When Nguyen Thu Hang was a child, h

When Nguyen Thu Hang was a child,
her mother was a housewife in a
small village whose women residents
had no say in decision-making, either
at home or in the community. Now a
mother herself, Hang not only shares
her husband’s burden of earning
money for the family and bringing
up children, but also has a career and
social ambitions.
‘Women are much happier than
before. They have a good education
and careers of their own,’ says the
39-year-old who lives and works in
Hanoi. ‘And, of course, they are more
respected in the family and society.’
Hang, who carries a sleek laptop in
her hand, gets out of an elegant black
Mercedes and enters a building where
she works as the General Director of
Viet Hoang Trade and Investment
Company, which specialises in
construction and real estate.
Like Hang, many other
Vietnamese women also pursue
careers these days and have stormed
the corporate boardroom to affi rm
their increasingly important roles.
Whether in remote farms or in
companies, they have become
much more self-confi dent and are
discovering their worth and fulfi lling
their potential.
Women account for nearly 52 per
cent of the workforce in the service
sector, 50 per cent in the agricultural
and fi sheries sector and 37 per cent
in industry and construction. Almost
a quarter of all companies are run
by women, many of whom are also
the driving forces behind them. As
for their status in the family, Hang
says that women’s position has
improved remarkably. ‘We jointly
decide important issues in our life,
such as work or education for
our children. My husband always
respects my opinions.’
The greater role of women is
attributed to the effective policies
of promoting them. The state
and party are interested in
women’s advancement. The NA, the
national legislature, has approved
the Law on Gender Equality and
the Anti-Domestic Violence Law.
The government has national
programmes for vocational training
and preventing traffi cking of women
and children.
Women’s own efforts to acquire
knowledge and education have,
of course, been a major factor in
their advancement. They make up
over 40.2 per cent of all university
graduates, including nearly 9.8 per
cent of PhDs and 30.5 per cent of
Master’s degree recipients.
But women still face a number
of diffi culties, including poverty,
underemployment, domestic
violence, prostitution and gender
inequality. ‘I think the best way to help
women overcome these challenges is
to help them study and lead an active
lifestyle,’ says Hang, whose entry
into the boardroom began after she
obtained a Master’s degree in Britain
at the age of 27.