As news of the A H1N1 influenza virus was making headlines around the world, key government and humanitarian personnel in Vietnam were learning more about the importance of good legal frameworks to manage disease outbreaks and large-scale disasters.
Hosted by the Natural Disaster Mitigation Partnership (NDM-P) and chaired by a representative from Vietnam's Flood and Storm Management Division, the IFRC’s IDRL Programme facilitated two days of training and consultation by a number of international agencies on these issues on 28-29 April in Hanoi.
Participants from health and disaster management sectors discussed the key international and regional laws and standards, in particular the IDRL Guidelines and International Health Regulations, and considered how these provisions could be better integrated into the Vietnamese context.
Within an open discussion on the development of a comprehensive legal framework in Vietnam for disaster and communicable disease control, participants agreed that further improvements to existing laws and policies were necessary and that further consultation was required on exactly which form this should take.
The IDRL Legal Preparedness Project, currently underway, was seen as being able to make a major contribution in this regard.