Thua Thien-Hue: Festival to honour traditional crafts

 The seventh Hue Traditional Craft Festival will take place from  April 28 to May 2 in the ancient imperial city of Hue, the central province of Thua Thien-Hue, heard a press conference in Hanoi on April 5. 

Youth unemployment up in Q1

The number of unemployed in the first quarter of 2017 stands at about 1.14 million, in which more than a half are young people aged from 15 to 24, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

VN needs legal framework for organic farms

 VietNamNet Bridge – Viet Nam will soon complete policies, mechanisms and a national standard system to develop organic farming in the future, 

Successful surgery conducted on critical liver failure case

Doctors of Ha Noi-based Viet Nam-Germany Hospital successfully conducted a liver transplant on a patient in very critical condition, the most serious case in the hospital’s history.

Ministry to inspect deforestation in Phu Yen

 VietNamNet Bridge – The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has decided to establish a team to inspect the use of forest land for other purposes in Phu Yen Province.

Exhibition to commemorate abstract painter

Khoang Lang Vuong (The Square Moment of Silence), an art exhibit commemorating late Vietnamese painter and photographer Nguyen Lai opened at the HCM City Fine Arts Museum Wednesday.

HCM City to open eight pedestrian streets downtown

 VietNamNet Bridge – The HCM City’s Department of Transport has proposed opening eight pedestrian streets in the downtown area.

AirAsia joint venture’s prospects uncertain

 On April 1, Bloomberg reported that Malaysian low-cost carrier AirAsia planned to partner up with two domestic firms to start an airline in Vietnam. However, available information draws questions over the plan’s legitimacy and feasibility.

Increase in industrial production in the first quarter of 2017 is lowest in five years

 In the first quarter of 2017 industrial production including construction grew by 4.1 per cent, considerably lower than the rate previous years.

Management over national parks tightened

 The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) has decided to inspect national parks nationwide following violations discovered at a national park in Hanoi.

Poor quality rice wine producers raided

 Thousands of litres of rice wine have been seized in just over two weeks since local authorities nation-wide carried out a raid on fake and poor quality spirits beginning on March 1.

Is Vietnam spending too much on infrastructure?

VietNamNet Bridge - Statistics show that Vietnam is among Asia’s biggest spenders on infrastructure. 

Vietnam Int’l Fashion Week Spring-Summer 2017 to kick off in HCMC

The fourth Vietnam International Fashion Week Spring-Summer 2017 (VIFW) is scheduled to take place on April 25-28 in GEM Centre, Nguyen Binh Kiem St., Dist 1, HCM City.

Malaysia nabs Vietnamese for illegal fishing, poaching; VN trawlers seized by Thai navy

 Malaysia has detained 28 crewmembers aboard two Vietnam vessels on charges of fishing illegally in in waters off Miri, Sarawak.

Convenience, food safety matters to Vietnamese consumers

 The fast-growing convenience store segment in Vietnam has been forecast to grow at 34.7% per year over the next several years, according to a study compiled by grocery research agency, IGD.

US institute: Vietnam ranks first on health governance index

 Vietnam ranked first among 18 developing countries in Asia and Africa on the Health Governance Capacity Index, according to a study conducted by the Brookings Institute of the US.

Vietnam, Laos should step up relations: Lao Party chief

Laos and Vietnam should step up their relations and cement their special solidarity in the context of unexpected and complicated global situation.

Central Bank of VN to issue regulations on $4.4b preferential credit package in April

 The State Bank of Viet Nam (SBV) will issue regulations on directing and guiding commercial banks to implement a VND100 trillion (US$4.4 billion) credit package with preferential interest rates for high-tech agriculture projects.

U.S. coal companies ask Trump to stick with Paris climate deal

 Some big American coal companies have advised President Donald Trump's administration to break his promise to pull the United States out of the Paris Climate Agreement 

Vietnam Architectural Festival 2017 to kick off in Da Nang

A festival to honour domestic architects who won notable prizes will take place in Da Nang from April 19-23.

New draft law sets minimum air ticket price

A Ministry of Transport draft law, which is currently collecting idea contributions, would enforce a minimum price for domestic air tickets, a move opposed by fast-growing low-cost carrier Vietjet Air.

Earlier sex education needed to fight abuse

 Public concern is once again inspiring changes to education programmes in schools, with calls for more sex education to be included in the curriculum so that children can better protect themselves from sexual abuse.

ASEM to narrow gap in innovative education, human resources building

 Vietnamese and foreign delegates from Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) partners have agreed to work together to narrow the development gap in innovative education and human resources building among the members.

Philippine official: ASEAN, China make progress on COC

 The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China have made progress in their talks on a Code of Conduct in the East Sea, Philippine Acting Secretary of Foreign Affairs Enrique Manalo said on April 4.

Defence cooperation helps reinforce Vietnam-Thailand relations

 General Surapong Suwana-Adth, commander of the Royal Thai Army’s defence forces, visited Vietnam from April 4-5.