On November 12th 2013, Vietnam was elected with the highest vote (184/192) to become one of 14 new members of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) for the first time. The UNHRC is the principal intergovernmental body of the United Nations responsible for the promotion and protection of human rights around the world. The council has subsidiary operational mechanisms, most notably the UNHRC Universal Periodic Review (UPR), wherein all member nations are required to submit periodic reports to review the human rights performance in their countries.

Implementing the Resolution No. 36/NQ-TW of the Politburo on the affairs of overseas Vietnamese and Resolution No.11/NQ-TW of the Politburo on women's work in the period of stepped-up national industrialization and modernization, and with the aim of meeting the needs of exchanging, sharing and connecting of Vietnamese women living and working abroad, from November 19th-22nd 2013, the Vietnam Women's Union (VWU) and the National Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs co-organized a conference on overseas Vietnamese women. This was the first major event dedicated to this target group, which marked the accomplishment of a goal VWU has been concerned with for a long time.

At the invitation of the Vietnam Women's Union (VWU), a 14-member delegation of the Council of Women of Brunei Darussalam (CWBD), headed by its President Pengiran Datin Hajah Mariam, visited and worked with the VWU from 24-27 November 2013.

Vietnam Women's Union would like to share the following letter which was written by Ms. Larry Holmes, First Secretary of Workers World Party, USA and sent through Women's International Democratic Federation (WIDF) over passing of General Vo Nguyen Giap.

Cambodian Women For Peace and Development sends letter of condolence to Vietnam Women’s Union over passing of General Vo Nguyen Giap.

At the invitation of the Korean Democratic Women’s Union (KDWU), the delegation of Vietnam Women’s Union (VWU) led by First Vice-president Hoang Thi Ai Nhien paid a visit to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) from 22-29 July, 2013.

On the afternoon of 10th June 2013, at the headquarter office of the Vietnam Women’s Union (VWU), VWU Vice-President Tran Thi Huong had a meeting with Ms. Lotta Sylwander, Representative of UNICEF in Vietnam with the aim to strengthen the cooperation between the two organizations for further promoting legitimate rights and interest of the women and children.

In the morning of July 8th, 2013, at the office of the Central Vietnam Women’s Union, VWU’s President Nguyen Thi Thanh Hoa received the 2-member delegation of the Marie Schlei Association (MSA-Germany) headed by Prof. Christa Randzio Plath, President of MSA, Former President of the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee of the European Parliament, on the occasion of their visit to Vietnam to participate in an international seminar on the amendment of the Vietnam Law on Marriage and Family and to evaluate a number of development projects implemented by VWU with the funding of MSA.

On the afternoon of July 8th 2013 at the VWU’s headquarters (39 Hang Chuoi Street, Hanoi), Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Hoa, VWU President had a meeting with Ms. Shoko Ishikawa, Country Representative of UN Women in Vietnam on the occasion of her new position.

Recently the Vietnam Women’s Union President Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Hoa had a meeting with Mr. Gerald Yeo, President of the Temasek Treasury Singapore and Mr Wu Wei, Director of the Administration Department of Nanyang University of Technologies.

On the afternoon of April 16th 2013, Mrs. Tran Thi Huong, Vice- President of the Vietnam Women’s Union (VWU) had a meeting with Mr. Mark T. Pierce, Plan Asia Regional Director at the VWU’s headquarters, 39 Hang Chuoi Street, Hanoi.

In the morning of 2013 May 23th, in the Vietnam Women's Museum, VWU President Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Hoa welcomed the Speaker of the House of Representatives of Australia Ms. Anna Burke.

On April 10th 2013, the Vietnam Womens’ Union (VWU) in collaboration with the World Bank in Vietnam organized the Get-together with the theme on “Partnership for women’s development” which is aimed to strengthen the existing partnership and open up new cooperation between the VWU and international partners for the goal of women’s development, particularly within the upcoming VWU’s activities, including the Vietnam Women’s Innovation Day (VWID) 2013.

At the Invitation of the Korea Women Inventors Association, VWU’s delegation headed by Ms. Bui Thi Hoa, VWU Vice President attended the 6th Korea International Women’s Invention Exposition(KIWIE) in COEX, Seoul, Korea from April 30th to May 5th.

On the morning of November 7th, 2012 in Buon Ma Thuot, the Dak Lak Women's Union held a ceremony to sign a cooperation agreement with the Women’s Unions of four southern provinces in Laos (Champasack, Salavan, Sekong and Attapeu) and the provincial Mondulkiri Department of Women’s Affairs of Cambodia. The ceremony took place in the presence of Mr. Hoang Trong Hai, Standing Deputy Secretary of the provincial Party Committee and the leaders of the People's Council, the Fatherland Front, and other agencies in the province. Representing Laos and Cambodia, 25 delegates visited and worked in the province, and attended the signing ceremony.

On November 19th, 2012, VWU President Nguyen Thi Thanh Hoa welcomed and engaged in friendly cooperation with Ms. Han Mi Young, President of the World Women Inventors and Entrepreneurs Association (WWIEA) and President of the Korean Women Inventors Association (KWIA).

With similarities in history and geography, Vietnamese and Cambodian women have had a long standing history of friendly cooperation, particularly since 1979, when the Cambodian Women for Peace and Development organization was established (previously the Cambodia Women’s Union).

As close neighbors, the people of Vietnam and Laos have had a long-standing relationship based on their shared struggle for national liberation in the past, and national construction and defense at present. The friendship between the people of Vietnam and Laos has been characterized by solidarity. Specifically among women who consider themselves comrades and sisters, this friendship is continuing to grow stronger. As a large force in society, generations of Vietnamese and Lao women play an important role in building, strengthening, and developing the friendly relations characteristic of the two nations.

Hanoi, October 15th, 2012

Afternoon of 29 March, Delegation of two women’s organizations of Ukraine and Ukraine-Vietnam Friendship Society headed by Mme. Gheraximenco Leokadia, Vice- President of Ukraine-Vietnam Friendship Society visited VWU.

The fifty-fifth session of the Commission on the Status of Women will take place at United Nations Headquarters in New York from Tuesday, 22 February to Friday, 4 March 2011.

To: H.E Mme. Men Sam An

Deputy Prime Minister of Kingdom of Cambodia

President of Cambodian Women for Peace and

Development Association (CWPD)

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung held a cordial reception of UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova in Hanoi on October 1, thanking her agency for recognising Thang Long Royal Citadel as a World Cultural Heritage site.

18 Oct. 2010 (Monday):

Theme: “Enhancing Women’s Effective Participation toward a Peaceful, Prosperous and Sustainable ASEAN”.

On November 20th, 1981, ACWO was formally established at a meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia. The meeting was held in conjunction with the reactivation of the ASEAN Women's Programme (AWP), the ASEAN Governments' grouping charged with the responsibility of women in development programmes.

In the morning of 7th September, 2010, Mme. Nguyen Thi Thanh Hoa, President of the VWU warmly welcomed Ms. Lotta Sylwander- Representative of UNICEF in Vietnam on the occasion of her new position.

At the invitation of the Vietnam Women’s Union, the delegation (8 leaders) from Women Involved in Nation Building of the Philippines headed by Ms. Corazon del Mundo, its President had paid a visit to Vietnam.

Recently, TYM Fund conducted training on micro-finance for cadres working at the Fund for Women and Family Development of Laos Women’s Union. This activity is under the cooperation framework among TYM Fund of Vietnam Women’s Union, Germany Savings Bank and Laos Women’s Union.

HA NOI — Viet Nam would like to co-operate with the UK to address the challenges of poverty alleviation and climate change, said Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan.