At the meeting.
At the meeting, Don Tuan Phong, VUFO Vice President in-charge cum General Secretary expressed appreciation to the effort of Plan International in improving girls and young women's lives, and hoped that Plan International Vietnam will continue programmes and projects in remote mountainous areas.
According to her, in the previous Industrial Revolutions, young women and girls have been left behind, and this cannot happen again. Plan International will call for closing the digital gender gap, and inspire business, governments, international organizations and media to work together to eliminate the discriminatory stereotypes and behaviours that girls and young women face at different stages in their lives.
Albrectsen emphasized the importance of young women and girls in the development of Asia in the Fourth Industrial Revolution and called out 3 of biggest issues that the government, business and civil society must get behind.
First, we must challenge and change everything in Asian societies that keeps women and girls from reaching their full potential in the workforce.
Second, we must create a safe environment for young women and girls so they can learn and work without fear of harassment, abuse or exploitation.
Third, we must ensure girls have the right role models and mentors. If girls see more women in the position of leadership, it will change their perception about types of jobs that girls should do.
Don Tuan Phong, VUFO Vice President in-charge cum General Secretary and Anne-Birgitte Albrectsen, Plan International CEO.
On behalf of Plan International, Albrectsen highly appreciated the support from Vietnamese government agencies with the implementation in Plan's working areas. Plan International committed to co-operate with the Vietnamese government to empower girls to become leaders and innovators in Vietnam, especially in an increasingly digital future.
Earlier, Albrectsen with fellow WEF delegation met and talked with female migrant youth, who are participating in SAFE project by Plan International Vietnam in Dong Anh, Hanoi. The delegations also visited the startup business supported by Plan and different vocational training classes for female migrant youth at Plan's partner, Bac Thang Long vocational school.
Through stories, Albrectsen believed the young women she met were "very brave" to seek changes while facing multitude of challenges in the community.
Visiting Safer cities for girls project by Plan International Vietnam, Albrectsen and fellow WEF delegation discussed with girls and boys from Champion of Change club in Dong Anh about the prioritizing safety of girls and young women so they can learn without violence or fear./.
