Int'l experts urge ASEAN unity to settle sea disputes Exploitation of seabed oil and gas resources is one of several major contentious issues complicating the tense South China Sea (East Sea) situation, a retired US diplomat said at an international conference held at Ton Duc Thang University in HCM city over the weekend.  David Brown, an independent researcher, citing US Energy Information Administration data, said that oil and gas resources in the However, in November 2012, the China National Offshore Oil Company estimated that the area holds even more, about 125 billion barrels of oil and 500 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in undiscovered resources. By 2035, In 1993, Brown said he was pessimistic about an agreement on seabed hydrocarbons among claimants, as This approach would have a chance if Carlyle A. Thayer, of the Thayer suggested that ASEAN should negotiate with He also said that ASEAN should establish a marine police force and security council. Le Vinh Truong, of the Southeast Asia Sea Research Foundation, suggested that He said he supported the solution of filing a lawsuit against However, Irena Chan, of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Several people believe that the UN can deal with the issue, but the role of the UN should be examined, Chan said. Because it takes much time to lodge a lawsuit against Chan agreed with Truong's opinion that filing a lawsuit against She said that trade between the VNS |
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Social News 30/7 Health department fines hospital over negligence The Ha Noi Department of Health has fined the city-based Thuong Tin Hospital VND30 million (US$1,400) for using a biochemical analyser without having documents showing its place of manufacture. The hospital's Deputy Director Pham Hoang Anh said that they had been hiring the The The Department added that it would conduct widespread inspections of other health facilities to check for use of substandard medical equipment. Lao Cai residents evacuated from dangerous flood zones Authorities in the northern mountainous The districts of Bac Ha, Bat Xat, Bao Yen and Deputy Head of the provincial Steering Committee for Flood Prevention and Control, Nguyen Anh Tuan, said the province had so far fulfilled only 57 per cent of its evacuation plan, while the disbursement for building resettlement facilities was slow, reaching only about 50 per cent of the target. Under the plan, the province aimed to relocate 343 households with around 2,000 people from high-risk areas before June 30 this year when the rainy season began, he said. However, difficulties had hindered the operation. "Some households do not want to move to new resettlement areas because they do not want to leave their agricultural land. However, we need to find ways to force them to move for their own safety when the rainy season starts," he said. "Infrastructure in some resettlement areas is also incomplete due to lack of funding," he added. The plan will be implemented at an estimated cost of nearly VND7 billion (US$333,000). However, provincial authorities have earmarked just VND3 billion from the provincial budget. The northwestern region has entered the rainy season, causing concern for local households in high-risk areas. The provincial People's Committee has asked district-level authorities to hasten the evacuation to ensure public safety. Lao Cai is one of the provinces hardest hit by natural disasters during the rainy season. In 2008, a village in the province was swept away by landslides. Typhoon Rammasun, which hit northern provinces recently, killed five people and caused estimated losses of VND164 billion ($7.8 million) in Lao Cai. Police prosecute Bach Mai hospital assailant A 36-year-old man has been arrested and prosecuted for disturbing public order after assaulting doctors at the Ha Noi-based Nguyen Tien Dung from Hoang Mai district attacked the doctors in the hospital's A9 Emergency Department because he thought they had neglected his sick wife. Dung hit medical staff and threw a chair at a seven-month pregnant nurse, making her faint on the spot. He also called a gang of friends to the hospital to continue the violence, but they were intercepted by police. Dung was found to have a history of drug addiction. Blaze ravages plant in Hung Yen province A major fire broke out at Hoa Phat Electronics Co., Ltd in the northern province of Hung Yen yesterday, causing up to VND15 billion (US$721,000) in damage. The blaze reportedly started in plastic molds at around 4am and was put out three hours later. All the equipment and materials in the workshop were completely destroyed, and part of the workshop's roof collapsed. Preliminary investigations showed that an electrical fault might have triggered the blaze. Company stands behind decision not to pay prize-winner An official from Tribeco confirmed that the company does not intend to pay the prize-winner, claiming that the ticket was invalid. Ta Van An, 62, from southern Vuong Duc Thien, head of Tribeco's legal affairs department said, that they could do nothing. “We won't pay An. His ticket is invalid. A standard winning ticket must have a stamp and a signature by the head of our company. We’ve issued only three such cards. Two people have already claimed their prizes and we are completing procedures for their payment,” said Thien. When asked whether the company might have forgotten stamping and signature, Thien said it was not a possibility because the process is so heavily supervised that there could be no such mistake. “The printer of the tickets, Liskin, said that it would be difficult to verify the authenticity of the ticket. They have asked for help from a lab with the proper technology to confirm the ticket's origins," he added. When asked about the company's earlier offer of VND5 million (USD235.4) to An, he said that it was to compensate him for transportation costs. An has said that he is not satisfied with the Tribeco's explanations and intends to take the case to court. Nguyen Van Ban, chairman of the Binh Duong provincial Association of Consumer Protection, said if the company made a mistake in issuing the card, they would be liable to make compensation to An, and would have to negotiate with the prize-winner to find an appropriate amount. “It’s unacceptable to issue a winning card and then claim it's invalid to get out of paying the promised prize," An added. Quang Ngai residents in need of clean water supplies Few things are more precious in the heart of the summer than clean water. But for hundreds of households throughout Quang Ngai province, life has all but dried up. The hot summer months have dried up much of the water supply, and the rocky mountain terrain makes it difficult to drill for more. According to the Vietnam News Agency, the pumping station in An Loi Village, Duc Pho District's Pho Nhon Commune was dry, affecting about 320 households. The pumping station, with total investment of nearly VND8.3 billion (US$395,200), was opened for public use in April. It was expected to supply clean water for local residents in the commune with the capacity of 310cu.m per day. However, the station was left fallow after one month of use because of a clean water shortage. Chairman of the Pho Nhon Commune People's Committee Bui Van Sy said that the bumping station took clean water from the Da Giang stream. As a result, during hot weather the stream ran out of water and the station did not have any water sources. The commune authorities have found different ways to supply water resources for local residents, such as drilling wells and installing pumps. But ground water levels are so low, none of these methods are proving effective. In Pho Hoa Commune, some 60 households are also going thirsty. Truong Van Sang, a resident in the commune's Pho Van Village, said that the area was full of rocky mountain so it was difficult to drill a well. "I have tried many times, but when drilling to the depth of 5-6 metres, I cannot drill any more," he said. Farm produce in the commune has died from the clean water drought. More than 20 households in Truong Quang Trong Ward in the province's Nguyen Duc Toan, Chairman of the Truong Quang Trong Ward People's Committee, said that the area used to be a rice field. Construction work on the Vina film studio project started in the area in 2009, affecting the area's underground water source. Since then local residents could not drill wells. The city authorities assigned the city's Urban Management Division to check the terrain and choose a proper position to drill a well. But it was only a temporarily measure. The well soon failed due to the rocky terrain, said Toan. Int'l physics forum opens in Binh Dinh Nearly 80 domestic and foreign physicists are taking part in an international conference in Quy Nhon city, The three-day event will focus on flavour physics, a new area for scientists to study the nature of Quarks; an elementary particle and a fundamental constituent of matter. This particle has drawn attention from the European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN), said Chairman of the Meet Vietnam Organisation Tran Thanh Van at the opening ceremony yesterday. Research on flavour physics can be applied in nuclear power and medicine, heard the conference. Sugarcane firms suspended over pollution The Viet Nam Environment Administration has decided to suspend the operation of two sugarcane companies for causing serious pollution. After Tra Vinh Sugarcane JSC and Ca Mau Sugarcane JSC were caught discharging untreated wastewater, they were ordered to deal with the problem before the end of June, said Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment and head of the administration Bui Cach Tuyen. However, they failed to do so, meaning that they would be shut down. In the first six months of this year, the administration organised four inspections of 29 businesses that caused serious pollution to the environment in Nam Dinh and According to inspectors, 13 businesses had addressed the problem and 14 others were in the process of doing so. Tuyen said the administration would work with relevant ministries and sectors to eliminate businesses causing environmental pollution by 2020. From now on, the administration plans to inspect violators regularly. Those found still polluting the environment will be forced to halt operations. In 2013 and 2014, 172 businesses were told to stop polluting, but only 25 did so. Indochinese kids meet in More than 220 children from During the four-day exchange, the children will tour a number of famous historical sites and tourist destinations in the city, and participate in a cultural and art performance. The event aims to further tighten solidarity and friendship among the three Indochinese nations. It is also expected to provide the children an insight into the culture, history and socio-economic development of This is the third time the event has been organised in The Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences (VASS) and the Lao National Institute of Social Sciences agreed to take heed of the development of young scientists at a working session in Vientiane on July 28 as part of a visit by a VASS delegation to Laos. The two sides were pleased about their comprehensive and effective cooperation over the past couple of years. They said the exchange of their personnel has lived up to expectations. Notably, joint activities between young scientists have enhanced their mutual understanding and cemented their partnership. In the time ahead, both sides will pay more attention to training the young through the organisation of scientific seminars. They also agreed to push forward training, delegation exchange and information sharing, and cooperation at international forums. Officials of the central province of Quang Both sides agreed to step up delegation exchange and promote their cultural and sports collaboration. They will work closer to boost economic ties, attract investment into each other and implement joint projects. Officials also concurred in fostering education and training connection. In particular, Quang Le Phuoc Thanh, Chairman of the Quang Nam People’s Committee, expressed his hope that the two localities will put more joint activities into action to push up their socio-economic development in the time to come.- Hepatitis B accounts for 80% of cases of viral hepatitis Out of every 100,000 Vietnamese people, 11 are infected with viral hepatitis, according to the Preventive Medicine Department. The Over the past 10 years, the incidence of viral hepatitis has trended upwards, especially since 2009. The World Health Organization WHO has pledged to continue working closely with the Ministry of Health and municipal Health Department and a number of key hospitals on providing technical support for viral hepatitis prevention and control. Dr. Le Manh Hung, HTD Deputy Director said, "Generally, hepatitis viruses do not show external abnormal symptoms. Around 75-80% of patients remain normal. Therefore, screening is the best way for early detection. The late detection will reduce the efficiency of treatment. When the liver is badly damaged, the treatment process will cause dangerous complications without bringing an effect. " According to the WHO, viral hepatitis is considered a silent killer, claiming the lives of 1.5 million people annually in the world. This is a group of virus-caused infectious diseases that can cause acute and chronic hepatitis for hundreds of millions of people, thus easily leading to serious complications such as cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer. At the World Health Assembly (WHA) in May 2014, 194 member countries adopted a resolution on improving viral hepatitis prevention, diagnosis and treatment. Ha Nearly 200,000 children from 1-14 years old in the The medical and education sectors will work together to count the number of target children, while the preventive health centre has been urged to ensure sufficient quality vaccines. At the same time, medical staff will be fully equipped with medicine and necessary means to promptly deal with possible post-vaccination incidents. Ha The Japanese Government on July 28 approved a grant of nearly VND13.5 billion in non-refundable aid to central Thua Thien Hue province for the second phase of a disaster risk mitigation and adaptation project. The funding will be channeled through Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The localities’ counterpart capital is VND800 million. The second phase of the project will be implemented from now until July 2016 with the aim of better managing risks of natural disasters through enhanced community involvement, including improved education and awareness about the issues and strengthened preventive measures. Thua Thien Hue province’s People’s Committee Vice Chairman Le Truong Luu said that JICA has also agreed to support the province in implementing a project to improve the Korean city boosts cooperation with Quang Nam A high-ranking delegation from Osan city, the Republic of Korea (RoK) led by Osan mayor Kwak Sang Wook paid a working visit to central Quang Nam province to explore cooperation opportunities. The Korean delegates held talks with Quang Osan and Quang They also expressed a desire to explore future cooperation deals to provide scholarships for students and teachers to pursue overseas study in each other’s countries. Quang The Vietnam People’s Army (VPA) Task Force Command on July 28 broke ground on a US$325,000 project to construct a large hall and library in Kandal province as a gift for the Royal Cambodian Army. The project is expected to boost the traditional friendship ties between the two nations and bolster comprehensive cooperation between the two armies. The big hall and the library are located in the barracks campus of Parachute Brigade 911-one of the most elite units of the Royal Cambodian Army which is tasked with protecting the capital city Covering a total area of over 1,200 m2, the Khmer style architectural building will consist of 11 rooms and a conference hall capable of accommodating 500 people, and take 18 months to complete. Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony, General Mop Sarun - Deputy Commander of the Royal Cambodian Army praised the project as a noble symbol of friendship and cooperation between the two armies, helping strengthen solidarity and friendship between Under a signed cooperation agreement, this year the Vietnam Defense Ministry has provided a US$21.6 million grant for the Royal Cambodian Army to support equipment purchases, training and health care, of which US$2.4 million is allocated to the Royal Cambodian Army’s construction projects. Nine Vietnamese students on July 15 completed a one-month internship programme in During the programme, the students had the opportunity to practice soft skills, such as presentation and teamwork through specialized training and practical projects. It was a golden opportunity for students to make friends, learn more and become familiar with other ASEAN cultures and people, and get advice as well as one-on-one support and guidance from a senior mentor at SCG. To participate in the internship programme, students had to complete and submit an application, write an essay, and go through an interview selection process with the organizers. Kiti Madiloggovit, corporate human resources director of SCG, said he was glad to know thousands of students across This is the second time SCG has organised the programme following the success of last year’s event. The programme is one of SCG’s activities to mark human resources development in the process of business expansion into SCG, one of the leading conglomerates in the ASEAN region, comprises three core businesses: SCG Chemicals, SCG Paper, and SCG Cement-Building Materials. The company has over 200 affiliates under its umbrella and more than 40,000 employees. SCG began its regional expansion in First Japanese composite fishing boat launched The first composite vessel for Japanese Yanmar Company’s pilot project to supply 180 vessels to Vietnamese fishermen to help them increase tuna yield and quality was officially launched on July 28. The first fishing boat, YANMAR 01, was launched in the central coastal The boat, 18m long, 4.5m wide and 2.5m high, has a capacity of 350CV running at an average speed of 11.5 nautical miles per hour. OVs in The Vietnamese Embassy in Ambassador To Anh Dung reported on Dung answered OVs’ questions and acknowledged their proposals regarding the ongoing struggle for national sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Vietnamese Embassy has stimulated Canadians and international friends to support Participants at the meeting agreed that national solidarity is a decisive factor in helping the nation overcome difficulty as history has proven. At the meeting OVs donated more than CAD5,000 to coast guard, law enforcement forces and fishermen at home. OVs in Vietnam is among nine countries in the Western Pacific region that face the most serious threat of viral hepatitis, a “silent” disease that causes a severe impact on public health, experts said at a meeting in south-central Vietnam last weekend. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the other eight countries are The warning was released at the 9th National Liver Conference, which was held in Nha Trang City of Khanh Hoa Province on Friday last week, drawing more than 300 delegates from major hospitals and universities in Addressing the event, which was organized to mark World Hepatitis Day (July 28), Dr. Dinh Quy Lan, chairman of the Vietnam Hepatic Association, warned that viral hepatitis kills about 1.4 million people around the world per year – close to the number of deaths caused by HIV/AIDS, and more than those brought about by malaria and tuberculosis. In addition, every year sees about 500 million people suffering from cirrhosis of the liver or liver cancer caused by viral hepatitis, Dr. Lan said. In the Western Pacific region alone, the hepatitis B virus is responsible for almost 900 deaths per day, according to the WHO. Although placed among the nine Western Pacific countries that suffer the most from viral hepatitis, More than 50 percent of newborn babies have been vaccinated against hepatitis B in the past 10 years, thus remarkably lowering the rate of infection, they said, adding that no hepatitis A and E epidemics have broken out during the past 30 years. Besides, many liver transplant cases have successfully been performed in At the conference, experts presented 30 papers focusing on symptoms and treatment of liver and gall diseases, hepatitis B and C prevention, and liver transplants. These experts also provided useful, basic information about liver inflammation. “Improving the knowledge of viral hepatitis among the public is one of the effective ways to prevent the disease in communities,” Dr. Lan said. “In fact, many people with viral hepatitis, mainly hepatitis B, do not know why and when they were infected with it; thus it is nicknamed ‘the silent killer’,” the doctor said. Viral hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver caused by one of the five hepatitis viruses: A, B, C, D and E, experts said. The five hepatitis viruses are transmitted through different routes: hepatitis A and E through contaminated food and water; hepatitis B through blood and other bodily fluids; and hepatitis C and D mostly through blood, they said. These viruses can all cause acute hepatitis, but most people fully recover from acute infection. However, hepatitis B and C infection can lead to chronic liver disease, the most common cause of liver cirrhosis and liver cancer, according to the WHO. More rural households can use fresh water: urgent action It is an urge to supply at least 60 liter of fresh water per person a day in the At an annual online meeting about clean water and environment sanitation in rural districts held last week, deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai stressed that global climate change will deduce the degradation of fresh water resources and environment hygiene; it will threat to people’s health condition. Accordingly, fresh water supply is very important for living quality in the countryside areas and it is one of the targets of Millennium Development Goals, Hai added. Some provinces such as the Mekong delta provinces of An Giang, Kien Giang, the central State Prime Minister has approved the national strategy for clean water and basic sanitation from 2000 to 2020 both aims at improving people’s living condition and helping increase socio-economic growth in the country. The strategy includes many phases. This year’s phase requires 85 percent of rural households to access to clean water, 65 percent of using standard toilets, 45 percent of hygienic breeding farms and most of schools and medical clinics having enough water and toilets. After fifteen year implementation of the program, it have improved habits of using clean water and standard toilet instead of open defecations into residents in the countryside. Besdies, as many as private companies have invested in providing fresh water to over 500,000 residents in Dong Thap, Tien Giang, Logn An in the Mekong delta and Hung Yen, Hai Duong provinces in the North and rural regions nationwide. Universities adapt ahead of ASEAN Community Using case studies in university curricula will help meet the need for a highly qualified workforce in the ASEAN Economic Community that takes effect next year, a professor of Prof. Bui Thi Minh Hang said that Hang, who spoke at a workshop on building academic bridges held on July 28 by A lack of real-life understanding of the workplace hampered students' knowledge and ability, while there were few opportunities to practice management skills, she said. Hang said that She added that conferences or workshops on case study methods for business and social management faculties should be organised. The VNU-HCM plans to develop case studies for its members and training managers for enterprises under the assistance of Singapore Management University (SMU). The two universities on July 28 signed an agreement to enhance their academic strengths and promote economic, legal and education cooperation between In the agreement, SMU will help train case writing teams on business and law topics in VNU-HCM will assist SMU by providing advice, contacts and references and CMP will add the Vietnamese case studies to its database. In addition, they will create a student/faculty exchange programme, a joint Master's/PhD programme, and provide business services to the community such a legal consulting. SMU will assist in setting up a centre for management practice at VNU-HCM. Foot-and-mouth disease strikes livestock in central Duc Tho District of the central Foot-mouth disease has affected multi domestic animals of four houses in An investigation showed that a cow in a herd of cattle of Bui Xuan Tiep in the village had felt in illness six days after being bought from the Local authority disinfected the environment in farms and issued warning that this is infected foot-and-mouth disease. Health watchdog acted quickly to vaccinate to more than 300 cows in the locality. Control stations were set up to forbid the sale, transportation and slaughter of diseased animals to other areas. People should not eat snail: Food watchdog The Food Administration of Vietnam under the Ministry of Health July 27 said that some people died because of eating snail as food or medications. Lately, hospitals in the central city of Consequently, people should not follow folk wisdom or baseless rumor to serve snail as a food. People should not absolutely eat raw snail, or underdone. Residents should conduct environment sanitation, kill rats and snail to curb biological life cycle of nematode worm A. cantonensis to prevent diseases. If people suffer symptoms such as fever, headache, stomachache, vomiting and rash, they should go to nearby medical clinics to receive timely treatment. Source: VNN/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/ND |
