The discussion took place at an inter-agency meeting in Ha Noi on October 23, chaired by Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Nguyen Thi Ha, with a delegation from UN Women’s Advisory Committee on Oversight (ACO).
The delegation included Ziad Sheikh, Secretary of the UN Women Executive Board; Jennifer Lester, Chair of the ACO; and Christine Arab, Regional Director of UN Women for Asia and the Pacific, alongside other officials. Vietnamese participants represented the ministries of Public Security, Foreign Affairs, Agriculture and Environment, Finance, and Health, as well as the Viet Nam Women’s Union and relevant units of the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Nguyen Thi Ha described the visit as an important opportunity to review cooperation to date and discuss strategic priorities for the coming period. She commended UN Women’s support for Viet Nam in developing and implementing gender equality policies, empowering women and advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Christine Arab praised Viet Nam’s development trajectory and its ambition to become a high-income country by 2045. She noted that Viet Nam had made important contributions to women’s empowerment both domestically and internationally.
UN Women had gained valuable insights from Viet Nam’s public-private partnerships, private sector engagement, implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), green economy initiatives, climate change response, and gender statistics and budgeting, she said.
Arab also commended Vietnamese government agencies for their commitment to fulfilling their pledges and proposed sharing Viet Nam’s practical experience more widely across ASEAN and internationally, highlighting women’s central role in innovation, digital transformation and green growth.
Participants held substantive discussions on four key areas: achievements in gender equality policy and women’s leadership; the effectiveness and practical impact of UN Women’s support; priorities and opportunities under the Viet Nam-UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework for 2027-2031; and stronger regional and global engagement through multilateral forums, including the UN Commission on the Status of Women and ASEAN.
Nguyen Thi Ha called on the ACO delegation to provide practical assessments of Viet Nam’s national context and priorities, helping inform recommendations to UN Women’s Executive Board and improve the effectiveness of bilateral cooperation.
Ahead of United Nations Day on October 24, she extended her best wishes to UN colleagues and partners, reaffirming Viet Nam’s commitment to its partnership with the UN and UN Women in pursuit of inclusive and sustainable development.
