Addressing the event, Tran Quoc Hung, Vice President of the Vietnam Red Cross Society (VRC) Central Committee, said about 4.8 million Vietnamese people were exposed to AO/dioxin during the wartime and the number of people affected by the chemical would amount to tens of millions. 

Over the past years, the association has supported 4.9 million AO victims and their families through various activities with total funding of more than VND1.27 trillion (US$54.61 million), he said. 

Hung stressed that the VRC calls on organisations and individuals nationwide to join hands to help AO victims and people with disabilities. 

In 2017, the programme collected over VND1 trillion (US$43 million), providing support for more than 3,000 AO victims.