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Political News 30/7 Cabinet meeting: July continues to see positive socio-economic development, the Ministry of Planning and Investment reported to the regular Cabinet meeting which opened in The report noted that inflation remained under control with the rise in consumption price index (CPI) kept at low level; interest rates, foreign exchange rates and market were stable; and exports and services maintained good growth. The disbursement of capital sources including FDI and ODA was at a good pace, while the industrial sector, particularly the manufacturing and processing industries, continued its recovery. At the opening session, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung asked Cabinet members to discuss major issues relating to economic restructuring, GDP growth, macro-economy and solutions for smooth operations of businesses. He also required them to brainstorm over solutions to achieve the target of 5.8 percent GDP growth for this year and to remove difficulties for businesses. In addition, he urged relevant ministries and agencies to closely work together to carry out measures ensuring safety for over 1,500 Vietnamese guest workers in During the two days of sitting, Cabinet members will also debate some draft laws on special consumption tax, labour hygiene and safety, maritime and island environment and resources, and military service. Steering board talks preparations for IPU-132 Preparations for the 132nd General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) scheduled for next March in The theme for the IPU-132 has been approved at the March meeting of the IPU General Assembly, which will focus on Parliament’s role in water use and management. The event is expected to gather over 1,300 delegates from 160 countries worldwide. Chairing the meeting, National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung who also heads the steering board emphasised the importance of the IPU-132 in the country’s external activities. He said the steering board should use the event as an opportunity to promote the image of the Vietnamese nation to the international community. PM meets acclaimed local mathematician Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung yesterday met Professor Ngo Bao Chau, the first Vietnamese to win the Fields Medal, the highest professional honour a mathematician can attain, and the Education Dialogue Group. Dung praised the contribution of scientists to national development, including Chau's contribution to the Viet Nam Institute for Advanced Study in Mathematics. He said this had helped to promote a love for maths among Vietnamese students. He said the Government was strongly implementing a master plan on Education and Training Reform and urged Chau and the Education Dialogue Group to continue to provide consultancy and opinions to help complete education development policies. Dung said the Government would continue to provide favourable conditions for further development of the Viet Nam Institute for Advanced Study of Mathematics. Chau said the institute had developed well in the three years it had been established, particularly in helping improve scientific research by Vietnamese mathematicians. On the same day, Dung had a working session with the Viet Nam Union of Science and Technology Associations. He praised the practical contributions of the union to national development and asked ministries, localities and the union to increase co-operation in scientific research and criticism. Dung said it was important to boost international co-operation, encourage private investment in science and technology, and increase communication in this field. He said it was essential to enhance the role of scholars in modernising industrialisation and increasing the competitiveness of all sectors. The PM added that education, training, science, and technology were the nation's top priorities and the driving force for national growth. A Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) delegation attended the third national congress of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) recently held in the capital The congress, which kicked off on July 26, drew the participation of 985 delegates representing over 7 million PSUV members across the country and more than 70 foreign delegations. Nguyen Tuan Phong, deputy head of the CPV Central Committee’s Commission for External Relations, conveyed the committee’s message of congratulations to PSUV President Nicolas Maduro. The presence of the Vietnamese delegation contributed to the success of the congress, said Maduro, who expressed hope for tightened friendship, solidarity and cooperation between the two countries and parties. During its stay in It also attended a ceremony marking the 60 th birth anniversary of late President Hugo Chavez, and met with several international delegations participating in the congress. Lao Cai asked to focus on infrastructure building Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has emphasised the need for the northern mountainous Working with key provincial leaders in He asked the province to utilise its advantages and potential, especially in service, tourism, border trading, mining and agriculture, to successfully fulfil its set socio-economic targets. At the same time, the locality should speed up the national target programme on building new-style rural areas in line with upgrading rural infrastructure and supporting farmers in boosting agro-forestry, applying advanced technology in production and expanding markets for local products, he said. Meanwhile, special attention should be paid to reducing poverty and bettering social welfares for locals, while ensuring defence, political security and social safety and order in the locality, building a borderline of peace, friendship, cooperation and development, contributing to protecting the national sovereignty, he said. PM Dung also reiterated At the meeting, he also hailed the locality’s efforts in maintaining high economic growth, recording rapid poverty reduction and ensuring defence and security situation despite many difficulties as a mountainous and boundary province with large area and small population. According to Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Doan Van Huong, over the past 20 years, Lao Cai has secured a high growth rate at 11 percent per year averagely. Last year, the province’s economy expanded 10 times compared to that of 1991. The locality’s per capita income reached 29.7 million VND (1,414 USD), a 59.4-fold increase from the 1991’s figure, the highest number compared to other regional localities, he reported. However, he also acknowledged a number of shortcomings in the locality, including poor infrastructure system, high ratio of poor households at about 20 percent. In addition, the quality of its human resources remained poor, while the problems of women trafficking, drug smullging and uncontrolled migration remained, the official added. Entering ASEAN - a decision of historical significance Joining the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a decision of great historical significance at both national and regional levels, Deputy Foreign Minister Pham Quang Vinh has stated on the occasion of the 19th anniversary of In an interview granted to the press, the diplomat said at the national level, the decision paved the way for It also created opportunities and momentum for the country to expand cooperation not only with regional countries but also major partners and other countries in the international community, thus enhancing its status in the global arena, Vinh added. Meanwhile, adding The deputy FM affirmed that ASEAN membership has created a peaceful and stable cooperative environment that Discussing Since entering the association, Notably, Vietnam successfully performed the role of ASEAN Chair in 2010, with many important decisions of the bloc made during this year, including bringing into play the ASEAN Charter and a roadmap for the building of an ASEAN Community, promoting the grouping’s central role, especially in the maintenance of peace, stability and cooperation in the region, including the East Sea, he said. Currently, the country is working hard to make further contributions to the building of ASEAN’s post-2015 strategy. Regarding the challenges facing the region currently, the official said ASEAN is building a Community in an environment of great changes with both traditional and non-traditional challenges as well as difficulties posed by both internal factors and external impacts. In order for the grouping to rise above the challenges and complete its goals, ASEAN should reinforce its solidarity in order to make stronger voice on regional matters, he said. At the same time, Vinh also pointed to the necessity to strengthen the association’s internal strength, with a focus on ensuring the progress of the roadmap to build the ASEAN Community. Furthermore, the association should further promote its central role in all issues related to peace and security in the region, Vinh emphasised. With a system of forums concerning regional peace and cooperation, ASEAN and its partners should raise their positive and responsible voice in all fields. Specifically, in terms of the Meanwhile, ASEAN should also take the initiative in proposing and building regional codes of conduct so that all countries, not only those in the region but also partner nations joining partnership in Southeast Asia share and abide by these principles, the deputy FM said, adding that if ASEAN can do this, the bloc will overcome arising challenge and enhance the important role that it has played over the past years. President calls for The Mekong Delta needed a breakthrough in production and business performance with agriculture as the spearhead in order to contribute to the country's sustainable economy, said President Truong Tan Sang. Sang made the statement during a working session with the Steering Committee for the Southwestern Region in Can Tho yesterday as part of his tour of Mekong Delta localities. He was told the delta's economy had expanded by 9 percent from January-June. Rice output from the last two crops reached 13.5 million tonnes while aquatic products totalled 1.4 million tonnes, up 3.7 percent. Also in the period, industrial production rose 6.6 percent to VND223 trillion (US$10.4 billion), while exports grew 11.4 percent to $5.4 billion. Total social investment hit VND99.6 trillion ($4.68 billion), a year-on-year increase of 12 percent. The committee is preparing for the 2014 Mekong Delta Economic Co-operation Forum (MDEG) scheduled for late this year in Source: VNS |
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Art & Entertainment News 30/7 Celebrity supports anti-violence initiative Actress Ly Nha Ky donned a bright green T-shirt on July 28 and joined a bike tour in My Tho City, Tien Giang province as part of an initiative calling for an end to all forms of violence against children. The programme is part of activities launched by the Vietnam Higher Education Development Fund (HEDF) to help shine a light on the invisible horrors of violence that undermine the lives of children and call for collective action to end it. Educators learn about RoK culture Approximately 80 teachers and education managers from primary and secondary schools in RoK envoy to Participants learned about Korean economics, politics, culture and society and acquired a better understanding of the country’s traditional costume and cuisine. This is the 11th time such a programme has been organised by the Institute for Northeast Asian Studies under the sponsorship of the Korean Foundation. New TV show informs viewers about Vietnamese history HCM City Television's HTV9 channel will broadcast a new weekly show on Vietnamese history starting next week. The 45-minute Dat Viet Que Huong Toi ( The documentaries will focus on events during the resistance wars against the French and Americans. The show will also feature patriotic songs. Cultural month marks Buddhist holiday of motherly love Culinary parties and theatre shows will open this weekend at Suoi Tien and Dam Sen tourist parks in Districts 9 and 11 and take place every night during the month. The shows will expectedly focus on people's gratitude to and appreciation of their mothers. Some cai luong (reformed theatre – a traditional genre of theatre in south) stars will perform for free on the occasion. The month-long programmes are expected to attract thousands of visitors, including Buddhists, from the city and neighbouring provinces. Vietnamese drama brings folk humour to South Korea A drama entitled Cai Lao Hoan Dong (Rejuvenation) will be performed by Vietnamese artists at the International Performing Arts Festival in A 13-member troupe from Viet Nam Drama Theatre led by director Nguyen The Vinh is in The artists will perform the hilariously funny Cai Lao Hoan Dong, a short folk drama adapted by Nhat Linh. It tells of a poor farmer's victory over greedy and dishonest rivals thanks to superior cleverness. Stage director Tuan Hai combines folklore and humour to make the story more interesting. The play introduces the international audience to The drama was voted as the most favourite play at the China-ASEAN Theatre Festival in the Chinese city of VTV offers one-off programmes for short attention spans About 30 one-episode television series will be aired on weekend film programmes by Viet Nam Television (VTV). The short series are drama and crime movies displaying the psychology of criminals. The films will satisfy busy people who don't have time enough to follow long-running series. The series were made for VTV by about 20 directors from the north and the south. The first screen will be Hat Mua Sa (Falling Raindrop) by Nguyen Van Duc on August 3 on VTV's Channel 1. It tells a story of human trafficking. Art programme raises US$4.8 million to support border areas, sea and islands More than VND 102 billion (US$4.8 million) was raised to support citizens and soldiers in border areas, at sea and on islands at an art programme held in Dong Thap province on July 29. Speaking at the event, Deputy PM Ninh stressed that maritime resources have made huge contributions to national socio-economic development, the maritime and coastal economies account for over 48% of the country’s GDP. He called on strong will and high determination from the people and army to protect the country’s sacred and imprescriptible sovereignty over the islands, including the Truong Sa (Spratly) and Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelagos. The event, which was held jointly by the Southwest Steering Committee, People’s Committees of Dong Thap province, It was organised to raise public awareness on the Party’s guidelines and policies and the State’s laws on the country’s sovereignty over its border areas, sea and islands; thus encouraging participation in national construction and defence. It was also sought to mobilise support for border guards, naval soldiers, coast guards, fisheries surveillance soldiers and poor families in the areas. Bike festival draws crowds The Festival Motorbike 2014 took place over the weekend at Phu Tho Stadium in HCMC’s District 11, attracting thousands of spectators coming to admire various brands of motorbikes on display such as Ducati, KMT, Suzuki, Beneli, and Visitor. On show were both brand-new bikes and old-fashioned ones that have rarely been known to the public before. The highlight of the festival included performances by Thai stunt men from KTM racers on big-capacity racing motorbikes. Moreover, the festival also attracted visitors thanks to vivid activities on the sidelines such as DJ shows, a motorbike decorating contest named Arts of Speed, a game Bike Games Challenge, and the Big Bike Auction to raise funds for poor children in the highlands region. Visitors were also excited to test-drive 12 models of motorbikes from famous brands. Source: VNS/SGT/VOV/ND |
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Article 9
Japanese journalist falls in love with Vietnam VietNamNet Bridge - As a freelance journalist and photographer, Yasufumi Murayama has visited Vietnam 37 times in the last 16 years. He borrowed $10,000 to hold the photo exhibition "Hoang Sa Feelings" in HCM City from July 24-31, at the Radio and Television College II, No. 75 Tran Nhan Ton Street, Ward 9, District 5.  Japanese journalist Murayama. Murayama’s relationship with Vietnam's started in 1998, when he and his teacher attended a photo exhibition at the Museum of War Remnants in Ho Chi Minh City. After that he has returned many times. As one of the Japanese who strongly opposed China’s infringement upon Vietnam’s sovereignty in the East Sea, Murayama was very eager to visit Hoang Sa (Paracels) Islands. To turn his desire into reality, he contacted the club of foreign journalists in Vietnam and submitted an application to the Vietnamese government. For Murayama, writing is his extra job besides newspaper delivery, washing dishes at restaurants and gardening. His main job is working as a security guard for a university. To return to Vietnam this time to organize the “Hoang Sa Feelings” photo exhibition, he had to borrow $10,000 and lose his current job. "After this trip, I will work hard to pay debts and to accumulate money to return to Vietnam to realize my other plans," he said. Murayama and his wife argued with each other a lot before the trip. The wife at home worried for his safety, especially as the couple has not had any children yet. Financial issues were also a concern. "I have spent all of my income for cameras and my trips to Vietnam. My wife borrowed money for me to hold the photo exhibition," he said.  Murayama on the boat to Hoang Sa in July 2014. Photo: nvcc. The wife could not stop Murayama from going to Vietnam. "We have been married for seven years but my love for Vietnam has gone through 16 years. My affection for Vietnam is so big that it made my wife cry out of jealousy," the freelance journalist said. Murayama was in Vietnam during the time China deployed its illegal drilling rig in Vietnam’s waters. He spent two weeks in Hanoi, Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City to interview many people of all classes, from officials to fishermen, students, and naval soldiers. According to him, this was a way to show his sympathy with the people of Vietnam in difficult times. "I was lucky to capture those precious moments and I admire the solidarity and efforts to overcome difficulties," he said. Wishing to do something meaningful while waiting for the trip to Hoang Sa, the idea of holding a photo exhibition about Vietnam occurred to him. The exhibition was scheduled to open on July 20 but Murayama was invited to participate in the journey to Hoang Sa so he canceled the exhibition. On July 14, he joined 30 Vietnamese and foreign reporters in a trip to Hoang Sa Archipelago. The Japanese journalist believed that the photos he shot in Hoang Sa would make his exhibition more lively. Murayama cannot swim so the most valuable item on every boat trip is a life jacket. On the ship to Hoang Sa, he had the idea of asking others to sign his life jacket. Reporters from many countries and soldier were very glad to sign the life jacket. According to Murayama, this small act demonstrated the consensus and unity of the world towards a common goal of conveying the message from the East Sea. The life jacket with the signatures of nearly 60 soldiers, Vietnamese and foreign reporters has become his treasure. During the voyage, the Japanese journalist captured moments of Vietnamese soldiers. The trip took place on the stormy day, when the ship was about 25 km from the disputed area. Murayama felt lucky to be on the ship to witness the Hoang Sa hotspot. "China pulled its oil rig out of Vietnam’s waters but the incident can continue. I want to join hands with international friends to convey the message about Vietnam’s sovereignty over Hoang Sa," he said, describing why he wanted to hold the photo exhibition on Hoang Sa.  Murayama signed to protest China’s illegal oil rig in the territory of Vietnam. Photo: nvcc According to him, as a Japanese citizen and a third party, his voice is objective. "I wish the Japanese people and the world know about the wrongdoing of China". Nearly 30 photographs in the exhibition are 30 stories about Vietnamese fishermen, naval soldiers, students and officials related to China’s illegal oil rig in Vietnam’s waters. The message that Murayama wished to send through the exhibition is the truth about Hoang Sa. "Hoang Sa is really nice and Vietnam cannot lose these beautiful waters," he said. The Japanese photographer had contacted many places to display his photographs but failed because of the high costs. Impressed by the sincerity of the Japanese friend for Vietnam, Le Phong, a student of the HCM City Television and Broadcasting College, told his rector - Mr. Kim Ngoc Anh - about Murayama’s story. The rector saw photos by Murayama and welcomed this idea. "Mr. Murayama Yasufumi is a Japanese citizen but he devotes his heart to Vietnam, to justice. I really respect what he has done and strongly believe that the exhibition would urge patriotism among students," Mr. Ngoc Anh said. Dao Thuy Linh, a student of the Japanese Language Faculty of the HCM City University of Pedagogy, voluntarily helped Murayama in translation and interpretation. Linh said: "I deeply admire the work that he is doing for Vietnam". In early August, Murayama will hold the “Hoang Sa Feelings” exhibition at the University of Osaka (Japan). Some photos by Murayama:
Source: VNE/VNN Translated byT. Van |
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Article 8
Vietnam-UK trade gathering steamTrade turnover between Vietnamese exports to the Major imports of Vietnam included turbine, machinery and equipment (24%), pharmaceutical products (11%), mobile phone accessories & recording equipment (9%), chemicals (7.5%), healthcare equipment (6%), plastic products (5%), iron and steel (4%), cattle feed (4%), molluscs and aquatic invertebrates (3%), and ink, dyes, detergents, and paint (2.5%).
