Theo tin UN Children’s Fund

520,000 # of children affected out of 2,000,000 # of people affected 600,000 # hectares of damaged crops 1,750,000 # people with lost incomes 52 (18 most affected) # provinces affected out of 64 Government-One UN Joint Emergency Response Plan 2016 US$48.5 million UNICEF funds received: US$4 million

Highlights A high-level mid-point review and National Conference on Child-Centred Disaster Risk Reduction was held in Ninh Thuan province on 15 December, 15, co-chaired by the Vice Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Minister of Embassy of Japan in Viet Nam, Vice Chair of Ninh Thuan People’s Committee and the UNICEF Representative in Viet Nam. A video statement from the Deputy Executive Director, UNICEF East Asia and Pacific Regional Office introduced the global and regional perspectives and orientation on child-centred disaster risk reduction within the context of the Sustainable Development Goals and Sendai Framework. The conference reviewed lessons learnt from the on-going emergency response and set out a strategic direction for child-centred disaster risk reduction in Viet Nam linked to the Government’s SEDP plans at national and sub-national levels.  Heavy rainfall has resulted in severe flooding in Binh Dinh, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai and Thua Thien-Hue provinces. According to the summary situation update prepared by the UN Disaster Risk Management Team of which UNICEF is a member, 111,851 houses have been flooded and approximately 450,000 people affected. Government search-and-rescue and relief operations are ongoing and accelerating. Immediate needs identified include food, water, WASH, livelihood recovery, cash for debris clearance and repair of road and irrigation infrastructure. The UN Disaster Management Working Group (represented by civil society organizations) will hold a meeting on 19 December, involving Government officials.

Estimated coverage (UNICEF & operational partners) Planned Target Cumulative Results % of Target Achieved Number of targeted children aged 6-59 months assessed/treated with SAM 7,480 6,588 88% Number of lactating/pregnant women receiving micronutrient supplementation 123,200 66,895 54% Number of children aged 6-23 months receiving micronutrient supplementation 83,335 57,697 69% Number of emergency-affected households reached with access to safe water 78,000 56,156 72% Source: Data from the Humanitarian Performance Monitoring database, based on data from monthly monitoring report from the National Institute of Nutrition and provincial distribution report from NCERWASS. UNICEF’s Response with Partners Situation overview and humanitarian needs The El Niño-induced drought and saline intrusion emergency has adversely impacted on the lives of people in 52 out of 64 provinces in Viet Nam. In the 18 most affected provinces two million people, including 520,000 children and one million women, are in need of humanitarian assistance. Of the two million people affected, some 500,000 live in the drought-affected South Central and Central Highlands regions and 1.5 million in the Mekong Delta, where water shortages have been exacerbated by saltwater intrusion. Reduced water use for washing, ablutions and handwashing have already resulted in increased incidences of diarrhea, dysentery, hand, foot and mouth disease and skin diseases. Limited access to water has also had an impact on children’s health, exacerbating the prevalence of malnutrition. The forecasted occurrence of La Niña in 2016 is now 50-60 per cent compared to the previous 75 per cent. La Niña, which is characterized by cooler than normal water temperatures in the Pacific Ocean, usually results in greater than average rainfall, increasing the risk of large-scale flooding in Mekong Delta provinces, particularly in current drought-affected areas. Humanitarian leadership and coordination On 15 March 2016, the Government of Viet Nam requested assistance from international partners for its relief efforts, prioritizing support to ensure safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene practices and nutritional support in droughtaffected areas and enhanced monitoring of potential disease outbreaks. Subsequently on 26 April 2016 the Government of Viet Nam, United Nations and partners appealed to the international community to support a US$48.5 million joint Government-United Nations emergency response plan to address the El Niño drought, affecting as many as two million people in central and southern regions. Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development in provinces, under Provincial People’s Committee leadership, are coordinating provincial-level responses. In severely affected provinces, the Viet Nam Red Cross, Care International, Oxfam, Save the Children and World Vision are responding and reaching out to the most vulnerable populations, though on a limited scale. Severe flooding in central coastal provinces such as Quang Nam, Quang Ngai and Thua Thien-Hue has resulted in 15 deaths and 111,851 flooded houses. Government search-and-rescue and relief operations are on-going and accelerating. Immediate needs identified include food, water, WASH, livelihood recovery, cash for debris clearance and repair of road and irrigation infrastructure. Disaster Management Working Group and UN Disaster Risk Management Taskforce are coordinating closely with the Central Committee on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control to deliver a joint technical assessment mission to the most affected provinces between 21 and 23 December 2016. An ‘After Action Review’ will take place on 10 January 2017 at the