General Director of the Vietnam Meteorological and Hydrological Administration Tran Hong Thai has been appointed as Vice President of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO)’s Region II (Asia).

General Director of the Vietnam Meteorological and Hydrological
Administration Tran Hong Thai (Photo: VNA) 

This was the first time a permanent representative of Vietnam to the WMO assumed such a position. The WMO, formally designated as a specialised agency of the United Nations in 1951, has 187 member states and six member territories.

On the occasion, WMO Secretary-General Petteri Talass congratulated Vietnam and pledged to offer maximum assistance to the Vietnamese representative in his new post for mutual benefits of the members.

He described it as an opportunity for Vietnam’s meteorological and hydrological sector to boost its engagements in the WMO, improve its position in Asia, and enhance capacity in natural disasters prevention.

The 35-member Region II covers a vast expanse of the Indian Ocean and part of the Pacific Ocean. It is home to a large and diverse range of ecosystems, including deserts, forests, rivers, lakes and seas.

Major challenges to the development of the region include mitigation of natural and environmental disasters, climate change and variability, water management, water resources management, land use and land degradation, energy availability, poverty alleviation and conservation of biodiversity.

Weather, climate and water observations are required to address these issues, which are of relevance for the present social and economic development as well as for that of future generations.