Vietnamese Trade Counsellor Nguyen Thi Hong Thuy noted though trade ties between the two countries are enjoying fruitful development, Vietnamese enterprises are still confronted with a number of difficulties competing with Europe, A series of trade and investment promotional activities are being organised in the Thuy revealed that the However, differences in development levels and business culture are a big obstacle to increasing Vietnamese exports to the She pointed out the fact that most Vietnamese businesses are small and medium-sized in terms of financial and management capacity, finding it hard to market their products in the That’s why Vietnamese businesses need more time to carefully explore, penetrate and find a firm foothold in a well-organised distribution network in the |
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Article 7
Nguyen Dynasty's royal documents get heritage status
HA NOI (VNS) - Administrative documents signed by the Nguyen kings (1802-1945) have received the certificate of the Asia-Pacific Region's Memory of the World Programme. Stored at the National Archives Centre No 1, the documents have been accorded heritage status by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). The documents, numbering nearly 200,000 pages, include those on laws, decrees, edicts and instructions for resolving problems in various fields such as politics, military affairs, foreign affairs, economy, society and culture. Among these valuable documents are also those that affirm This is the fourth Vietnamese entry to be registered in UNESCO's Memory of the World Programme so far. The other three Vietnamese entries are the steles in Ha Noi's The documents are a valuable resource for studying history, culture and the feudal court's activities as well as |
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Article 6
80% of world’s computer chips will be made by Intel  Intel Products Vietnam CEO Sherry Boger (L) poses for a photograph with the Haswell CPU at a ceremony in Eighty percent of the semiconductor chips used in computers around the world at this time next year will be made by the Intel plant in The abilities of the Vietnamese employees to adapt Intel technologies are great and meet the expectations of the chipmaker, Sherry Boger, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on the sidelines of a ceremony to introduce the new made-in-Vietnam Haswell CPU processor in Ho Chi Minh City. This could be proven by the chip production of the Intel Products Vietnam plant, located at the Saigon Hi-Tech Park (SHTP) in District 9, over the years, she added. The error rate of the made-in-Vietnam chips is low and no customer has ever asked to return the products because they were defective, according to the CEO. This enables the company to be confident that 80 percent of the chips sold worldwide at this time next year will be labeled as “made in Vietnam,” Boger pressed. Intel Products Vietnam on Tuesday celebrated the production of the Haswell CPU, the fourth generation Intel® Core™ processor, which Boger said is good news to not only Intel but also the Southeast Asian country as it is fresh evidence of the Vietnamese workforce’s ability to acquire and integrate new knowledge and technology. Intel Products Vietnam has more than 1,000 local employees and it took them only two months to be certificated to produce the Haswell processors, which the CEO said is an unexpected success for such a new, hard-to-make product. The Vietnamese plant is making two of Intel’s flagship products, the SOC (system on a chip), used for tablets and smartphones, and the Haswell CPU, four years after the chip-making titan began its operations at the SHTP in 2010. It took the Intel factory in The CEO admitted that the localization rate of the Vietnamese plant is “not really high,” with only a few local enterprises qualified to be its equipment and parts suppliers. Boger said Intel always welcomes Vietnamese suppliers to join its production as it would save money and time because the chipmaker currently has to have its machinery repaired overseas. Intel targets an 80 percent localization rate in In 2010 only three Vietnamese firms could supply parts for the Intel plant, and the figure has risen to 16 after four years. “It’s a considerable growth and I believe it will continue to rise in the future,” Boger said. The In January 2006, Intel Corp first announced a USS$300 million plan to set up assembly and test facilities in The chipmaker has so far disbursed $450 million into its Vietnamese operations, nearly 50 percent of the registered capital, according to statistics obtained by Tuoi Tre. Tuoi Tre news |
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Article 5
BUSINESS IN BRIEF 31/7 Rice prices surge to one-year highs Rice prices in the Mekong Delta have soared to one-year highs after spiking by around VND400 per kilo in recent days. A trader in the region told the Daily that rice exporters in Dong Thap and An Giang provinces are buying IR50404 rice for VND7,500-7,600 a kilo and long-grain rice OM4218 and OM5451 for VND7,800-7,900, increasing VND400 against last week. Fresh paddy of the type IR50404 sold for VND5,000-5,100 a kilo over the weekend in An Giang Province and around VND4,950-5,000 elsewhere. Nguyen Thanh Phong, director of Van Loi 2 Company in On the other hand, specialist Nguyen Dinh Bich said rice prices would inch up slowly in the coming time as However, local rice exporters have offered higher prices in the international market due to the rising demand of importers and the limited supply on the home market. The export price of 5% broken rice ranges from US$450 to US$460 per ton and 25% broken rice is US$400-410 per ton, a rise of US$15-20 per ton against last week and a year-on-year increase of US$60 per ton. Meanwhile, Vietnamese jasmine rice is offered at US$605-615 a ton, an increase of US$10 versus last week. The Vietnam Food Association (VFA) said that in the first three weeks of July, its member enterprises delivered nearly 345,000 tons of rice to fetch US$150 million in revenue. In the year to July 22, the country had shipped 3.3 million tons of rice worth US$1.4 billion. Specifically, as of mid-July, Thailand topped the world’s rice export with 5.4 million tons, a surge of 57% year-on-year; while India shipped 4.8 million tons, a decline of 11.5% year-on-year and Vietnam 3.5 million tons, a drop of 11% against the same period. Casino prizes may now be paid in foreign currencies The Governor of the State Bank of Currently, casinos in Now lucky customers may have a few more options. In case players wish to receive their prize money in a foreign currency via transfer, it can be transferred either to the account of the player opened at a bank in Banks are required to keep careful records of all such transactions. The new regulation also stipulates that casinos keep bank accounts in foreign currencies to facilitate these transactions. Contractors start work on underground part of Metro Line No. 1 A consortium of Shimizu-Meade contractors has begun work on a 1.8-kilometer underground track from the City Opera House to Ba Son Shipyard in District 1, HCMC as part of Metro Line No. 1. This track belongs to package 1B, which Tuoi Tre newspaper said costs more than US$229 million. It is the second package of the 19.7-kilometer-long line to get off the ground. The line connects Ben Thanh Market in downtown HCMC and In August 2012, work began on the elevated part of Metro Line No. 1 stretching 17.1 kilometers from Ba Son Shipyard to Contractors commenced construction of the station in front of the City Opera House and are expected to complete it in March next year when Nguyen Hue Boulevard has already been upgraded, according to the HCMC Management Authority for Urban Railways. The 190-meter-long, 26-meter-wide station comprises a waiting lounge, ticketing booths, automated ticket scanning gates, restrooms and information corners on the first floor; metro tracks on the second and fourth floors; offices for staff, a disaster control center, engine and electricity management rooms, ventilators and sewage pump systems on the third floor. Escalators will be installed for passengers to move up and down the station while lifts will serve the disabled, the elderly and passengers with infants. There will be also a direction guidance system for the blind. After the construction of the Opera House station, the contractors will build two pairs of underground tracks linking the station and Ba Son Shipyard. As scheduled, the underground track will be completed within 56 months of construction. A revised Enterprise Law will motivate enterprises and create a transparent business climate, policy-makers and economists have affirmed. This was debated in At the workshop, delegates focused on the shortcomings of the Enterprises Law 2005, and outlined proposals and petitions for its revision to make it more transparent and fair for businesses and people. Lawyer Vu Xuan Tien said there is a need to revise and supplement some contents of the revised Enterprise Law to create conditions favourable to enterprises and people who are interested in doing business. Specifically, inspections should be conducted on businesses a year after getting the certificate of business registration. Tien said that State-owned enterprises should not be permitted to get directly involved in advising and making policies or in controlling and regulating the market, and performing other management tasks, so as to prevent monopoly. This is damaging the interests of other businesses, as is the case at present. Luong Minh Huan, of the Institute for Business Development, attributed the dissolution or temporary halt in production of a large number of businesses to poor inspection after registration and limited support conditions. Huan said, compared with regional countries, He added that apart from simplifying the business procedures and making transparent business policies, relevant bodies needed to enhance inspections after registration and supervise business performances. Pham Thi Thu Hang, VCCI General Secretary, said after eight years of implementation, the Enterprise Law 2005 still reveals deficiencies and limitations that needed revamping if the quality of business has to be improved. In the last three years, the number of businesses that have shut down or dissolved remained high. As of the first quarter this year, of the 790,000 newly-registered businesses, more than 296,000 businesses were dissolved or had stopped production. The problem mentioned above has forced relevant bodies to reconsider the existing business conditions to see whether the Enterprise Law facilitated business or not, Hang said. HCM City to host livestock, feed expo in October At the three-day show at the Sai Gon Exhibition and Convention Centre in District 7, visitors will be able to establish contact with major industry players, get hands-on advice, and see the latest technologies and products. They will also have the chance to learn about the livestock and feed business through conferences on urgent issues facing the sector. Hoang Kim Giao, director general of the Department of Livestock Production, said his agency has been working with the expo since its inaugural year in 2004. "Widely recorgnised as Vietnam's premier feed, livestock, and meat industry event, the 7th VietStock will be much more comprehensive and professional not only in terms of size and scale but also because of the latest technologies that will be introduced at the show and the gathering of big corporations, companies, experts, and farmers from across the region." This year's theme is "restructuring the livestock industry for sustainable development." VietStock is expected to attract 250 companies from over 30 countries and territories. Truong Hai Auto posts huge profit Truong Hai Auto Corporation reported a huge net profit of VND1.245 trillion (US$59 million) in the first half of this year. This is even higher than last year's profit of nearly VND1.140 trillion ($54 million). In the second quarter alone, Truong Hai Auto earned a pre-tax profit of VND743 billion ($35.2 million). After six months, the company has completed more than 67 per cent of its yearly profit target, according to a report on the Tri Thuc Tre website. Recovery of the auto market helped boost sales. According to a report by the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers' Association, sales by members reached 54,986 vehicles in the first six months of the year, an increase of 27 per cent year-on-year. Truong Hai Auto led the market with sales of 17,851 vehicles, a year-on-year rise of 40 per cent, which accounted for 32.5 per cent of the market shares. It even outperformed Despite huge profits, annual corporate income tax filed by the company is very low and has not exceeded VND40 billion ($2 million) a year since 2009. Most of the company's production and assembly is performed at the Chu Lai Economic Zone where it enjoys preferential investment policies on corporate income tax, personal income tax and import tariffs. Ending June this year, it paid VND807 billion ($38 million) in taxes payable to the State Budget. The corporation, The corporation has a plan of debuting shares on the stock exchange, but it has been delayed for several years. Pork prices rise to ensure farmers make a profit The Department of Finance has allowed companies under the market stability programme 2014 to raise prices by 5 per cent for five pork products from July 23. The action was taken due to an increase by 10 per cent in input prices. It complies with the price adjustment policy. The prices will be kept stabilised until May 31 next year. They include VND96,000-kg for thigh and VND87,000-kg for shoulder. Farmers should make profits with these prices and be motivated to improve their business after a long period of loss, said the chairman of Dong Nai Breeding Association, Nguyen Tri Cong. There are a number of business fields in HCMC where South Korean companies from Busan City can invest, HCMC vice chairman Tat Thanh Cang said at a meeting with Busan vice mayor Kim Jong-hae last week. Busan investors can explore opportunities in supporting industries, public transportation, biotechnology, high-technology healthcare, metro development and other fields where the Korean city is strong. Cang said the two cities have posted achievements in economic, cultural, voluntary healthcare and sport cooperation in the past 20 years of their relations. Kim expected both cities will organize many more investment, trade and tourism programs in the upcoming time. VND30-trillion urban area to go up at Saigon Tan Lien Phat Company under Vingroup Joint Stock Company (Vingroup) has broken ground for a multi-functional urban area called Vinhomes Tan Cang at a total cost of VND30 trillion at the Saigon Newport site in HCMC’s Binh Thanh District. High-class villas, schools and a Vinmec international general hospital of the project covering nearly 43 hectares are expected to go into operation next year. The entire complex including the 81-storey Landmark tower will be inaugurated in 2017. Vingroup boasted that the Landmark skyscraper comprising serviced apartments and offices for lease will be the highest building in In February this year, the HCMC government approved a detailed scale-1/500 zoning plan for the project incorporating cultural and entertainment facilities and a multi-functional urban area able to accommodate 16,000 residents. Saigon Newport Corporation has informed shipping lines and customers of a road map to halt a number of services to facilitate construction of the modern complex. The company has stopped taking empty containers at the terminal since the beginning of this month and will stop all the warehousing services from next May. Vingroup was chosen by Saigon Newport Corporation as the developer of the urban complex overlooking Vingroup said at the ground-breaking ceremony last Saturday that the Vinhomes Tan Cang multi-functional complex will have a construction ratio of 23% of the total area, 13.8 hectares for greenery, areas for luxury apartments and villas, offices for lease, serviced apartments, shops and other facilities. Vingroup will also open a 40,000-square-meter Vincom center in the new urban complex to meet the needs of residents and visitors for shopping and entertainment. There will be department store, food court, supermarket, swimming pool, cinema, and an indoor skating rink, among others. Vingroup said residents of Vinhomes Tan Cang will be given free management service for 10 years plus complementary services for swimming pool, repair and household services, and property lease. For better implementation of ODA programs, projects PM Nguyen Tan Dung has approved an Action Plan to improve the implementation of programs/projects using official development assistance and preferential capital between 2014 and 2015. The Plan covers six main tasks: Composition of strategies and policies on the ODA and preferential capital, completion of the legal framework and mechanism on the ODA and preferential capital, improvement of the quality of programs/projects and progress of signing international treaties, enhancement of management capacity of organizations in charge of project implementation as well as responsibility of all levels in dealing with difficulties and obstacles, strengthening transparency and anti-corruption and supervision and evaluation, and acceleration of supervision and evaluation. The Ministry of Planning and Investment is responsible for developing orientations for luring, managing and using ODA and preferential capital in the phase from 2016-2020. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will design the PM’s draft Decision on acceleration of signing and realizing international treaties on the ODA by the first quarter of 2015. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment is in charged of regulations on site clearance, compensation, resettlement applicable to programs/projects using ODA and preferential loans. The Ho Chi Minh City local government has mapped out a plan to boost budget collections for 2015, with domestic revenues targeted to rise 14 -16 percent and earnings from export and import to increase 6-8 percent, the Saigon Times Daily reported on July 30. The target was pointed out in the city’s budget plan for 2015 issued by the In 2014, the total revenue of The total revenue this year to date has amounted to 148.5 trillion VND, or 14.3 percent higher than the same period last year. Domestic sources generated 81.89 trillion VND and export-import tax collections contributed 48.5 trillion VND, rising 17.2 percent and 15.8 percent compared to 2013, respectively. According to the HCM City Department of Finance, the increasing amount of tax collections is attributed to greater efforts to attract foreign investment, high consumption of consumer goods, cars, and oil and gas revenues. Other sources such as personal income tax, registration charges and land use fees are also higher. Besides, the recovery of many manufacturing firms had positive impacts on the city’s revenues. Speaking at a conference in June on the city’s socio-economic performance in this year’s first half, Chairman of the HCM City People’s Committee Le Hoang Quan expected the local economic recovery since 2013 will continue to gain tempo in the coming years. Fifth fishing union set up in Binh Thuan province The Binh Tan Fishing Union, the fifth of its kind in the central coastal The union gathers 150 fishermen working on 15 vessels so that they can help one another in case of natural disasters and other problems arising at sea. At the launching ceremony, representatives from businesses and organisations presented gifts in the form of ship and life insurance as well as equipment worth nearly 1.2 billion VND (57,142 USD) in total to members of the new union. Binh Thuan has one of the largest fishing fleets in the country with more than 7,000 high capacity vessels and over 50,000 fishermen, who catch some 180,000 tonnes of seafood every year. Five fishing unions have been set up so far in the province with 69 ships and 750 members. Besides the newly-established Binh Tan union, the other four are operating in Phan Thiet, Tuy Phong and Phu Quy island district. German businesses positive on VN’s economic outlook: survey German businesses overall are positive on the economic outlook in German companies have high expectations for sales, production, workforce demand and capital expenditures in 2015. Around 50 percent of those in Meanwhile, 60 percent of them intend to increase their workforce in 2015 and keep their capital expenditure high. The survey was conducted amongst German companies in May 2014. The respondents in The questions focused on business confidence, growth expectations, investments, and company indicators comparing the current situation with the past year and forecasts for the year ahead. Respondents were also asked on their views of the current overall economy. Dong Nai: footwear export fetches over 1.1 billion USD The southern According to Director of the provincial Department of Industry and Trade Le Van Danh, in July alone, the export of this product brought about 167 million USD to the province, up 16.4 percent over the previous month and 5.1 percent compared to a year earlier. He said that growth was seen in almost all markets, led by the Local businesses attributed the growth to the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) that the European Union has granted to In addition, abundant human resources and product quality also helped the locality attract orders from many giants such as Nike, Adidas and Puma. Vietnamese encouraged to use internet banking services Vietnam is a potential market for internet banking services, as there is only 22 percent of its population that possesses bank accounts, said the Vietnam Business Forum Magazine (VBF). According to statistics released by the State Bank of Vietnam, over 20 banks in Vietnam are offering services like paying electricity bill, telecommunication bill, taxes on behalf of enterprises and individuals so that they can save time and costs. According to Vietnam Banks Association (VNBA), by the end of 2013, the number of internet-banking users increased 45 percent compared to that of 3 years ago. About 90 percent of banks are offering internet banking services and half of them are providing mobile banking service. The number of enterprises paying through internet has sharply increased for the last years. EVN plans to discount electricity bills for any person paying bills electronically 5 days before due time to encourage individuals and enterprises using the service. At the beginning of 2014, General Department of Taxation informed that there were 366,000 enterprises declaring taxes via internet. They have cooperated with banks to offer service of paying taxes electronically to 15,000 enterprises by the end of this year. Besides electricity and tax payments, many enterprises in other fields accept transactions through internet banking. Remarkably, there are projects of collecting and managing tuition through “SSC school card” and E-Banking service of Ho Chi Minh City Education and Training Department. Seeing great potentials of the market, many large banks like Vietcombank, Techcombank, VPBank, ACB, Tienphongbank, etc have diversified their services. VPBank has concentrated on developing internet banking since 2009 and chosen it as their major business. The bank has completed a range of functions for “VPBank online” service, coordinated with enterprises in fields of electricity, water, insurances, aviation, consumption, etc. At the same time, it has also developed high class facilities like giving deposits online to enjoy attractive interest rates, collecting iCash to obtain gifts. VPBank has also participated into a system of the first 9 banks to provide inter-bank super-express money transferring of Smartlink, helping customers transfer money intermediately 24/7 with high limit and at low costs. For enterprises alone, VPBank has signed with Vietnam Customs, Vietnam Treasury, and General Department of Taxation to implement services of collecting money for the State Budget, guaranteeing taxes for import – export goods electronically.