 Mobility of the gender approach 
The gender approach in urban planning focuses on women’s safety issues in public spaces. International organizations are at the forefront of initiatives that address this issue. While the circulation of urban policy and the international discourse on gender equality have been the subject of research for several years, the influence of the state on this circulation has been little explored. Yet, in a political context like Vietnam’s, the state is difficult to avoid. This article is based on an analysis of the implementation of three international organization programs on women’s safety in public spaces in Vietnam. The results highlight the state’s influence in the mobility of the gender approach by revealing the way international organizations negotiate with the context of centralized and authoritarian governance to carry out their projects.