UN Under-Secretary-General Atul Khare meets with Vietnamese peacekeeping forces in Abyei. Photo courtesy of the Engineering Unit Rotation 1

ABYEI — During a recent visit to Việt Nam's Engineering Unit Rotation 1 in Abyei, UN Under-Secretary-General Atul Khare thanked the Vietnamese peacekeeping forces in Abyei for their positive and effective contributions to UN peacekeeping operations, bringing a better life to local communities.

According to Colonel Mạc Đức Trọng, head of the unit, the unit has so far repaired and upgraded 46km of roads, and ensured traffic on a 50-km route in the Northern Sub-division, contributing to the circulation of goods, stabilising the lives and socio-economic conditions of residents in the Northern Sub-division and the whole Abyei area. The unit has also opened four new patrol routes through the forests with a total length of 46km.

In addition, the Vietnamese engineering team has also rescued more than 100 vehicles of the UN and residents that were stuck due to bad road conditions.

The unit has provided regular maintenance and repair services to the mission's field airport, ensuring its smooth operations. It has also actively coordinated with agencies and units to carry out 50 operations to reinforce and build barracks for agencies and units under the mission, said Trọng.

He said the team will continue to show their best performance and strictly abide by the principles and regulations of the UN and the UNISFA, overcoming all difficulties and staying ready for all tasks.

He thanked UN agencies and the UNISFA for supporting the unit in fulfilling its duties as scheduled with utmost safety.

UN Under-Secretary-General Atul Khare highlighted the cooperation outcomes between the UN and Việt Nam across all fields, especially peacekeeping, and expressed his hope to visit Việt Nam to discuss with the country's Government and military leaders issues of shared concern as well as the promotion of bilateral partnership, especially in peacekeeping.

He said that in his prior working session with the Abyei administration, all local leaders appreciated the help and support from the Vietnamese engineering unit to the local community through social welfare as well as humanitarian and charity activities. Việt Nam’s assistance has met the urgent needs of local residents, especially in upgrading drainage systems, building schools, drilling wells and setting up libraries.

Particularly, the unit also called for Vietnamese donors’ support to provide Abyei with several computers, enabling students to access information technology and schools to show better performance in management and teaching activities, he said.

The principal of Abyei High School said that with the support of the Vietnamese engineering team, the school has facilities comparable to a university in the South Sudanese capital Juba.

UN Under-Secretary-General Atul Khare asked Việt Nam’s engineering unit to pay greater attention to repairing bases of the mission, while asking the UNISFA to provide necessary materials for the team to upgrade barracks, with priority given to the construction of a “smart barracks” at Highway base. — VNS