- Measures discussed to develop tuna value chain The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) recenty held a workshop on how to develop tuna value chain in the central coast province of Khanh Hoa as the ministry said the whole chain of tuna production would increase added value of the products and improve the living standards of fishermen, according to the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Online Newspaper. Tuna was sold to freezer factories at 73,000 VND per kilogramme in the Phu Yen province while tuna processed as Sashimi had been exported to Fishermen often do not pay attention to investing in processing technology because they can easily sell their tuna by total weight to local buyers without strict regulations related to quality control, health/sanitary guarantees as required in the overseas markets. Creating whole chain of fish production is a matter of concern in "The value chain can’t be cut off. It must be managed by the MARD and provincial people’s committees so that it can operate smoothly,” said Vu Dinh Dap, Chairman of Vietnam Tuna Association. The country now has more than 3,500 tuna fishing ships with 35,000 labourers. According to Minister of MARD Cao Duc Phat, in order to benefit from the value chain, Minister Phat said by providing fishermen with better equipment and technology would help them improve their living standards. To produce tuna in the value chain, the development of a modern fishing fleet, combined with marketing strategy and the construction of logistic fisheries services should be implemented altogether, added Phat. Central Highlands to accelerate transport project progress The Steering Committee for the Central Highlands will closely supervise the construction of transport infrastructure across the region to keep up the progress of those projects in the second half of the year, the committee said at its quarterly meeting with the press on July 29. The Central Highlands region groups Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Dak Nong, and Lam Dong provinces. The committee will particularly focus on the construction of At the same time, the board will work with central and local authorities to realise annual socio-economic targets, raise the quality of poverty alleviation, and ensure defence and security. Coordination will also be improved in promoting education and vocational training and executing policies designed for ethnic minority groups, the meeting heard. During the first half of 2014, the region’s gross domestic product grew by 10.3 percent while increases were recorded in export turnover and collection for the State budget. Thirteen projects using Government bonds to build sections of Meanwhile, five traffic projects under the build-operate-transfer model are expected to be completed in 2015 and 2016. Six other projects funded by Government bonds will also become operational from now to 2016. Covering some 54,474 square kilometres, the Central Highlands has a population of nearly 5.3 million from 47 ethnic groups. About 1.6 million people are of ethnic minorities. A new report has shown that many enterprises are optimistic about Locally-owned Vietnam Report has conducted a survey of over 300 of “The figures show that most enterprises are confident in their performance and economic outlook. They are also expecting significant business recovery this year,” noted the survey. According to the results, priorities for this year included customer care (65.6 percent), human resources development (60.7 percent), upgrading technology (50.8 percent), local and overseas market expansion (45.9 percent), and research and development (41 percent). In late January, US-backed global management consulting firm Boston Consulting Group reported that the middle and affluent class in Tibor Novakm, country manager and chief representative of Hungarian-backed pharmaceutical firm Gedeon Richter’s representative office in “Vietnamese people are spending more on medicine and we are researching the market. If it meets our conditions, we might consider building a factory here,” he said. The Vietnamese pharmaceutical market was valued at 3.34 billion USD this year, up from 2.94 billion USD in 2012. Anuvat Chalermchai, brand director of In this year’s first quarter, SCG Vietnam earned revenue of 133 million USD, impressively up 76 percent on-year. This year SCG will market several new products and technologies in András Somos, CEO of Hungary’s consulting firm SKC-Consulting also told VIR he was quite upbeat about business opportunities for SKC in State budget and treasury misused and misallocated The Government Inspectorate has discovered several cases of malfeasance related to accounting and dispersal of the state budget and treasury. The agency has reached the conclusion after conducting an audit of the treasuries of many cities and provinces and transaction offices. A total of VND130.16 billion (USD6.12 million) was misappropriated from the state budget. The agency also found that in some cases the state treasury’s accounting showed large differences from the of expenses provable by receipts. Such discrepancies sometimes reached hundreds of billions of VND. Inspections also showed that a number of localities misallocated a total of an estimated VND78.6 billion (USD3.7 million) from the state treasure between 2010 and June 2012. Several cities and provinces have advanced funding for investment projects but have yet to allocate the funding. A total of 468 projects in 17 cities and provinces were not approved for advances by the Ministry of Finance but still received a combined VND1.176 trillion (USD55.36 million) from municipal and provincial governments. While 148 projects in 14 cities and provinces received advances totaling a combined VND328.1 billion (USD15.44 million) more than what the ministry had approved. Twelve cities and provinces got advances totaling VND2.46 trillion (USD115.81 million) and did not disburse the funds to the approved projects, but added it to their budgets. More investors to Phu Quoc island The Southern The island is now home to 194 projects covering an area of 8,530 ha, said Head of Office for Southwest Steering Committee Nguyen Thanh Hai. Phu Quoc is striving to create a favorable environment for investors by upgrading infrastructure, especially road system and water supply and disseminating its preferential investment policies. The island’s business environment has been given a big boost after it was connected to the national power grid earlier this year. Especially, after PM Nguyen Tan Dung agreed on the establishment of the Viet Nam-Singapore Industrial Park on the island, Kien Giang province has set up a advisory investment and development team for projects on the island. The locality said it will encourage Singaporean investors to invest in ecological tourism and high-tech industrial parks on the island. As early as in 2004, the PM already approved an overall plan for development of Raft of mega projects lay idle Many billion-dollar foreign-invested projects in In the north, the $2.25 billion Hai Duong 1,200MW thermal power plant project, invested in by Malaysia’s JAKS Resources Bhd, has seen little progress after three years of so-called construction. The Hai Duong People’s Committee spent nearly VND202.99 billion ($9.7 million) helping JAKS with site clearance and after numerous requests by the committee, the firm still owes VND9.2 billion ($430,000) which it has refused to pay. In the central coastal Meanwhile, the people’s committee of the southern province of Ken Giang is about to revoke the licence of Millennium Group’s (Hong Kong) $1.6 billion 520 hectare Bai Dai Resort project on Phu Quoc island due to very little progress after more than six years. Many projects by These are just a few examples of numerous large-scale FDI projects in Report awards promote transparency Most of listed companies in The most outstanding result over the past seven years of the annual contest had been the improved awareness of the need for transparency and determination to deliver credible reports among listed companies, Tam told this year’s awards ceremony last Saturday. The event honoured the best 50 annual reports out of nearly 700 entries from companies listed on HOSE and Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX). Among the winners, 38 companies are listed on HOSE and 12 on HNX. Vinamilk, the country’s biggest dairy company, came first with the highest score. It also secured the Best Corporate Governance prize, which was introduced this year for the first time. Bao Viet Holdings came second after securing the top prize in 2012 and 2013. The Sustainability Reporting Awards, also part of the competition, comprised of one first prize, one second prize and three consolation prizes. Bao Viet Holdings took the first, Vinamilk the second, while the three consolation prizes went to Hau Giang Pharmaceuticals (for completeness), Sacombank (for reliability) and Imexpharm Drugs Co. (for layout). The World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the British-based Association of Chartered Certified Accountants joined the judging of the sustainability reporting, selecting five of the 58 annual reports that included sustainable development issues. Tam, head of the organising committee and the selection board, said this year saw a narrowing in the quality between the top 50. “The weaknesses often seen in previous years have been clearly addressed. For example, business activities received deeper analysis, with reasons and solutions included. The contents included risk issues, with typical risks analysed in detail. Development strategies and plans and objectives were outlined,” she remarked. Dominic Scriven, CEO of Dragon Capital said “There’s still a long way to go before the annual reports reach international standards, but the programme and its communication campaigns and the winning entries will continue to create more milestones for the improvements in reporting quality, helping promote market transparency.” However, he claimed the annual reports by large provided Dragon Capital with roughly a third of the information the firm needed for its investment analyses. Therefore, in order to know more about the companies, the firm has to use other channels such as the media, partners and direct dialogue with the companies. ACCA member Nguyen Viet Thinh, consulting partner at PwC Vietnam and team leader for judging sustainable development reporting, said there had been greater attention to detail this year, and more information was provided on the parties involved, including employees, local communities and suppliers, marking a wider focus than seen in last year’s reports that only highlighted charitable and social activities. He added the competing companies used IFC reporting guidelines on sustainable development, and the Global Reporting Initiative’s guidelines on sustainable development reporting. Many reports mentioned the IFC and GRI criteria. “Some companies used G4 standards as references for the first time,” Thinh said. The Vietnam Annual Report Awards competition has been organised seven times by HOSE, VIR’s sister publication Dau Tu Chung Khoan and HNX, with Dragon Capital as the sole sponsor. The programme is technically supported by IFC, ACCA and independent experts. The eighth competition will kick off in early 2015. Tam, chief of the organising board, said integrity, transparency, professionalism and creativity would continue to be key benchmarks, while corporate governance and sustainable development would carry on their significance. The capitalization of The stock market is expected to become a major capital mobilization channel of the economy by 2020, Minister of Finance Dinh Tien Dung said at the ceremony held on Saturday to mark the 14th anniversary of the establishment of the Vietnamese stock market. The market is among the 10 best-performing markets in the world, Dung added. Meanwhile, the size of the local bond market is about 17 percent of the country’s GDP, he said. In the first six months of this year, there were more and more positive signals from the market as the average transaction value increased by 58 percent over the same period last year, he said. The finance minister also emphasized the need for further efforts from market participants so that the market will become a major capital mobilization channel for the economy in the next six years. This is not a simple task in the complex context of immediate and long-term prospects of the local economy, Dung stressed. On the occasion, Vu Bang, chairman of the State Securities Commission (SSC), said one of the most outstanding marks of the Vietnamese stock market’s development over the past 14 years is its increasing transparency which has enabled more local firms to meet international standards in doing business and publishing their financial status regularly. "The publishing of the financial statements of enterprises has become increasingly more professional. Especially, in the last two years, many businesses have paid more attention to building sustainable value chains besides their normal business activities,” Bang added. At the ceremony, 50 listed companies with the best annual reports were also honored, with Vietnam Dairy Products Joint Stock Co (Vinamilk) winning the first prize in the category. The stock exchanges of Recently, the SSC clinched deals on collaboration with securities and exchange commissions of 20 European countries to open the door for funds from the region participating in the market. Given that fact, foreign investors may head to In the meantime, the stock markets of According to Bloomberg data, the Vietnamese stock market took the lead in net foreign purchases worth over $50 million in December alone. The Thai and Indonesian markets were worth $1.3 billion and 476.32 million in net sales. For the whole 2013, foreign capital flows into Most of the stock markets in the region are classified as Emerging Market on the global financial map. New regulations allow cheaper strategic investor entry New regulations allowing state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to sell shares to strategic investors before or at the same time as their IPOs are expected to streamline their equitisation. Decree 59/2011 effective on September 5, 2011 and Decree 189/2013 effective on January 15, 2014 as well as documents issued by the Ministry of Finance (MoF) allow SOEs to sell shares to strategic investors before or at the same time as their IPOs. The price of shares is either negotiated or determined by an auction among strategic investors, but has to be equal to or higher than the initial price approved by authorities. The new regulations replaced Decree 109/2007/ND-CP on the equitisation of SEOs, which stipulated that strategic investors cannot pay below the average successful bidding price of the IPO for an SOE stake. SOEs hope the change will make it easier for them to find strategic investors that can help them increase their competitiveness. In its IPO scheduled for September 22, 2014, Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group is going to sell 120 million shares, or a 24 per cent stake, to strategic investors, deputy director Le Tien Truong said, adding that the firm will have at most three strategic investors, including one in finance and two in production and distribution. Meanwhile, flag carrier Vietnam Airlines hopes to sell a 20 per cent stake to strategic investors in its IPO scheduled for the end of 2014. The Vietnamese government has set a goal of equitising 432 SOEs in 2014 and 2015 as part of its economic reform for sustainable growth. Progress was poor in the first half of this year, reported the MoF. 100-storey hotel plot remains ground zero Kinh Bac Corporation’s $1 billion Diamond Rice Flower complex remains a dream as the land plot still lies empty years after receiving a licence. According to Kinh Bac’s report for second quarter this year, the company had poured VND119 billion ($5.6 million) investment into the site, the result unchanged since 2012. Located right next to the National Convention Centre, the site is considered one of the most lucrative land plots in new business district of Hanoi. Ten years ago, the area was mainly known for The Manor residential development, the National Convention Centre and the Big C supermarket. There was a race between Japanese and Korean investors to win a license for the land plot. Finally, a consortium comprised of the Japanese Riviera Corporation and CSK Finance won the site for a five-star hotel development. In order to secure the site, Japanese developers had to make a non-refundable deposit of $5.5 million with the city. The loser in the race for the site was Korean developers Keangnam Enterprise. As a consolation they received the site of their current 72-storey Meanwhile the Japanese after gaining the licence announced that they were not able to continue with the project only a year later and returned the site to the Hanoi People’s Committee. The withdrawal of Japanese developers opened up new competition among local developers. The winning bid would have to cover the Japanese firm’s deposit and provide $25 million to the city [equivalent to 10 per cent of the minimum investment capital], as proof of financial capacity. The new developer was also required to submit 100 per cent of the land leasing fee in one payment. Kinh Bac Corporation secured the land in 2010 and received the dossiers from Japanese developers. Kinh Bac hired famous London-based international architectural firm Foster and Partners to design the complex, and Diamond Rice Flower Hotel was born. The new complex would consist of a 100-storey building, an 80 storey building and another 15 storey building. However there has been no movement since Kinh Bac took over the site. CBRE’s most recent reports have also added to gloom. The leading commercial property and real estate services adviser reports that due to massive over-supply of office property, 23 per cent of Grade A and 34 per cent of Grade B buildings remain vacant. CBRE expects that projects in the west of Source: VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR |
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Article 4
Social News 31/7 The David McCawley, Countrywide Consular Coordinator at the U.S. Consulate General in HCMC, offered the advice in a statement released on July 28. The visa system of the U.S. Department of State has run into technical problems, including outages since July 19, resulting in a backlog of visa applications worldwide. Though the Department of State has tried to fix the problems, the visa processing is still experiencing delays. The ability to print visas is restored and the department is prioritizing immigrant visas. Those planning to travel to the VNA makes emergency landing due to passenger’s health risk A Vietnam Airlines plane en route from Nguyen Thi Huong, fainted two hours before the flight’s expected arrival in After looking for voluntary medical assistance on board, the cabin crew decided to ask for permission to make an emergency landing at Representatives of VNA, cooperating with Afterwards, the flight continued its journey at 8:12 a.m. and arrived in Binh Loi railway bridge to break ground in October Construction of the Binh Loi railway bridge spanning the The Ministry of Transport has urged Transport Investment and Construction Consultant Joint Stock Company, the consultant of the project, to finalize a construction plan in the middle of next month in preparation for work to start on time. The consulting firm proposed five plans to upgrade the The remaining two plans are to construct a new bridge but the location of the existing Binh Trieu Railway Station will remain unchanged or be relocated. A source from the ministry told the Daily that most participants at a meeting in mid-July opted for Plan 2A as building a new Binh Loi railway bridge without relocation of the current Binh Trieu Railway Station matches a project to develop Trang Bom-Hoa Hung railway project and is in line with the zoning plan of HCMC. The 110-year The authorities of HCMC have called for the transport ministry to prioritize funding for the construction of a new railway bridge over the The Binh Loi railway bridge is the most important section of Trang Bom-Hoa Hung railway line connecting with the Saigon Railway Station in this economic hub of Warehouse fire causes $4.7m in damage A fire in a warehouse of a packaging company in the southern The 3,000-square metre warehouse was completely destroyed. It took fire fighters two hours to douse the fire. The case is under investigation. Train accident kills one in Nam Dinh One person died after being hit by a passenger train in the northern The accident occurred when the victim was crossing the track and did not see the oncoming train, according to eyewitnesses. The case is under investigation. The The centre was part of a co-operation project between the hospital and the Under the framework of the project, METI has provided a fund of US$1 million to equip the centre with advanced endoscopy facilities. The hospital staff will be sent to As the biggest hospital in the north, Bach Mai has treated over 1.4 million patients yearly, including 120,000 in-patients. Flood control exercise held in central Vietnam Authorities in The exercise was held in Chi Lang District with the participation of more than 1,000 officials and employees of the armed forces and medical teams from all localities of The exercise took place in the communes of Hai An, Hai Son and Hai Tan, which are often affected by strong storms due to their flat terrain and proximity to the sea. Teams practiced moving boats to the shelters, reinforcing homes, establishing underground shelters, evacuating buildings and giving first aid. Along the O Giang and O Lau rivers, a