Workshop discusses assistance for UXO victims

Strengthening assistance for victims of unexploded ordnance (UXO) was the focus of discussions at a seminar held by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) on January 13th in Hanoi.

Phan Duc Tuan from the Vietnam Bombs and Mines Action Support Association (VBMASA) highlighted the need for developing a database of UXO-related people with disabilities, and strengthening the management and populisation of the database.

An UXO victim in a free check-up in Ha Giang province. Photo: vnexpress.net

He also suggested the Ministry mobilize different resources for providing support for the targeted groups and localities.

According to To Duc, Deputy Director of the Ministry’s Department of Social Protection, from 2016 to 2020, the Ministry aims to develop a national master plan on helping UXO victims integrate into the community.

The plan focuses on providing effective treatment and post-treatment for UXO victims, enhancing capacity for staff involved a job placement service, vocational training and financial assistance for the targeted group.

The Ministry is working on the proposal on developing a social welfare database, which consists of the development of the database on people with disabilities, including UXO victims.

The database system is expected to facilitate the cooperation among ministries, sectors, localities and international partners in the issue.

According to a preliminary survey in 2002, nearly 9,300 communes with 6.6 million hectares of land across Vietnam were contaminated with UXO, accounting for 21.12 percent of the country’s land area; the central region is the most contaminated.

UXO has claimed more than 40,000 lives and injured over 60,000 others since 1975. A majority of them hailed from the central region.

The State has spent tens of millions of dollar every year on clearing UXO and providing vocational training to and resettling UXO victims.