In 1974, the average Vietnamese woman had six children; today, she will have just two.[1] Amid overall improvements in education, healthcare, and the economy, global fertility rates have plummeted. State programming has been instrumental in this development, improving individual welfare and implementing reproductive policies. While often framed as a means of empowering women, this legislation can also represent a tool for states to advance their economic interests, sidelining the actual needs of women in the process.
Vietnam’s history exemplifies this dynamic. Despite vast differences in governance, structure, and function, both colonial and independent Vietnam recognized the benefit of using reproductive control to stabilize the nation during times of economic upheaval. Comparing Vietnam during the 1930s Great Depression to that of the 1980s post reunification reveals a striking continuity. Whether under French rule or independent governance, state reproductive policies—from child separation to limits on family size—prioritized national interests over women’s autonomy.
Colonial Exploitation and Resistance
To understand this dynamic, it is essential to examine Vietnam’s socio-economic context. Prior to colonization in the 19th century, Vietnam operated as an isolationist monarchy in an agriculture-based economy.[2] Though successful in its initial attempts to rebuff European intervention, Vietnam eventually fell to French dominion in 1862. France would unify its captured territories of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia into “Indochina,” establishing a series of plantations focused on the export of rice, rubber, and maize. To manage its vast, labor-intensive holdings, France delegated some administrative powers to select Indochinese citizens, enforcing a hierarchy that fueled class resentment. This led to the emergence of Vietnam’s first nationalist and anticolonial movements in the early 20th century.[3]
Despite this, organized attempts to enact meaningful change failed due to poor coordination and insufficient resources. However, when the global stock market crashed in 1929, it gave rise to two pivotal developments: stronger social cohesion amongst Vietnamese nationalists and the fracturing of France’s economic and military might. Economic privation gave way to political and social unrest. With the Great Depression curtailing global demand for foreign trade, the value of Vietnam’s exports followed suit. Between 1925 and 1935, the price of Vietnam's largest export, rice, fell by 72% while its second-largest export, rubber, fell by 92%.[4] With farming as the primary occupation in Vietnam, the majority of the country fell into poverty.
The French colonial administration enacted measures to protect French investments rather than prioritize Vietnamese citizens’ needs. Subsidies and loans were granted to French plantation owners, while high taxes were levied on the native population.[5] This injustice launched the formation of the Indochinese Communist Party in 1930, which took advantage of the workers’ shared discontent to boost membership and call for collective action.[6] Led by Ho Chi Minh, the group brought together formerly separate socialist movements, now united under a common mission to overthrow French imperialism. Rejecting pro-natalist ideologies, the group drew on local and global influences, including social Darwinism, Malthusianism, and insights from modernization in China, Japan, and Germany.[7]
The Vietnamese Women’s Union played a critical role as well, mobilizing the population alongside the Indochinese Communist Party.[8] Through the country’s leading women’s magazine, Phụ Nữ Tân văn, the organization urged women to align their maternal roles with that of the nationalist agenda by nurturing patriotic values in their children. Thanks in part to their efforts, protests broke out across Indochina, demanding tax freezes, land redistribution, and an end to forced labor. According to the Sûreté, the intelligence branch of the French colonial police, over 160 strikes and demonstrations took place between May 1, 1930, and September 11, 1931.[9]
This opposition alarmed France, which until then had successfully suppressed organized forms of dissent. With nationalist movements gaining momentum, the colonial administration recognized the threat posed by a rising, ideologically aligned native population that outnumbered French settlers 188 to 1.[10] As the effects of the Great Depression had eroded the loyalty of Vietnamese elites to colonial governance, it became clear to France that its previous tactic to foster class division would no longer suffice. With an exhausted military, national strategy thus turned to reproductive policies to restore balance.
Eurasians in Colonial Strategy
Because the colony required a substantial labor force, policies like mandated sterilization—used by other colonial powers—would have threatened its economic bedrock. France thus employed more subtle measures to control the family unit while preserving its financial interests. One such strategy targeted the Eurasian population: children of mixed French and Vietnamese heritage. Historically, France viewed these children as the byproduct of immoral affairs between French men and Vietnamese women. However, as France's control over Indochina weakened, the colonial government began reclassifying Eurasian children as white between the 1930s and 1940s.[11] This change granted Eurasians more rights, elevating their status within colonial society.
Despite their small numbers, Eurasians were positioned as a vital buffer between the empire and the colony, seen as carriers of “true French blood” and defenders of colonial interests.[12] Government-funded institutions like the Jules Brévié Foundation played a significant role in reinforcing this narrative. Working alongside the French administration, the institution forcibly separated Eurasian children from their mothers, placing them in French-run orphanages that taught them to embrace colonial values and reject their Vietnamese cultural ties.[13] When the children came of age, they would be pushed to join Les Français de l’Indochine, a Eurasian social movement that sought the permanent establishment of a settler-colonial state.
