Brian Jeffrey
The city of Ho Chi Minh is introducing a one-time financial aid of 3 million VND for women who have two children before reaching the age of 35. Additionally, local areas where over 60% of eligible couples have two children will earn commendations from the Chairman of the HCMC People’s Committee.
This initiative was shared by the HCMC People’s Committee at the 10th Session of the HCMC People’s Council for the 2021-2026 term on December 9.
City officials reported that Ho Chi Minh City’s total fertility rate in 2023 is at 1.32 children per woman, significantly lower than the replacement threshold of 2.1. The city is part of a group of 21 localities in Vietnam facing critically low birth rates.
To encourage higher birth rates, the city has proposed granting commendations from district-level People’s Committee chairpersons, alongside a 30 million VND reward for communes that consistently reach or surpass a 60% rate of eligible couples with two children. Communa that maintain this statistics over a five-year period will additionally receive a city-level merit certificate and a financial reward of 60 million VND.
Women giving birth to two children by 35 will benefit from a one-time support of 3 million VND, reflecting estimated medical costs tied to pregnancy and childbirth.
In efforts to tackle gender imbalance issues, communes that enact successful measures to mitigate this disparity will qualify for district-level commendations, along with an extra financial incentive of 1 million VND.
Furthermore, pregnant women and newborns from low-income or near-poor households, as well as social protection groups and island residents, will receive 2 million VND in support for prenatal and newborn screenings, in addition to other benefits.
The newly proposed measures reward communes that achieve full health insurance coverage for seniors, maintain consistent health monitoring, and conduct regular health exams for the elderly. Successful communes will earn district-level commendations and a financial reward of 30 million VND.
Community health volunteers who meet or exceed goals in promoting senior health care and monitoring within families will also receive certificates of merit from the commune-level People’s Committees.
If these proposals are ratified, they are expected to impose a financial burden of over 198.5 billion VND on Ho Chi Minh City’s budget over the next five years.
