Deputy PM asked for greater effort to fight El Nino

Ministries, sectors and localities nationwide should use communication campaigns to raise public awareness about El Nino and the importance of rationing water saving to cope with the weather pattern, said Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai. 

The Deputy PM made the suggestion at an online conference hosted by the Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control in Hanoi on October 31. Participants discussed ways to deal with drought and salt intrusion caused by El Nino. 

He asked the agricultural sector to focus on connecting water resources from hydroelectricity with irrigation works, and take effective measures to conserve water. He stressed the need to adjust the seasonal seed structure to mitigate the extreme weather phenomenon’s effects. 

Localities were required to build plans to respond to drought and saltwater encroachment.

Deputy PM Hai spoke highly of solutions used to fight drought and salt intrusion. and called for more attention to other issues, such as forest fire prevention, environmental protection and epidemiological sanitation.

According to Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Hoang Van Thang, the water shortage has seriously affected 122,000 ha of agricultural land so far this year. 

El Nino, which has affected Vietnam since late 2014, increases average temperatures and reduces rainfall. It is a leading cause of drought, water shortages and salt intrusion in the central, Central Highlands and southern regions. The phenomenon is expected to last until early 2016. 

At the conference, representatives from localities spoke about difficulties facing their farmers and daily lives that had been brought about by El Nino. They called for more support from ministries and sectors.