The conference was held by the Commission for Science and Education of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), the Board for Information and Education of the Lang Son Party Committee, and the UN Development Programme (UNDP).

Participants coming from 17 ministries and government agencies, and 25 departments in these provinces discussed the effectiveness of HIV/AIDS prevention programmes in Vietnam.

It is estimated that about 10,000 Vietnamese have died from HIV/AIDS.

Under the national strategy on HIV/AIDS prevention up to 2010-20, a programme is being carried out in the provinces of An Giang, Khanh Hoa and Lang Son in order to strengthen the authorities' leadership in the fight against the disease.