The Central Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention and Control, UNICEF and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) held in Hanoi on October 12 a ceremony in response to the International Day for Disaster Reduction to review impacts of natural disasters and climate change in recent years, thus defining orientations for future coordination activities.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Hoang Hiep speaks at the event (Photo: VNA)
The Central Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention and Control, UNICEF and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) held in Hanoi on October 12 a ceremony in response to the International Day for Disaster Reduction to review impacts of natural disasters and climate change in recent years, thus defining orientations for future coordination activities.
Addressing the event, MARD Deputy Minister Nguyen Hoang Hiep said that the International Day for Disaster Reduction (October 13) aims to call for countries’ attention to fostering global culture of risk awareness and disaster reduction.
This year's theme is based on Target (d) of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030: 'Substantially reduce disaster damage to critical infrastructure and disruption services, among them health and education facilities, including through developing their resilience by 2030', with the message of “Build to Last”, which is very suitable for Vietnam in the current period, he said.
He expressed his hope that with the efforts of the Vietnamese Government and people, as well as the support of international organisations in terms of technical support solutions and disaster prevention facilities, Vietnam will increase its resilience against climate change and reduce damage caused by natural disasters.
At the event, leaders of the agriculture ministry signed memoranda of understanding on cooperation in the framework of the Partnership for Environment and Disaster Risk Reduction (PEDRR). This activity will mark an important step to lift the comprehensive and close cooperation between the Vietnamese Government and partners in preventing, fighting and reducing disaster risks and climate change impacts.
Also at the ceremony, Caitlin Wiesen, Resident Representative of the UN Development Propgramme (UNDP) in Vietnam, presented awards to winners of the “Saving the Earth” Comic Contest, themed “Children create Superhero to fight against natural disasters and climate change”.
Held for Vietnamese children aged between 10 and 15, the contest aimed to raise children’s awareness of disaster prevention and create conditions for them to promote creativity and show their thoughts and dreams of disaster prevention and climate change adaptation.
The General Department of Disaster Prevention and Control, UNICEF and the Voice of Vietnam (VOV) jointly launched a contest to find initiatives on disaster combat and climate change adaptation for coastal residents.
At the end of the ceremony, deputy head of the Central Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention and Control Tran Quang Hoai introduced three activities, including the “Be va cac vi than” (Kids and Genies) programme, a contest on disaster prevention for members of the Ho Chi Minh Vanguard Children’s Union, and a ceremony to launch the first national press award on disaster prevention and control./.