Da Nang (VNA) - To raise the rate of female deputies to the National Assembly (NA) and all-level People’s Councils requires strong, synchronous, and effective solutions as well as political resolve and efforts from female candidates, a meeting in central Da Nang city on April 12 heard.

According to Nguyen Thuy Anh, Chairwoman of the NA Committee for Social Affairs and Permanent Vice Chairwoman of the Female NA Deputy Group, legal regulations require that women must account for at least 35 percent of the total number of female candidates for deputy to the NA and all-level People’s Councils.

Although the rate of female deputies to the 14th NA and all-level People’s Councils for 2016-2021 was higher than in the previous tenure, it failed to reach the targeted 30 percent.

The world average rate is currently 25.5 percent, and Vietnam ranked 60th globally in this regard during the 14th tenure and fifth in Southeast Asia, after Timor Leste, Singapore, the Philippines, and Laos, she said.

Anh stressed that Vietnam attaches importance to promoting gender equality and women’s engagement in politics, noting that the country’s constitution, policies, and laws on the matter have created a legal framework for women to play a role in political activities.

Le Thi Nguyet, Vice Chairwoman of the Committee, lauded the contributions of female deputies to the country’s development, especially on issues regarding women, children, gender equality, and social welfare.

During the 14th tenure, they actively contributed opinions on draft laws, thematic supervision reports, and Q&A sessions, she added.

A focus of the meeting was how to improve female candidates’ election campaign skills, towards the goal of having more women representatives in elected bodies./.