Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam at the event (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) - The 17th annual Southeast Asia Red Cross and Red Crescent Leadership Meeting kicked offin Hanoi on October 14 via video conference.
The meeting was chaired by the Vietnam Red Cross Society (VRCS) in its role asthe Chair of the mechanism of leaders of the Southeast Asia Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
Addressing the opening ceremony, Deputy Prime MinisterVu Duc Dam said the event holds great significance at a time when the world and SoutheastAsia are facing non-traditional security threats, in particular the COVID-19 pandemic.
World governments, including Vietnam’s, are fighting thepandemic and also providing relief to victims, and humanitarian activitiesare increasingly urgent, he said.
The official expressed his hope that via the meeting, the VRCS and its counterparts would offer various initiatives toimprove the efficiency of humanitarian activities.
Dam thanked the International Red Cross and Red CrescentMovement and its Southeast Asian members for their help to Vietnam’s development ingeneral and in the activities of the VRCS in particular.
The Vietnamese Government has vowed to partner with the VRCSand the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement to build a region andworld of peace, cooperation, and prosperity.
VRCS Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Xuan Thu affirmed the society’srole, position, and responsibility in the International Red Cross and Red CrescentMovement in Southeast Asia and the world that contribute to the common success ofVietnam’s ASEAN Chairmanship Year 2020.
She called upon partners in the International Red Crossand Red Crescent Movement in Southeast Asia, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, and theInternational Committee of the Red Cross to support residents in localities hitby flooding in early October and any future disasters in Vietnam.
Over the course of two days, participantswill review the outcomes of the delivery of commitments reached at the 16th meeting, including the implementation of the Manila Call for Action.
They are expected to reach consensus onmeasures to realise resolutions adopted in December 2019 in Geneva, discuss contents related to a cooperation agreement with the ASEAN Secretariat,look into the fight against COVID-19 at the national and regional levels, and updateseveral effective cooperation mechanisms and models to mitigate disaster risks.
They are also scheduled to approve a conclusionof the meeting and transfer the chairmanship of the mechanism of leaders of the Southeast AsiaRed Cross and Red Crescent Societies to the Thai Red Cross Society./.
