Attending the workshop were Deputy Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Van Hoi and 250 delegates representing social work education organizations and social service providers in the Asia-Pacific region and other regions around the world.

Speaking at the opening of the workshop, Associate Professor, Dr. Dao Thanh Truong - Vice Rector of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities said that social work has developed strongly and affirmed its indispensable role in the sustainable development goals of many countries in the world over the past 100 years. In Vietnam, although it has just taken the first steps in the professionalization process, social work has been affirming its role in assisting individuals, families, and communities in need, aiming to ensure comprehensive social security for all people according to the consistent goals of the Party and State of Vietnam.

In recent years, the world in general has undergone enormous changes, including climate change and the Covid-19 pandemic. These difficult problems are requiring a new vision and global cooperation to solve common problems and specific difficulties.

With its important role, social work needs to make movements to keep up with, to orient and create sustainable development from the individual level to the global level, through solving micro to macro issues of human beings. In that context, sharing experiences and learning from each other is very important, in which it is necessary to mention the "Hanoi Declaration on Promoting Social Work" towards a cohesive and proactively adaptive ASEAN Community adopted at the 37th ASEAN Summit and Vietnam is the host country and actively participates in coordinating the implementation of the Declaration.

As the leading training institution in the country in training and researching social sciences and humanities and a member of VNU, the University of Social Sciences and Humanities determines its pioneering role in developing social work in Vietnam, in order to fulfill national commitments. Currently, the school is the only institution in the country that trains social work at all three levels: Bachelor, Master and Doctorate and provides leading research human resources and social work experts for schools, institutes and practice facilities nationwide.

This conference is a borderless scientific forum for scientists and practitioners from many countries to exchange and share the most updated knowledge and practice models, thereby contributing to the development of social work in Vietnam. Exploiting different aspects of barrier-free social work in the context of adapting to sustainable development and responding to emergency situations. Implementing the motto of social work "Leaving no one behind".

Speaking at the workshop, Deputy Minister Nguyen Van Hoi affirmed that the social work profession has gradually become a professional profession, playing a very important role in social life, gradually improving in terms of law, being respected by society, directly solving social problems; solving relationships between people, reducing inequality and conflicts in society, bringing joy and happiness, contributing to promoting economic development, social justice and progress, building and developing the country sustainably.

After more than 10 years of implementing the social work development program, the social work profession has achieved quite impressive results such as:

The legal framework for developing the professional social work profession has been formed and completed quite fully and comprehensively. The network of social work service providers has been formed and developed with thousands of facilities related to providing public and non-public social work services. The team of civil servants, public employees, employees and collaborators doing professional social work has been formed with about 235 thousand people, forming a network of cadres, employees and collaborators working in social work to support vulnerable groups in the facilities and communities, contributing to helping the poor and people in difficult circumstances access and enjoy social welfare policies, health care, education, vocational training, and finding jobs to stabilize their lives.

If in 2010 there were only 1-2 training institutions specializing in social work, now there are 55 universities, colleges and 21 vocational training institutions specializing in social work. Many social work models have been implemented in the fields of poverty reduction, rehabilitation care for autistic children; education, healthcare, care and protection of children, women and youth... The position of social work in the process of building an advanced social security system of the country at many levels and sectors has changed, people have had a correct awareness of the role and position of the social work profession.

In addition to the achieved results, Deputy Minister Nguyen Van Hoi also emphasized a number of solutions and tasks to promote professional social work.

Firstly, well implement the leadership and direction of the Party and State on strengthening social work, especially the Resolution of the 13th National Congress, well organize the implementation of Decision No. 112/QD-TTg dated January 22, 2021 of the Prime Minister on the Social Work Development Program for the period 2021-2030 with the goal of continuing to promote the development of social work in all sectors and levels, in accordance with the socio-economic development conditions of the country in each period; ensure raising awareness of the whole society about social work; promote socialization, improve the quality of social work services in all fields, meet the needs of providing social work services of the people, towards the goal of developing a fair and effective society; strengthen social work in the judicial system, prevent domestic violence; justice for minors.

Second, perfecting the legal framework for social work development, focusing on: Submitting to the Government to issue a Decree on social work; amending relevant legal documents to develop social work in the direction of clarifying the roles and tasks of social work officers and employees; promoting industrialization, promoting the role of non-public organizations in providing social work services; researching and proposing the development of the Law on Social Assistance; summarizing and evaluating the implementation of the Law on the Elderly, the Law on Children, the Law on People with Disabilities; summarizing and evaluating target programs for poverty reduction planning, new rural areas, ethnic minorities and mountainous areas, planning and developing the network of social assistance facilities until 2030 and vision to 2050; researching and proposing the development of a National Social Security Floor, a set of social security monitoring indicators.

Third, develop a network of organizations providing social work services and a network of social work staff and collaborators in schools, hospitals, and the judicial system; in which, focus on developing social work services for children, people with disabilities, the elderly, solving poverty and other social problems.

Fourth, perfecting the curriculum, textbooks, and training methods towards international integration; improving the quality of social work lecturers and establishing a network of social work workers in schools, hospitals, and communities; perfecting the law on social work education and training.

Fifth, promote propaganda work on social work development, orienting people to access and enjoy social work services effectively and sustainably.

Sixth, focus on and strengthen international cooperation to develop the social work profession.

At the Conference, the Organizing Committee received 50 full-text reports, including 28 papers from international scholars and 22 papers from Vietnamese scholars. The papers focused on a variety of topics, from social work training and development according to sustainable development goals, regional development cooperation activities; to implications for social work service management and practice in a high-risk society.