Vietnam's election to UNHRC highlights its achievements in ensuring human rights: Scholar
WVR - The international community's trust in voting for Vietnam as a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) for the 2026-2028 term stems from various reasons. Notably, the remarkable and impressive achievements in ensuring human rights across multiple social life sectors in recent years affirm Vietnam's robust development and steady progress amidst the current complex global challenges and fluctuations.
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| Vietnam re-elected to the UN Human Rights Council for the 2026-2028 term with the highest votes in the Asia-Pacific group. (Source: Vietnam Delegation to the UN) |
Impressive achievements
As an active member of the international community, since joining the UN, Vietnam has continuously strived to participate in the UN's common activities to promote and protect human rights globally. Vietnam is currently a member of 7 out of 9 core international UN conventions on human rights, 25 labour rights conventions of the International Labour Organization (ILO) (including 7 out of 8 core conventions), along with many other important international documents. Vietnam seriously fulfills its international commitments on human rights based on compliance with the principles of national responsibility as a convention member under the UN Charter and the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties.
In recent years, human rights in civil, political, economic, cultural, and social fields in Vietnam have been effectively ensured and promoted through the coordination of the entire political system under the leadership of the Party and the management and administration of the State, recognized and highly appreciated by the international community.
One of the most significant milestones in ensuring human rights in Vietnam is the achievement in multidimensional poverty reduction. The UN and the World Bank (WB) recognize Vietnam as one of the fastest and most impressive poverty-reducing countries in modern history. From over 70% of Vietnamese living below the poverty line in the 1980s and a national poverty rate of over 58% (in 1993), by mid-2025, the poverty rate had sharply decreased to only 1.93% (according to the multidimensional poverty standard). The draft document of the 14th Party Congress sets the goal of basically eliminating poverty by 2030. Vietnam completed the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) on poverty eradication by 2010. It can be said that Vietnam has written a success story in poverty reduction, inspiring and motivating many other countries.
Moreover, the rights of vulnerable social groups are also focused on and effectively ensured in the process of policy formulation and implementation by the State. Social welfare policies have covered all basic and essential fields and encompassed most disadvantaged groups (the elderly, disabled, children, women, ethnic minorities…), facilitating the realization and achievement of substantive equality in society, promoting social justice, improving social welfare, and living standards of the people. Currently, more than 3.8 million people nationwide (accounting for 3.8% of the population) receive social allowances from the state budget.
The results of ensuring human rights in Vietnam are also reflected in positive figures and indices. Vietnam's Human Development Index (HDI) in 2023 reached 0.766, ranking 93rd out of 193 countries, in the high human development group. In 2025, Vietnam ranked 46th out of 143 countries in the happiness index, second in Southeast Asia. The average life expectancy of Vietnamese people in 2024 is 74.7 years, with about 67 healthy years. The Satisfaction Index of Public Administration Services (SIPAS) in 2024 reached 83.94%. Vietnam is one of the earliest countries to complete the MDG on gender equality by 2015.
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| One of the most significant milestones in ensuring human rights in Vietnam is the achievement in multidimensional poverty reduction. (Photo: Nguyen Hong) |
Positive contributions to international efforts
As a UN member, Vietnam actively participates in many global multilateral institutions and contributes to shaping the international human rights framework.
In 2022, Vietnam was elected Vice President of the 77th UN General Assembly, representing the Asia-Pacific region (one-year term). In 2023, Vietnam was elected Vice President of UNESCO, directly participating in the management and policy-making processes of this organization. In 2024, the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) elected Vietnam to the Executive Board of UN Women for the 2025-2027 term. In 2025, Vietnam was re-elected to the UNHRC for the 2026-2028 term with the highest votes in the Asia-Pacific group.
During its two terms on the UNHRC (2014-2016 and 2023-2025), Vietnam has introduced notable initiatives on human rights. On April 3, 2024, the UNHRC unanimously adopted a resolution proposed and drafted by Vietnam to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 30th anniversary of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action. Vietnam has collaborated with several countries and UN specialized agencies to co-host and lead side events (discussions, thematic workshops on human rights) at UNHRC sessions in 2016 and 2024. Within the UNHRC's framework to implement the international mechanism for promoting and protecting human rights, Vietnam has participated in all four cycles of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). Additionally, Vietnam participates in other human rights mechanisms conducted by UN treaty monitoring committees.
Vietnam has participated in UN peacekeeping forces since 2014, striving to project the image of a peace-loving nation and demonstrating its role as a responsible member of the international community, fostering friendship among nations, and contributing to promoting and protecting human rights worldwide.
On October 25-26, the signing ceremony of the UN Convention against Cybercrime (Hanoi Convention) in the capital marked a significant milestone in promoting and ensuring human rights at the global level, contributing to establishing an international legal framework on combating cybercrime. This is a recognition by the international community of Vietnam's credibility and responsibility regarding global issues.
In Southeast Asia, Vietnam has been playing a pivotal role in promoting unity and cohesion within ASEAN, participating in building and shaping the region's "rules of the game", contributing to the development and adoption of many important ASEAN documents, including those on human rights.
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| Weaving the dream of eradicating hunger and reducing poverty in Hà Giang. |
Joining hands to build a peaceful, humane world
The significant achievements in ensuring and promoting human rights in Vietnam are thanks to the correct and wise guidelines, policies, and strategies of the Party and State across all fields, including diplomacy. With a consistent approach in the foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, cooperation, and development, Vietnam has diversified and multilateralized its foreign relations, expanding partnerships with many countries. This is an important premise, facilitating participation in ensuring and promoting human rights globally.
In the coming years, non-traditional security challenges will continue to profoundly impact the international landscape as well as the overall stability, development, and security of each nation. From natural disasters, epidemics, climate change to transnational organized crime, ethnic conflicts, illegal migration, and cybersecurity, all these challenges significantly affect human rights at national, regional, and international levels, requiring the joint efforts of the entire international community. In this context, the UN's activities to ensure and promote human rights inevitably demand specific, timely, and feasible initiatives and solutions, primarily from member states.
Vietnam has been emerging as one of the bright spots globally, not only due to its remarkable socio-economic development achievements but also thanks to its significant contributions in ensuring and promoting human rights in recent times. With its current credibility, Vietnam is sure to continue to effectively promote its role and responsibility, showcasing national identity along with creativity, resilience, and determination in the process of international integration, contributing to the common efforts of humanity in overcoming global challenges, maintaining peace, and upholding universal human rights values, building a global human rights culture for a better world in the future.
