Vietnam will mobilize every resource to effectively manage natural disaster risks and adapt to climate change.
This is affirmed in a national strategy for prevention, control and mitigation of natural disasters through 2020, which is being drafted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
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| Extensive flooding hit Da Nang city in 2013__Photo: Internet |
The draft aims at minimizing loss of human lives and property, mitigating impacts on people’s livelihood and socio-economic activities, and limiting damage to natural resources, the environment and cultural heritage, thus contributing to ensuring sustainable development, national defense and security and step by step building a safer society against natural hazards.
To this end, Vietnam will increase its forecasting and warning capacity to the level of the most advanced regional countries for such disasters as storm, water rise due to typhoon, flood or heavy rain, inundation, flash flood, landslide, drought and saltwater intrusion.
By 2020, the forecast periods for storm, tropical low, water rise due to storm, heavy rain or flood, inundation, damaging cold, saltwater intrusion and extreme hot weather will be extended. Meanwhile, early warning will be made against flash flood, landslide, drought and tsunami.
Also by 2020, national, regional and provincial task forces will be formed all over the country in order to promptly respond to the occurrence of severe natural disasters in case natural disasters fall beyond the capacity of local forces. At least 70 percent of communes in disaster-prone areas will have communication systems ensuring the uninterrupted transmission of forecast and warning information on natural disasters; 70 percent of households will be provided with natural disaster prevention and control knowledge; and all offshore fishing vessels will join production teams so as to support one another in search and rescue activities.
The draft strategy also sets the goal of completing the arrangement of inhabitants in natural disaster-prone areas. Master plans on evacuation zones will be annually reviewed and adjusted to suit practical situation, with special attention being paid to vulnerable subjects, including women, elderly people, children and people with disabilities.-
