Red Cross provides more aid to flood victims; Italian Red Cross to assist Vietnamese mothers and children; Vietnam honours ILO officials; Disadvantaged students in Quang Ngai receives RoK’s scholarships
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The Vietnamese Red Cross Society (VRC) has announced the purchase of 2,100 tonnes of rice to support the victims of last year’s floods. |
This announcement was made at a conference of the VRC Central Committee in Hanoi on Feb. 11.
The rice will be delivered to around 70,000 residents in the nine localities that were hardest-hit by the floods, namely Hanoi, Ha Nam, Vinh Phuc, Hoa Binh and Ninh Binh in the north of the country, and Nghe An, Ha Tinh and Quang Binh in the central region.
According to the General Statistics Office, last year, natural disasters left 550 dead or missing and 440 others injured across Vietnam.
Close to 350,000 hectares of rice fields and crops were destroyed and some 5,000 houses were demolished or swept away. Total losses were estimated at 12 trillion VND (685.7 million USD).
Italian Red Cross to assist Vietnamese mothers and children
The Italian Red Cross Society is committed to providing Vietnam with aid totaling 50,000 EUR in 2009 to fund a healthcare project for mothers and children in the southern provinces of Tien Giang and Binh Phuoc.
An agreement to this effect was signed by representatives of the Italian society and its Vietnamese counterpart on February 11.
This is the first cooperation project involving the Vietnamese and Italian Red Cross societies to highlight the roles of women and improve their living standards through raising their awareness of hygiene and health issues.
The project includes programmes to train Red Cross volunteers, improving the capacity of the society’s cells.
The Italian Red Cross Society is expected to provide the project with an additional 50,000 EUR in 2010.
The Italian representative announced that his association also plans to carry out further humanitarian projects in Vietnam to help provide potable water and to assist women who live with HIV.
Vietnam honours ILO officials
Vietnam General Labour Confederation (VGLC) Vice Chairman Hoang Ngoc Thanh on February 11 presented the “Trade Union Cause” medal to two senior officials of the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
The decoration not only aims to honour the two officials’ contributions but also shows Vietnam’s appreciation of the ILO supports for the construction and development of the VGCL, Thanh said after pinning the medal on Raghwan and Elsa Ramos, who are working for the ILO offices in Geneva and Bangkok.
He also urged ILO to help VTU in personnel training of and completing its future tasks.
Disadvantaged students in Quang Ngai receives RoK’s scholarships
Gallery Ewha of Ewha University, the Republic of Korea (RoK), will grant 50 scholarships worth a total 5 million won to disadvantaged students in central Quang Ngai Province.
According to the provincial Education and Training Department, 50 students from very poor families in Binh Hoa Commune, Binh Son District have been selected to receive the scholarships.
The money is donated by Ewha Gallery’s artists who recently held an exhibition to support Vietnamese disadvantaged children in war-torn areas.
VietNamNet/VNA