A car submerged almost up to its wheels under a torrential rain in the southern province of Bình Dương in early November.—VNA/VNS Illustrative Photo Chí Tưởng

HÀ NỘI — Collaborative projects between Finland and Việt Nam have made significant contributions to improving weather forecasting and early warning systems for natural disasters by supporting the modernisation of Việt Nam's meteorological and hydrological sector.

That's according to Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Lê Công Thành, who made the statement on Wednesday at a seminar in Hà Nội.

The seminar aimed to promote the modernisation and cooperation between Việt Nam and Finland in the fields of meteorology, hydrology and the environment. It was organised by the ministry’s Việt Nam Meteorological and Hydrological Administration.

Thành went on to say that meteorological staff in Việt Nam have received training and capacity-building with Finnish experts, enabling them to master a range of advanced technologies.

He expressed his belief that the Government and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland would continue to support Việt Nam's Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment in the years ahead. This support will help build a safer nation in the face of natural disasters and foster a cleaner environment as well as the country's international integration, to effectively respond to climate change.

Speaking at the seminar, Sami Kiesiläinen from the Finnish Meteorological Institute said that as part of the cooperation programme, the project 'Improving the Meteorological and Hydrological Services in Việt Nam' had significantly enhanced the capacity of the Việt Nam’s National Centre for Hydrometeorological Forecasting in providing early warnings for tropical storms, strong winds and heavy rains.

The long-term cooperation between the meteorological services of Finland and Việt Nam has greatly contributed to the modernisation of Việt Nam's hydrometeorological observation and weather forecasting systems.

As a result, Việt Nam can better respond to increasing risks related to climate and the impacts of climate change.

Regarding the project 'Promoting the modernisation of air quality monitoring and management systems in urban areas in Việt Nam', Katja Lovén from the Finnish Meteorological Institute said that progress was proceeding effectively.

Workshops on air quality have been organised to provide support and share best practices from Finland in designing air quality monitoring networks.

Phạm Thị Thanh Hoa, from the Việt Nam’s National Centre for Hydrometeorological Forecasting, said the meteorological forecasting support system, which used in the analysis and forecasting of daily weather and hazardous conditions, enabled the display of observational and forecast data in various formats (images, charts and graphs) to produce reference products that aid in forecasting storms, tropical depressions, heavy rainfall, thunderstorms, cold air, drizzle, fog, heatwaves and strong winds at sea.

That ultimately helped forecasters issue final weather forecasts and warnings.

Also at the seminar, Hoàng Công Huy from the Northern Environmental Monitoring Centre under the Department of Environmental Pollution Control presented the Silam model - an advanced air quality assessment and forecasting system.

The modelling system provided air quality information, which was made available to both managers and the public.

The system offered real-time data and could be implemented in Việt Nam to develop a national and local air quality forecasting system.

Participants at the seminar also featured discussions on research into the characteristics of thunderstorms in Việt Nam, private sector solutions for weather and air quality and future areas of cooperation.—VNS