EVENT

Vietnam Women Union visits FNF Headquarters in Germany

On June 1st, 2023, the Chief Executive Officer of FNF in Germany, Ms. Annett Witte, was honored to welcome a delegation group from the Vietnam Women's Union and the Center for Women and Development to our headquarters in Germany.

Leading the delegation group was Ms. Do Thi Thu Thao, Party Committee Secretary and Standing Vice Chairwoman of the Vietnam Women's Union. The group also included leaders from the Party Committee Youth Division, the Center for Women and Development, and the Center for Women's Development in the Mekong Delta region. During the friendly meeting in Berlin, both sides had the opportunity to exchange opinions and experiences regarding activities aimed at enhancing women's empowerment and making women the focal point.

The Vietnam Women’s Union (VWU) is a socio-political organization that was established by the Communist Party of Vietnam in 1930. The VWU’s rights and responsibilities are regulated by the Constitution and laws of Vietnam. Their functions are to represent, care for and protect the legitimate and legal rights and interests of women from all walks of life, participate in Party-building and State management, unite women and encourage them to follow the line and orientation of the Party and the policies and laws of the State, and mobilize the society to realise gender equality.

The Center for Women and Development (CWD) is considered a subordinated institution to the Vietnam Women’s Union (VWU).  CWD was established in 2002 with the function of supporting the comprehensive development of Vietnamese women with all-around skills and capacities. Besides, CWD serves the political and social activities of VWU by providing various services at the functional buildings at 20 Thuy Khue, Tay Ho, Hanoi. It is a self-funded organisation. Targeted groups of CWD mainly focus on groups of women and children with difficult backgrounds, prioritising the disadvantaged women and children who experienced Gender-based Violence, the female of ethnic minorities and remote areas, and female entrepreneurs' support. Children also are one of the crucial targeted groups that CWD focuses on.

The Peace House Shelters (PHS) is a model supporting women and children victims of human trafficking and domestic violence (operated in 2007), managed and operated by the Center for Women and Development (CWD). It provides free-of-charge and comprehensive services for women and children from three to six months, and 24-month follow-up after reintegration into the community.  

Since 2020, CWD and the Friedrich Naumann Foundation (FNF) Vietnam have conducted several training courses on an annual basis for disadvantaged women who are beneficiaries of the Peace House Shelter, helping them strengthen their decision-making, marketing and business management skills. We believes that by being financially proactive, women who are victims of domestic violence and trafficking can return to normalcy and self-reliance in their lives.

The collaboration project between CWD and FNF Vietnam from 2020 to 2022 has directly supported more than 200 disadvantaged women, and indirectly hundreds of people through peer-to-peer training activities. Besides, the project documented the training and developed a business skills handbook accessible to all women assisted by CWD in the community.