Can Tho (VNA) - The National Assembly (NA) haspaid close attention to the heavy toll that natural disasters have caused to manyareas of Vietnam, NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan said while meeting withvoters in Cai Rang and Phong Dien districts in the Mekong Delta city of Can Thoon November 24.

Responding to voters’ concern about rampant natural disastershitting the country, including saltwater intrusion and riverbank erosion in theMekong Delta, and floodingin the central region, Ngan said the NA has been working to strengthen therelevant legal framework to facilitate work to alleviate damage caused by disasters.

She added that the NA had adopted the revised Law onEnvironmental Protection during its 10th sitting, which is expected to make theprevention of and response to natural disasters more effective.

Chairwoman Ngan also notedthat the Government has issued Resolution 120/NQ-CP on sustainable development inthe Mekong Delta, which devotes much attention to solutions to respond toclimate change. She added that the local agricultural sector should also makechanges to crop structure to adapt to the situation.

The top legislator moved on to note that investment has beenpoured into developing transport infrastructure in the Mekong Delta, but due tothe region’s soil conditions, road construction is costlier than elsewhere.

The Government has developed the 40-km HCM City - Trung LuongHighway while the Trung Luong - My Thuan Highway is scheduled to open totraffic at the end of this year, she said, adding that My Thuan 2 Bridge, whichconnects the Trung Luong - My Thuan and My Thuan - Can Tho Expressways, willcomplete the transport network from HCM City to Can Tho.

These projects are included in the medium-term publicinvestment plan for the next five years, she said.

The NA Chairwoman later briefed voters on issues tabled atthe NA’s 10th sitting, which wrapped up earlier this month, and thesocio-economic situation since the beginning of the year.

She urged everyone not to let their guard down againstCOVID-19, and underscored the importance of agriculture in national economicgrowth amid the pandemic.

While the service sector has been hardest hit by COVID-19,the agriculture sector has managed to contribute greatly to the national economyand even to global food security through export of farm produce, she said.

The NA chairwoman also congratulated the city for being thefirst in the Mekong Delta and the third in the country to complete new-stylerural building a year ahead of schedule./.