deeply rooted in many families, particularly in rural and suburban areas.

Pressure to give birth to sons weighs heavily on women, pushing many into psychological stress and exposing them to judgement and discrimination within their own families.

In the context of advancing medical technology, such gender bias has driven foetal sex selection, the direct cause of rising sex ratio imbalance at birth.

Sociology experts note that disparity in the sex ratio at birth is the clearest manifestation of gender inequality. When women are not properly valued and when a woman’s worth is still measured by her ability to bear sons, sex ratio imbalance at birth remains an ongoing risk.

Comprehensive solutions

Correctly identifying the nature of the problem, improving the legal framework and implementing comprehensive and coordinated solutions are fundamental approaches to addressing the issue.

As the capital and a special urban centre, Hà Nội has consistently identified population work and gender equality as long-term priority tasks.

In recent years, the city has achieved replacement fertility, creating a foundation for shifting the focus from family planning to population and development.

According to the Hà Nội Sub-department of Population, Children and Social Evils Prevention, the city’s sex ratio at birth has declined significantly from its peak, falling from 117.6 boys per 100 girls in 2008 to 110.8 in 2022 and 110.5 in the first seven months of 2025.

However, this level remains above the natural balance threshold, requiring stronger and more persistent solutions.

To control sex ratio imbalance at birth, Hà Nội has implemented various effective intervention models, including pre-marital health counselling and check-ups, reproductive healthcare for adolescents and young people and gender equality communication in schools and communities.

Deputy Director of the Hà Nội Department of Health Trần Văn Chung said that in recent years the city has consistently prioritised population and development work, focusing on stabilising population size and structure, improving population quality and meeting the demand for high-quality human resources during the industrialisation and modernisation of the Capital and the country.

Since the two-tier local government model has been in operation, Hà Nội has swiftly consolidated Population and Development Steering Committees at all levels, proactively developing and implementing plans suited to local realities and ensuring population work was not disrupted and achieved greater effectiveness during the transition period, Chung said.

Numerous programmes and plans for population work in the new phase have been issued and implemented, yielding clear results, he added.

In 2025, the proportion of older people receiving periodic health check-ups reached eighty-nine per cent. Prenatal screening for four common conditions reached 90 per cent, while newborn screening for five common conditions also reached ninety per cent.

The sex ratio at birth stood at 110 boys per 100 girls. The proportion of couples receiving pre-marital health counselling and check-ups reached eighty-five per cent.

Notably, the department issued the Plan for Controlling Sex Ratio Imbalance at Birth for the 2026–2030 period, aiming to reduce the ratio by an average of 0.2 percentage points per year, with the goal that by 2030 the sex ratio at birth will not exceed 109 boys per 100 girls.

Practice shows that addressing sex ratio imbalance at birth at its root cannot rely solely on sanctions but requires changes in social awareness. When women are given equal opportunities in education, employment and participation in social life, the value of daughters will be properly recognised, thereby reducing demand for sex selection at birth.

It can be affirmed that with the concerted involvement of the entire political system, alongside well-structured legal, communication and socialisation solutions, Hà Nội is gradually achieving substantive progress in promoting gender equality and controlling sex ratio imbalance at birth, Chung said. VNS