Vietnam HCM City to Add $13.75M to Anti-flood Projects in 2010

Authorities of Ho Chi Minh City have approved adding VND262.1 billion ($13.75 million) to its anti-flood and rural traffic projects this year, the Tien Phong newspaper reported. The local authorities plan to check 142 out of 144 dyke works and 69 sections of important embankment as part of efforts to cope with the floods in 2010. The city is estimated to lose VND6.2 trillion due to floods a year, a research group of the city’s Institute of Irrigation and Environment said. In 2009, the city spent VND340 billion ($17.8 million) for 37 anti-flood projects, Do Tan Long, head of the municipal Center for Flood Control’s Drainage System Management Division. The city, which is listed among the 10 cities that are the most vulnerable to climate change, plans to spend VND10 trillion for anti-flood projects by 2012.