Flood-affected communities need assistance to quickly rebound the severe crop damages and livestock losses. Past experiences and observation show in-kind assistance does not always meet the specific needs of the affected populations. The Australian Government - through the Australian Humanitarian Partnership with ADRA, CARE, and WORLD VISION - has provided cash/voucher transfer to 1,714 families to help them respond to urgent needs and kick start their livelihood for income generation.
Bnướch Đó still remembers that terrifying night when the sudden flood swept away everything in his house. Having mobility impairment and without the help of his wife who was taking care of their two children in the hospital, he couldn’t manage to move everything to a safe place in time. The two bags of rice and food reserved for the stormy season were swept away together with all other household items. “At that moment, my only thought was about what my children would eat the following days,” Bnướch Đó recounted.
Through World Vision’s emergency assistance funded by the Australian Government, Bnướch Đó received a cash support of 1.8 million Vietnam dong [78 US dollars]. Not only was the money instantly used to buy rice, salt, fish sauce for the family and milk for his children, it was also invested in peanut seeds to start growing a peanut garden for income generation. “The peanut plants are growing well. They will give us a chance for a new start,” Bnướch Đó shared.
“I was so happy when received that VND1.8 Million”, shared Nguyễn Thị My.
My’s family is one of hundred households in Hải Chánh commune, Hải Lăng district, Quảng Trị province suffered widespread flood caused by three consecutive storms, which hit central Vietnam in October 2020. With the support of the Australian Government via the consortium of CARE, World Vision and ADRA in Vietnam, My’s family received VND 1.8 Million cash for buying emergency needs after the flood.
At the moment, My is living with her son, her brother and his child under the same roof. Her brother is paralyzed and spends most of time on bed. My must take care of both him and his child, who is studying secondary school.
Being one of the poor households in the village, her family’s main income is cassava cultivation and seasonal jobs. The storm came and completely destroyed their cassava fields.
My said, “We could have starved that time if we had not received the money, since I found no job. To be honest, I literally bought everything food to essential items, as we had nothing left.”
According to her, the storms end but it takes time to go back to the normal life before the flood.
On 17 December 2020, through ADRA Vietnam’s emergency assistance funded by the Australian Government, Trần Duy Tuấn received a cash support of 4 million Vietnam dong to restore his livelihood after the storm.
Tuấn was born in 1940 and his wife is around 75 years old. They live with their son and 3 grandchildren. Tuấn has coronary artery disease, his old wife is often sick, his son has had a stroke for nearly a year, his family is in difficult circumstances, so his nephew who is in grade 9 has to quit school to take care of his father and grandmother.
Tuấn said, "My family only has 2 rice field poles and a small garden for vegetable cultivation and raise chickens. Last year, the storm came, my house was flooded for a meter, the vegetables were spoiled, the chickens were swept away by the floods".
He said that the Australian Government's support came to his family in a timely manner. With this support, he bought 50 chicks, chicken bran and some food for 6 people in his family. After two and a half months, he sold the chickens, kept only a few beautiful ones for breeding. Money selling chickens before, he bought an additional 70 small chickens.
He hoped with the chickens growing well, he would generate more income and improve the living condition of the family and also had the plan for his grandson back to school.