In recent years, the Vietnamese Party and State have introduced many policies aimed at helping women develop their abilities and assume key positions in the organizations of the Party, government and businesses.

Among them are a series of legal documents concerning the status of women and gender equality. Both the Law on election of National Assembly deputies and the Law on election of deputies to People’s Councils stipulate clearly that women are eligible to be elected or to nominate themselves for such elections. These laws provide mechanisms for women to exercise their rights in this field.

For more than two decades, Vietnam has always had one woman acting as State Vice President. The percentage of female deputies has reached over 25 percent at the National Assembly in its last three tenures. The percentage of female deputies in provincial people’s councils has risen from 22.3 percent to 23.8 percent.

The Vice Chairwoman of the National Assembly, Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan, said that Vietnamese women rank in the top group of women in Southeast Asia in terms of women status. Ngan added that with regard to GDI and women’s involvement in parliament, Vietnam is on top of seven other Southeast Asian countries and is placed fourth in the Asia-Pacific region. On a global scale, Vietnam is among the moderate group.

Vietnamese women have participated in socio-political organizations, and professional organizations, including those previously reserved for men only.

Vietnam’s female intellectuals have grown in both quality and quantity, with more than 36 percent of them in natural science, 43.4 percent in agriculture and seafood, and 33 percent in technology. There is an increase in both female collectives and individuals that have won noble awards such as Kovalevskaya, Vietnamese Women, and VIFOTEC.

Vietnamese women have also contributed considerably to shaping an advanced Vietnamese culture imbued with national identity and ensuring harmony between social and family values.

However, inequality remains in many areas and is hindering the advancement of Vietnamese women.

The percentage of women cadres in party committees and people’s committees is still low, according to the Central Commission for Personnel.

Party committees at all levels are asked to correctly assess women’s capabilities in order to lift their status to a new height.