Erosion threatens lives in the Mekong Delta

It is estimated that in Ca Mau Province alone, there are nearly 30 points where severe erosion directly affected the lives of thousands of households.

In the five days from late May to early June, erosion damaged dozens of riverside houses in Ca Mau Province. The most serious case was at Hamlet 8, Năm Căn Town, which damaged 25 adjacent houses.

At first there was a cracking sound from the roof. Then the house was dragged down completely. Since the beginning of 2017, Ca Mau Province has experienced 30 cases of river bank erosion. Surveys showed 27 other rivers and canals in the province are currently at high risk of erosion covering around 38 kilometres. Many incidents have occurred in populated areas.

However, Ca Mau Province has limited finances to relocate these households. From 2006 to 2010, Ca Mau planned 35 population clusters for more than 10,000 households in areas susceptible to natural disasters. But due to limited financial resources, so far just over 1,500 households have stable housing.

Coastal erosion is becoming increasingly bad. Local people are in need of support so that the worst effects on their lives can be mitigated.