A floating house helps residents to avoid flood. Photo: VNA

The UN Development Programme (UNDP) will help build an additional 1,450 flood-resistant houses for poor households in coastal provinces of Vietnam in the future, said Caitlin Wiesen, resident representative of the UNDP in Vietnam, reported VOV.

Wiesen made the statement during a workshop themed “Storm and flood resilient housing: Successful model in Vietnam and ways forward” which was held in Hanoi on May 13.

Since 2018, a total of 4,100 flood-proof houses have been built through the support of the UNDP and the Vietnamese Government, to increase the resilience of coastal communities who are vulnerable to the impact of climate change, particularly rising sea levels and flooding.

Caitlin Wiesen, resident representative of the UNDP in Vietnam. Source: UNDP Vietnam

The UNDP representative emphasised that these safe houses contribute to securing the livelihoods of residents in coastal provinces by helping them to withstand subsequent storms which have made landfall in Vietnam over recent years, as well as the dangers of severe flooding.

She went on to underscore the importance of ensuring that society’s most vulnerable people are not left behind, noting that the UNDP will continue to accompany the Government to build an additional 1,450 flood resistant houses in coastal provinces from Binh Dinh to Ca Mau in the near future.

Phan Quy Phuong, vice chairman of Thua Thien-Hue People's Committee, highlighted the efficiency of flood-resistant houses during the historic flooding in 2020. Indeed, these structures helped poor and disadvantaged households living in flood prone areas overcome challenges and quickly stabilise their lives.

At the workshop, representatives of management agencies from 28 coastal provinces, Vietnamese and international experts and scientists shared their practical experiences in building flood-resistant houses in the central coastal provinces, as well as the necessary skills which can help local people to overcome future natural disasters.

Speakears at the workshop themed “Storm and flood resilient housing: Successful model in Vietnam and ways forward". Source: UNDP Vietnam

The International Conference on Sustainable Ocean Economy and Climate Change Adaptation: Solutions for a Resilient Blue Economy took place in a hybrid format on May 12-13 in Hanoi.

The conference was opened by Le Van Thanh, deputy prime minister of Vietnam and Anniken Huitfeldt, minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway; co-chaired by Le Minh Ngan, deputy minister of Natural Resources and Environment of Vietnam and Bjørg Sandkjær, state secretary of Norway, and attended by ministers or their senior representatives from Foreign Affairs, Environment, Natural Resources, Climate Change, Ocean and Marine Resources, Agriculture and Fisheries, Sustainable Development, Planning, Tourism and related sectors.

The conference focused on five key themes: Covid-19 Blue Recovery and Building Forward Better for a Climate-Resilient and Sustainable Ocean Economy; Marine Spatial Planning and Building Climate-Resilient Coastal Cities and Infrastructure; Combating Marine Pollution and Marine Plastics: a Key Challenge of the 21st Century; Climate Security, Gender, and Resilience of Vulnerable Communities; and Finance for Climate and Oceans. A special plenary session on Climate-Related Security Risks was also organized.

Discussions and outputs from the conference are expected to serve as input to UN and other regional and international dialogues and initiatives including the 2022 UN Ocean Conference.

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