The Dong Thap Province’s People’s Committee has asked the Government to provide VNĐ82 billion (US$3.6 million) in funds to move local residents’ property from landslide  and flood-prone areas to new residential areas.

The funds would also be used to build the new residential areas for households living in erosion-prone areas along riverbanks.

The southern province has asked the Government to conduct research to build a 2.3-km embankment along the Tiền River in Thanh Bình District.

In Thanh Bình’s Bình Thành Commune, four landslide cases occurred in early April, with a total length of 210m and eroded area of 3,250sq.m.

The landslide areas are located 15-25 metres from National Highway No 30.  More than 200 households as well as infrastructure was affected. 

According to the province’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the landslide situation is getting worse.

At least 45 communes, wards and towns in the province have been hit by landslides at different levels.

Last Thursday, a group of officials from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development visited Đồng Tháp to inspect the landslides in the province.

The officials said that sand over-exploitation was one of the causes of the landslides.

Trần Quang Hoài, deputy head of the ministry’s Department of Irrigation, praised the efforts of Đồng Tháp in relocating residents living in landslide-prone areas and building construction works to mitigate the risk of erosion.

Dong Thap authorities should speed up the process of building erosion-prevention works and inspect the quality of the works, he said.

Infrastructure projects and residential areas should not be built along landslide-prone areas, he said.

Free health check-ups for over 200 older people

Over 200 older parents accompanied by their adult children received free and comprehensive health checks at Chợ Rẫy Hospital on Saturday, part of the Parent’s Companion event held by Abbott in collaboration with the Việt Nam Medical Association on the occasion of Mother’s-Father’s Day.
The criteria to be selected for this health check event is that each adult children had made a strong commitment and set up a tangible plan to help their parents achieve their dreams.
At the event, families received health diagnostics, nutrition guides and consultations from healthcare professionals on how to build an appropriate diet and lifestyle to enhance the strength of elders above age 50.
A recent survey sponsored by Abbott found that many elderly Vietnamese have unmet dreams, and find a lack of physical strength to be a major obstacle in realising their dreams. The good news is that 97 per cent of children polled are willing to help their parents pursue their dreams.
At the event, Ana María Canaval Landázuri from Peru, a 65 year-old champion swimmer, and Đặng Thanh Hải, a 65 year-old man who has fulfilled his dream of doing a trans-Việt Nam journey by bicycle, shared their stories on how they achieved their dreams later in life to inspire Vietnamese elders to believe in the power of dreams. 

Ancient city launches innovation of recycled rubbish

A contest to convert recycled rubbish into useable tools was launched on Sunday in Hội An, with an aim of cleaning the beach for future generations.

The contest, which was organised by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and the Hồ Chí Minh Communist Youth Union, will bring together kids aged 10 to 15 in 2017.

Competitors will collect used material or rubbish to recycle into tools for cleaning the beach from now to September 15th, and awards will be given on October 15th.

The contest comes at the end of the 2014-17 campaign to promote beach cleaning and environmental protection.

Hội An, an UNESCO-recognised world heritage site, was the first locality in the country to host a Car Free Day and a 3R (reduce, reuse and recycle) campaign.

Chàm Island, 20km off the coast of Hội An, was the first location in Việt Nam to successfully prohibit plastic bags.

A solar power system project public used was also built in Hội An and Chàm Island from 2013.

The UNESCO-recognised world heritage city and Naha City, the capital of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan commenced the Eco-city Achievement Support Project to build the city into the first eco-city in Việt Nam. 

Construction of new coastal road begins in Hai Phong

Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc inaugurated the construction of a new coastal road, connecting the northern port city of Hải Phòng and the northern province of Thái Bình, on Saturday, the Tiền Phong (Vanguard) newspaper reported.

The 30-kilometre road runs through the Đồ Sơn, Kiến Thụy and Tiên Lãng rural districts in Hải Phòng City and Thái Thụy District in Thái Bình Province.

It will be built under the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model between 2017 and 2019, with a total investment of some VNĐ3.4 trillion (US$152 million).

The Hải Phòng People’s Committee has spent some VNĐ400 billion ($17.6 million) on site clearance.

It is expected that toll fee will be collected by the road’s investors for 23 years to recover capital investment.

The road is 12 metres wide and will able to accommodate two traffic lanes with design speed of 80km per hour.

Eight flyovers will be installed on the road, two of them crossing the Văn Úc and Thái Bình rivers in Hải Phòng City.

WannaCry to hit droves of computers in Vietnam next week: experts

Vietnam is among the 99 countries that are under attack by a global ransomware program, while a local cyber security firm has warned that the virus could start being spread in the Southeast Asian country at the beginning of next week.

The detection system of Bkav, Vietnam’s leading cybersecurity firm, has recorded several computers in the country affected by the malicious code as of May 13.

