Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh speaks at a meeting with leaders of Mekong Delta provinces

He then had a working session in Can Tho city with leaders of several ministries, sectors and localities on the erosion of river banks and coastlines as well as efforts to overcome the erosion and flooding in the Delta region.

Since the beginning of this year, climate change and natural disasters have become complicated in the world and in Vietnam, causing human and property losses, the PM said, adding that in recent days, landslides, flash floods, erosion of river banks and coastlines continued causing serious damage, particularly in some provinces in the Central Highlands, northern mountainous and Mekong Delta regions.

For the Mekong Delta, PM Chinh stressed the region needs to prevent erosion, landslides and flooding, while protecting, developing and sustainably using land, forests and natural resources, as well as promoting sustainable development.

Therefore, he said, it should raise awareness of the dangers and consequences of erosion, landslides and floods in the Mekong Delta, strengthen the leadership of local authorities and mobilize resources from people in the prevention of and fight against these phenomena.

He asked localities to help residents in disaster-hit areas to stabilise their normal life, quickly evacuate households from risk areas, and take various measures to ensure the safety of people and essential infrastructure.

In the long term, the Prime Minister asked for making the planning well, clearly identifying the causes leading to the current erosion of riverbanks, coastlines and serious degradation of mangroves to have appropriate, effective and sustainable solutions.

He also asked for continuing to mobilize State resources while adopting appropriate mechanisms and policies to encourage the involvement of society and mobilize the private sector’s resources for works to prevent and combat erosion.