Raising public awareness in reducing gender imbalance at birth

The Provincial Steering Committee for Population and Development has proactively and synchronously deployed communication and behavioral change education activities in the community. From 2021 to present, the province has maintained 171 "Reducing Gender Imbalance at Birth" Clubs in 100% of communes and wards; organized 3,516 club meetings with nearly 97,000 participants, conducted more than 4,000 consultation sessions, gave talks, distributed 50,000 leaflets, hung 1,599 banners and streamers to propagate the causes and consequences of gender imbalance at birth.

Fetal health check for pregnant women at the Provincial Maternity and Pediatrics Hospital.

Population officers and communication collaborators are trained in-depth in propaganda to reduce gender imbalance at birth. From 2021 to present, the province has organized 187 training courses for more than 9,100 commune and district-level officials and civil servants on community mobilization skills and population policy dissemination. At the same time, universities and colleges in the province have integrated the topics of gender equality and the consequences of gender imbalance at birth into their curricula and organized extracurricular activities for thousands of students.

The Department of Population and Family Planning (Department of Health ) has coordinated with the Provincial Media Center to implement the program "Population and Happiness" on radio; the column "Population and Development" on Quang Ninh newspaper; the program "Talking with doctors" on television... Many communication activities via social networks have received positive response and participation from the people.

To gradually eliminate the idea of “male superiority over female”, especially in rural areas and ethnic minority areas, mass organizations at all levels such as the Women's Union, Farmers' Association, and Youth Union have integrated gender equality into the movements “Family of 5 no, 3 clean”, and the Population and Family Planning Communication Day. Along with that, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism organized dramatizations in localities with high imbalance rates, attracting thousands of people to attend.

A population communication session organized by the Department of Population and Family Planning (Ba Che Health Center) in Ba Che commune. Photo: Van Anh

Along with propaganda work, the management of ultrasound and abortion service providers is identified as a key "link" in the chain of solutions to control gender imbalance at birth. Up to now, 100% of ultrasound and abortion facilities have been informed of legal regulations, committed to not supporting fetal gender selection and fully equipped with guidance documents on the consequences of gender imbalance at birth. All medical staff and technical staff participating in providing this service must sign a commitment and participate in intensive training courses on gender equality, the consequences of gender selection, etc.

In addition, the province has also synchronously deployed periodic and surprise inspections. From 2016 to 2024, the province has organized 12 specialized inspections, along with hundreds of inspections to monitor compliance with the ban on gender selection at 345 public and private health facilities.

Thanks to the implemented solutions, it has contributed to changing the awareness of the majority of people. Up to now, 95% of couples of childbearing age clearly understand the consequences of gender imbalance at birth. 100% of medical staff and collaborators are fully aware of the regulations prohibiting gender selection.

However, in reality, the male-preference ideology is still deeply rooted in a segment of the population, especially in rural areas and among ethnic minorities, where gender awareness is limited. Tracing and handling violations at ultrasound clinics is still difficult due to the lack of concrete evidence. Therefore, in the coming time, it is very important to strengthen the role of women and girls in society; encourage young men and boys to participate as "locomotives" in changing culture; invest more resources in communication work appropriate to each target group; and promote the initiative of the community in reducing gender imbalance at birth.

With the strong participation of the entire political system from the province to the grassroots, along with methodical steps in communication and education, Quang Ninh hopes to control and rebalance the sex ratio at birth, contributing to building quality human resources, maintaining population stability and promoting the province's sustainable development.

Cam Khue

Source: https://baoquangninh.vn/nang-cao-nhan-thuc-nguoi-dan-trong-giam-thieu-mat-can-bang-gioi-tinh-khi-sinh-3368054.html