Ireland will finance Vietnam €600,000 to carry out the UXO clearance program in Quang Tri, Quang Binh and Quang Nam provinces.

An MoU on the fund was signed by Vu Xuan Hong, Head of the Vietnam Friendship Organizations Union and Joe Costello, Irish Minister of State for Trade and Development in the afternoon of October 29th in Hanoi.

Notably, Irish Aid also pledged to grant Vietnam €2 million per year during the period 2012-2015 in order to conduct projects with an aim of boosting the participation of non-governmental organizations in eradicating hunger and alleviating poverty. In addition, the fund will assist in developing policies relating to the empowerment and participation of the disabled in Vietnam.

Earlier in the day, the Irish Minister of State attended a ceremony to award prizes to winners of the Contest, “Exploring the Irish country, people and education”, organized by the Online Vietnam Education Newspaper, Irish Embassy and Irish Chamber of Trade.

Source: PANO