VIET NAM. Resolution of 1993 on Policy Concerning the Population and Family Planning Work. (Hanoi Voice of Vietnam Network, 18 February 1993, as translated in Foreign Broadcast Information Service, Document No. FBIS-EAS-93-035, 24 February 1993, pp. 64-65.)

I. The implementation of the population and family planning program during the past period.

During the past period, the party and state have formulated lines and policies on the population and family planning program and have scored some achievements. Measures have been taken to carry out the family planning program while efforts have been made to mobilize various people's strata to participate in this campaign. We have also won material support and assistance from foreign countries, thereby being able to reduce the average rate of each married woman -- of child-bearing age -- having six children in the 80's down to four children at present. However, the results attained are still relatively low as compared to the set targets. By the end of 1992, Vietnam's population had reached 70 million. If the population growth rate continues at two percent annually and each married woman of child-bearing age has an average of nearly four children as at present, Vietnam's population will double every 30 years.

The causes of this rapid population growth were due firstly to negligence by party committees and the administration in implementing the family planning program. They failed to realize that this program is a national policy, thus paying little attention to organizing the implementation of the program. As a result, the movement to encourage the people to participate in the program has not been extensively and comprehensively carried out. No proper efforts have been made to educate and persuade the people to get rid of the old psychological concepts and customary practices while the state budget allotted for the population and family planning work is insufficient. Moreover, equipment and facilities provided for the task are very limited while management work is poor and statistics on the population are inaccurate.

The rapid population growth is one of the important factors obstructing the socioeconomic growth, creating numerous difficulties in daily life, and causing a setback in developing the intelligence, culture, and physical fitness of mankind. If this population growth is allowed to continue, in the near future our country will face numerous difficulties and serious danger in various domains. As a result, it is essential and imperative for us to satisfactorily carry out the family planning program to quickly reduce the population growth and stabilize our population size.

II. Policy on the population and family planning work for the days ahead.

A. Fundamental concepts.

1. Population activity and family planning is an important part of our country's development strategy. It is one of our primary socioeconomic issues and a fundamental element to improve the living conditions of each person, each family, and the whole society.

2. The basic measures in implementing the population and family planning program are to combine motivation, propaganda, and education with making a family planning program available to everyone; to adopt incentive policies toward families who comply with the 'one or two children' formula, and to launch a movement to motivate the people to implement the family planning program.

3. Investments made in the population and family planning program will bring about an effective and high economic result. The state should increase the budget allotment for this task while mobilizing contributions from the masses and seeking assistance from nations in the world.

4. Efforts must be made to motivate the masses to participate in the population and family planning work. A specialized organ must be set up to manage the task and optimally exploit the available work force and facilities.

5. To attain our goal in a short period of time, it is necessary for echelons of the party and the administration to guide and supervise the implementation of the population and family planning program in accordance with the set schedules.

B. Objectives of the population and family planning program.

The general objectives are to reduce the size of the family in our society so people may enjoy a plentiful and happy life. As a practical goal, each family should have one or two children so that by the year 2015, each couple in the whole country has an average of two children, thus eventually achieving the goal of stabilizing the size of the population by the middle of the 21st century. Efforts, however, must be made to effect remarkable progress in this task right into the 90's.

C. Solutions for the period until the year 2000.

1. Party and state leadership over population and family planning.

Population and family planning must be an important part of the practical action programs to be implemented by party committee echelons, state agencies, people's organizations, and mass societies. The responsibility for population and family planning rests with each household. No organizations or individuals should excuse themselves from this campaign. Key comrade leaders at all levels should go out of their way to provide leadership and guidance over this task, bearing in mind the need to motivate the whole society to respond to this campaign and resolutely make set goals come true. It is necessary to work out strong measures and incorporate them into well-defined legal documents.

2. Population and family planning funding.

It is necessary to ensure sufficient funds for population and family planning based on a plan to be decided by the government as well as exert control over all funding sources according to set plans and objectives to guarantee effective budget allocation and utilization.

3. Population and family planning organization.

It is necessary to strengthen population and family planning committees from the central down to grassroots levels. The standing bodies of population and family planning committees at all levels must be staffed with highly qualified cadres who know how to maintain close contact with the various sectors and echelons in overseeing or coordinating actions aimed at supporting population and family planning. A widespread population and family planning network must be set up at each hamlet, each village, and each city block to ensure that population and family planning information and services are readily available to citizens.

4. Population and family planning information, education, and propaganda.

It is necessary to consolidate population and family planning information, widespreadly disseminate population and family planning policies and measures, and organize appropriate and diversified educational activities to appeal to the whole society and reach out to all localities and recipients, particularly the countryside and young men and women, thus effecting a profound change in the mentality of everyone, first of all young couples, so they can fully realize the importance and advantages of family planning and stand ready to accept the 'one or two children' formula.

5. Family planning services.

It is important to promptly supply users with enough birth-control devices and gradually diversify contraceptive methods with high quality, efficiency, safety, and convenience. In particular, attention should be paid to increasing the rate of men who accept and apply contraceptive methods. It is necessary to consolidate and expand family planning support services by means of the state-operated public health care system. At the same time, efforts are needed to promote the role of the community in making family planning services available to each family and each user. It is necessary to guarantee widespread sales of birth-control devices. Incentive measures must be taken to encourage organizations, collectives, and private parties to provide family planning services under state management by the Ministry of Public Health.

6. A number of practical policies and regulations which need to be promulgated at an early date.

It is necessary to adopt incentive measures to provide spiritual and material support for those couples who actively respond to the policy on population and family planning. Spiritual support and material compensations should be given to population activists and family planning service providers. Administrative measures must be taken against those party members and state employees who refuse to implement the policy on population and family planning. It is important to produce or import modern birth-control devices and protect and encourage the exportation of high quality homemade contraceptive devices. Tax exemptions should be given to imported birth-control devices. At the same time, it is important to strictly prohibit the re-exportation of birth-control devices. A subsidiary pricing system should be applied to birth-control devices so they can be sold widely at low prices to the public. It is necessary to set up an investment system and effectively mobilize and control resources in support of population and family planning. Practical policies must be worked out to protect and develop some ethnic minorities which show signs of a decrease in population. It is important to amend or promulgate a number of socioeconomic policies in support of population and family planning, including improvement of the dietary system and health care for mothers and children, reduction of the infant mortality rate, job development, rational population distribution, eradication of illiteracy, improvement of people's intellectual standard, expansion of cultural establishments, rural development, health insurance, care for the elderly people, and so forth.