Launching from 26 April to 12 May 2020, the “Water for a green life” program 2020 by BIDV has brought 13,300 water tanks and 39 water filters to people in 5 Mekong Delta provinces severely hit by the drought and saltwater intrusion.

Rivers dry up. Crops and trees die out. Fresh water becomes rare. Heart-broken images of the Mekong Delta are shocking, comparing to the former images of a fertile land and abundant water resources of this area.

In Ca Mau province, there are over 19,000 hectares of rice paddies damaged; 43,000 hectares of endangered forest; and more than 20,000 households suffering from the lack of water. The prolonged drought and salinity, coupled with the Covid-19 pandemic, has impacted the income of the local and left them with financial struggles.

Thousands of households in the localities has limited access to clean water. Most of them have to save water in rotten aluminum pots.

Understanding the said difficulties, BIDV has launched the “Water for a green life” program 2020 from 26 April to 12 May 2020 and proactively used VND23.03 billion from its fund to buy 13,300 water tanks and 39 water filters to donate to people in 5 Mekong Delta provinces severely hit by the drought and saltwater intrusion.

BIDV staffs delivery the water tanks in person to directly hand them to the local people in Long An, Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Kien Giang and Ca Mau – the 5 provinces which has declared a state of emergency on drought and salinity intrusion.

The representative of the People Committee and Fatherland Front Committee of Long An Province receives the water filters from BIDV on behalf of the local.

The people in Long An Province are excited to extract water from the newly installed water filters from BIDV. During the drought, fresh water are more precious than gold. The people here used to buy water for VND200,000/m3, which is 10 to 15 times higher than tap water. Sometimes, water becomes so rare that even if they have the money, they couldn’t buy it.

The people in Ben Tre are happy to receive water tanks from BIDV. They understand that drought and salinity happens due to climate change and pollution, hence the importance of environmental awareness.

Mr. Ho Van Nhanh (Bai Bien hamlet, Nam Thai A commune, An Bien district, Kien Giang) emotionally said: “Since birth, this is the first time I have received such a meaningful gift. Now our family can store enough water for daily use in this drought.”

Big smiles on the faces of the farmers in Tien Giang Province.

To the local people, the support from community and corporates has motivates them to strive to overcome the difficulties and restore production and business.

BIDV has launched the “Water for a green life” program 2020 with the desire to connect the bank’s  customers to support the people in the areas hit by the drought and saltwater intrusion. Accordingly, for every transfer on BIDV SmartBanking (except for transferring between one’s own accounts), BIDV will donate VND5,000 from the bank’s fund to provide 13,300 water tanks and 39 water filters to the people in Long An, Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Kien Giang and Ca Mau – the 5 provinces which has declared a state of emergency on drought and salinity intrusion.