The report examined the performance and continued feasibility of theParty Central Committee’s Resolution 47-NQ/TW on improving populationcontrol nationwide, which was introduced in 2005.
Thestudy results show that Vietnam has stabilised its population, whichreached 90.6 million people in 2014 and is expected to rise to no morethan 93 million in 2015 and 98 million in 2020.
Theliving standards of locals are also on the rise, with medical servicesimproved. More women are taking screenings during pregnancy and the rateof malnourished children under five years old has been reduced to 15.3percent. The average life expectancy reached 73.1 years in 2013 from 72years in 2005.
On the other hand, the country needs tohandle the challenges of an aging population, gender imbalance andincreasing migration to urban areas.
Participatingexperts proposed a policy switch from mainly focusing on family planningto also considering more comprehensive issues such as reproductivehealth and welfare services.
Related campaigns are required to facilitate local access to reliable information sources, they emphasised.
Government agencies and provincial authorities should regularly putpopulation policy on the agenda while discussing their developmentaction plans, the experts said.-VNA