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Free swimming lessons are given to children

The information from the provincial Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs said, in the first 9 months of 2019 it has directed and coordinated with localities to promote their communications activities and raise people’s awareness of how to prevent injuries and accidents on children including holding special-theme talks on how to prevent drowning cases, violence, kidnapping, and sexual abuse on children for district and commune level officials, hamlets and quarters in  11 districts, and Long Khanh and Bien Hoa cities; organizing 16 communications training courses for ethnic minority people to help improve their knowledge and skills of raising children in a scientific way; and holding seminars to discuss solutions for preventing and combating accidents, injuries, and drowning on children.

Simultaneously, the provincial Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs has also focused on inspecting and reviewing the areas at risk of child drowning cases; guided localities on how to improve the environment, and eliminate the risks of drowning in children such as putting up signs and fences in dangerous places like rivers and lakes; guided families with children under 10 on how to make lids for water tanks; filled the holes with and the holes in construction sites after use; coordinated with districts, towns and cities to disseminate propaganda information and prevent child drowning. Some localities such as Dinh Quan, Vinh Cuu have applied universal swimming models for children.

In addition, building a safe house model and providing free swimming training for children in difficult circumstances to prevent and control drowning have been conducted.

However, child drowning and injuries have still happened, causing a lot of children to die. According to the statistics of the health sector and the Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs sector, in the first 9 months of 2019 8,583 children in the province has had injuries and accidents, causing 24 deaths including 16 deaths by drowning, 5 others in accidents and 3 others for other reasons.

Above cases happened due to the ineffective organization in some localities; educating children about life skills has not received enough attention; the coordination among committees and agencies has not been done effectively at times; some localities have not paid enough attention and had enough directions to the prevention of accidents and child drowning; part of children’s families and themselves lack knowledge or skills to intervene and handle in case of accidents, injuries, and drowning. A lot of children have been injured or died due to injury are due to their family’s busing earning money and forgetting to  closely monitor them and having children under 10 to  play and take care of each other by themselves.

In order to improve the prevention of drowning and injury in children, in the coming time it is necessary to continue to promote communications, education, and mobilization to raise the awareness, knowledge and skills of preventing accidents, injuries and drowning of children, families, schools, communities and society; strengthen the ability to prevent and combat accidents and child injuries among civil servants, officials, collaborators and volunteers to help levels of authorities, sectors, and unions to protect and take care of children; and develop the models to prevent and control injuries and drowning in children as well as provide free swimming training for disadvantaged children.

Duy Minh (N. Minh)