UNICEF joins MOLISA’s Children Department and partners to provide an e-learning course promoting parenting skills for children’s development

Hanoi, April 5, 2023 – Positive parenting skills and practices are scientifically-proven to be critical to children’s physical, cognitive, emotional, and psycho-social development.  A new online tool launched today has been designed with the needs of Vietnamese parents in mind – providing to them learning activities with practical skills and approaches that support them on their parenting journey. Launched by UNICEF, MOLISA and partners today, the initiative is part of a partnership to expand the Integrated Early Childhood Development (IECD) Holistic Parenting agenda in Viet Nam to promote nurturing care for children.

“We have long recognized the need for holistic parenting in the early years of children's lives and the indispensable importance of promoting the necessary skills for parents and caregivers to do their best as the main providers of the care, nutrition, stimulation and protection that every child needs for their healthy development,” said Dang Hoa Nam, Director of Children’s Affairs Department, MOLISA, in his opening remarks at the launch. “This learning course supports a crucial window of opportunity, where with the right approaches, children’s development, their happiness benefits greatly and we will successfully move the parenting agenda forward in Viet Nam,” added he.

Science tells us that there are time-bound windows of opportunity [1,000 first days], where if children receive the right nutrition, stimulation, encouragement, space for creativity, health care, and protection – they thrive in all areas – they grow with confidence, their brains make many more neural connections, they do better in education, have fewer behavioural problems and face less substance abuse and mental health challenges in the future. Often, the challenge rests with knowing what to do, when, how to manage self as a parent and encourage children in the right ways.

Developed by a group of top-notch IECD experts in Viet Nam, the course consists of 20 lessons targeting parents and caregivers of children aged 0-8 years old with creative visual aids illustrating parenting situations and challenges. These lessons include caretaking of children's physical and mental health, stimulating exercises through play and encouragement, development of children's cognitive ability, how to respond to their behavioural challenges, and protecting them from violence and abuse among others.

“Parenting is too important to be left to chance. Reliable information, skills and tools can support parents and caregivers, to enjoy their role and to give children a brilliant start in life on the journey to reach their full potential,” said Nguyen Thi Y Duyen, Officer-in-Charge of Child Protection programme at UNICEF Viet Nam at the launch event. “UNICEF is supporting MOLISA and other partners to pioneer IECD in Viet Nam to help ensure children are healthy, ready to learn and thrive.”

The course is part of the Viet Nam IECD Holistic Parenting programme which was developed based on a programme of the Public Health Agency of Canada. It is now being implemented in 15 provinces with an aim to reach hundreds of thousands of parents and caregivers throughout the country. Viet Nam’s parenting e-learning course was also built upon the platform of the National Child Helpline 111.

Tina Nguyen, CEO of Generali Viet Nam - an active member of The Human Safety Net, said: “Promoting early childhood development and supporting Vietnamese families is key to Generali Vietnam’s community agenda with Sinh Con, Sinh Cha (Born Parents, Born Children) parenting programme being our flagship CSR initiative. Parenting is an important ‘full-time job’, yet not every parent is fully conscious of the fact that such job requires learning and training to best benefit our children. Sinh Con, Sinh Cha has found a smart and effective approach to deliver and promote parenting knowledge and skills to parents via interesting online educational videos with practical and useful content. We’re pleased to be able to contribute content and video clips from our programme to such e-learning course by UNICEF and MOLISA. We hope this necessary parenting course will be able to reach millions of families across the country.”

Through this online course, parents and caregiver will find useful and up-to-date knowledge and skill-building resources for their children’s upbringing. More importantly, parents will know how to properly express love and care to their children for them to feel loved, safe, and enjoy mental and psychosocial well-being that helps them reach their fullest potential.

Supporters to UNICEF contributed to the development of the course including the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Government of Japan and The Human Safety Net of Generali Group. UNICEF and MOLISA worked with the Central Vietnam Women's Union, the Vietnam Confederation of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and The Human Safety Net Viet Nam to widely promote the course to parents with children under 8 years old across the country.

The course can be accessed at http://elearning.tongdai111.vn/#/.