RoK helps Dak Lak develop medicinal plants for AO/dioxin treatment

Dak Lak (VNA) – The Republic of Korea will send experts to help the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak develop medicinal plants for Agent Orange (AO)/dioxin treatment, heard a seminar in Buon Ma Thuot city on November 27.

At the event, a representative from the Association of Victims of AO/dioxin of the Republic of Korea (RoK) presented a field study on harmful effects of the chemical and a programme to minimise its impacts on farming, breeding and fisheries.

The association also introduced 45 medicinal plants which can be grown in Dak Lak for treatment of AO/dioxin victims, including tuber fleeceflower, loofah, rose tree, common purslane, tainum panicultatum, and mugwort.

The province’s soil and climate are suitable for the medicinal plants, particularly in Buon Don, Ea Sup, and Man Drak districts, said participants.

However, these plants are mainly grown on a small scale, they said, proposing that local authorities should zone off areas for large-scale farming of the plants, which facilitate the medicine production for AO/dioxin victims as well as local residents.

According to the Dak Lak Association for Victims of Agent Orange/dioxin, the province is home to more than 5,300 AO/dioxin victims, including over 4,400 directly exposed to the toxic chemical.-VNA