Meeting marks Natural Disaster Prevention and Control Day
The Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, in collaboration with the United Nations in Vietnam, held a meeting in Hanoi on May 20 in response to Vietnam’s Natural Disaster Prevention and Control Day (May 22) with the theme “Joining hands for a society safe from natural disasters.”
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The event, which saw the attendance of Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, was broadcast live on the Vietnam Television’s VTV1 Channel.
According to Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong, who is also head of the Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, many practical activities have been implemented nationwide in recent days, such as the building of 400 flood-resistant houses for poor households in central coastal areas.
Local residents living in areas with a high risk of flashfloods and landslides in mountainous regions have been evacuated, while erosion in river banks, and coastal areas in the Red River Delta region have been tackled, he noted.
Natural disaster prevention have been integrated with operations of agencies, organisations and schools, along with swimming training for children, disaster forecasting and communications in the field.
Especially, media agencies have increased communications to raise public awareness and skills of coping with natural disasters, said Cuong, adding that many enterprises, donors and international organisations have also supported needy people in natural disaster prevention and control, while localities have also applied necessary measures in the field.
Meanwhile, Youssouf Abdei Jelil, UNICEF’s Representative in Vietnam, said that it is necessary to make more efforts and give resources to enhance people’s resilience against natural disasters, especially among vulnerable groups such as women, children and the elderly.
At the same time, it is vital to help improve people’s skills in natural disaster prevention and control, while expanding the Government’s partnership with organisations and people in the field, he said.
At the event, a seminar was held for representatives of the Vietnam Disaster Management Authority, localities and enterprises. Individuals and collectives with outstanding performance in natural disaster prevention and control were also honoured at the meeting.
