The U.N. Children’s Fund (UNICEF) will help the central province of Ninh Thuan fight and adapt to natural disasters with a focus on children amid climate change.

A local law enforcement officer saves a child in a flood. (Source: VNA)

The project, jointly launched by the UNICEF and the General Department of Natural Disaster Prevention and Control under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development at a ceremony in Phan Rang – Thap Chap city on February 1^st, is being carried out from 2017 – 2021.

In order to help the locality implement successfully its plan on coping with natural disasters and adapting to climate change, thus contributing to mitigate vulnerability and disaster risks among children equally, UNICEF, the Ministry, the Embassy of Japan in Vietnam, and Ninh Thuan have worked together to define contents in the cooperation programme between the locality and UNICEF.

The province has established a project management board and approved a plan for implementing the project during 2017-2018.

The project, once completed in 2021, is expected to help enhance the capacity of the locality, its community, including children, to adapt to natural disasters and climate change, and ensure effective disaster risks-integrated planning.

Le Van Binh, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, who is also head of the project management board, stressed the need for comprehensive collaboration among sectors, agencies, organisations and People’s Committees at different levels in implementing the project, while integrating it with other local projects and programmes.

He also called on the General Department of Natural Disaster Prevention and Control to help the locality with community-based disaster management and the inclusion of climate change adaptation in the local socio-economic development plans.

Ninh Thuan is among the localities to benefit from the programme on mitigating disaster risks and enhancing resilience with a focus on children from 2017 – 2021, which has a total budget of nearly USD 1.5 million, including USD 1.14 million of ODA sourced by UNICEF.

Ninh Thuan has been one of localities hardest hit by climate change in the form of prolonged drought and saline intrusion.

The drought from 2015 to the end of 2016 in the province put about 54,000 locals in a shortage of food and water.

A total of 1,050 children suffered from severe acute malnutrition, while 11,000 others aged between 6 to 23 months old were deficient in micronutrients.

UNICEF has deployed many activities to help the locality deal with the situation, including providing clean water and multi-micronutrient products and treating severe acute malnutrition for women and children who are the most vulnerable to climate change./.

VNF/VNA