scenario was envisioned in which the water level rose, flooding residential areas. Colonel Nguyen Van Thanh, head of Military Command of Hai Lang District, said, "The exercise is meant to train our forces to deal with heavy storms. Citizens have also been taught basic skills to keep them safe should a natural disaster strike." HCM City youth launch volunteer campaign in Laos The Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union in Nearly 70 students from city universities, colleges registered to participate in the campaign with many volunteer activities such as providing free health check and medicines for poor people, helping households to repair houses, carrying out cultural exchange programs... The mission aims to tighten friendship, solidarity between At the launching ceremony of the campaign young volunteers offered flowers at the Statue of President Ho Chi Minh. City leaders encouraged the volunteers to complete their mission. The launching ceremony was attended by Head of the HCMC Party Committee’s Public Relations Nguyen Van Ranh, Deputy Consul General of The campaign is expected to last to August 9. In the related news, within the framework of the cultural exchange festival for children of three neighboring countries from July 28-31, a meeting between leaders of the city Party Committee, People’s Committee with children in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia was held at city's Youth Communist Union' headquarter yesterday. At the meeting, Deputy Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee Nguyen Thi Thu Ha said that the children had an opportunity not only to tighten international friendship, solidarity but also introduce the historical, cultural values of the three countries through the festival. Minimum wage not enough The current minimum wage meets barely 75 per cent of the minimum living standard, said Nguyen Tien Dang, head of the Salary Department under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA), at a labour conference in Ha Noi yesterday. Wage negotiation mechanisms remained limited, so many enterprises forced their staff to accept low pay, Dang said. Moreover, the separation of wages by region led to confusion for areas on the border between regions, making implementation difficult. The minimum wage currently ranges from VND1.9-2.7 million (over US$90-130). However, Dang said the National Salary Committee aimed to raise the minimum wage gradually until it met the minimum living standard of workers while remaining within enterprises' payment capacity. The authorities also supported the signing of collective labour agreements in some industries so that minimum wages for those industries could be set, a mechanism that has already been piloted by the textile and rubber industries. He also recommended that regulations dictating hourly and daily minimum wages be put in place to protect those engaging in part-time work. Mai Duc Thien, deputy director of MoLISA's Legal Department, reminded participants that the Labour Code already set out basic minimum wage regulations. Specifically, the code stipulated that minimum wage negotiations must include representatives of the Government as well as employers and employees and that wages should be sufficient to meet the minimum living standard. State officials said that a Law on Minimum Wage would be added to the law development agenda of the National Assembly in 2016. Doctors urge adult cancer checks Local and international medical officials in From 2007 to 2011, hospitals and wards specialising in oncology treated 33,126 cancer cases, according to a study conducted by doctors at the In males, the five leading cancers in Speaking at a workshop held last Saturday by the Sreening programmes for cancers of the breast, liver, cervix uteri, colon and rectum are regularly carried out at hospitals worldwide, she said. Women who get the vaccine against human papillomavirus, which causes cervical cancer, should continue to be screened because the vaccine does not protect against all kinds of human papillomavirus, she said. Females aged 9 to 26 are eligible for the vaccine. Three shots within six months should be done. Dr Esther Chuwa, breast surgeon at With better screening and diagnostic tests as well as combination therapy, the survival rate of first-stage breast cancer has increased, according to a study of 130 patients from January 2008 to December 2009 conducted by doctors of the The assessment showed that there was no difference in the quality of life between disease-free breast cancer survivors and healthy women of the same age. At least 150,000 new diagnoses of cancer are made each year in the country, and 75,000 people who have cancer die annually, according to the Ha Noi Cancer Association. The GLOBOCAN 2012, an annual report written by the International Agency for Research on Cancer of the World Health Organisation, showed that globally there were an estimated 14.1 million new cancer cases and 8.2 million fatalities caused by cancers in 2012. The number increased from 12.7 million new cancer cases and 7.6 million cancer-related mortalities in 2008. Hospitals under scrutiny The Ha Noi Department of Health will conduct consecutive inspections at five district-level hospitals across the city this week after the city-based Thuong Tin hospital was caught using a medical machine without documents to prove its origin. The move followed an inspection on Sunday by inspectors and officials from the municipal Department of Health, Department of Environmental Police and Thuong Tin District Police found that an automated biochemical analyser had been borrowed from an outside company. The hospital borrowed the The hospital's laboratory has three biochemal analysers, including one that is broken, a Greiner GA240 installed by the Department of Health, and the borrowed The laboratory conducted an average of 150 to 200 tests per day. The The The Department of Health fined the hospital VND30 million (US$1,450) and ordered the machine be destroyed. Thuong Tin hospital not only borrowed the machine but also purchased VND1.2 billion (US$57,700) worth of analysing chemicals from Phu Cuong An company. Department of Health Director Nguyen Khac Hien said the hospital might have deliberately hidden its broken machine from the Department to hire another one and shared the commission from chemical purchases. "We will have a meeting this week to clarify the responsibilities of the hospital's leaders," he said. Another biochemical analyser in the laboratory, a German-made Greiner GA240 was given to the hospital by the Department of Health. It was found to have three cooling fans and five motors made in The machine only provides 38 test results in two-and-a-half hours while it is expected to handle 180 in one hour. "The appearances of third-country labels does not mean that the quality of the machine is lower. All of the sub-parts produced in the third country still have to meet German standards. Our machines have proper documents to prove their origins," said the Mineral Import and Export Joint Stock Co. CEO Tran Thi Lan Anh. The company was given the biochemical analysers in bidding package number four of the Department of Health to advance the medical equipment at district-level hospitals. The VND30 billion (US$1.45 million) package provided equipment for district-level hospitals including Son Tay, Van Dinh, Quoc Oai, Chuong My, Hoai Duc, Thanh Oai, My Duc, Thach That, Phu Xuyen and Thuong Tin. Intel markets first ‘Made-in-Vietnam’ CPU Haswell Intel Products Vietnam on July 29 launched its first CPU Haswell manufactured at HCM City-based assembly and testing plant. The plant is not only the first semiconductor facility in Intel announced the release of CPU Haswell made in Sherry Boger, General Manager of Intel Products Vietnam, said the Haswell debut was an event of great significance for Intel, and the Intel Products Vietnam was initially designed to manufacture chipsets for laptops and mobile devices. It later launched Atom SoC (System on a Chip) in late 2013 and now CPU Haswell. US, Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange meet Representatives of the second and third generations of Agent Orange (AO) victims from They discussed experience in raising public awareness of AO/dioxin and calling for more support for victims. The Chairman of the Vietnam Association for Victims of AO/Dioxin (VAVA), Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Rinh, said he hopes representatives of the second and third generations in the two countries will become a bridge connecting victims and international organisations. The head of the She hoped that the two sides will continue linking victims to fight against chemical warfare. The About 80 million litres of herbicides, mainly AO containing dioxin, were sprayed over Nearly 4.8 million Vietnamese people were exposed to dioxin and about three million suffer from health problems today. Vietnam-Japan digestive endoscopy centre inaugurated A According to Associate Professor Nguyen Quoc Anh, Director of Bach Mai Hospital, Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry provided an US$1million endoscopy equipment for the centre. The hospital’s doctors have been sent to On the occasion, a symposium on digestion was held for Japanese experts and Vietnamese doctors to share experience. As the biggest hospital in the north, Bach Mai receives and treats over 1.3 million outpatients and 120,000 inpatients per year. Conference looks at gender-based wage gap The wage gap between female and male workers attracted attention of participants at a conference held in According to a joint survey by the MOLISA and the AECID on discrimination in wage and income of labourers in the 2006-2012 period, women workers were paid just 83 percent of what their men counterparts received on an average basis. In 2012, the monthly wage of women averaged 3.2 million VND compared to 3.855 million VND for men. In almost all economic sectors, the average monthly wage of women workers was lower than that of men workers, except for the private sector, said the study. The greatest gap was recorded in the foreign-invested sector in which women workers’ wage was only half of men workers’. Participants at the conference were of the view that social traditions and prejudice against women have hindered women from accessing education opportunities and employment choices as well as skill improvement. In addition, social preconception has led to the thinking that working productivity of women is lower than that of men, resulting in the discrimination in payment, they said. They also called on ministries and sectors to promote women’s access to education as well as create favourable conditions for them to pursuit higher education and professional training, in order to increase their income. At the same time, ministries and sectors should apply more support policies to encourage women’s greater engagement in different economic sectors and advancement in their career, they suggested. The July 29 conference also looked at international labour standards on wage and income, the national legal framework on wage and income and key orientations in building a draft law on minimum wage in Measures taken to ensure safety for Vietnamese workers in Libya Nguyen Ngoc Quynh, head of the Vietnamese Overseas Workers Management Department under the Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs, said that since the situation in At present, all workers have been informed of the situation and evacuation plans if necessary. Those living near conflict areas are asked not to go out and provided with food and necessities. According to Quynh, there are about 1,750 Vietnamese workers in On July 29, Nguyen Duc Three years ago, more than 10,000 Vietnamese workers in Poor reproductive health education blamed for high abortion rate Poor education both in official channels and in family is a major cause of the rising teenage abortions, which now account for more than 20 percent of the total number of abortions in According to a survey conducted by the Centre for Creative Initiatives in Health and Population (CCIHP) at two junior high schools in Hanoi early this year, 60 percent of nearly 250 interviewed students said their parents did not make any discussions of gender and reproductive health matters with them within the past year, while 14 percent said their parents have never even mentioned the issues. Most of the parents hesitated or avoided questions from children about sexual matters, resulting in adolescent unintended pregnancies and abortions. A lack of gender knowledge also exposes young people to a high risk of sexual abuse and psychological disorders. At the same time, the Office said the number of abortions has been declining over the past decade. Intel’s contributions to Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee Le Thanh Hai has said that Intel Products Vietnam Co. Ltd’s effective investment has greatly contributed to the city’s socio-economic development, especially in training high-quality human resources. Meeting with Intel Products Vietnam General Manager Sherry Boger on July 29 on the occasion of the debut of the company’s first central processing unit (CPU) product in He proposed that Intel raise its investment in the Saigon Hi-tech Park, focusing on the field of research and development. For her part, Sherry Boger thanked the municipal authorities for creating favourable conditions for the company to turn out hi-tech products in In the next six months, Intel plans to have over 80 percent of its CPUs made in Earlier on the day, Intel Products Vietnam Co. Ltd, an affiliate of the US-based Intel Corporation, launched its first central processing unit (CPU) product manufactured at the Saigon Hi-tech Park. The company had invested more than 450 million USD in this product, which uses the most sophisticated technology.- Source: VNN/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/ND |
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Article 3
Promoting agricultural exports to The Middle Eastern nation of Two-way trade turnover between According to the Vietnam Trade Office (VTO) in In the first six months of the year, Key market in Middle East The VTO in Vietnam Customs’ statistics reflect that agricultural exports to Major agricultural export products included seafood (US$42.4 million), coffee (US$25.9 million), cashew nuts (US$23.8 million), peppers (US$7.5 million), rice (US$5.9 million), rubber (US$3.2 million) and other products like vegetables and fruit, tea, cassava and sweet fennel (US$1 million).
With a population of more than 8 million people, Last year, The country is also the third largest importer of seafood (around 20%), rice (16%) and rubber (7%) and the fourth largest importer of pepper (8%). The VTO in Prospects for agricultural cooperation Once the political unrest and conflict in the region is dealt with effectively, The key to the prospects for enhanced cooperation with This provides a great opportunity for the two nations to cooperate in agriculture, and Experts are optimistic that In addition, the ministry has actively worked to expand export markets with Israel for agricultural and seafood products by reducing tax, opening market and removing trade barriers through negotiations on Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement and the Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement (VEFTA). It has also enhanced opportunities for finding potential partners and markets for businesses and updating them with protectionism, trade barriers and trade lawsuits of import markets. VOV |
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Article 2
Beaten American expat in  A still photo from the clip shows Dennis Marshall Gray attacked by Le Van Phuoc, 29. A video of an elderly American man being beaten on the streets of Da Nang went viral this week, prompting ward police to describe the scene as the culmination of a long string of fights picked by Dennis Marshall Gray, 68, a hot-headed trouble-maker. On Thursday morning, however, Gray told Thanh NienNews he considered himself the victim of an assault, poor police work and his own temper in more or less that order. "Don't forget, I was the victim this weekend" he wrote in an email. "The video certainly shows that." After the brief footage of his beating went viral online, thousands in His assailant, Le Van Phuoc, 29, told Thanh Khe police he attacked Gray after the American broke a woman's nose. Police say they'll clarify the violations committed on both sides and issue relevant fines to ensure public safety and punish violent behavior. He said, he said The story began when Gray hailed a taxi to take him from His driver, Nguyen Quy, told police that Gray sat in the front seat and stank of alcohol, but was able to direct him to his apartment. Gray said he'd had four glasses of wine. "I can say that I strongly smelled of alcohol, but was not drunk," he wrote. While waiting for a green light at a corner near his apartment, police said he began to argue with the driver, claiming that the fee displayed on the meter was VND 10,000 ($0.47) higher than his usual fare. "I asked to see the driver's credentials so I could note down his ID and noticed that the photo on the ID on the dashboard did not look like the driver," Gray wrote via email. "He would not give me a closer look. By that time I had lost my temper." As the argument grew heated, Gray admits he tore off a taxi insignia glued to the cab's windshield. Quy told police that when he tried to stop Gray from leaving the vehicle, he punched him in the face and fled down Ly Thai To Street. Quy said he followed, demanding payment. Gray insists he never intended to stiff his driver and claimed the violence began when Quy grabbed him. "I was carrying a large sum of money in my wallet, 10.000.000VND," Gray wrote. "The driver tried to restrain me by grabbing my right wrist. I then resisted and tried to go into the KFC shop so I could give him the money but, by that time, things had gotten out of control." Police say that Gray threw another punch, which Quy dodged. The errant blow reportedly broke the nose of a female bystander, Nguyen Cuu Thi Thuy Trang, who was later rushed to hospital with blood streaming down her face. Gray then allegedly let forth a kick that knocked Quy into the doorway of a nearby shop. Phuoc, shown in the video as wearing a striped T-shirt and black cap, claims he stepped in to try to diffuse the situation, but became angry when he saw Gray punch a woman in the face. At that point, he told police, he picked up an old bicycle tire from a sidewalk repair shop and decided to take Gray out. A bad temper Gray, for his part, claims he was overwhelmed by multiple attackers. "There was so much happening at once that I do not recall every detail," he wrote. "Most of what I know is what I have seen on the internet, which clearly shows me being assaulted." Phuoc's second blow sent Gray reeling toward the ground, where he bashed his head against the bumper of a parked car. Bystanders helped Gray up and he walked away. Police say they later escorted Gray to his apartment for his safety. Investigators later returned to question him about the case, but he refused to cooperate and allegedly let forth a string of invective. "I think the police here are pretty worthless," he wrote. "Whenever I call 113 to summon them no one answers the line. I wanted to be taken to a hospital they wanted me to go to a station." Local police in Thac Gian Ward reported that many residents of the apartment building have complained about Gray's behavior saying he routinely made loud noise and insulted his neighbors and the building's security guards. They further claimed that the American has refused to pay his cab fares on a number of occasions leading to altercations outside the building. On July 21 the ward police sent a written document to his building's management board, asking them to correct Gray's bad behavior. Gray says he never heard anything about this document, but admitted to having a short fuse. "I've always had a temper," he said. "Ever since I was a kid." The California-born tech entrepreneur said he spent the last 23 years in "I've been coming to In the summer of 2012, property records show, his house in a Gray said he headed to He seemed in high spirits over the telephone, but questioned the relevance of the account that has emerged of his life here. "I have never refused to pay a taxi driver though I have argued over fares," he wrote. "I always request a driver to take the route I want and often they drive everywhere just to increase the meter." The disagreements at his apartment all centered around his dog, which management allowed him to keep in the building but failed to notify the security staff. His inability to speak the language, he said, has only exacerbated the problem. "On one occasion, I took the dog to the 4th Level to walk him and another argument ensued," he wrote. "Someone, not a security guard, pushed me into the swimming pool. I insisted the police come but nothing was done about the person who assaulted me." The way forward Police say they're determined to resolve the issue and fine Phuoc and Gray for the violent altercation. However, their attempts to interview Gray about the incident failed again, on Thursday morning, when an investigator arrived at his house at 8 a.m.. "I shook hands with him," Gray said. "He was very nice." Gray said he would speak to police when a Vietnamese friend (with good English skills) can accompany him to the station. In the meantime, he's headed to "Someone compromised my identity," he said. "I think that's probably a crime." |
