On May 23-25, 2020 the IWRP’s leaders, including Mr. Do Van Thanh – Director General and Ms. Dang Thi Kim Nhung, Head of the Division of Water Resources Planning for the South-Central and Central Highland Regions, joined the Mission of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development led by Minister Mr. Nguyen Xuan Cuong and Vice Minister Mr. Nguyen Hoang Hiep paying an intensive working visit in Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan provinces where drought and water scarcity are serious problems.

In Ninh Thuan province, the mission visited and examined the Tan My irrigation project, which is a key project of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in Ninh Thuan province with a total investment of VND 5,951 billion and the Song Cai reservoir with a storage capacity of 210 million m3, Tan My dam and its main pipeline system of 29 km to supply irrigation water for 6,800 ha of Ninh Thuan province. On the second day, the mission visited Da Bac, Long Song, Song Quao reservoirs and some areas frequently affected by drought and water shortage in Tuy Phong and Bac Binh districts of Binh Thuan province.

The mission also worked with Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan Provincial People's Committees on the prevention and control of drought and water shortage in 2020. The Minister asked Ninh Thuan province to re-evaluate the water resources and find out solutions to secure water sources for people and production in the province by maximizing the efficiency of irrigation systems that have been invested and built in the province.

At the meeting with Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan Provincial People’s Committee, the IWRP’s leaders reported an overview of the situation on water sources, irrigation status, past and current drought situation as well as some potential solutions to prevent drought and water scarcity in the provinces. The IWRP proposed some comprehensive solutions to solve the problem of water shortage and drought short and long term in the two provinces, including completion of site clearance for Luy reservoir, analyzing and assessing the need for investment in La Nga 3 reservoir and studying and setting up La Nga 3 reservoir project in the next phase, etc.