Green One UN House in Ha Noi to provide opportunities to collectively analyse all results achieved against the goals and needs as set in the Government of Viet Nam-UN ERP and CERF grant proposals and facilitate joint learning to benefit future humanitarian response operations and UN preparedness. Humanitarian Strategy – Humanitarian-development nexus The UNICEF response strategy involves life-saving support to approximately 337,000 vulnerable people in 10 provinces with household water treatment and safe storage as well as hygiene promotion to prevent communicable diseases. Health centres serve as entry points for hygiene, sanitation and emergency nutrition interventions. School-based interventions also seek to sustain hygiene practices and establish a mechanism for disaster preparedness. These response activities seek to strengthen awareness and coping mechanisms among affected communities to address the current emergency and future ones. In the lower middle-income country context of Viet Nam, the humanitarian-development continuum is critically important as natural hazards have super-imposing impacts on chronic and persistent vulnerabilities such as poverty, nutrition, water and sanitation. As a first step to understanding the superimposing impact of natural hazards on the coping capacities of families and children, UNICEF has conducted a nationwide child vulnerability mapping exercise with data from a range of official sources. The mapping exercise analyzes the coping capacities of children, households and communities and overlays the multi-hazard map that reflects the likelihood and intensity of natural hazards in Viet Nam. The mapping exercise and analysis contributes to the risk-informed Government of Viet Nam-UNICEF Country Programme Document 2017-2021. Meanwhile, critical lessons learnt from the initial implementation phase of the emergency response programme since early 2016 are now being compiled to form the basis, along with the vulnerability mapping, to strengthen planning, preparedness and response mechanisms activated in the event of future disasters, given that Viet Nam is the sixth most vulnerable country globally to climate change-related natural disasters. UNICEF has also engaged the Government of Viet Nam through the One UN mechanism for a common understanding on the need for disaster risk reduction and risk-informed programming that promotes links between development programming and emergency response. Summary Analysis of Programme Response Water, Sanitation and Hygiene  Distribution of packages containing PUR, Aquatabs, filtering cloths, buckets and soap has been completed in the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai and initiated in Kon Tum. By 15 November, 15, packages of WASH supplies and communication materials had reached 56,156 households (248,116 beneficiaries, including 101,773 women and 74,938 children) in Binh Thuan, Dak Lak, Gia Lai, Kon Tum, Ninh Thuan and Tra Vinh and distribution was on-going in Ben Tre, Ca Mau, Hau Giang and Soc Trang. By the end of December 2016, distribution of WASH supplies is scheduled to reach 78,000 households with 337,937 beneficiaries, including 135,889 women and 100,282 children in all 10 targeted provinces.  Safe water storage, handwashing facilities have been installed in 60 schools located in Ninh Thuan province (30 schools), Gia Lai (15 schools) and Kon Tum (15 schools). Water filtration systems have been installed in 66 schools in six targeted provinces of Ben Tre, Binh Thuan, Gia Lai, Kon Tum, Ninh Thuan and Soc Trang.  Subsequent to the signing of the Programme Cooperation Agreement between Viet Nam Red Cross and UNICEF Viet Nam on 8 November, school-based emergency response and disaster risk preparedness interventions to install water filtration systems and promote a safe environment for children were implemented in 24 schools in six provinces (Ben Tre, Binh Thuan, Dak Lak, Gia Lai, Ninh Thuan and Soc Trang). Disaster risk management teams were established in these 24 schools to conduct risk assessments, action planning, implement child-sensitive risk reduction measures and promote hygiene practices among teachers and students.  Roll out of 12 provincial level WASH workshops to 800 health, Women’s Union and administration officials as well as teachers and commune-level communication officers in the five provinces of Binh Thuan, Dak Lak, Gia Lai, Kon Tum and Ninh Thuan was accomplished.  Some 56 community mobilization sessions were implemented in the five provinces on water treatment methods, with hygiene behaviours such as handwashing with soap promoted. Broadcasting of campaign messages on personal hygiene promotion complemented the community mobilization activities. Nutrition  Emergency nutrition supplies including Ready to Used Therapeutic Food (RUTF), multi-micronutrient tablets for pregnant and lactating women and micronutrient powder sachets for children aged 6-23 months are being distributed to beneficiaries in Gia Lai, Kon Tum and Ninh Thuan provinces and will be completed by the end of December 2016. In Ca Mau, Hau Giang and Tra Vinh provinces distribution will be completed by March 2017.  Household visits by commune health workers and village health collaborators are underway, largely focused on children as well as pregnant and lactating women. Communication and awareness raising activities by means of delivering messages through provincial, district and commune radio are also being implemented to sustain the use of supplies and caring practices.  Routine monitoring of the emergency programme is being jointly undertaken by UNICEF and the National Institute of Nutrition, with a particular focus on communication for behavior change activities.  