Framed as an attempt to free mothers from the burden of unwanted children, most Vietnamese women actually sought to raise their Eurasian offspring.[14] Indochina’s forced child separation policy therefore reinforces its colonial interests through the maintenance of a subservient population rather than uphold women’s autonomy. This attitude would persist into the post-independence era, reflecting a continuity in Vietnam’s stance to prioritize state interests over individual rights.
Independence, War, and Recovery
In the aftermath of the Great Depression and World War II, Vietnam faced decades of turmoil, gaining independence from France and enduring a series of bloody conflicts. Ho Chi Minh led the August Revolution in 1945, taking advantage of the Great Depression’s momentum and France’s weakened state post-World War II.[15] His declaration of independence ignited the First Indochina War. Upon Vietnam’s victory, the 1954 Geneva Accords divided the country into two territories—North and South Vietnam—to allow time for French troops to withdraw and for nationwide elections to take place. South Vietnam, however, refused to participate in these elections, launching the territories into an intense civil war. Concluding in 1975, North Vietnam emerged victorious, and a unified, communist government took office.
These sustained years of violence exacted a tremendous toll on both Vietnam's population and its economy. Across the three wars, around four million citizens perished, entire communities lay in ruins, and millions more suffered from deep physical and psychological trauma.[16] Post-war recovery stalled as key infrastructure—schools, hospitals, roads—lay in shambles. By the early 1980s, Vietnam ranked among the poorest countries in the world, with inflation soaring to 400% and nearly 75% of the population living in poverty.[17] The state thus took numerous steps to rebuild the country.
In 1986, the government launched a series of economic reforms known as Đổi Mới to transition Vietnam into a market-oriented economy.[18] This included opening up the market to attract foreign investors, updating policies to encourage global trade, and limiting price increases to control hyperinflation. However, Đổi Mới was only half the story; to ensure its success, the government had to control population growth as well. Post-reunification, Vietnam saw fertility rates surge at around six children per woman, particularly among poor, rural communities.[19] With a weakened infrastructure following decades of war, the government recognized that without intervention, the population growth would outpace state capacity, depleting available farmland, overwhelming healthcare systems, and derailing Đổi Mới’s economic reforms.
Two-Child Policy
Thus, in 1988, the federal government instituted a national two-child policy to curb population growth.[20] Viewed as a necessary step to promote economic stability and improve living standards, the government linked family planning to national welfare, advocating for later marriages, spaced births, and fewer children. A countrywide propaganda campaign ensued. Everywhere, from TV programming to billboards, the government championed the benefits of a nuclear family.[21] Common messages emphasized "family happiness" and "women's liberation."[22] Over time, a cultural stigma developed against women who had multiple children, casting them as irresponsible for undermining national progress.
Beyond these societal pressures, the government reinforced the two-child policy through more direct enforcement mechanisms. Participating families received food provisions, free contraceptive services, and even cash.[23] In some cases, women got over $20 to undergo sterilization—the equivalent of three months' wage—and an additional bonus if they referred another woman for the procedure.[24] Contrarily, the government imposed fines on families with more than two children. While most fines ranged between $6 and $12, some records indicate they reached $80, the average yearly wage for a Vietnamese citizen.[25]
Female workers employed by the state, including teachers, healthcare workers, and government officials, also risked their careers. According to the research director at the Vietnamese Population Council, the government delayed salaries, denied promotions, and even fired its employees who had more than two children.[26] Some private companies also adopted similar penalties, jeopardizing job security for all working women. While fines targeted the entire family unit, career penalties and the social stigma disproportionately affected women, who were seen as the primary caregivers and bore the burden of taking maternity leave.[27]
Many women, in turn, sought varying forms of birth control to avoid unwanted pregnancy. A 1988 survey revealed that while only 1.5% of married couples relied on male contraceptive methods, a staggering 51.3% used female-centered ones.[28] Intrauterine devices, IUDs, the most popular method, were reported by two-thirds of women to cause negative side effects, including fatigue, headaches, heavy bleeding, and abdominal pain.[29] So whether they complied with the two-child policy or not, women bore the brunt of state legislation that prioritized its economic goals above their autonomy.
Legacies of Reproductive Control
In the end, Vietnam achieved its goal of lowering fertility rates and building an economy that ranks among the top 20 for GDP growth. [30] To accomplish this, the country implemented strict policies that, throughout both its colonial and independent history, penalized women whose reproductive choices did not align with national objectives. While many of these policies have been repealed, the resulting culture of fear and stigmatization lives on. Today, many Vietnamese women choose not to have children, leading to an unintended consequence: a birth rate below replacement level, with over 40% of pregnancies ending in medical termination.[31] To address these issues, Vietnam must revisit its history, acknowledge the harm caused by past policies, and take meaningful steps to dismantle the lingering stigma. Only by confronting these legacies can Vietnam create a future where women’s choices are respected and solutions to demographic challenges align with principles of human rights and social justice.