Australian NGO Grants 40 Wheelchairs to Disabled People in North Vietnam

The Australia-based Rotary Club of Mosman (RCM) May 16 donated 40 wheelchairs to help Agent Orange (AO) victims and disable people in Vietnam’s northern province of Nam Dinh. The beneficiaries are disadvantaged people in ten districts of the province. This is an annual activity of RCM, and part of a project named ‘Wheelchairs for people with disabilities’ in Vietnam. The Australian Embassy in Vietnam and RCM have presented a total of 110 wheelchairs to AO victims and handicapped people in the province since 2007. AO victims in Vietnam are estimated to reach 4.8 million people as consequences of the Vietnam War lasting from 1954 to 1975 with the participation of American army. In 1961-1971, the U.S. army sprayed about 80 million liters of defoliants including the highly toxic Agent Orange over 10% of total areas in southern Vietnam. The action has left serious consequences on people, environment and social issues in the country. The country is also home to about 6.7 million people with disabilities including more than one million hearing-impaired ones. (Quan Doi Nhan Dan - People’s Army May 17 p8)