Preliminary statistics show that 100 drownings resulted in 142 child deaths across Vietnam in June, the first month of children’s summer holiday in the Southeast Asian country.

The numbers were mentioned during the signing ceremony of a joint effort among ten ministries and agencies to prevent child drownings in the 2022-30 period held on Monday.

Speaking at the event, Dang Hoa Nam, director of the Children’s Department under the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs, said that child drowning deaths declined from 3,300 children in 2010 to 1,990 children in 2021.

The average reduction rate was three to five percent per year, equivalent to about 100 children a year.

Child drowning incidents often occur in the summer months, especially at the beginning of the holiday, according to Nam.

Summer vacation often starts in June and ends in August for Vietnamese children.

Elaborating on Nam’s comment, Le Hai Long, deputy head of the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, said 100 child drowning incidents caused 142 fatalities in June, equal to the number accumulated throughout the first five months of this year.

Long blamed the heartbreaking statistics on the lack of parents’ attention and effort to improve children’s swimming skills.

For solutions, Long said the Ho Chi Minh City chapter of the Youth Union plans to put 15 new swimming pools into operation by the end of this year and 25 others next year for teaching swimming safety and drowning prevention, with the first session expected to kick off in September.

Representatives from the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Education and Training pledged to raise the awareness of families, children, schools, and local authorities about the issue.

Their target is to reduce child drowning mortality by 20 percent by 2030.

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