(VOVworld) - Vietnam has affirmed its strong commitment to the advancement of women and gender equality as important instruments to achieve equitable and sustainable development at the UN debate on Agenda Item 28: Advancement of Women in New York. 

Vietnam’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Le Hoai Trung, stressed the need to promote women’s participation in political life, considering it necessary in reducing poverty and hunger and achieving Millennium Development Goals. He said that the participation of all social strata and the international community is essential to promote the role of women in boosting sustainable growth and eliminating discrimination and violence. Ambassador Trung reiterated Vietnam’s consistent policy of promoting and upholding women’s rights by facilitating their involvement in all aspects of life. Vietnam now ranks 3rd in ASEAN and 48th in the world in terms of the gender equality index and is among the 5 developing countries in Asia that have the highest percentage of women members of Parliament.