The Saigon Times

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc chairs the Government’s regular meeting on October 30. The relevant ministries and agencies should adopt various effective support measures to help locals hit by storms resume normal life – PHOTO: VGP

HCMC – Aside from offering financial support to the residents of some central provinces hit by storms, the relevant ministries and agencies should adopt various effective support measures to help locals resume normal life, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc told the Government’s regular meeting on the socio-economic performance today, October 30.

Chairing the meeting, Phuc told the ministries and agencies to propose aid packages from the State budget for flood and storm-hit localities.

In October, successive storms and floods continuously struck the central region of Vietnam, killing many people and damaging residents’ properties and assets, said the prime minister.

Due to these difficulties, the residents of the country have headed toward the central region and joined hands to support the affected locals, he added.

As such, the Government has a responsibility to support the affected provinces, the prime minister noted, asking competent agencies to mobilize forces to support residents by ensuring the smooth flow of traffic and safety, rebuilding houses and creating favorable conditions for students to return to school.

The prime minister ordered the National Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control to review damages and propose support policies.

“This is the most important thing,” said the prime minister, adding that it is necessary to aid residents by providing them with rice and vegetable seeds and food to ensure they do not go hungry.

Besides, competent agencies should stabilize the prices of building materials to facilitate the repair and rebuilding plans of residents’ storm-hit houses.

In addition, the prime minister told the Ministry of Finance to work with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to quickly reach a consensus on the amount of money to be distributed as relief aid for households who lost their houses or whose houses were damaged by the storms.

Apart from this, the prime minister also urged the banking sector to support localities hit by natural disasters, the local media reported.

The prime minister ordered the local police of Binh Dinh, Quang Nam and Thua Thien-Hue, soldiers and military forces to enhance their efforts to rescue and search the victims of sunken boats and landslides.