Foreign NGOs, Firms Pledge $1.1M for Vietnam Drought-affected Localities

Foreign non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and enterprises have committed to provide $1.1 million to assist Vietnamese communities that were hit the hardest by drought and saline intrusion, state media has reported. The money will be used for clean water, food and nutrition supply programs. As many as 22 foreign NGOs, through a framework agreement signed with the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organizations (VUFO), pledged to implement 30 programs and projects in the 2016-2019 period in 13 affected localities in the central region, the Central Highlands and the Mekong Delta, with a total budget of $12.3 million. At the conference held by the VUFO in Hanoi on April 4, experts and representatives from foreign NGOs, international diplomatic and development cooperation agencies, and international organizations and enterprises discussed building a strategy to deal with the ongoing drought and saltwater encroachment in Vietnamese localities. In an effort to respond to drought and saltwater, the VUFO’s People’s Aid Coordinating Committee (PACCOM) coordinated with the Disaster Management Working Group (DMWG) and international organizations to evaluate the support needed in six of the affected localities. Participants reported on the results of their findings on damage and demand, and measures of local governments to cope with the situation. Then, they gave recommendations to call for assistances from international organizations for the localities. They also shared ways to effectively use aid. Drought and saline intrusion in Vietnam are threatening the livelihoods, food security and water resources of nearly 1.8 million people, including 455,000 children. Thousands of hectares of cultivation land have been damaged, and many households are facing water shortages for daily use, along with other risks related to health, nutrition and hygiene conditions. (Vietnam News Agency Apr 4)