Hanoi (VNA) – The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Vietnamhas provided aid worth 540,000 USD in support of women and girls in Vietnam’ssix central provinces affected by devastating floods.

“When emergencies like this strike, life changes in amoment. This natural disaster has already destroyed thousands of homes andforced people to flee. Women and girls are among the most vulnerable. Women donot need to die giving birth, and this must hold true even in emergencies,”said Naomi Kitahara, UNFPA Representative in Vietnam.

“While fleeing, people are in need of basic necessities –ranging from food and water to hygienic supplies and medical care. UNFPA isstriving to assist the Government of Vietnam in restoring and improving thelives of the flood victims, particularly the most vulnerable,” she added.

“UNFPA expresses sympathy for victims and their familiesaffected by the latest tragedy, especially women and girls. This contributionunderlines our solidarity with the people of Vietnam, many of whom havesuffered the loss of homes, livelihoods and belongings in the wake of thedevastating floods.”

According to the joint rapid assessment carried out lastweek, in which UNFPA experts played a lead role in the most affected areas ofcentral Vietnam, health facilities have been hit hard by floods and landslides,and routine public health programmes such as antenatal, delivery, post-natalcare and family planning services have been disrupted. Women and girls continueto be unable to access basic health care services, including sexual andreproductive health.

The disaster has forced women and girls to displacement inevacuation centres without having the time to pack essential supplies. As aresult, they are unable to manage their hygiene properly and lack access tobasic needs such as sanitary pads, clothes and underwear that are needed tomanage their menstrual periods. In addition, access to water and places to washand dry reusable pads and clothes, or to dispose of used materials, iscurrently challenged.

The UNFPA funding and support includes the distribution ofDignity Kits with essential hygiene items, along with vital maternal healthequipment (such as the Doppler Fetal Heart Rate Detector, which detects theheartbeat of a pregnant woman’s foetus). In addition, UNFPA is supporting thedelivery of mobile and outreach sexual and reproductive health services, aspart of the wider health sector response to violence against women and girls inflood-affected areas.

Vietnam’s central coastal region has sufferedunprecedented flooding from prolonged downpours and successive typhoons sinceearly October, resulting in at least 130 deaths recorded so far, with 18persons listed as missing. On October 28, storm Molave battered the region -one of the strongest storms in 20 years. At least 5.5 million people in theregion have been affected, including an estimated 1,343,162 women ofreproductive age with 92,075 of them pregnant./.