Ha Noi 14 April 2023 – Ambassador of Norway to Viet Nam Hilde Solbakken and UNDP Resident Representative signed in Ha Noi today a two-year project to support the meaningful participation of civil society and government actors in UN human rights mechanisms, particularly in the upcoming Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Fourth Cycle.

This is the 5th phase of the UNDP-Norway Human Rights Project. It will be implemented from 2023-2025 and focus on “strengthening multi-stakeholder capacity and meaningful participation in UN human rights mechanisms in Viet Nam”. 

Ambassador of Norway to Viet Nam Hilde Solbakken said: “Human rights is a high priority for Norway. Here in Viet Nam we are very happy to cooperate with UNDP who has a very special position of trust with the Government and with civil society. We hope that this project will contribute to meaningful participation in the UPR process of different stakeholders.”

Key activities to be implemented in the 5th phase include (i) strengthening capacity and the meaningful engagement of stakeholders in the upcoming UPR Fourth Cycle; (ii) building capacity of youth and civil society organizations (CSO) actors to participate in human rights mechanisms including the UPR; and (iii) building capacity of persons with disabilities (PWDs) and organizations of persons with disabilities (OPDs) to support and monitor implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).

Viet Nam has ratified seven out of nine UN Human Rights Treaties. As the country is approaching the UPR 4th cycle starting in May next year, 2023 is a critical year for UPR reporting. In Viet Nam, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs is the penholder of the National Report, due in February 2024. Non-state actors contribute to the Stakeholders’ Summary Report, due in September 2023. 

“The project signing marks another milestone in Norway-UNDP partnership to further advance human rights in Viet Nam by enabling multi-stakeholder engagement and constructive dialogues, which are important for successful human rights progress in the country,” said UNDP Resident Representative Ramla Khalidi. “As Viet Nam undergoes the 4th cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and realizes its reporting obligations under various UN treaty bodies, it is crucial time to support the engagement of non-state actors in the process”.

Since 2019, Norway and UNDP have partnered on four phases of the Project with the following key outcomes:

• Room XX series: Successful annual educational programme for youth and civil society actors to meaningfully engage in human rights issues and activities, particularly the UPR process;
• Capacity building for organizations of person with disabilities to engage with the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities for direct influencing on recommendations for Viet Nam; 
• Knowledge product and international conference on the human rights and climate change nexus conducted with extensive media coverage; 
• A working group established to generate data for the LGBTQI+ Inclusion Index, to increase the availability of transparent and accessible data on the realities of LGBTQI+ persons.