Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on Oct. 12 visited Mekong Delta provinces where floods have killed at least 34 people and submerged 60,000 homes.

The PM also travelled with representative of Government agencies to inspect the effects of the water on flood-proof residential clusters and heavily-hit villages (Chau Doc, Tan Chau) in An Giang province.

The PM called for more efforts in creating sustainable living styles that can handle floods and adverse weather.

At a meeting in Dong Thap province, Dung applauded efforts to lower the number of casualties and the amount of rice paddies lost.

He asked authorities from Long An, Dong Thap and An Giang provinces to try and minimise the effects of the floods on people. This also meant taking advantage of the region's strength in rice production and aquaculture.

The authorities in turn asked the Government to provide additional budget money for the provinces to help with recovery.

Dung said long-term efforts to cope with floods will help minimise human losses and other damage to important infrastructure.

He suggested provinces improve the dyke system to protect rice fields and prepare seedlings for resuming production.

According to the National Steering Committee for Flood and Storm Prevention an d Control, another storm, Banyan, is heading closer to the East Sea./.