Minister of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung made this statement at the 63rd session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women in New York on Wednesday. The Minister affirmed the stance of Vietnam and many other UN members that ensuring social welfare should be the number one goal of national development. He cited several of Vietnam’s achievements in reducing gender inequality, noting that 71 percent of Vietnamese women are in the workforce. The Vietnamese Government has pledged to devote 2.6 percent of Vietnam’s annual GDP to supporting disadvantaged groups, such as women and girls.

Stressing the need for more investment in social welfare, education, poverty reduction, economic empowerment, and climate change response, the Minister called on all UN members to spend a generous part of their GDP on social welfare programs.