Family planning to tackle nation’s growing pains

14/05/2008 -- 2:14 PM

Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has issued a decree requiring People’s Committee of 64 cities and provinces nationwide to formalise new local systems for population and family planning organisation before May 30. The requirement follows a government decision made last year to merge the population sector with the Ministry of Health for administrative reform purposes. Many provincial committees involving population, family planning and child services must now integrate into local health departments. Chairmen of city and provincial People’s Committees are to establish such population and family bodies under the direction of health departments and districts. All facilities and staff previously under population and family planning direction will be placed under health department management. These staff members will now be eligible for the same State policies as health workers. The Prime Minister also said that cities and provinces should continue population and family planning services in all areas, particularly mountain villages. Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Ba Thuy said five intersectorial delegations would visit and inspect how cities and provinces were responding to the Prime Minister’s directive by Tuesday at the latest. The Ministry of Health reported that the number of newborns in the first quarter of this year increased by 18,000 compared with the same period last year. Around 5,000 of these were third-child births, as opposed to the encouraged two-child family. Thirty-four of 64 cities and provinces nationwide saw a greater number of third-child births in the first quarter of this year, a year-on-year increase of 17.3 percent. The capital city’s neighbouring province of Bac Ninh held the greatest increase in third-child births at 65.6 percent. Bac Ninh was followed by Vinh Phuc with an increase of 62.2 percent, Hai Duong with 59.6 percent and HCM City with 50.9 percent. More than 10,000 staff specialising in this field and about 150,000 part-time employees nationwide were uneasy with the transition into the health sector, according to the report. Thuy explained that Vietnam had failed to reach the target birth reduction rate set by the National Assembly in 2007. The birth rate this year and next year would likely increase on par with the increase in the first three months of this year. Thuy said the campaign to offer reproductive health services to remote areas had so far climbed only 21 percent compared with the same period last year.-Enditem
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