A Kon Tum provincial Social Work and Protection Centre staff member assists a child with disabilities at a rehabilitation care (Photo: VNA) The event was held at the Vietnam Women’s Academy on World Social Work Day, thethird Tuesday of March every year and falls on March 21 this year.
Vietnam’s Social Work Day is celebrated on March 25.
The forum gathers representatives of social work associations and experts from11 countries, including Russia, India, the Republic of Korea, and thePhilippines, for discussions on new models, initiatives and good case practicesin the field.
Ton Ngoc Hanh, vice president of Vietnam Women’s Union, said: “The world iswitnessing major changes in the socio-political situation and the post-COVIDera.
“This requires all of us to strive further and join hands in actions forpeople, especially the vulnerable and disadvantaged groups.”
An overview of social work as a profession in the country by Dr Nguyen Hai Huu,Vice President of Vietnam Association for Vocational Education and Training& Social Work, revealed that there are currently about 235,000 socialworkers nationwide.
Among them, approximately 35,000 work at social services facilities, nearly100,000 in associations, and over 100,000 others are coordinators working forpoverty reduction, child protection and fighting social evils.
According to the statistics, there is one professional or semi-professionalsocial worker for every 425 people in the country.
A study jointly conducted by the University of Social Sciences and Humanities(under Vietnam National University - Hanoi) and the Vietnam Women’s Academyshows that many people in the country are aware of their right to socialsecurity, especially in terms of employment support.
Among the 2,100 survey respondents, 66.3% know about the right to borrow moneyat preferential interest rates for product development; while 68.8% are awareof their right to extend the loan repayment period for production developmentloans; and 54% know they have the right to assist the construction of barns,the improvement of aquaculture ponds and production land.
In this aspect, social workers assist with policy advocacy and consultation andprepare documents and link support resources for the individuals.
However, the study pointed out that there are still limitations in terms ofcapacity and service delivery in the field that need to be addressed.
“The core goal of social work activities in supporting jobs for people is torealise basic human rights, ensure equity and social progress, and promoteeconomic growth and sustainable development of the country,” said Assoc. Prof NguyenThi Kim Hoa, representative of the research team.
Other social work experts also shared case studies from their respectivecountries, such as social welfare policies for the disabled in South Korea,preventive intervention programmes for children in conflict with the law in thePhilippines, and competency development for social workers in Russia.
President of the International Federation of Social Workers Joachim Mumba said:“We need to act together to ensure that social protection moves from beingreactive public spending to being a public investment in the wellbeing of thepeople.
“We need to engage our governments to realise their duties and responsibilitiesin taking care of vulnerable people, as well as working together with socialworkers to provide support.
“Social workers should join and invest in strategies to support communities tobe better prepared for future crises.”/.
VNA
