Hanoi (VNA) – The 12th National Congress of the Vietnam Red Cross Society (VRCS) for the 2026–2031 term officially opened in Hanoi on July 28, during which delegates formally nominated Party General Secretary and State President To Lam as Honorary President of the organisation for the new term.
The congress brought together current and former Party and State leaders, representatives of central and local agencies, the Vietnam Fatherland Front and mass organisations, others from the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, international organisations, diplomatic missions, businesses, sponsors and domestic and international partners, along with former leaders of the VRCS. It gathered 500 delegates representing more than 5.6 million members, volunteers and Red Cross youth nationwide.
In her opening remarks, Do Thi Thu Thao, Secretary of the Party Committee of the VRCS Central Committee and President of the Society, said the organisation aims to become stronger, more professional and more modern, operating with greater effectiveness and efficiency while maintaining its role as the specialised humanitarian organisation entrusted by the Party and State, as well as the core force, connector and coordinator of humanitarian work.
She said the Society will comprehensively reform its operations by placing people at the centre, communities as the foundation, digital transformation and innovation as the driver of development, and resource mobilisation as its primary approach to improve the quality and efficiency of humanitarian activities.
The organisation will continue to promote Vietnam’s humanitarian traditions, mobilise the entire political system and society for humanitarian work, provide better care for the poor, disadvantaged people and vulnerable groups, strengthen disaster preparedness and response, and enhance community resilience, thus contributing to social security, human security and the country’s sustainable development.
The congress adopted the action motto for the new term: "Solidarity – Innovation – Professionalism – Self-reliance."
Held under the theme "Strengthening the core role in humanitarian work; advancing innovation, digital transformation and resource mobilisation; building a stronger Society and safer and more resilient communities of sustainable development", the congress set a number of key targets for the 2026–2031 period.
These include delivering humanitarian assistance worth at least 25 trillion VND (approximately 955 million USD) to more than 50 million beneficiaries; deploying a unified digital management platform across all provincial- and commune-level VRCS chapters; expanding membership by more than 1 million and maintaining over 200,000 active volunteers; mobilising about 9 million units of donated blood; providing first-aid training for 1.5–2 million people; and developing resilient community models to strengthen disaster preparedness and self-reliance.
The congress also identified three strategic breakthroughs – accelerating comprehensive digital transformation, including the digitisation of humanitarian beneficiary databases and improving transparency; building a green humanitarian ecosystem linked to innovative assistance models, resilient livelihoods and sustainable development; and developing a professional volunteer force capable of rapid on-site response.
The Society will push ahead with its flagship programmes, including "Tet of Humanity", "Good People, Good Deeds – Joining Hands to Build Compassionate Communities", "Every Organisation and Individual Connected to a Humanitarian Address", and "Safe and Disaster-Ready Communities"./.
