Memorandum signed to boost UXO risk education in Vietnam

Hanoi (VNA) – The Vietnam National Mine Action Centre (VNMAC) and the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Vietnam on March 23 inked a memorandum of understanding on enhancing explosive ordnance risk education.

At the signing ceremony in Hanoi, Major General Tran Trung Hoa, Commander of the Engineering Arms of the Vietnam People’s Army and VNMAC General Director, said apart from unexploded ordnance (UXO) detection and clearance, communications and education are also one of the importance pillars of the UXO settlement.

These activities have received attention from the Government and involved ministries, sectors, central agencies, localities, as well as many international organisations, he noted.

Under the MoU, CRS Vietnam pledged to provide technical and financial aid for VNMAC to build a national strategy for UXO risk education and set up the national standards on the education and those on support for UXO victims.

This project, which will last through July 2024, will help improve VNMAC staff’s capacity and support related communications and education activities carried out by the centre.

CRS Vietnam will also assist VNMAC to access common information and further take part in events like workshops and training conferences of the international UXO settlement community.

According to VNMAC, there are about 800,000 tonnes of UXO left from wartime nationwide, with nearly 6.1 million ha of land contaminated or suspected to be contaminated, accounting for 18.71 percent of Vietnam’s total area.

Since 1975, UXO has killed more than 40,000 people and injured 60,000 others, most of whom are breadwinners of their families, ethnic minority people, and children./.