Vietnam to Give More Incentives for Women’s Vocational Training

Vietnam will offer vocational training courses to generate 100,000 steady jobs for women a year in the period of 2010-2015. Under a newly-approved project by the government, it will support female laborers to find jobs, have stable incomes, reduce poverty and raise their status in the society, the Vietnamese Government said on its website Mar 3. Female laborers with disadvantaged conditions, such as benefiting preferential social policies, coming from poor families or ethnic minority groups and being the disabled or laid-off workers, will be given a maximum of VND 3 million ($157.07) each to afford short-term vocational training. They will also be provided with travel fees and food expenses and can borrow money from the National Fund for Employment to create jobs for themselves.  By 2015, over 70% of female laborers will have jobs after experiencing vocational training courses and female laborers will account for 40% of enrollment quota for vocational training, it added. Women now constitute almost 50% of the country’s workforce and 83% of those participating in economic activities, of which skilled female workers account for more than 47%.