On the occasion of the international conference held recently to review the coordination between the permanent Office of the National Steering Committee on Overcoming War Consequences of Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) and Toxic Chemicals in Vietnam (Office 701), the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the People’s Army Newspaper’s reporter had an interview with PhD Than Thanh Cong, Chief of Office 701 on drawn lessons. PhD Than Thanh Cong Reporter: Could you please brief us on the engagement of Vietnamese Central and local sectors in the implementation of the Project? PhD Than Thanh Cong: During the implementation of the Project, there has been close and synchronous coordination among ministries and sectors at both central and local levels, particularly with the participation of the Ministry of National Defense (in charge of land management), the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (state management of environment), the Ministry of Science and Technology (management of science and technology), the Ministry of Planning and Investment (state management of the economic efficiency of the Project), the Ministries of Health and Transport, the People’s Committee of Da Nang City and more. The effective cooperation was demonstrated via the information provision and sharing between involved parties for the evaluation of scope, scale, and level of remediation and the definition of the Project’s goals. The Ministries of Natural Resources and Environment and National Defense have worked closely with each other to determine the scale and scope to deal with dioxin contamination to meet Vietnam’s environmental standards. The efficient cooperation was… [Read full story]
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