Amid Typhoon Yagi’s onslaught, the Alliance commits to boosting climate resilience research in Vietnam and Laos

As Asia’s strongest storm of 2024 ravaged parts of the region’s mainland, leaving billions in dollars in agricultural losses, the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT reaffirmed its commitment to bolster research collaboration on agricultural climate resilience, particularly in typhoon-stricken Vietnam and Laos.

The Alliance in Vietnam – along with the Standing Panel on Impact Assessment and three fellow CGIAR centers (the International Livestock and Reseach Institute, the International Potato Center and the International Rice Research Institute) – has pledged to continue its partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) in developing innovative strategies and providing long-term solutions against future extreme weather events.

In a report, MARD’s Deputy Minister Hoang Trung said Typhoon Yagi wreaked havoc on Northern Vietnam’s agricultural sector, with damages estimated at VND 60 trillion ($2.44 billion).

Following the storm’s aftermath, the centers also donated VND 120 million to the Vietnamese government to support relief efforts among flooded communities across the country.

Thanking the CGIAR for its timely support, Dr. Nguyen Do Anh Tuan, Director of the Department of International Cooperation-MARD, underscored the crucial role of the research community in providing expertise to enable the country’s shift from a reactive approach to disaster response to a more proactive focus on building resilience.