There are significant increases of South Vietnamese girls and women migrating out of the area and the country, including by marriage to foreigners. For instance, since 1993 and in the area of Tay Ninh, Hau Giang and Can Tho (once two provinces but now two provinces and a city), some 20,600 women have married foreigners, primarily Taiwanese (with an increasing number of Koreans recently). These are impoverished areas where young girls typically receive little education and most families are in difficult economic situations. These are also areas with limited access to mainstream media, such as television and newspapers, so inhabitants are not well informed on many issues.

Under the National Plan of Action to Combat Crimes of Trafficking in Children and Women (2004–2010), the Viet Nam Women’s Union is delegated with the leading role for awareness raising within communities on the dangers of migration, particularly human trafficking. However, despite commitment to the issue, its efforts were limited due to budget constraints and lack of skills and knowledge on the human trafficking issue for running an effective campaign. In addition, there was no comprehensive package of consistent training and information materials on combating trafficking in children and women.