• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.54 no.6
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• pp.649-657
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• 2021

This paper aims to study the impact of natural disasters on per capita income in Vietnam both the short and long-term, specifically impact loss of income caused by the extreme drought 2013 for agriculture, forestry and fishery in Phu Yen Province, Central Vietnam. The study valued economic damage by applying the synthetic control method (SCM), which is a statistical method to evaluate the effect of an intervention (e.g. natural disasters) in different case studies. It estimates what would have happened to the treatment group if it had not received the treatment by constructing a weighted combination of control units (e.g. control provinces). The results showed that the 2013 drought caused a decrease in income per capita, mainly in the agriculture, forestry, and fishery sector in Phu Yen. The reduced income was estimated to be VND 160,000 (1 USD = 23,500 VND (2021)) for one person per month, accounting for 11% of total income per capita and continued to affect the income 6 years later. Therefore, authorities need to invest in preventive solutions such as early and accurate warnings to help people to be more proactive in disaster prevention.