Training and re-training of commune health staff and village health workers on emergency nutrition interventions will take place in January. Communication for Development (C4D) With a view to creating space for children to learn in a participatory environment, production of educational board game for students (6-11 years old) in schools with WASH activities in six provinces (Ben Tre, Binh Thuan, Dak Lak, Gia Lai, Ninh Thuan and Soc Trang) on climate change and hygiene promotion will commence on the week of 19 December. In addition to educational purposes, the board game aims to equip children with knowledge of appropriate behaviors to cope with climate change-related disasters. By the end of February 2017, the board game will be used in 120 primary schools in six provinces where water supply systems will be installed. The scope of technical assistance required for developing a roadmap for a national C4D strategy on disaster risk reduction has been developed. The roadmap seeks to support the development of central and sub-national plans to strengthen the knowledge of communities, service-providers (health and social workers, teachers), parents and children on prevention, management and mitigation of natural disaster impacts. Strategic communication support for the National Conference on Child-Centred Disaster Risk Reduction culminated in visibility of development partner contributions. Coverage included three human interest stories highlighting the value of support to beneficiary children and women in Ben Tre, Kon Tum and Ninh Thuan provinces, a photo exhibition covering the emergency programme’s implementation and video clips on the field visit and overall emergency support were shown during the conference and aired on television, including VTV 4 and VTC. Mid-point review and National Conference on Child-Centred Disaster Risk Reduction A high-level National Conference on Child-Centred Disaster Risk Reduction was held in Ninh Thuan province on 15 December 2016, co-chaired by the Vice Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Minister of Embassy of Japan in Viet Nam, Vice Chair of Ninh Thuan People’s Committee and the UNICEF Representative in Viet Nam. A video statement from Deputy Executive Director, UNICEF East Asia and Pacific Regional Office introduced the global and regional perspectives and orientation on child-centred disaster risk reduction within the context of the Sustainable Development Goals and Sendai Framework. The conference reviewed lessons learnt from the on-going emergency response and set out a strategic direction for child-centred disaster risk reduction in Viet Nam linked to the Government’s SEDP plans at national and sub-national levels. A joint field visit to Bac Ai district, Ninh Thuan province was conducted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Embassy of Japan, Ninh Thuan People’s Committee and UNICEF on 14 December 2016 to inform discussions. The delegation observed WASH and disaster risk preparedness initiatives in schools, emergency nutrition interventions and undertook household visits to observe the use of emergency nutrition and WASH supplies. UNICEF Representative and Minister, Embassy of Japan visited family of 2-years-old Chamale Phat in Ma Ti village. Phat is suffering from malnutrition due to the drought and he is undergoing a treatment as part of UNICEF’s emergency response supported by the Government of Japan. Vice Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, delivered his opening remarks on the National Conference on Childcentered Disaster Risk Reduction in Ninh Thuan province on 15 December 2016 All presentations delivered at the conference were evidence-based, thorough and relevant with a core batch delivered by national partners and key valuable contributions from development partners, including UNICEF. The vision and positioning paper on child-centred disaster risk reduction in Viet Nam, jointly prepared by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and UNICEF, was largely validated as an apt framework for Viet Nam. A follow-up conference in early-mid 2017 will be held with a substantial presence from national partners and the Government of Japan. The Vice Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (a conference co-chair with the UNICEF Representative in Viet Nam) requested UNICEF and Japan to lead the APEC meetings segment on Child-Centred DRR in November 2017 when Viet Nam hosts this important gathering. The event spotlighted UNICEF’s ability to pro-actively be a leader, convener, substantive operational partner and an advocate for tackling ‘timely’ (e.g.: climate change adaptation) and ‘timeless’ issues (poverty, inequity and vulnerabilities) that disproportionately affect children in Viet Nam. The conference also underlined the potential of preserving this momentum and modus operandi coherently integrated within UNICEF’s programme of cooperation with the Government of Viet Nam. Funding So far, UNICEF has received US$2.5 million from the Government of Japan and US$1.5 million from CERF for the humanitarian response. Next SitRep: 15 January 2017 Who to contact for further information: Jesper Moller Deputy Representative UNICEF Viet Nam Tel. +84 (0) 438500202 Mobile: +84 (0) 988737500 E-mail: jmoller@unicef.org Nguyen Dinh Quang Nutrition Officer UNICEF Viet Nam Tel: +84 (0)4 3850-0244 Mobile: +84 (0) 0915025686 Email: ndquang@unicef.org Nguyen Thi Thanh Huong Communication Specialist UNICEF Viet Nam Tel: +84 (0) 438500225 Mobilie: +84 904154678 Email: ntthuong@unicef.org

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