Phan
Dien, president of the Natural Disaster Relief Fund, spoke with Quan doi Nhan
dan (People’s Army) newspaper about natural disaster mitigation in the central
region.

Why was the
Natural Disaster Relief Fund established?

The fund was
established in 2007 after the country’s central provinces were hit hard by
floods and storms, which destroyed property and claimed several lives. After the
flooding, individuals, enterprises and organisations requested me to provide
more support to victims in the flood-stricken areas. We came up with an idea to
establish a fund that would support central Viet Nam, where storms and flooding
are routine.

The fund concentrates
on providing capital to projects that will develop better infrastructure, which
will help to mitigate the effects of severe flooding.

So the fund is
different from other natural disaster relief funds and charity organisations?

That’s right. The fund
has two primary goals. First, it will provide capital to build communal houses,
plant forests and hold charity programmes. The fund will also provide the
central provinces with resources, so that officials can conduct surveys and
create natural disaster mitigation projects.

Secondly, the fund
will help provide training, disseminate information and raise people’s awareness
about natural disaster prevention and protection.

How does the
fund operate?

The fund is a
non-Governmental and non-profit organisation. It became operational in April
2009 to aid the 14 central coastal provinces, which stretch from Thanh Hoa to
Binh Thuan Province.

What specific
results has the fund achieved after being operational for nearly two years?

The fund received
donations and pledges of support worth more than VND40 billion (US$2 million).
The sum of money has been spent mainly on building natural disaster projects in
the central provinces. The fund will also provide 80 per cent of the capital
necessary to complete the forestry project in Thanh Hoa Province’s Hau Loc
District. The VND20 billion ($1 million) project will plant a large forest that
will help to protect the dikes in the country’s flood-stricken areas.

Also, the fund, which
was set up by the Department for Dike Management, Flood and Storm Control under
the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, will organise training
courses and educate people about how to cope with natural disasters. The agency
also donated VND1.5 billion ($76,923), which will provide aid to nearly 5,000
households that were damaged.

Do you have any
proposal for management offices and municipal officials on how they can work to
mitigate the negative impacts caused by natural disasters?

We are currently
compiling mitigation solutions and hope to send the recommendations to
management offices and localities. Hamlets and communes will be urged to
establish natural disaster mitigation teams, provide them training and arm the
officials with the necessary equipment that they will need to provide relief to
flood victims.

We are working hard to
prevent major flooding, the destruction of property and the loss of lives which
has happened in the past. We want to help the people in the central provinces
have a better life.

VietNamNet/Viet
Nam News