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Political News 31/7 Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh on July 30 had a telephone talk with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, during which they agreed on a number of measures to further forge the Vietnam-France strategic partnership. The two countries will increase delegation exchange of all levels, while expanding their cooperation in various areas of economics, defence, construction, energy, education and training, and culture, they concurred. The two sides also lauded the success of the Vietnamese Culture Year in He also proposed that Deputy PM Minh said he hopes the two countries will coordinate closely in organising the 21 st session of the United Nation Conference of the Parties on Climate Change scheduled for Paris in 2015. They also touched upon regional and international issues of mutual concern, including the Fabius expressed stance of supporting the settlement of Deputy PM applauds Vietnam-Hungary judicial cooperation Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc praised Vietnam-Hungary cooperation in judicial and administrative reforms at a July 30 reception for Hungarian ambassador Torda Eszter in At the meeting, Deputy PM Phuc highlighted the role played by the Hungarian Embassy in He suggested “ For her part, the Hungarian diplomat said she hopes the friendship and cooperation between She told her host that the two justice ministries have finalized the signing of cooperation agreements and mapped out working plans for 2014-2015. Torda Eszter also affirmed her nation’s readiness to share legislative and judicial experience with The National Defence Academy of Vietnam should work harder to further better its training mission, while making more proposals to the Party and State on military, denfence and security matters, National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung has urged. Speaking at the Academy Year-End Ceremony on July 30 in He praised the academy’s efforts in creatively renovating its training programme and curriculum, successfully fulfilling its mission of training key officials of the military force as well as the Party and State agencies. Chairman Hung made it clear that the country is facing many urgent and long-term challenges in defence and security, requiring the close combination between strategies of national construction and defence, as well as between economic development and defence. At the same time, it is necessary to promote defence diplomacy, while thoroughly grasping the foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, openness, diversification and multilateralisation of international relations, he said. Meanwhile, it is crucial to prevent war and secure long-term peace and security, while staying active in defence activities and settling all dispute issues based on international law, he added. According to Director of National Defence Academy, Lieutenant General Vo Tien Trung, currently, the academy has been offering training courses to 517 senior military officers and officials from central Party and State agencies. Justice Minister received by Lao leaders Lao Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong and Chairwoman of the Lao National Assembly Pany Zathotou received Vietnamese Minister of Justice Ha Hung Cuong in At the meeting, the Lao leaders praised For his part, Justice Minister Cuong thanked Lao leaders for their warm welcome and said he is pleased at the legal and judicial partnership between the two countries, which is growing in an effective and practical manner. He briefed his hosts on the major socio-economic issues in Cuong stated that the two sides agreed to beef up cooperation and create all possible conditions for local people in border provinces of the two countries to enjoy stable and prosperous lives, building a borderline of peace and development together. The minister also expressed his belief that the Lao NA will successfully perform its role as the Chair of the 35 th ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) slated for September this year. Both PM Thongsing Thammavong and NA Chairwoman Pany Zathotou pledged that the Lao Party, State and people will spare no efforts to join hands with President works with Public Security Ministry President Truong Tan Sang, also Head of the Party Steering Committee for Judicial Reform on July 30 worked with the Ministry of Public Security’s investigation agency on the investigation performance in the first half and devising tasks for the remaining months of this year. President Sang hailed the results of crime prevention from early this year, noting that transnational crime was a huge challenge for anti-crime forces and called for improved investigations to avoid unjust rulings. The independence of prosecution agencies and close cooperation among the relevant agencies were needed for crime prevention and control, Sang said, adding that improving investigation agencies is part of the judicial system reform strategy. At the meeting, participants also pointed out difficulties in anti-crime operations in the reviewed period: some legal documents were not suitable with the real situation; there were new and high-tech crime that caused great deal of difficulties in evaluating evidence and views between competent agencies; coordination in investigation and extradition of crime involving foreign elements remained limited. They also stressed the need to boost closer coordination between legal agencies to avoid prolonged or wrongly handled cases, improve investigators’ capacity investigator and revamp the legal system. Friendship organizations urged to reinforce peace and solidarity National Assembly (NA) Vice Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan emphasized the importance of promoting peace, solidarity, friendship and cooperation between the Vietnamese people and those in the region and the wider world. Kim Ngan made the remark at the first conference of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organizations (VUFO) Standing Conference for 2013-2018 term in She commended the VUFO and its member organizations’ practical activities as positive contributions to safeguarding the nation’s sacred sovereignty. Regarding his union’s tasks for the second half of this year, VUFO President Vu Xuan Hong said the focus will be on strengthening cooperation and cross-cultural exchange with neighboring and traditional countries and strategic partners, and calling on non-governmental organizations to provide more aid to localities and carrying out activities to protect the sovereignty and ensure regional peace, security and stability. According to the VUFO, many non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have pledged their continued support for Over the past six months, NGOs have disbursed roughly US$80 million for At the conference, delegates also reviewed the one-year performance of a PM Decision on VUFO member organizations’ operations. Party, State pledge to better care for revolutionary contributors The Party and State always pay much attention to bettering the living conditions of war invalids, martyrs’ families, and all revolutionary contributors, Politburo member and Vice Chairwoman of the National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan has said. Meeting with a delegation of revolutionary contributors visiting NA Deputy Chairwoman lauded Thua Thien-Hue local authority’s efforts in building and upgrading nearly 4,000 houses for revolutionary contributors over the last 6 years. The same day, Deputy Director of the General Department of Politics under the Defence Ministry, Lieutenant General Luong Cuong, also hosted a reception for the delegation. He reiterated the heroic tradition of locals in the province during the wars as well as in the process of national defence and construction over the last 66 years. Lieut.Gen. Cuong expressed hope to receive more State contributors’ advices on social policies to better caring for revolutionary contributors in the locality. Vietnam Defence Attaché to Cambodia Nguyen Anh Dung on July 30 handed over US$50,000 to the Royal Cambodian Army to fund The money is part of a total aid package of US$310,000 from the Vietnam Government for localities in Last year, the Vietnamese Government provided Since 2001, Vietnamese and Cambodian search teams have repatriated 287 sets of remains and they aim to complete the repatriation of 4,500 sets of remains by the end of 2020. Seminar highlights first victory of navy, air defence-air forces The first victory of the Navy and the Air Defence-Air Forces of the Vietnam People’s Army against US forces 50 years ago was the main focus of a scientific seminar held in the northern port city of In early August, 1964, the Fighting back, Vietnamese armed forces shot down eight aircraft and arrested the first Speeches by military officers, witnesses and scientists at the seminar highlighted the significance of the victory, hailing the sound leadership of the Party and late President Ho Chi Minh. They also drew lessons from the victory in terms of strategic guidance and ways to bring into play the united strength of the nation in safeguarding the country’s sovereignty. On July 29, construction began on a memorial to the navy’s first victory in Hoang Truong commune, Hoang Hoa district, central Thanh Hoa province, which used to be an important base of the force during the fight against the US’s destructive war. On August 5, 1964, a The National Assembly’s Committee for Legal Affairs held a workshop in At the function, Japanese experts discussed at length the division of power and duties between the central and local government and the organisation of local self-governed administration as well as the role of local government in their country. Opinions of the scholars will serve as reference for the building of the draft law on the organisation of local government in The law is expected to regulate a wide range of relating issues, such as defining administrative units, determining the organisation model for each administrative level, and specifying duties and power of local government at different levels. The draft law will be tabled for debate at the NA’s 8th session this October with the goal of to be voted into law at the May 2015 session. |
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Art & Entertainment News 31/7 Famous French chef to demonstrate skills in Vietnam Christian Le Squer, a 3-star Michelin Chef, will arrive in Chef Squer is scheduled to attend a number of culinary demonstrations aimed at promoting sturgeon – a rare fish species in On August 6, the French chef and Vietnamese singer Thanh Lam will visit Da Mi hydropower reservoir of the Vietnam Sturgeon Group and cook for guests at the Ana Mandara resort in Da Lat. He will also attend an opening ceremony of Icebar Dom Beluga Caviar in Nha Trang on August 8. Born in 1962, Christian Le Squer enjoys the status as one of He has worked at highly acclaimed restaurants in Berlinale Short Film Festival to debut in HCM City The Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) will screen ten winners of its short film category in The Berlindale shorts, all of which are a maximum of 30 minutes long, feature a comprehensive array of the cinematic world from realism to the surrealist. The highlight of the event is the critically acclaimed film Three Stones for Jean Gernet by German director Frieder Schlaich, which has won many awards and been screened at different film festivals. Berlinale, held annually in Vietnamese photographers win gold medals at int'l contest  Flooding Season in An Giang by Bui Quang Vu. Vietnamese photographers won three gold medals at the international photo competition Prilep Salon in The black-and-white photo Tuoi Tho Tren Dong Song (Childhood on the River) by photographer Duong Phu Tam won the gold medal in the Child category, while An Giang Mua Lu (Flooding Season in An Giang) by Bui Quang Vu and Dem Binh Yen (Peaceful Evening) by Nguyen Ngoc Thach won the gold medals in the Travel category. The photo Tren Dong Muoi (On the Salt Field) by Tran Thi Thu Dong won the bronze medal in the travel category. Nearly 600 photographers from 66 countries submitted their entries for the contest, which is patronised by FIAP. Online music video promotes unique xam melody A music video featuring xam (minstrel's singing) by Ha Thanh xam club has gone on-line, making the traditional singing art popular among youth. The singers perform xam sai, a melody to express their patriotism and their attitude to social issues. The rarely performed tune was originally performed by a shaman in his battle with an evil spirit. The video is the third version of xam sai melody recorded by artisan Vu Duc Sac and composer Thao Giang focusing on eliminating illiteracy and fighting corruption. Wearable art pieces at Lucy's Dream An exhibition showcasing clothes printed with unique hand-drawn and digitally manipulated designs by Vietnamese artists has been open at Lucy's Dream, The idea behind Lucy's Dream is turning art created by Vietnamese young artists into wearable pieces of clothing. It is the second occasion since the first exhibition in June when local artists were invited to join, focusing on two subjects of Greek Mythology and Typography. The results are comfortable and eye-catching, ready-to-wear silk clothes, printed with inimitable designs that have been hand-drawn and digitally manipulated by artist partners. The design and manufacturing processes at Lucy's Dream usually take between three and five weeks, from the first sketches by artists to digital designs, followed by fabric sourcing and pre-treatment. Thereafter, the fabric is sent for printing, post-printing treatment, cutting, and sewing. The exhibition will last until August 14. Fish Sauce, Ngot to feature at live debut On Saturday, two fresh bands will debut at CAMA ATK, Fish Sauce is the most sought-after band to make its presence felt in Ha Noi and impress audiences this summer. With a fresh blend of Vietnamese and Latin American artists, the band will present a night of original music composed by lead singer, Mai Khoi, whose song Fish Sauce also comprises Araceli ( Alongside the Fish Sauce, the audience will have the opportunity to enjoy the young Ngot, a university combo quartet. With sweet melody blends and indie folk harmonies, singer/guitarist Vu Dinh Trong Thang, bassist Ha Nguyen, guitarist Tuan Tran, and drummer Nam Anh will prove to the audience why they are already gathering a Beatles-esque following in Ha Noi. The show will commence at 8pm and the entry pass will cost VND80,000. Screening of French comedy film Vive la You are invited to the film screening of Vive la France directed by Michael Youn, which will take place at L'Espace, 24 Trang Tien Street, on August 8. The film revolves around an adventure of two terrorists, Muzafar and Feruz, who hijack a plane and attempt to crash it into the emblem of The 2013 movie will be presented in original French Language with Vietnamese subtitles. Tickets cost VND40,000 and VND20,000 (for L'Espace members and students). French comedies hit screens in August The The films include Asteris and Obelix: Au service de Sa Majeste (Asterix and Obelix: God Save Britannia), Paulette, Un jour mon pere viendra (One Day My Father Will Come), and Commone un Chef (The Chef). The animation film Les Contes de la nuit (Tales of the Night) features five fairy tales. All movies will be shown with Vietnamese subtitles. The movies are scheduled at 3pm every Saturday, at IDECAF, Female DJs to perform in city Leading DJ, American Colleen Shanno, and four international female artists will present a special music performance called "Electric Steam Punk" at Queen Hall on tomorrow. Shanno, who has worked with internationally acclaimed artists like Snoop Lion, Paul Oakenfold and Funkmaster Flex, will perform with Kelly Marie from the Vietnamese popular songstresses Ho Ngoc Ha, Trang Phap, Thu Thuy and Hoang Thuy Linh will join the show. The show will start from 8pm at Photo festival highlights Beautiful moments of people's lives are introduced at the 19th Central and Co-organised by the Vietnam Association of Photographic Artists (VAPA), the Binh Dinh provincial Literature and Arts Association, and the province’s Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the four-day festival features 150 works by 95 photographers from 10 provinces and cities in the region, namely Da Nang, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Binh Dinh, Phu Yen, Khanh Hoa, Gia Lai, Kon Tum, Dak Lak and Dak Nong. The works on display were selected from 1,417 colour and 189 black and white photos submitted to the contest, reflecting most aspects of people's lives in the region, in which the daily life on sea and islands was the main theme for photographers. The top prize – gold prize – was awarded to the photo ‘Determination to head to sea’ by artist Dang Van No from On the occasion, the VAPA also organised talks on artwork and a photo contest in Binh Dinh for photography lovers. Source: VNS/VOV/ND/SGT/VNN |
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Travel News 31/7 Fansipan-Sapa cable car to open in 2015 The world's longest three-rope cable car system, extending from the northern The project's investor SunGroup announced this at a recent meeting with the leaders of The construction of the cable car is being carried out in the first phase of the Fansipan Sapa tourism complex. The construction began on November 2, 2013 and is expected to be completed by National Day (September 2) in 2015. The cable car can carry a maximum of 2,000 passengers per hour, with each cabin accommodating 35 passengers. The cable car will transport passengers from the base of the 3,143-metre Fansipan mountain to its highest point within 15 to 20 minutes. Currently, it takes one to two days to trek to the top of the mountain. The Son Doong cave is considered an interesting destination for a 7-day tour with discovery of underground rivers, caves and camping activities. Mui Ne among most beautiful beaches in Asia Canadian Travellers, a Canadian travel guides magazine, has chosen Mui Ne as one of the top 11 most beautiful beaches in Mui Ne beach ranks second in the list, just trailing behind Ko Lipe - an island off the According to the magazine, Mui Ne beach is just a few hours’ drive from Coming to this beach, travellers have the chance to enjoy the daily life of fishermen of a humble fishing port in Mui Ne has many other attractive destinations such as Hon Rom, Hon Lao Cau and Bai Rang, as well as beaches in pristine condition and a healthy environment. Fiditour offers special tours during summer months Fifitour has just launched stimulus tours for its customers during the summer months. Accordingly, tourists register the inbound tours starting from July to end-August will receive low-cost tours as follow: Three day tour to Phu Quoc will cost VND 3,614,000; 3 day tour to Con Dao costs VND 1,770,000 and 3 day tour to Nha Trang will be VND 1,998,000. It is the same price for 3 day tour to Phan Thiet. Fiditour said it is offering special price for those traveling to the Beauty of Cu Lao Cham The islands in Tan Diep Commune in Hoi An have been recognised by UNESCO as a World Biosphere Reserve. They boast several relics from diverse and ancient cultures, such as Sa Huynh, Five years ago, Cu Lao Cham was still an emerging destination on This is a fishing town, with fresh fish to be found in the area markets, and the first impressions of visitors may be the warm smiles and hospitality of the locals. An express boat from Cua Dai to Cu Lao Cham Island takes about 40 minutes. Local residents of the island mainly live in Bai Lang, and earn a living by fishing. In recent few years, together with the increasing number of visitors, many souvenir shops and seafood restaurants have popped up. Local residents can also earn extra money from community-based tourism services, such as homestays. The development of tourism in Cu Lao Cham is relatively new, but the location still retains its appearance of untouched natural beauty and clear blue waters. While Bai Lang beach is bustling with visitors, Bai Ong, Bai Huong, Bai Chong and Bai Bac beaches remain relatively tranquil and are surrounded by lush mountains. Hai Tang Pagoda, built more than 400 years ago, adds to the town’s atmosphere. Burning a few sticks of incense and walking around the town may renew your senses and give you a bit of respite from the noise and fury of daily life. The Cu Lao Cham world natural biosphere reserve houses over 311 hectares of coral reefs which are home to around 300 species. Propitious conditions for Central Highlands to boost tourism The rich natural beauty, cultural diversity and favourable transport links make the Central Highlands an ideal site for tourism development. Regional connectivity, therefore, constitutes an effective measure to fully tap the sector’s potential for sustainable development, heard a workshop in Dak Nong province on July 24. Vice Chairwoman of the local People’s Committee Nguyen Thi Ngoc Le highlighted the ongoing culture and tourism week in the province as a key note of the 2014 National Tourism Year. Dak Nong is home to the cultural space of The Central Highlands comprises five provinces of Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Dak Nong and Lam Dong. The region is said a land of mysterious mountains and forests with a significant population of ethnic minorities whose varied customs and lifestyles are an anthropologist's delight. It is suggested combining tourism with the preservation of the region’s culture. Quang Ninh focuses on building sea, island tourism brand Endowed with beautiful beaches, islands, and favourable transport links, the northern coastal According to Tran Van Ngoan, an official of the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Ha Long Bay, twice recognised by UNESCO as a world natural heritage, is one of the must-see destinations whenever visitors come to QuangNinh as it boasts rich biodiversity along with great historical and cultural values. Covering a multitude of limestone islands and islets in various sizes and shapes, the bay was voted as one of the seven new wonders of the world in 2011, he said, adding that the annual Ha Long Carnival is also a magnet to local and foreign tourists. In addition to famous bays such as Ha Long and BaiTu Long, QuangNinh is home to many hot and mineral springs, cultural and historical relic sites, unique architectural works, traditional festivals and craft villages. The province also possesses a geographic position favourable for its marine tourism development as it is an international integration gateway of the northern key economic region as well as forms part of the “Two corridors, one economic belt” cooperation between Vietnam and China, and the Tonkin Gulf Economic Corridor. With the goal of successfully implementing the Vietnam Marine Strategy by 2020, QuangNinh has focused on building its sea and island tourism brand, especially honouring the value of Ha Long Bay, Ngoan said. It has also increased investment in developing primitive islands such as Co To and Van Don in order to offer new experiences to visitors. The province has planned to promote its green growth with a view to luring more domestic and foreign investors by forming a special economic zone with hi-end tourism services and international-standard trade and financial centres in Van Don island district. In 2013, the province served 7.5 million holidaymakers, a year-on-year rise of 7 percent, and earned US$235 million from tourism. It expects to welcome over 8.4 million tourists by the end of this year, including 3 million abroad. Vietnam’s national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines on July 29 launched its annual promotion programme on a number of international flights, with airfare starting from just VND199,000 (US$9). Golden Autumn 2014 will apply to passengers in The price excludes tax, fees and other surcharges. This is a conditional ticket and it does not apply to flights during the peak season. The tickets will be sold via the website: www.vietnamairlines.com or Vietnam Airlines agents from across the country. Int’l arrivals increase 4.6% in July The rebound has sent a good signal for the tourism industry following a decrease of nearly 20% in June and 9.6% in May. The July figure brought the total number of foreign arrivals in Among the total, 2.93 million went on holiday, 815,811 came to work, 836,388 visited their relatives, and the remainder came for other purposes. Key markets which saw considerable growth during the seven-month period included Hong Kong (up 111.3%), However, numbers of visitors from In 2014 Source: VNA/ND/SGT/SGGP |
