Ho Chi Minh City boosts population quality efforts amid low fertility

The Ho Chi Minh City Population Sub-department, in coordination with the city’s Women’s Union, the Ho Chi Minh City chapter of the Vietnam Youth Federation, and Hung Vuong Hospital, held the conference to review communication activities integrated with service provision aimed at improving population quality.

Speaking at the conference, Pham Chanh Trung, head of the sub-department, said that following an administrative merger in July last year, the city became Vietnam’s most populous urban center, with a population of more than 14 million.

The city’s population programs have continued to achieve notable results.

Both prenatal and newborn screening rates have consistently exceeded 85 percent, while residents’ average life expectancy has reached 76.7 years, higher than the national average of 74.7 years.

During the first half of 2026, the city’s sex ratio at birth remained within the normal range, at 107 boys for every 100 girls.

“These achievements reflect the efforts of authorities and agencies, while the city will continue to strengthen professional expertise, innovate communication methods, and make services more accessible, enabling people to take a more proactive role in healthcare,” Trung said.

The city’s fertility rate stands at just 1.51 children per woman in 2026, placing it among the 13 provinces and cities with the lowest fertility rates nationwide.

This situation calls for greater attention, care and shared responsibility from authorities, departments, and the community in building and nurturing families for the future.

Nguyen Tang Minh, deputy director of the municipal Department of Health, asserted that population plays a key role in socio-economic development, workforce quality, and long-term sustainability

Population policy has now shifted its focus toward the relationship between population and development, with an integrated approach that addresses population size, structure, distribution, and quality.

For Ho Chi Minh City, improving population quality is particularly important given its large population, rapid urbanization, and increasingly diverse healthcare needs, alongside persistently low fertility and an ageing population.

The deputy director noted that the city had made considerable progress in population-related work in recent years.

However, amid rapid changes in population size, structure, and fertility patterns, further efforts are needed to strengthen professional capacity, renew communication approaches, improve access to services, and encourage individuals and families to take greater initiative in protecting their health.

One particularly important measure in improving population quality, Minh stressed, is pre-marital health screening.

Such check-ups enable couples to make informed decisions about appropriate healthcare, treatment, and preventive measures.

They also help couples prepare for pregnancy, ensure safer childbirth, and lay the foundation for raising a healthy next generation.