Directive No. 34/1999/CT-TTg On accelerating the implementation of children's goals by the year 2000, summarizing the National Action Program for Children 1991-2000, and developing the National Action Program for Children 2000-2010

 DIRECTIVE

On accelerating the implementation of the targets for children by the year 2000,

summarizing the National Action Program for Children 1991-2000 and developing

the National Action Program for Children 2000-2010

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After nearly ten years of implementing the Law on Protection, Care, and Education of Children and the National Action Program for Children for the period 1991-2000, with the efforts of the entire Party, people, levels of government, political-social organizations, and social organizations, the work of protecting, caring for, and educating children has shown significant changes both in awareness and in implementation, achieving some encouraging results: the material and spiritual lives of children have gradually improved; universal primary education programs have achieved high results; health indicators for children have significantly improved; there have been many advances in caring for and protecting children in special circumstances.

However, there are still some urgent social issues related to children that need to be focused on and resolved such as: the rate of malnutrition among children under five years old remains high; many children are homeless, overworked, and subjected to sexual abuse, some of whom have not been adequately protected and cared for; the number of children violating the law has not decreased; there are children addicted to drugs; there are insufficient cultural, recreational, and entertainment facilities for children. The reasons partly stem from our country's poverty, uneven economic and social development between regions, dropout rates, and the lack of responsibility of some parents, and also partly due to inadequate coordination and attention to child-related work among relevant departments and levels.

To effectively implement the Law on Protection, Care, and Education of Children, complete the targets for children set out in the Resolution of the Eighth National Congress of the Communist Party, and to genuinely improve the material and spiritual lives of children, the Prime Minister instructs:

1. People's Committees of centrally governed cities and provinces:

- To implement comprehensive measures to accelerate the achievement of the targets for children by the year 2000, increase investment and mobilize the combined strength of the whole society; review and develop specific plans tied to local economic and social development programs to strive to achieve the targets, especially those that are difficult to reach in certain areas.

- Summarize and comprehensively evaluate the results of implementing the National Action Program for Children for the period 1991-2000, develop the National Action Program for Children for the period 2001-2010 in conjunction with local economic and social development plans and align it with the National Action Program for Children for the period 2001-2010.

2. Central Ministries and Agencies:

a) The Vietnam National Committee for Child Protection and Care:

- Take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the General Statistics Office to guide relevant ministries, agencies, and provincial People's Committees to conduct a summary and evaluation of the National Action Program for Children for the period 1991-2000. Compile the results of the summary and report to the Prime Minister in the second quarter of 2000.

- Take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education and Training, the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Culture and Information, the General Statistics Office, other relevant agencies, and provincial People's Committees to develop the National Action Program for Children for the period 2001-2010 in accordance with the Socio-Economic Development Strategy for the period 2001-2010, and submit it to the Prime Minister in the fourth quarter of 2000.

b) The Ministry of Health:

- Take the lead and coordinate with relevant ministries, agencies, and provincial People's Committees to implement positive, comprehensive measures, mobilize the participation of the whole society, domestic and foreign resources, to focus on supporting particularly difficult communes, the poorest and most disadvantaged groups to complete the targets for children's health care by the year 2000, especially reducing the rate of malnutrition among children under five years old.

- Take the lead and coordinate with the Vietnam National Committee for Child Protection and Care and relevant ministries, agencies to summarize and evaluate the implementation of the targets for children's health care in the National Action Program for Children for the period 1991-2000.

c) Ministry of Education and Training:

- Take the lead and coordinate with relevant ministries, agencies, and provincial People's Committees to implement comprehensive measures to accelerate the achievement of the targets for children's education by the year 2000.

- Take the lead and coordinate with the Vietnam National Committee for Child Protection and Care and relevant ministries, agencies to summarize and evaluate the implementation of universal primary education programs for the period 1991-2000.

d) Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism:

- Take the lead and coordinate with the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, relevant ministries, agencies, and provincial People's Committees to implement comprehensive measures to accelerate the achievement of the targets for improving children's spiritual life by the year 2000.

- Take the lead and coordinate with the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, the Vietnam National Committee for Child Protection and Care, and relevant ministries, agencies to summarize and evaluate the implementation of the targets for improving children's spiritual life in the National Action Program for Children for the period 1991-2000.

d) The Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs:

- Take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security, relevant ministries, agencies, and provincial People's Committees to implement comprehensive measures to accelerate the achievement of the targets for caring for children in special circumstances by the year 2000.

- Take the lead and coordinate with the Vietnam National Committee for Child Protection and Care, the Ministry of Public Security, and relevant ministries, agencies to summarize and evaluate the implementation of the targets for caring for children in special circumstances in the National Action Program for Children for the period 1991-2000.

e) The Ministry of Finance will allocate funds for the above activities in the budget estimates of relevant ministries, agencies, and provincial People's Committees for the year 2000.

When summarizing and evaluating the implementation of the National Program for Children for the period 1991-2000, the Ministries and People's Committees of provinces and centrally governed cities shall clearly identify the results of achieving the objectives, draw out good experiences, find the reasons for the unachieved tasks, and propose necessary solutions for the upcoming phase. The Ministries and localities shall report to the Prime Minister on the summary results and simultaneously send them to the Vietnam National Committee for Child Protection and Care before March 31, 2000.

The Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government agencies, and Chairpersons of provincial and centrally governed city People's Committees are responsible for implementing this Directive.