The New Zealand Embassy in Vietnam has announced a humanitarian aid package worth over $65,000 ($US50,000) to areas most affected by drought and saltwater intrusion in the Mekong Delta province of Ben Tre.

The assistance will be provided through an ongoing $52 million New Zealand government-funded project “Building resilience to disaster and climate risks for men and women in Ben Tre province”, implemented by Oxfam in Vietnam.

The emergency relief is a response to the urgent needs of children, women, and men in the 15 most affected communes in the districts of Binh Dai, Ba Tri, and Thanh Phu in Ben Tre Province, which were hit by devastating drought and salinization in February.

As many as 6,000 cattle farmers in these three localities will receive cash to buy food and water for their animals.

“We recognize the serious impact that the drought and saltwater intrusion is having on communities in southern and central provinces of Vietnam,” New Zealand Ambassador to Vietnam Haike Manning said in a statement.

“This assistance is a modest, but practical contribution to the communities we are already working with through our existing project, and is an example of New Zealand’s ongoing commitment to supporting vulnerable communities across Vietnam,” Manning said.

Oxfam is working in collaboration with the local government in Ben Tre to provide safe drinking water to more than 6,000 people.

– with other agencies