Nevertheless, Quang Binh remains one of the poorest provinces in the country, with an average per capita income of just US dollars, as compared to the national average of US dollars.
Many young people therefore migrate to other parts of the country in search of opportunity. A great number of Vietnamese also migrate abroad to work: in total, around , Vietnamese are estimated to be living in other countries. Women and girls are also vulnerable to being trafficked and sexually exploited. Often, they are promised lucrative jobs, for example in a factory in a city, but end up being forced to work in the sex trade. Furthermore, when parents migrate their children are often left behind in the care of relatives, where they are not always sufficiently protected.
Their lives are marked by poverty, illiteracy, high levels of malnutrition and disease, as well as poor access to basic services. Not only are these living conditions difficult, they also make families very vulnerable to a number of risks: the United States has repeatedly expressed serious concerns about inter-country adoptions in Vietnam.
When parents are struggling to provide for their children, they sometimes want to put them into temporary care until their situation has improved β if parents are deceived, the children could be at-risk of being adopted and sent abroad.
In addition, mothers may sometimes be persuaded that their children will be better off living abroad with a foreign family.
