Finland helps Vietnam improve weather forecast capacity
The third phase of a project on upgrading Vietnam’s capability to measure rain and detect storms and lightning has been launched at the Pha Din Radar Station in northern Dien Bien province, reported the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting.
Officials of the weather forecast division at the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting collect data and monitor storms (Photo: VNA)
Dien Bien (VNA)— The third phase of a project on upgrading Vietnam’scapability to measure rain and detect storms and lightning has been launched atthe Pha Din Radar Station in northern Dien Bien province, reported the National Ce🌌ntre for Hydro-MeteorologicalForecasting.
The project will be implemented in the 2016-18 period, using20.2 million euros (21,447 USD) of Official Development Assistance (ODA) fromthe Finnish government and reciprocal capital from Vietnam worth 168.3billion VND (7.4 million USD). One of the key objectives of the project is to improve Vietnam’s weather radar system, for which a Finnish company will install five newradar stations and upgrade three old ones, in addition to providing the countrywith new supporting equipment to ensure synchronisation among all the stations. It will also help Vietnam build new, synchronisedmeteorological systems across the country, Panu Partanen, representative ofVaisala, the Finnish company, said. Another important objective of the project is to build alightning detection system to respond to major convective storms, which will bemade up of 18 lightning detection venues across the countries. It is expectedto be completed within a year. Vaisala will also offer training courses on the usage andmaintenance of the radar stations and lightning detection system to officialsat the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, along withoffering instructions on how to utilise the information retrieved from theradars to make accurate weather forecasts. The project is aimed at upgrading Vietnam’s capability tomanage natural disaster risks in these times of climate change and help protectpeople’s lives and the community from natural disasters, according to Tran HongThai, vice director of the centre. It will also help complete a larger proposal on modernisingforecasting technologies and meteorological observation network, proposed bythe Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources in 2010, he said.-VNA
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Officials of the weather forecast division at the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting collect data and monitor storms (Photo: VNA) 
