Official Telegram of the Prime Minister of Vietnam on proactive natural disaster preparedness, response, and recovery

Official Telegram of the Prime Minister of Vietnam on proactive natural disaster preparedness, response, and recovery (Image from the internet)

On August 4, 2024, the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam issued Official Telegram 75/CD-TTg on proactive natural disaster preparedness, response, and recovery in the upcoming period.

Official Telegram of the Prime Minister of Vietnam on proactive natural disaster preparedness, response, and recovery

The Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam directs as follows:

- Ministers of ministries, Heads of agencies at the ministerial level, agencies under the Government of Vietnam, Chairpersons of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally-controlled cities, based on their assigned functions and tasks, continue to proactively and closely monitor the developments of natural disasters, and actively direct and implement drastic, prompt, and effective measures to respond to and recover from natural disasters.

- Chairpersons of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally-controlled cities:

+ Be more proactive in leading, directing, and organizing the implementation of natural disaster preparedness, response, and recovery activities in their respective areas following the "four on-the-spot" principle, with a proactive, prompt, and decisive spirit to ensure the safety of lives and minimize property damage of the people and the state.

+ Urgently review and complete response plans against each type of natural disaster that may occur in the area, especially against storms, floods, landslides, and flash floods; identify key vulnerable areas to proactively build scenarios and arrange forces and means ready for response, search, and rescue in case of any situation.

+ Direct the implementation of disaster preparedness plans during the rainy and stormy season; organize supervision, inspection, and monitoring of disaster preparedness, search, and rescue efforts before the rainy season and before storms and floods occur according to regulations.

+ Organize the review and identification of dangerous areas, especially slopes prone to landslides, flash floods, and deeply submerged areas along rivers and streams, to proactively organize the evacuation of people and property from dangerous areas. For places that cannot be evacuated immediately, a proactive evacuation plan must be devised in case of natural disasters to ensure the safety of people's lives.

+ Proactively allocate local budget (including local budget reserves and other legal sources) to implement natural disaster preparedness and effective response and recovery efforts as per regulations with the absolute principle that no citizen shall lack shelter, food, or other essential items, and ensure no occurrence of epidemics or severe environmental pollution after storms, floods, and inundations, and that children's education is not significantly disrupted.

- Minister of Natural Resources and Environment:

Focus on directing meteorological and hydrological forecasting agencies to promptly evaluate and draw lessons from the recent monitoring, forecasting, and warning efforts of natural disasters, continue to focus on improving the quality of forecasting and warning of natural disasters, landslides, and subsidence, ensuring reliability; closely monitor developments, forecasts, and promptly inform relevant agencies, localities, and people about natural disasters and extreme weather phenomena to proactively issue directives and implement disaster response actions.

- Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development:

+ Organize 24/7 monitoring of the situation and developments of natural disasters, advise the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam on directives, and proactively urge related ministries and central authorities, especially local areas, promptly to implement natural disaster preparedness, response, and recovery efforts according to the authority and assigned tasks set forth in Resolution No. 102/NQ-CP dated June 29, 2024. Timely summarize the damage situation, collaborate with related ministries to report and propose to the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam for support to local areas when the response exceeds the local capacity.

+ Direct the implementation of measures to ensure the safety of dyke systems and irrigation works, especially critical dykes, damaged irrigation reservoirs, and ongoing flood dam construction; ensure the safety of fishing vessels and protect agricultural production.

+ Lead and collaborate with related agencies in directing the safe operation of irrigation and hydropower reservoirs, especially large reservoirs on the Da River hydropower cascade, ensuring absolute safety for the works, contributing to flood reduction downstream, and effectively exploiting water resources.

- Minister of Industry and Trade shall collaborate with localities to direct efforts to ensure the safety of industrial production, the power grid, and hydropower reservoirs; promptly address incidents to ensure the supply of electricity for production and daily life of the people.

- Minister of Transport shall direct relevant agencies and units to continue to collaborate with the related forces and localities to proactively implement measures ensuring traffic safety (including sea, river, road, railway, and air traffic) during natural disaster situations and assist localities in promptly addressing traffic routes that are eroded, isolated, especially on national highways and main traffic routes.

- Minister of National Defense shall proactively direct military zones and forces stationed in the area to review, build plans, and proactively mobilize forces and means to collaborate with localities and related forces in implementing disaster response efforts, search and rescue, and quickly recovering from natural disasters according to regulations.

- Minister of Public Security shall direct the local police to develop plans and proactively support localities and the people in natural disaster response, recovery efforts, and search and rescue during disaster situations.

- Vietnam Television, Voice of Vietnam, Vietnam News Agency, and central and local media outlets shall increase news coverage to enable people to get updated information on the developments and forecasts of natural disasters, the directives of relevant agencies, and guide people on response skills to minimize human and material losses caused by natural disasters.

- Assign Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang to directly command ministries, central authorities, and localities to proactively implement effective natural disaster preparedness, response, and recovery efforts.

More details can be found in Official Telegram 75/CD-TTg dated August 4, 2024.

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