Activities of JICA on disaster prevention and achievement of JICA project in Period 1

Abstract

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has supported various natural disaster prevention activities in Vietnam in accordance with the "Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030". From 2007 to 2017, around 90 percent of the total damages in Vietnam were accounted by water-related natural disasters. JICA implemented several grants and technical cooperation programs for reducing water-related disaster risks, and as a part of these activities, the "Project for Strengthening Capacity in Weather Forecasting and Flood Early Warning System" by the Vietnam Meteorological and Hydrological Administration (VNMHA) and JICA started in May 2018 as a 3.5 year project. In the Period 1 (June 2018 to March 2019), Automatic Weather Station (AWS) inspection and maintenance manuals were prepared and through trainings at Phu Lien and Vinh radar sites, practical radar maintenance knowledges were shared. Fifteen Automatic Rain Gauges (ARGs) were newly installed in Phu Lien and Vinh radar areas and radar composition started to cover whole Vietnam. For weather forecasting, temperature guidance for 63 cities by the Kalman Filter was developed, and precipitation products based on satellites were evaluated. Discussion on improvement of short-range precipitation forecasting up to 15 hours ahead also started.