CRC/C/VNM/CO/3-4 specifying the criteria used in the individual assessment of the best interests of the child. Right to life, survival and development 33. The Committee notes with concern that injuries, many of them preventable, and particularly relating to drowning, road traffic and domestic accidents, are an important cause of child mortality. 34. The Committee recommends that the State party strengthen its measures to protect children from injuries, in particular relating to drowning, road traffic and domestic accidents, including through the effective implementation of the National Programme on Child Injury Prevention for the period 2011-2015. It further recommends that the State party continue to include the prevention of accidents in priorities and objectives of national policies and programmes. The Committee moreover recommends that the State party pursue its intent to introduce swimming classes in school curricula with a view to preventing drowning among children, and to strengthen its public campaigns to increase traffic awareness among children, parents and the public in general. Respect for the views of the child 35. The Committee welcomes the various legislative measures adopted throughout the review period that acknowledged children’s right to be heard, also in judicial and administrative proceedings, including the 2004 Law on Protection, Care and Education of Children and the 2004 Civil Procedure Code, and the forums for children to make their voices heard in the provinces and at the national level. The Committee, however, remains concerned at: (a) The lack of sufficient awareness of the importance attached to this principle and the lack of systematic application of the right of the child to be heard in all settings, including in judicial hearings; (b) The lack of systematic consultation of children in the process of making laws and policies affecting them at the national, regional or local levels, and the absence of more specific guidelines on children’s participation in the development of future plans of action concerning children. 36. In the light of article 12 of the Convention and the Committee’s general comment No. 12 (2009) on the right of the child to be heard, the Committee recommends that the State party: (a) Carry out well-financed awareness-raising programmes, including campaigns aimed at, inter alia, children, parents, teachers, government administrative officials, the judiciary and society at large, on children’s right to have their views taken into account and to participate in all matters affecting them, with a view to institutionalizing meaningful child participation; (b) Take measures to involve children to a greater extent in the development of legislation and policies relevant to them, including by strengthening the children’s councils through child-friendly methods of work and ensuring that children’s views are given adequate weight. 8

Select target paragraph3