LookAtVietnam – The National Technical Regulation on Toy Safety, which defines the standards toys must meet for sale in the market, has been published for the first time

Children choose their toys at a shop on Hang Ma street, Ha Noi. Management over toys will be tightened to help minimise health and safety risks among children during play.

Tran Thuy Son, whose four-year-old was injured by a toy last autumn, said this was good news for all parents because their children would soon be able to enjoy safer toys.

Under the new regulation, toys must meet all technical requirements, especially related to limits for toxic organic chemical compounds, such as formaldehyde, which can cause respiratory and skin diseases.

Cloth or paper toys made specifically for children under three years old must contain less than 30mg/kg of formaldehyde. Wood toys for the same age group must have a level under 80mg/kg.

The regulation also requires electric-powered toys not to exceed 24V.

Testing methods for each requirement are also specifically mentioned in the regulation.

“All toys must pass through the tests before hitting the market. If standards have been met, a quality stamp will be attached to the product,” said Thang.

The stamps will help relevant authorities, including market watch teams and customs officers, to determine which toys may be sold in the market.

However, as a mother, Son wondered about legitimacy and enforcement of the stamps, noting the situation of motorbike helmets that were marked with fake stamps.

According to the Deputy Ministry of Science and Technology, the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality, in co-operation with relevant agencies such as the Market Watch Department, would publish the specific mechanisms and guidance for toy production and import enterprises to implement the regulations.

Statistics from the Child Protection and Care Department under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs show that in the last four years, more than 84,000 children suffered injuries from toys.

The department said many of the children had suffered permanent injuries to their eyes, ears or respiratory systems.

Luong My Binh, a doctor at the Central Paediatrics Hospital, said that low-quality toys could easily break into small parts. This is very dangerous because children could swallow the small pieces or put them into their noses.

“This could lead to suffocation and even death if their parents are not quickly aware of the problem,” said Binh.

However, a survey conducted by the Centre for Research and Support of Vietnamese Children showed that up to 80 per cent of foreign toys sold in Viet Nam were made in China and considered to be of low quality.

While diversified in forms and materials, many Chinese toys are cheap and do not meet safety standards because they contain too many chemicals. However, cost is a significant reason why Vietnamese children and their parents continue to turn to Chinese-made toys.

Vietnamese toymakers sell their products for much higher prices than their Chinese counterparts. For example, on average a wooden toy produced in Viet Nam costs VND200,000 (US$12).

Toys from famous global trademarks have entered Viet Nam’s market, but they are very expensive so they are not popular.

“Like me, many parents prefer buying Chinese toys because they are cheaper and more modern, with more moveable parts compared to locally made products,” said Dinh Thanh Hoa, a mother in Ha Noi.

A small wooden toy automobile made locally costs VND90,000 ($5), while a Chinese product with an engine and a remote control costs only VND45,000 ($2.5).

Vice Director Dang Thanh Cong of the Goods Quality Control Department said that Chinese toys were sold en masse in the market and carried no health warnings.

“As parents, we want the toys we buy for our children to be safe. However, we cannot completely ensure their safety by ourselves because we can only base our purchase on our experience and opinion that a particular toy seems to be safe or unsafe,” said Le Van Sang, a father.

“The Autumn Festival, a kind of Tet for children, is coming. We cannot say ‘no’ to our children when they need toys to play with,” said Sang.

Sang, Son and many other parents hope that with the National Technical Regulation on Toy Safety, relevant authorities will do their best to ensure the safety of toys before allowing them to be sold in the market.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News