Hanoi (VNA) - The Asia-Pacific Regional Conference on EarlyChildhood Development (ECD) adopted a Hanoi Call for Action on theimplementation of ECD during its closing session in Hanoi on December 6.

The call is expected to contribute significantly to accelerate the effectiverealisation of ECD in each country in the region in the near future.

The Hanoi Call for Action affirms the importance of a sustainable environmentin achieving development aspirations globally, in the region, in each countryand locality, and in shaping scopes and directions for child development in theAsia-Pacific region.

It also highlights the need to prioritise the investment of resources inchildren in order to build a solid foundation for a strong society and economicdevelopment in the region, in accordance with the objectives of the UnitedNations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Sustainable DevelopmentGoals and countries’ development plans.

The document calls for commitments from governments and parliaments tocoordinate to ensure the comprehensive development of children and mobilisesupport from all relevant sectors to promote the goals of child care andnourishment.

It clearly states the unity in interdisciplinary coordination to promotea safe, sustainable and continuous nurturing environment for children throughmany specific activities concerning the policy environment, the livingenvironment, the community environment and the family environment.

Delegates will review the progress of implementing the call’s contents andraise their ideas at the Asia-Pacific Regional Conference on ECD in 2020.

Addressing the closing session, Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and SocialAffairs Le Van Thanh said this is the first regional conference to co-build andadopt a call for action in implementing ECD in the region under the witness ofchildren.

He expressed his hope that the Hanoi Call for Action will be chosen as apriority concerning solutions and actions that need to be accelerated, whileserving as an important foundation for ECD cooperation between countries in theAsia-Pacific region.

During its four days of sitting, the 2019 Asia-Pacific Regional Conference onECD, which gathered more than 600 delegates from 35 countries and territoriesand 44 international organisations, discussed a number of important issuesimpacting the comprehensive development of children, ranging from the issuanceof legal frameworks, the building of strategies and policies, the allocation ofresources to technical solutions./.