Victims of natural disasters and vulnerable people will receive rice under a new stockpile project as soon as the details are approved by the government.
The Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare has submitted plans for a rice stockpile project worth more than 11 billion kip for consideration by the government secretariat.
The ministry's Social Welfare Department Director General, Mr Pasith Detphommathed, told Vientiane Times yesterday the rice is expected to be distributed soon.
The fund of 11,410 million kip (US$1.34 million) was drawn from the Lao-Japan counterpart fund, according to a press statement from the Embassy of Japan to Laos .
The Japanese Embassy made the statement early in October in support of the Project of Emergency Rice Stockpiling for Natural Disaster Victims.
The statement said the government of Japan is very pleased to support the project proposed by the Lao government to use 11,410 million kip of counterpart funds, which have been accumulated through Japan 's food assistance (the Kennedy Round 1 (KR1) Assistance Project under Japanese Grant Aid) to Laos .
Mr Pasith was unable to give details of the scheme as the project is still being finalised and plans could be revised.
“We have proposed the purchase of rice in natural disaster-affected provinces if rice is available, or in nearby provinces if necessary,” he said.
“But if rice isn't available in nearby areas, it will be sourced from near neighbours.”
In some cases, he added, it may be best to buy rice in neighbouring countries, especially where better transport is available, as this would cut transport costs.
Mr Pasith said more than nine billion kip of the allocated fund will be used to buy rice, while the rest will go towards the cost of transport, information collection and other related expenses.
He said the government has asked the relevant sectors to prioritise target communities and identify those who will benefit from the project to make sure the most vulnerable people are included.
Laos has been affected by a variety of disasters. Last year, heavy flooding in the northern and central provinces damaged irrigation systems, schools, houses, roads and bridges, the embassy's statement said.
Flooding also inundated around 75,000 hectares of farmland, affecting over 200,000 people.
This year, natural disasters such as flooding and plagues of rodents have caused severe damage to agricultural production and people's lives, said the statement, adding that under such circumstances the government of Japan has decided to support the project.
