The Red river - Thai Binh river basin is the largest river basin in the North with an area of 169,000 km2, of which its part in the territory of Vietnam is 88,680 km2 accounting for 51.3% of the basin area, the rest belongs to territories of China and Laos. The water source of the Red river - Thai Binh river is the main water source for production, daily life and socio-economic activities of 16 Northern provinces, one of key economic regions of Vietnam. This is the largest river basin in the country, flowing through 25 provinces and centrally run cities with more than 30 million people living.