(VOVworld)- On Monday, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc worked with officials from the Mekong Delta Rice Research Institute in Can Tho province as part of his trip to the region.
The Prime Minister said: “Climate change has become a serious issue in the Mekong delta and we lost about 1 million tons of rice due to saltwater intrusion. So the first task is to study new rice varieties and ways to cope with climate change”.
The Prime Minister urged the Mekong Delta Rice Research Institute to study ways to shift to growing other plants rather than rice to create greater value. He also called for efforts to enhance productivity and quality of Vietnamese rice and improve farmers’ living standards.
On Monday morning in Can Tho city, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc received a delegation of doctors and students from Mercer University in the US, who are providing free prosthetic limbs and medical check-ups for Vietnamese patients. The delegation is led by Prof. Dr. Vo Van Ha.
Mr. Phuc praised their voluntary activities, saying the Vietnam-US ties are developing well in various fields, including healthcare.
Since 2009, these American volunteers have provided free medicine to 40,000 people and 5,000 prosthetic limbs to patients in Vietnam. They intend to expand their program to Vietnam’s central region.