(VOVWORLD) - The United Nations Population Fund in Vietnam will provide an additional 800,000 USD to support women and girls affected by flooding in eight central provinces and cities. It brings the UNFPA's total support to 1.34 million USD. In October it had given 540,000 USD.
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 Police officers carry a pregnant woman (C) to a hospital to give birth in Quang Binh as the province was hit by heavy rains and flooding, October 20, 2020.
(Photo by VnExpress/Huu Khoa)
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The support includes setting up mobile and outreach health care clinics and the distribution of dignity kits with essential hygiene items and vital maternal health equipment and supplies.
Between early October and mid-November the central region and parts of the Central Highlands were hit by a succession of storms that brought torrential rains, resulting in severe flooding and landslides.
Around 5.5 million people have been affected, including over 1.3 million women of reproductive age and more than 92,000 pregnant women, the UNFPA said.
The disaster forced women and girls into shelters without having the time to pack essential supplies, and many lack basic needs such as sanitary pads, clothes and underwear that are needed to manage their menstrual periods, it said, adding that access to water and places to wash, dry reusable pads and clothes and dispose of used materials are lacking.
Routine public health programs such as antenatal, child birth, post-natal care, and family planning services have been disrupted.