Hanoi (VNA) – In the days leading up to the Lunar New Year (Tet) 2026, the central provinces of Vietnam, still affected by the aftermath of record-breaking natural disasters, have accomplished something truly remarkable. Tens of thousands of homes, either rebuilt from the ground up or carefully repaired, stand ready to shelter families who, only months earlier, had watched floodwaters carry away their roofs, walls, and any semblance of permanence.
The effort, known as the Quang Trung Campaign, has accelerated at an extraordinary pace to fix and rebuild flooded houses, showing clear proof of the Party and State's priority to getting lives back on track in the hardest-hit areas.
The campaign, named in quiet homage to an eighteenth-century emperor known for decisive action, was launched in early December 2025, barely weeks after the last flood season receded.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, overseeing much of the coordination, is putting the finishing touches on a progress report for an imminent review conference.
Ahead of schedule by 15 days
Nguyen Van Tien, Deputy Director of the MAE’s Vietnam Disaster and Dyke Management Authority, described 2025 as a historic low point in Vietnam's disaster timeline, marked by extraordinary damage. In the first 11 months, the peak storm and flood season, natural calamities leveled 4,193 homes entirely and damaged or blew off roofs from 347,883 other houses.
The late-November floods proved especially merciless in the central and the Central Highlands regions. They destroyed 936 dwellings, damaged 3,390 houses, and submerged over 280,000 others, pushing thousands of families to the edge of homelessness.
Launched with a target completion date of January 15, 2026, 15 days ahead of the initial plan, the campaign sought to ensure residents could resettle and celebrate Tet in safe, restored or newly built homes.
Over 40 days since its launch, municipal and provincial authorities nationwide threw everything they had into it, running an intensive "three shifts, four crews" model around the clock, including weekends and holidays, to hit the deadline.
The MAE deployed nearly 250,000 personnel and militia, equipped with almost 9,000 vehicles, for 619 new homes and the refurbishment of 363 others, while also distributing cash and essential household items.
The Ministry of Public Security rounded up more than 11,000 officers, delivering aid worth over 120 billion VND (4.6 million USD) and spearheading the construction of 420 residences.
The Ministry of Finance pushed for 328 billion VND in State aid, while the Ministry of Construction issued 360 model house designs and locked down supplies.
The Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union pledged to erect 60 homes and repair 82 others, backed by 2.7 billion VND. Several embassies and international organisations pledged nearly 11.5 million USD in aid, from cash handouts to housing support.
Many localities finish early
According to the MAE’s latest update, the campaign has posted strong gains in just over a month. As of January 7, repairs to all 34,759 damaged homes across eight cities and provinces were completed. Meanwhile, 1,046 replacement homes, or 65.5% of the total, were finished, with another 551 in various stages of construction.
The Prime Minister has called on authorities, organisations and businesses to meet the January 15 deadline. Proposed additional assistance includes 5 million VND per household for the 34,759 repair cases and 10 million VND each for nearly 5,000 households nationwide that lost homes entirely in 2025, all channeled through the Vietnam Fatherland Front.
The Quang Trung Campaign is now largely completed, with several localities, including Hue city, and Lam Dong and Gia Lai provinces, crossing the threshold well ahead of schedule./.
