The Ministry of Health has proposed in the draft Population Law that Vietnam extend maternity leave from currently six to seven months for mothers having a second child as the country’s birth rate is dropping to historic lows.
In an interview with the local Suc Khoe & Doi Song (Health & Life) newswire, Director of the health ministry’s General Department of Population Le Thanh Dung emphasized that while couples retain full reproductive rights, policies must encourage childbirth to maintain replacement-level fertility.
Other proposals include removing penalties for Party members having a third child and granting additional maternity leave for mothers of multiple births, Mr. Dung added.
The draft law also aims to address gender imbalance at birth and improve population quality, he noted.
Experts have warned that if the decline continues, Vietnam will exit its demographic dividend by 2039, face a shrinking workforce by 2042, and population decline by 2054, impacting economic and social development.
The National Assembly, the country’s legislative body, is expected to review the draft law in 2025. (Suc Khoe Doi Song)