The Mekong Delta region in Vietnam needs nearly VND13.4 trillion (US$563 million) to battle widespread riverside landslides, heard a conference on land subsidence assessment held in Tien Giang Province on Thursday.

The much-needed funds would be used to handle 63 riverside landslides and sites of coastal erosion spanning approximately 240 kilometers.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development had previously launched surveys on riverine landslides in Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Tra Vinh, Hau Giang and Long An Provinces in the region.

The Mekong Delta region is facing severe riverside landslides and coastal erosion in terms of scale, pace, and quantity, said Nguyen Hoang Hiep, Deputy Minister of the Agriculture and Rural Development.

Statistics recently released by the ministry indicated that since 2016, the provinces and cities in the region have reported 779 riverside landslides spanning a combined 1,134 kilometers.

Of the total, 281 land subsidence incidents stretching a combined 528 kilometers posed major threats to residents.

As such, experts estimate that $563 million would be needed to solve the issue. 

The massive amount of money has caused concerns for the Mekong Delta provinces, all of which have used reserve capital to deal with several land collapse episodes.

Nguyen Minh Lam, vice-chairman of the Long An People’s Committee, said that the province has recorded eight riverside landslides since the start of 2023.

The province has also found 14 landslide-prone areas in dire need of anti-landslide embankments.

Lam said that the province has sourced funds from the provincial budget for handling some landslides but it is in need of capital from the state coffers to fix issues caused by two dangerous riverine landslips in Kien Tuong Town and near the Can Giuoc River.

“Hundreds of billions of Vietnamese dong are needed to fix [issues caused by] the two landslides,” Lam stressed.

Other provinces such as Ben Tre, Hau Giang, and Tra Vinh are also thirsty for funds from the state budget to deal with land subsidence.

Voicing concerns over the danger of riverside landslides, Nguyen Van Vinh, chairman of the Tien Giang People’s Committee, said that the province has promptly allocated funds to cope with small and medium landslides.

However, some VND2.8 trillion ($118.3 million) is required to deal with 10 other severe landslide sites spanning a combined 25 kilometers.

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