Vietnam supports and accompanies ASEAN to promote cooperation mechanisms in responding to natural disasters.

On August 15, in Hanoi, the Department of Dyke Management and Disaster Prevention and Control (Ministry of Agriculture and Environment) in collaboration with the ASEAN Coordinating Center for Humanitarian Assistance on Disasters (AHA Center), the EU-SAHA Project - European Union organized the program "One ASEAN One Response Roadshow".

Attending the program were EU Ambassador to Vietnam Julien Guerrier; Operations Director of the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disasters (AHA Centre) Sithu Pe Thein; Director of the Department of Sustainable Development, Socio-Cultural Pillar, ASEAN Secretariat Nguyen Ky Anh.

Director of the Department of Dyke Management and Natural Disaster Prevention and Control Pham Duc Luan said: Vietnam is one of the countries most severely affected by natural disasters, with the frequency and extent of damage increasing due to the impact of climate change. Every year, natural disasters such as storms, floods, droughts, landslides, saltwater intrusion, etc. have caused great losses in human life and property, disrupted socio-economic activities and directly affected the livelihoods of millions of people.

Director of the Department of Dyke Management and Natural Disaster Prevention and Control Pham Duc Luan spoke at the program.

In recent years, Vietnam's natural disaster prevention and control work has achieved many important steps forward, from perfecting the legal framework, improving forecasting and early warning capacity, enhancing the application of science and technology, to promoting international cooperation and mobilizing community participation, contributing to minimizing damage and improving community resilience to natural disasters.

"The Department of Dyke Management and Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, as the focal point for participating in regional cooperation mechanisms on disaster risk management, strongly supports the initiatives of ASEAN and the AHA Center, including the vision of "One ASEAN, One Response". The event is an opportunity for us to strengthen the vision together, while creating a forum for exchanging knowledge and experience related to national, regional and international disaster prevention and control mechanisms", Director Pham Duc Luan expressed.

Speaking at the event, EU Ambassador to Vietnam Julien Guerrier affirmed his support for ASEAN regional cooperation mechanisms on disaster management that Vietnam participates in; and emphasized that since 2020, the EU has always been ready to support regional initiatives on disaster management, typically: ASEAN Emergency Disaster Response Exercise (ARDEX); developing the ASEAN Joint Disaster Response Plan (AJDRP); operating the Disaster Information Management Network (AIM-Net) and the "One ASEAN One Response Roadshow" program today...

European Union Ambassador to Vietnam Julien Guerrier affirmed his support for ASEAN regional cooperation mechanisms on disaster management in which Vietnam participates.

The support activities demonstrate the European Union’s strong commitment to disaster risk management and capacity building in the region and globally. According to Sithu Pe Thein, AHA Centre Operations Director: ASEAN is one of the most disaster-prone regions in the world , with challenges to the response capacity of member states, as well as to the spirit of coordination and mutual support.

The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami was a milestone, spurring the formation of regional disaster management and emergency response mechanisms. Events such as Cyclone Nargis in 2008 and Typhoon Haiyan in 2013 further tested these mechanisms, while reaffirming the ASEAN Leaders’ commitment through the “One ASEAN, One Response” Declaration in 2016, emphasizing ASEAN’s response to disasters as a unified bloc, both within and outside the region.

It is essential that stakeholders in each ASEAN member state understand the regional mechanism and their respective roles; at the same time, it is necessary to clarify how domestic actors participate in and support the regional response. This is the objective of today's “One ASEAN – One Response” Roadshow in Vietnam...

Source: https://cand.com.vn/Xa-hoi/viet-nam-ung-ho-dong-hanh-cung-asean-thuc-day-co-che-hop-tac-ung-pho-thien-tai--i778154/