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Article 10
Consumer confidence up in July
HA NOI (VNS) - The ANZ-Roy Morgan Viet Nam Consumer Confidence Index posted another strong gain, increasing by 3.1 points to reach 134.1 in July, to stand well above the 2014 average of 131. ANZ Bank economists announced this in a report dated July 30, adding that easing of political tensions appear to have contributed to the increase in confidence during the month. In terms of personal finances, 34 per cent (up 2 per cent) of the Vietnamese people say that their families are "better off" than a year ago, while 19 per cent (down 1 per cent) say that their families are "worse off". About 55 per cent (up 7 per cent) expect their families to be "better off" financially this time next year, compared to 6 per cent (down 2 per cent) who expect their families to be "worse off". As much as 61 per cent (up 4 per cent) of the Vietnamese people expect However, 47 per cent (down 2 per cent) expect the country will have "good times" financially during the next twelve months, while 15 per cent (down 1 per cent) expect "bad times". Thirty-seven per cent (down 1 per cent) of the Vietnamese people say now is a "good time to buy" major household items, compared to 17 per cent (up 3 per cent) who say it is a "bad time to buy". "We believe the economic backdrop will be one of sure-and-steady recovery, rather than a V-shaped rebound," said Glenn Maguire, the chief economist of ANZ in Asia-Pacific. Consumer confidence sitting above the 2014 average is aligned with "We would now assess confidence as being more likely to move sideways at elevated levels rather than continue to make strong gains," said Glenn. The ANZ Bank and Roy Morgan Research launched the monthly private consumer index for The consumer index jumped 7.7 points in June. - VNS |
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Article 9
Action plan aims to increase transparency in ODA use Nhat Tan bridge in Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has approved an action plan on improving the implementation of projects and programmes using official development assistance (ODA) and preferential loans in the 2014-15 period. Under the plan, the Ministry of Planning and Investment will be responsible for devising a project on attraction, management and use of ODA capital and preferential loans from 2016 to 2020. The ministry will review ongoing ODA-funded projects and programmes as well as consider those expected to use ODA and soft loans in order to ensure that they do not exceed the public and government debt ceiling approved by the National Assembly. These projects are expected to be submitted to the Government in the last quarter of 2015. The PM also assigned relevant ministries and sectors to perfect the legal system and mechanisms on ODA and preferential loans, while enhancing their capacity in managing and implementing projects. They have been asked to increase transparency, prevent corruption and enhance supervision and assessment work. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment will build a circular instructing site clearance process while relevant ministries will collaborate with donors to review all projects, programmes and bidding packages and then propose specific measures to ensure transparency in project management.-VNA |
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Article 8
Licences of 17 delayed projects to be revokedTAY NINH - Licences of nearly 17 investment projects at the Moc Bai Border Gate Economic Zone in southern
The management board of the provincial Economic Zone Management said that the 17 projects on construction of residential and industrial areas, trade centres and eco-tourism sites have not seen any work for years, even though licences were granted nearly ten years ago. None of the investors have made any commitment to begin construction on these projects in the future either, it said. The report of the management board showed that by the end of this month, there were 35 enterprises which had registered for 46 investment projects with a total land area of more than 2,000ha. The registered investment capital was more than US$557 million. However, the investors only managed to mobilise $135 million for 622ha. Worse, 17 key projects have not been carried out although investors had got extensions from the provincial authority. For example, the construction of industrial area No 1, which covered 103ha and was funded by Ngoc Oanh Investment Construction Trading Service JSC, was licensed since November, 2003, but no work had been done. The project on building an ecotourism site, which covered 600ha and was funded by Viet Nam Investment JSC, was delayed for years after it failed to give compensation for site clearance. Phan Minh Thanh, head of the management board said that the reason for the delays was capital shortage and failure to hand over land to investors. The inability of the contractors to tackle projects of this magnitude was another reason, he added. The management board would propose to the provincial authority to give an extension to these investors till the end of this year. If they failed, the authority would revoke their licences and hand over the project to other investors, he said. Previously, the provincial authority had revoked the licences of 22 investment project at the zone due to long-term delays. These investors had been asked to submit their project development plans.- VNS |
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Article 7
BUSINESS IN BRIEF 1/8 Positive outlook for German businesses in Vietnam A recent survey reveals that 70% of German businesses operating in The results of the survey, made public on July 29 by the German ASEAN Chamber Network (GACN), reflect the opinions of German invested businesses operating in –industry (48%), services (35%), business (9%), consultancy (6%) and auditing (3%). The survey shows that 50% of the respondents report overall improved success in the past year and this positive outlook is being translated into ongoing plans to invest and recruit. Over 60% of the businesses plan to expand their workforce over the next 12 months. However, 70% of the companies surveyed report they find it extremely burdensome to locate qualified engineers while 46% said it is essential for the country to develop a better skilled workforce. Most of the companies have provided continuing education and organised training courses for their staff and workers, with 70% believing that the German vocational training model is a good choice for A shortage of skilled workers was the number one obstacle reported in the survey followed by import barriers, corruption, inflation, and tax burden. The survey reaffirmed the importance of the huge lucrative retail market in Vietnam to German businesses and the importance of free trade agreements (FTAs) contributing to their optimism on the nation’s economic development. Consumer confidence up in July The ANZ-Roy Morgan Vietnam Consumer Confidence Index posted another strong gain, increasing by 3.1 points to reach 134.1 in July, to stand well above the 2014 average of 131. ANZ Bank economists announced this in a report dated July 30, adding that easing of political tensions appear to have contributed to the increase in confidence during the month. In terms of personal finances, 34% (up 2%) of the Vietnamese people say that their families are "better off" than a year ago, while 19% (down 1%) say that their families are "worse off". About 55% (up 7%) expect their families to be "better off" financially this time next year, compared to 6% (down 2%) who expect their families to be "worse off". As much as 61% (up 4%) of the Vietnamese people expect However, 47% (down 2%) expect the country will have "good times" financially during the next twelve months, while 15% (down 1%) expect "bad times". Thirty-seven percent (down 1%) of the Vietnamese people say now is a "good time to buy" major household items, compared to 17% (up 3%) who say it is a "bad time to buy". "We believe the economic backdrop will be one of sure-and-steady recovery, rather than a V-shaped rebound," said Glenn Maguire, the chief economist of ANZ in Asia-Pacific. Consumer confidence sitting above the 2014 average is aligned with "We would now assess confidence as being more likely to move sideways at elevated levels rather than continue to make strong gains," said Glenn. The ANZ Bank and Roy Morgan Research launched the monthly private consumer index for The consumer index jumped 7.7 points in June. Dong Nai cashew nut exports up in volume, value Southern Dong Nai province exported 3,000 tonnes of raw cashew nuts earning US$19.7 million in July, up 7.1% in volume and 11.9% in value on-year. The average price of raw cashew nut exports for the month hovered around US$6,588 per tonne, 6.2% higher than same period last year’s same period. In the first seven months of the year, the province exported a total of 15,200 tonnes of raw cashew nuts, grossing revenues of US$98.6 million, up 22.5% in volume and 30.6% in value. Key cashew nut export markets include the US (US$42 million), China (US$22 million), Canada (US$6 million), the UK (US$4 million), the Netherlands (US$4 million), Australia (US$4 million) and Thailand (US$2 million). Markets showing a decline included Advanced fisheries surveillance ship handed over The vessel – coded KN-782 – is 90.5m-long, 14m-wide and 7m-high and has been under construction since October 2012. It has a displacement of 2,500 tonnes and a maximum speed of 21 nautical miles per hour with a total capacity of 12,016 horse power. Speaking at the handover ceremony, vice chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Do Thong said the Party and State have paid special attention to ensuring the fisheries surveillance forces and coast guard are adequately armed to protect sea and islands’ sovereignty, implement rescue work and assist fishermen at sea. Nguyen Van Trung, deputy head of the Vietnam Fisheries Surveillance Department emphasised that the KN-782 ship helps instil confidence in fishermen that they will be adequately protected. The Ho Chi Minh City local government has mapped out a plan to boost budget collections for 2015, with domestic revenues targeted to rise 14 -16% and earnings from export and import to increase 6-8 percent, the Saigon Times Daily reported on July 30. The target was pointed out in the city’s budget plan for 2015 issued by the In 2014, the total revenue of The total revenue this year to date has amounted to VND148.5 trillion, or 14.3% higher than the same period last year. Domestic sources generated VND 81.89 trillion and export-import tax collections contributed VND48.5 trillion, rising 17.2% and 15.8 percent compared to 2013, respectively. According to the HCM City Department of Finance, the increasing amount of tax collections is attributed to greater efforts to attract foreign investment, high consumption of consumer goods, cars, and oil and gas revenues. Other sources such as personal income tax, registration charges and land use fees are also higher. Besides, the recovery of many manufacturing firms had positive impacts on the city’s revenues. Speaking at a conference in June on the city’s socio-economic performance in this year’s first half, Chairman of the HCM City People’s Committee Le Hoang Quan expected the local economic recovery since 2013 will continue to gain tempo in the coming years. Vietnam-UK trade gathering steam Trade turnover between Vietnamese exports to the Major imports of Vietnam included turbine, machinery and equipment (24%), pharmaceutical products (11%), mobile phone accessories & recording equipment (9%), chemicals (7.5%), healthcare equipment (6%), plastic products (5%), iron and steel (4%), cattle feed (4%), molluscs and aquatic invertebrates (3%), and ink, dyes, detergents, and paint (2.5%). Vietnamese Trade Counsellor Nguyen Thi Hong Thuy noted though trade ties between the two countries are enjoying fruitful development, Vietnamese enterprises are still confronted with a number of difficulties competing with Europe, A series of trade and investment promotional activities are being organised in the Thuy revealed that the However, differences in development levels and business culture are a big obstacle to increasing Vietnamese exports to the She pointed out the fact that most Vietnamese businesses are small and medium-sized in terms of financial and management capacity, finding it hard to market their products in the That’s why Vietnamese businesses need more time to carefully explore, penetrate and find a firm foothold in a well-organised distribution network in the Trade surplus tops $1.3b in first 7 months The country's trade surplus in the first 7 months of this year reached US$1.26 billion thanks to a good export performance, the General Statistics Office reported. The result was due to an improvement in export value which reached $83.5 billion in the first 7 months, up 14.1 per cent compared to the same period of last year. There were a number of high-valued export staples including marine products with an increase of 25.5 per cent to $4.23 billion, textile and garment industry with a rise of 19.4 per cent to $11.48 billion and phones and accessories manufacturing that showed a growth of 13.9 per cent to $13.15 billion. Crude oil export value also made up $4.61 billion, up by 5.8 per cent in volume and by 8.3 per cent in turnover. The GSO stated that the export turnover could reach a higher value if there was no reduction of export value in agricultural products. These included rice exports with 3.86 million tonnes worth $1.75 billion, down 8 per cent in volume and 4.7 per cent in value. A decrease in rubber exports also contributed to the situation with 454,000 tonnes worth $832 million, down 9.5 per cent in volume and 32 per cent in value. In the first seven months, the country's import value was $82.24 billion, up 11.4 per cent year-on-year. The GSO said that the country spent most for imports of raw materials for production such as cotton which increased by 35 per cent to 458,000 tonnes and 36.3 per cent in value to $919 million. The value of imported machines and spare parts increased by 24.4 per cent to $12.65 billion, and fabric import value reached to $5.5 billion, an increase of 16.7 per cent. The GSO said that Most of the imported products from Import value from Solutions proposed to develop support industries Support industries are the backbone of the country's industry, according to Truong Thanh Hoai, deputy director of the Heavy Industry Department of the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Further, support industries play a key role in raising the competitiveness of industrial products and are a decisive factor in the development and enhancement of the nation's competitiveness. Without having support industries, it would be impossible to operate manufacturing industries, Hoai said during a workshop to discuss solutions to develop support industries in Regarding developing solutions for support industries in Thu emphasized that investment in technology required large amounts of capital. To assist enterprises, the Ministry of Finance and the State Bank of In addition, the country has not yet developed specialized industrial complexes, resulting in underdeveloped support industries. The HCM City Department of Industry and Trade has proposed a series of measures to develop support industries by offering incentives to attract FDI businesses. It is stated that FDI businesses are an important driving force to promote domestic support industries. The department has also suggested that the Government consider a master plan for support industries and offer credit loan policies for businesses to develop support industries and human resources in support industries. Hoai said the Ministry of Industry and Trade is now developing a decree on the development of support industries, and is expected to submit to the Government in the fourth quarter of this year. Hoai added that the decree would focus on measures to support technology, production management and customer services to avoid shortcomings in local support industry companies. Furthermore, the decree would supplement incentives on corporate income taxes and construction regulations on the building of support industry complexes to attract global multinational corporations to provide parts and materials to invest in Subsidence blamed on residents Construction conducted by nearby residents has caused the pavement along the O Cho Dua-Hoang Cau road, the most expensive route in Viet Nam that opened early this year, to subside, said Nguyen Sy Bao, the director of the management board on key urban development projects in Ha Noi. Speaking at the press conference on Tuesday, Bao said the pavement subsided after a short period of construction after residents demolished their old houses. Residents then gathered concrete stakes and drove excavators and trucks over the new pavement. Bao confirmed that samples of bricks used on the pavement had been tested to meet quality standards. The loose management and co-operation between the project's investor, inspection consultancy unit and local authority had enabled the damage, he said. The investor had asked the construction unit to quickly re-build 165 square metres of the damaged pavement, repair the covers of manholes and reduce the height of the pavement to help drivers go up and down more easily. The pavement had since been fixed, he said, adding that a cost of more than VND70 million (US$3,301) was incurred by the project's contractor. Bao said the management board would re-examine the incident to establish the fault of those involved, including four units participating in constructing, designing, consulting on and supervising the project. In June, Ha Noi Party Secretary Pham Quang Nghi had requested a re-examination of the construction of the pavement on the O Cho Dua-Hoang Cau route following inspections. He said that each phase of the project would reveal the responsibilities of those responsible for the poor-quality pavement. The O Cho Dua-Hoang Cau road route was part of the city's Belt Road No1 project costing VND642 billion ($30.5 million), including $25 million for site clearance. However, the real amount for site clearance had been raised to VND743 billion ($35.3 million), making it the most expensive road in the country. Although the city has opened the road for traffic, the installation of lighting systems, separators, painted lines, pipelines and trees is yet to be finalised. VN exports face tough challenges Low value adds, poor quality of exports and heavy dependence on raw material imports along with poor processing facilities and transportation were affecting the country's export quality and efficiency. Nguyen Thi Thu Hang, senior technical consultant at Export Potential Assessment (EPA), told a conference in Ha Noi yesterday that limited understanding about foreign markets and international trade issues and inadequate market information, poor supply chain and sector linkages as well as outdated production and processing technologies for export products were also problems plaguing the country's exports. EPA is the first major activity of the four-year "Decentralised Trade Support Services for Strengthening the International Competitiveness of Vietnamese Small and Medium-sized Enterprises" programme, being implemented nationally by the Trade Promotion Agency. In order to deal with these issues, Hang emphasised on the importance of promoting the implementation of the State's preferential policies in support industries to solve input material shortages. Besides, to enhance linkages in supply chains to reduce cost, improving product quality and competitiveness of exports, diversifying export markets and accelerating trade promotion were also necessary, she said. She added that improving the capacity of domestic enterprises in negotiating, contracting and getting international transactions reduced should be also included. On his speech at the event, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do Thang Hai said The country was also fostering its negotiations of Free Trade Agreements with foreign countries to expand export outlets, he said. In the future, it was necessary to identify and assess products and services which had an export potential and then focus on accelerating exports of these goods, he noted. According to a report which was also released at yesterday's conference, the items with high export potentials in the short to medium terms were coffee, rubber and cassava along with pepper, garments and leather shoes. Seafood such as tuna and shrimp were also on the list. Electronics, textiles and garment, and wooden goods apart from bamboo and rattan products, were also items with high export potential. Tourism and labour were items on the list. SBV approves new Construction Bank head The State Bank of Viet Nam (SBV) has approved a new chairwoman and general director of the Viet Nam Construction Bank (VNCB). The decision follows the arrest and temporary detention of the bank's three former senior officials on July 29. The new chaiworman is Vu Bach Yen, who has been a member of VNCB's executive board since February 2012 and is a major shareholder. Meanwhile, the bank's Deputy General Director Dam Minh Duc, who was in charge of the bank's operations in Ha Noi, is the new general director. According to the Ministry of Public Security's Investigation Police Agency, the three former officials were arrested on Tuesday for allegedly violating The Article deals with deliberate acts against the State's regulations on economic management, leading to serious consequences. The arrested persons are Pham Cong Danh, 49, former chairman of VNCB; Phan Thanh Mai, 43, former member of VNCB's executive board and general director; and Mai Huu Khuong, 31, former member of VNCB's executive board, in charge of finance. On Monday, a day before they were arrested, SBV announced that the three officials had been dismissed from VNCB's service to ensure normal operations of the bank. VNCB was established from the Trust Bank in May 2013. The Trust Bank was in operation for 23 years with a charter capital of VND3 trillion (US$142.85 million). It's reported that Mai, Danh and Khuong were elected members of VNCB's executive board in February 2013. Then Mai was appointed as the bank's general director. Danh was also Thien Thanh Group Ltd Company's chairman of the board of directors. Thien Thanh Group Ltd Co is a subsidiary of the Thien Thanh Group, based in Meanwhile, Khuong was also chairman of the executive board of the Dai Viet Stock Company, while Mai was a member. The case is being investigated further. Pan Pacific stitches up tender