Ha Noi – The Government of Vietnam, the United Nations and non-governmental organisations have called on the international community to help support a $63 million emergency response plan which aims to address the worsening El Niño drought in the country.

A recent joint rapid assessment undertaken last month found the drought has severely hit 18 provinces in the Southern Central, Central Highlands and Mekong Delta region. Another eight provinces are at risk of becoming severely affected in the coming weeks.

The report also found the drought has created water shortages for an estimated two million people and has left 1.1 million people in need of food aid.

More than 60,000 women and children are already malnourished and about 1.75 million people have lost their livelihoods as the drought worsens.

The joint rapid assessment reported water shortage and use of unsafe water poses risk factors for outbreaks of water-related disease.

This, coupled with heightened food insecurity due to drought-induced crop loss, is a likely factor in the rising rate of severe acute malnutrition.

The Government of Vietnam, with support from the UN, is working closely with all partners to mobilise the necessary support to fully implement the emergency response plan launched in Vietnam today.

The plan responds to some of the most immediate needs of the crisis. They include humanitarian needs for water, sanitation and hygiene, food security, nutrition, health and early recovery.

Some funding has already been secured enabling the government to mount an immediate response.

The current El Niño event is one of the strongest on record affecting an estimated 60 million people across Africa, Asia, Central and South America and the Pacific.

Globally, the impact of El Niño is not expected to improve in 2016, and with the possibility of a severe La Niña event to follow this may worsen the lives and livelihoods of millions of people worldwide at least till the end of the year.

– TiVi Tuan-san