ActionAid and Microsoft launch support disaster response project in Mekong Delta

A joint project by ActionAid and Microsoft was officially launched in Soc Trang province on November 12, aiming to use mobile technology to better prepare local communities and governments in the Mekong Delta for disaster response.

Erosion caused by climate change in Go Cong coastal area, Go Cong Dong district, Tien Giang province. (Photo: Huu Chi)

The US$100,000 project is also expected to encourage local communities to proactively co-operate with the government to prepare for and respond to disasters, saving lives and reducing damage to property.

Using Microsoft Data Gathering (MDG) software and Lumia mobile devices, communities are being trained by ActionAid to collect, track, and analyse weather and climate related risks and vulnerabilities and feed the information into local and national level disaster preparedness planning and response plans.

The project is being piloted in 16 villages in three communes ─ Tan Hung, Tan Hanh, and Chau Khanh in Soc Trang’s Long Phu district ─ with approximately 28,000 people benefiting directly and 113,000 benefiting indirectly from the project.

A computer-based Disaster Risk Reduction Information Hub with MDG integration will be established in Long Phu district to support local governments improve disaster preparedness and response. In addition, an Early Warning System will be piloted in the communities.

It is expected that the project, being replicated on a larger scale in the Mekong Delta in the future, will help Vietnam save billions of VND each year by identifying and implementing disaster response plans, thanks to the proactive participation of the communities before, during and after the disaster, using updated and real time data.

(Source: nhandan.org.vn)