HANOI, Nov 22, 2001 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- Being confronted with natural disasters this year, which have caused heavy losses in both property and lives in the country, the Vietnamese government has been taking effective measures to overcome the consequences of the natural disasters.

As of mid-November this year, as many as 576 Vietnamese people were killed by natural disasters, Vietnam's official news agency VNA Thursday quoted Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Huy Ngo as saying.

Ngo, who is also chief of the country's National Committee for Flood and Storm Control, said that natural disasters resulted in material losses worth 3.1 trillion Vietnamese dong (VND) (206.7 million U.S. dollars).

The Vietnamese government has taken various measures to overcome consequences by focusing on helping locals in disaster areas to quickly stabilize their lives and resume production and business operation.

Copyright 2001 XINHUA NEWS AGENCY

Copyright (c) 2001 Comtex News Network
Received by NewsEdge Insight: 11/22/2001 03:14:13