Delegates at the launching ceremony of Action Month for Gender Equality and Prevention of Gender-based Violence in 2019 in Bắc Ninh yesterday with the theme "Ending violence against women and children". VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Thương

HÀ NỘI While strides are being made to ensure safety for women and children, more still needs to be done.

That was the message delivered at a workshop held by the Việt Nam Women's Union in Hà Nội yesterday.

Nguyễn Thị Tuyết Mai, head of Family and Society Division under Việt Nam Women's Union, said provinces and cities across the country were enhancing roles and responsibilities in ensuring safety.

She said many improvements had been made, but a lot more needs to be done.

Over the past year, the women's union implemented a pilot model of a safe city in Đà Nẵng and a safe village model in Thanh Hóa, Tuyên Quang and Kiên Giang provinces, with practical activities such as building a happy family, safety on buses, food safety and building clubs with activities related to family happiness.

Women and children with disabilities have also received support.

But there are still many problems. In 2017 and 2018, 2,600 cases of sexual abuse against women were reported nationwide and nearly 2,700 against children.

In addition to the achieved results, Mai said the implementation of the campaign showed some limitations and difficulties.

Mai said there were also serious concerns over workplace harassment and there was a negative effect on family life as more and more people migrate for work.

With the national campaign "Safe year for women and children" in 2020, women's union at all levels should prioritise the implementation of key activities related to the prevention and fighting against child abuse, she said.

Regarding child safety, Nguyễn Thị Nga, deputy director of the Department of Children under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, said from 2011 to June 2019 about five children were victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse each day.

To protect children, the current implementation of the law on child protection and child abuse prevention is still limited due to lack of awareness of children's self-protection responsibilities; lack of basic knowledge and skills, according to Nga.

Many families did not report or denounce acts of child sexual abuse, leading to crimes not being handled.

Meanwhile, awareness of responsibility and law enforcement capacity of local authorities, especially at commune and ward levels, is limited.

In order to protect children from sexual abuse in the future, the deputy director of the Department of Children said laws needed to be reviewed and amended.

Inspection teams should be set up to ensure the implementation of children's rights, especially at non-public preschool education institutions in industrial parks and export processing zones.

The authorities needed to increase communication to prevent and combat child abuse, detect and report acts of violence against women and children and support health care, legal assistance and counselling.

Participants exchanged issues related to safety for women and children in urban and rural areas; shared experiences, initiatives and proposed solutions to protect women and children in the current period. VNS