for largest stake in Vinaseed Pan Pacific Corporation (PAN) announced it has become Viet Nam National Seed Corporation's (NSC) biggest shareholder after completing the tender offer for its shares. According to its filing on the HCM City Stock Exchange yesterday, Pan Pacific has bought 4.63 million shares of Vinaseed, lower than the total 6.23 million shares it registered while buying. PAN's total holdings in the seed firm increased from 2.47 million shares to nearly 8.14 million shares, equivalent to 53.2 per cent of the firm's stakes that makes NSC a PAN subsidiary. The company could spend over VND352 billion (US$17 million) to own NSC shares as in March, PAN offered to buy their shares at a price of VND76,100 (US$3.61) per share from May 30 to July 15. Sellers included Sai Gon Securities Inc (SSI) who sold out all its holdings of over 2.42 million shares in July. NSC shares fell 0.7 per cent to close yesterday's session at VND74,500 ($3.53) a share while PAN shares tumbled 3.1 per cent to end at VND47,500 ($2.25) each. The acquisition of Vinaseed has shown PAN's investment strategy to expand business in the agricultural sector in which Vinaseed is a leading company in the field of plant varieties. NSC is a stable performer with profits rising steadily from 2009 to 2013. It estimates a profit of VND59 billion ($3 million) in the first half of this year, equivalent to 51 per cent of its yearly profit target and a rise of 9 per cent against the same period last year. Apart from Vinaseed, Pan Pacific owns 62.4 per cent stake in Ben Tre Forestry and Aquaproduct Import and Export Co (ABT), and 23 per cent in Long An Food Processing Export Co (LAF). PAN is operating in administrative and support services with 10 business lines, including agricultural and seafood production, home care services and industrial solid and liquids apart from gas waste treatment services and high-rise building and apartment management services. Pan Pacific incurred losses of more than VND2 billion ($95,000) last year and is under warning status by the HCM Stock Exchange. Its first-half net profit is projected at VND22.5 billion ($1 million), six times the same period last year. VSA sees slight increase in steel sales in July The Viet Nam Steel Association (VSA) has reported that steel consumption in July was 380,000 tonnes, an increase of 1 per cent against last month. In July, steel plants churned out only 400,000 tonnes, which was lower than the designed output due to low demand. The Vice President of VSA, Nguyen Van Sua said that steel consumption could decrease in August due to the rainy season. VSA forecast that the steel industry will increase business by 10 per cent this year. Footwear exports fetch more than $1.1b The southern According to Director of the provincial Department of Industry and Trade Le Van Danh, in July alone, the export of this product brought $167 million to the province, up 16.4 per cent over the previous month and 5.1 per cent compared to a year earlier. He said that growth was seen in almost all markets, led by the Local businesses attributed the growth to the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) that the European Union has granted to Unsold sugar inventory reaches nearly 460,000 tonnes The unsold volume of sugar at factories was estimated at 457,890 tonnes as of July 15, 32,160 tonnes higher than a year earlier, an official of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) said. However, this will not be a serious problem if the current effective control of smuggling can be maintained, according to Doan Xuan Hoa, deputy head of MARD’s Department of Processing and Trade for Agro-Forestry-Fisheries Products and Salt Production. At the same time, he pointed to the fact that most sugar makers have not formed partners with distributors, thus their sales depend much on the market. As a result, they are under great pressure when supply overcomes demand on the domestic market. To add to the problem, sugar export is also facing many difficulties. Hoa urged the Vietnam Sugarcane and Sugar Association and businesses to devise production and sales plans for 2015 so as to ensure supply and demand balance in the domestic market. The department forecasts the sugar output from now to the end of 2014 at 300,000 tonnes, while imports this year are expected to reach 77,300 tonnes, bringing total supply to 835,190 tonnes. Meanwhile, sugar consumption is predicted to be at the same level as last year, resulting in unsold inventory of around 251,240 tonnes by the end of the year. Personnel appointed for Steering Committee for Price Regulation Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh who is head of the Steering Committee for Price Regulation, has appointed Finance Minister Dinh Tien Dung as deputy head of the committee. Nine members of the committee were also named under Decision 52/QD-BCDDHG freshly signed by the Deputy PM. They are officials from the Ministries of Finance, Industry and Trade, Planning and Investment, Public Health, Education and Training, Transport, and Agriculture and Rural Development, as well as the Government Office and the State Bank of The Steering Committee for Price Regulation was set up in May this year with Deputy PM Ninh as its head under the Prime Minister’s Decision 690/QD-TTG. It is responsible for studying and helping the Government leader consider and approve major policies and orientations for price management in a certain period, as well as specific measures to stabilise prices for essential goods and services. The committee will also assist the PM in directing local and municipal ministries and agencies to manage prices, serving the targets and requirements of the Government on curbing inflation and stabilising macro economy. In addition, it will hold seminars and conferences for experts to share experience in and out of the country to improve the operational efficiency of the committee. Philippine firms encouraged to invest in Vietnam Vietnamese Ambassador to the Philippines Truong Trieu Duong has called on Philippine businesses to expand their investment in Speaking at the 22nd Metro Manila Business Conference recently held in Philippine firms said they highly value Hosted by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the conference aimed to gear up for regional integration as an ASEAN economic community will be formed by 2015. Many barriers to business remain, says expert Many policy drafting agencies tend to resort to the “prohibition” term for the business scopes that are hard to control and this has set up many barriers to the country’s business environment, said the director of the Central Institute for Economic Management. Speaking at a seminar held in Cung said regulations for the prohibited business areas regarding dangerous games for children and their character development, social security and order, sexual products and scrap imports which can pollute the environment among others are unclear as there are a lack of detailed criteria and definitions. Such regulations, according to Cung, can be interpreted differently by different market monitors depending on their worldviews, and this puts producers and traders at risk. “Individuals at State management agencies can take advantage of different interpretations for their private gains,” he warned. The regulation banning enterprises trading pollution-causing scrap imports, according to Cung, is also unreasonable. He wondered whether enterprises are allowed to trade domestic scraps or not. Cung noted the Enterprise Law is ruled by 20 industry-specific laws and regulations, and ministries and sectors make full use of these laws to protect their interests. However, chairman of the Vietnam Tea Association Nguyen Huu Tai disagreed with Cung. Tai said food producers should strictly follow the regulations on safety and hygiene of the Ministry of Health rather than the Enterprise Law. He furthered a person owns a big piece of land in a downtown area of a city but he is not allowed to raise pigs on his land as he should observe the Land Law. Dau Anh Tuan, head of legislation at the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said in support of Cung that the Enterprise Law would be invalid if industry-specific laws and regulations set too many business conditions. Tuan said the inclusion of business lines with special requirements in the Enterprise Law or in decrees needs careful consideration as it cannot be kept updated with the reality. Two contractors banned from road projects Two consulting contractors responsible for supervising a project to construct a road connecting Vi Thanh Town in The Ministry of Transport in a decision issued on July 24 banned Consulting and Construction Ltd., Co. 747 and Design Consultant Enterprise, an arm of Investment Construction Joint Stock Company No.10 under the Vietnam Urban and Industrial Zone Development Investment Corporation (IDICO). The two consultants are found by the ministry to have violated regulations in supervising the project’s quality and progress and failed to perform their contracts duly. Apart from these two contractors, over then other units relating to the construction of the road have also had their works reviewed to guarantee the project’s quality. Previously, the transport ministry made a snap inspection into the project, invested by the Gov’t orders customs procedures simplification Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has told the Ministry of Finance and its General Department of Customs to remove unnecessary customs procedures to help enterprises at a time of economic hardship. In Notice 289/TB-VPCP, the Prime Minister requests that import and export goods clearance time should be cut by 50% from the current level by the end of 2014. Paperwork should also be streamlined. In 2015, The Government orders the General Department of Customs to further speed up application of information technology and deployment of the ASEAN one-door mechanism and the One-door Customs Mechanism. The Ministry of Finance will have to cooperate with relevant units to secure consistency in management of export and import goods, people and means of transport traveling into and out of the country. Relevant agencies are required to review the policies issued in recent times to help the Government work out decrees guiding implementation of the amended Law on Customs. The National Assembly has recently passed the law to ensure administrative reform goals and requirements will be met. Notably, the Government requests stricter management of customs staff, especially at grassroots levels, to prevent wrongdoing in the process of customs clearance. Officials who violate rules must be eliminated. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Finance and the General Department of Customs will draw up a project allowing the non-State sector to join equipment procurement and infrastructure investment contracts in the customs sector. The contracts aim to improve supervision and goods checks by the customs. The Government will continue investing in scanners to check goods and enhancing supervision at border gates. The General Department of Customs should encourage private firms to join customs service and agent sectors. The department will initiate a pilot scheme to apply a consistent management model at border gates by arranging courses for officials. Initially, the model will be piloted by the customs departments in According to the Doing Business 2014 report by the World Bank (WB), It normally takes enterprises in In addition, it costs firms in Liquidity risk still high at EVN The power purchase deals between Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) and its subsidiaries lack transparency with huge losses offset internally, which are among reasons for high liquidity risk at the group, said State Audit of Vietnam. According to the auditing result for 2012, five power corporations of EVN owed the parent firm as much as VND9.88 trillion worth of electricity and the amount the parent company owed power plants also amounted to VND6.06 trillion. The debt amounts collectible and payable between the parent company and its subsidiaries were quite high but EVN did not perform good bookkeeping to monitor and analyze such debts. Besides, debt payments made by power purchasing companies to power plants were often late. According to State Audit of Vietnam, power purchases between the parent company and subsidiaries and affiliates were not objective as the internal power price in 2012 took into account the losses incurred in 2011. By lowering the internal price, the parent company offset losses for five subsidiaries with a total of nearly VND1.72 trillion. Besides, the parent company underwrote the losses of VND865 billion incurred in 2011 for its two wholly-owned thermal power companies, with VND722 billion for Uong Bi thermal power plant and VND143 billion for Can Tho Thermal Power Company, said Nguyen Hong Long from State Audit. EVN also owed other groups like Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group and Vietnam National Coal and Mineral Industries Holding Corporation a combined VND16.07 trillion as of 2013, most of it overdue. However, EVN had pledged to pay VND2.65 trillion by December 31, 2013 and the rest would be paid within seven years, with VND1 trillion to be paid each year. According to Long, EVN earned a profit of around VND8.82 trillion in 2012 and the return on equity ratio was 7.52%, though the group earmarked over VND10 trillion to cover exchange rate changes and other amounts to provide for losses of previous years. EVN borrowed much to invest in power generation and transmission systems, with loans totaling VND25.04 trillion as of 2013, including short-term loans of VND6.1 trillion. With business results improving gradually, EVN’s long-term loan payment capacity in the next five years, according to State Audit, is ensured thanks to the amortization of assets as well as its supplementary assets being revalued. Philips introduces smartphones in Dutch electronics giant Philips has launched its latest smartphone models and announced a new distributor in Smartcom Co. has been picked by Sangfei Mobility Singapore, a company that holds the right to trade Philips smartphones on global markets, as the authorized distributor of Philips handsets in With the debut last week, Philips has also introduced its feature phone X2566 to the Vietnamese market. Long-lasting battery technology is among the highlights of Philips phones. Philips had its cellphones distributed by Thanh Cong Mobile in Supporting industries lack effective policies Yasuzumi Hirotaka, managing director of JETRO in HCMC, told a function on establishing the Japan-Vietnam supporting industries forum last week that policy-making agencies had not fully understood the needs of enterprises. The lack of effective policies to spur Therefore, the HCMC Export Processing Zones and Industrial Parks Authority (HEPZA) and JETRO in HCMC signed a memorandum of understanding to boost supporting industries in this city, including the establishment of the Japan-Vietnam supporting industries forum. This forum is expected to bring the requests of both Vietnamese and Japanese firms to policy makers and help them get a better understanding of businesses. According to Hirotaka, the forum will also assist in human resource development for supporting industries as if there are not qualified people making technological transfers happen, it is difficult for local businesses to grow and benefit from technological advances despite strong foreign investment inflows. As Japanese firms have not found good local enterprises in supporting industries, JETRO and HEPZA will make a list of businesses at exporting processing zones and industrial parks in HCMC that can meet the demand of Japanese firms. There were 311 Vietnamese enterprises active in supporting industries as of last year. Many foreign enterprises operate in supporting industries There are many final products made in Citibank launches new credit card Citibank Raul Parades, Citibank In addition, card holders can enjoy privileges at Citibank partner restaurants, hotels and shopping centers. The group has introduced Citi Rewards in several markets in Asia-Pacific such as Hong Kong, the Citibank joined the local retail banking market in 2009. Earlier, it launched other credit cards onto the market such as Citibank PremierMiles World MasterCard, Citibank Visa Platinum Cask Back and Ready Credit. The amount of total outstanding loans in HCMC is estimated at VND984 trillion in the first seven months of this year, a rise of 3.35% compared to end-2013, heard a meeting on the city’s socio-economic situation yesterday. The central bank’s HCMC branch earlier estimated the city’s credit growth rate by end-June at 1.32%, but the rate actually increased to 2.84%. Nguyen Hoang Minh, deputy director of the State Bank of Up to date, there have been 701 companies, two cooperatives and 25 family-run businesses approved by banks for loans totaling VND15.7 trillion. The total amount from the program is expected to reach VND28-30 trillion at the end of this year compared to the earlier estimate of around VND20 trillion, Minh said. As many as 34 companies will also borrow an additional sum of nearly VND1.9 trillion from banks on August 8 with the annual interest rates of 7.5% for short-term tenors and 9.5-10.5% per annum for medium and long-term tenors. Businesses in fact have accelerated borrowing money from banks to support their operations. However, certain obstacles concerning bad debts and stockpiled goods are reasons behind the low credit growth rate. The ratio of bad debts stood at 4.84% as of end-May, up 0.15 percentage point against the end of last year. The city’s export turnover hit US$16.4 billion, a year-on-year rise of 3.5%, in the first seven months of this year, director Thai Van Re of the city's Department of Planning and Investment told the meeting. Certain exported products enjoyed good results including pepper, up 85.8% year on year, followed by vegetables and fruit with a 48.5% increase, machines and equipment up 37%, aquatic products up 14.8%, coffee up 14.6%, rice up 11%, apparel up 8.6% and footwear 7.4%. Meanwhile, the city’s import revenue stood at US$14.14 billion in the first seven months of this year, an 8% year-on-year fall. Notably, goods from China that account for 22% of the total import revenue inched down 1.9% in value. However, imports from Singapore surged by 45.8% in value, followed by goods from the U.S. up 28.3%, Taiwan 18.5%, South Korea 11.7%, Thailand 4.8% and Japan 4.1%. The city used to buy a wide variety of products from China, ranging from machines and equipment, electronics, metal to materials for agriculture. However, China’s illegal placement of an oil rig in Vietnam’s waters in early May has influenced the export-import activities between the two countries, but it is also deemed as an opportunity for the city to lessen economic dependence on China. Source: VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR |
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Article 6
Five scenarios for East Sea There are five scenarios for the  Visitors at an exhibition of ancient maps showing Hoang Sa, Truong Sa as Before international law, historical evidence with legal values is the most convincing factor. However, international law experts also said that in resolving territorial disputes, on land or on sea, the ability of the involving parties to have historical evidence with legal value is not high. According to Nuno Sergio Marques Antunes, a Portuguese expert on international maritime disputes, "the disputes based only on legal arguments ... are relatively rare. The vast majority of the territorial disputes lack meaningful legal arguments. In most cases, the arguments without legal value stand out." Each side in the territorial dispute must take advantage of all the evidence seriously, regardless of form, as Brian Taylor Sumner, American expert on international law has confirmed, pointing out nine different categories, including historical evidence. While some Western scholars relied on a part or the entire Chinese ancient history to support In his book published in English in 2013, Wu Shicun used the following arguments to justify China’s claim on the islands in the East Sea: China discovered and named the islands of the Hoang Sa-Truong Sa Islands, China received tributes from the Vietnamese feudal government, the Democratic Republic of Vietnam acknowledged the sovereignty of China over Hoang Sa-Truong Sa, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam just inherited only from the DRV, etc. The value of the argument Firstly, if you think At the same time, the argument that as the country receiving tribute from the The argument that the Democratic Republic of Vietnam once recognized China’s sovereignty over Hoang Sa-Truong Sa and the SRV only inherited from the DRV, so China holds sovereignty over Hoang Sa-Truong Sa, is rejected, based on the adaptation of the principles of prevention (estoppel), the nation's inheritance rights under international law and historical evidence in international relations of Vietnam in the period 1954-1976. In addition to satisfying two standards of international law before the Convention of Berlin, historical evidence about Vietnam’s sovereignty over Hoang Sa in ancient Western documents in over 200 years from the early seventeenth century to the late nineteenth century particularly satisfy criteria set forth in the 1885 Convention on the awareness of the international community to the sovereignty of Vietnam. In contrast, until today, the Chinese cannot present any historical evidence favorable to their claims from the ancient Western sources before the twentieth century. However, Compared with The five scenarios In late September 1975, in a meeting between leaders of the two countries, when the First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Vietnam Le Duan raised the issues of Hoang Sa-Truong Sa Islands, Chinese Vice Premier Deng Xiaoping admitted the dispute and proposed that the two countries discuss the issue later. But, after nearly 40 years, the dispute has not been resolved. In this context, we believe that there are five scenarios for the The first scenario, China will use force to invade a part or entire Truong Sa Islands, in order to "resolve disputes and establish sovereignty over the islands and territorial waters by 2020" as Chinese scholars asserted and according to other sources. In the marine disputes, The new military adventure of No one was surprised with the statement that However, due to major differences with the annexation of the Crimea to  The second scenario, The third scenario, Based on the principles set forth in international law, The fact shows that The fourth scenario, This scenario helps This scenario is disadvantageous for The fifth scenario. The events related to the Thai Van Cau, (The author is a space scientist of Vietnamese origin living in the |
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