The number of victims can be higher as it is currently the weekend, experts from Bkav assessed, adding that the virus infection might occur to a larger extent early next week when people get back to work.

This is the first cyber attack after a long time, with viruses taking advantage of security loopholes to spread in a local area network (LAN), the experts stated.

The ransomware, named WannaCry, is considered the most dangerous as the hackers use it for sabotage and stealing money instead of gaining reputation in previous cases, the continued.

“Bkav predicted last year that an outbreak of ransomware would occur in 2017, bringing huge profits to hackers,” Vu Ngoc Son, deputy head of Bkav’s Anti-Malware Department, said.

The type of malicious code is not new, Son stated, before adding that it presented a rising attack using security loopholes of cyber-extortionists in the near future.

To spread the virus, hackers tricked victims into opening malicious malware attachments to spam emails that appeared to contain invoices, job offers, security warnings and other legitimate files, Reuters reported.

The ransomware encrypted data on the computers, demanding payments of $300 to $600 to restore access.

Researchers with security software maker Avast said they had observed 57,000 infections in 99 countries and territories with Russia, Ukraine and Taiwan the top targets.

The cyber attack began on Friday evening (Vietnam time).

During an interview with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, a representative from Internet security company Kaspersky Lab stated the agency had successfully blocked a large number of these viruses, often named Trojan-Ranson.Win32.Gen.djd, Trojan-Ranson.Win32.Scatter.tr, Trojan-Ranson.Win32.Wanna.b, Trojan-Ranson.Win32.Wanna.c, Trojan-Ranson.Win32.Wanna.d, etc.

Vietnam is among the top 20 nations and territories affected by the malware, aside from Russia, Ukraine, India, Taiwan, China, and others, the representative added.

Creators of the WannaCry prepared Q&A sections written in a variety of languages, including Vietnamese, namely “Can I restore my files?”, “How do I pay the ransom?” and “How to contact?” to interact with victims.

Kaspersky Lab has updated the variants of the ransonware to the system watchers of Kaspersky Internet Security and Kaspersky Security for Business solutions to set up a barrier to protect user data.

The firm is also working on a tool to help those who have fallen victim to WannaCry, which will be announced upon completion.

In the meantime, people can look for a suitable solution on the non-profit website www.nomoreransom.org, the representative said.

The hackers, who have not come forward to claim responsibility or otherwise been identified, exploited a piece of NSA (U.S. National Security Agency) code known as "Eternal Blue" that was released last month, Reuters quoted researchers from several private cyber security firms as saying.

They also stated the virus had the ability to automatically spread across large networks by exploiting a known bug in Microsoft's Windows operating system.

Microsoft on May 13 said it was pushing out automatic Windows updates to defend clients from WannaCry. It issued a patch on March 14 to protect them from Eternal Blue.   

New shows to reopen Hưng Đạo Cải Lương Centre

HCM City’s Trần Hữu Trang Theatre will stage a series of new cải lương (reformed drama) shows to reopen its art centre, the Hưng Đạo Cải Lương Centre, after three years of renovation.

New plays include Hiu Hiu Gió Bấc (North-Easterly Wind Puffing Lightly) and Đời Như Ý (Life Goes On), both starring the theatre’s young talents Lê Tứ, Võ Minh Luân, Nhã Thi and Lê Hồng Thắm. 

These works feature young people and their problems in modern life.

“We began to hire staff and investment for these special shows early this year,” said People’s Artist Trần Ngọc Giàu, director of Trần Hữu Trang Theatre, the region’s leading cải lương theatre, which was named under late playwright Trần Hữu Trang, a canon of cải lương.  

“Our performances will be staged with sound and visual effects to lure young audiences back to cải lương,” he said.

According to Giàu, famous plays like Đời Cô Lựu (Ms Lựu’s Life), one of Trang’s most popular plays first staged in the 1930s by cải lương pioneers Năm Châu, Phùng Há and Út Trà Ôn, will also be restaged.

“We decided to restage Trang’s plays because his works portray Vietnamese woman, and their challenges and sufferings under feudal society in the south. Though he has passed away, his art is still alive among Vietnamese audiences, particularly southerners," he said

Trang was born in 1906 to a farming family in Chợ Gạo of Mỹ Tho Province (now Tiền Giang).

He began his theatrical career in 1928, working for leading troupes owned by Năm Phỉ and Năm Châu, great veterans of cải lương.

In the 1930s, Trang was at the peak of his artistry and fame, trying to put his new ideas in serious plays such Tìm Hạnh Phúc (Seeking Happiness), Lan Và Điệp (Love Story of Lan and Điệp) and Khi Người Điên Biết Yêu (When the Madman Loves). 

After the August Revolution in 1945, Trang joined the resistance against the French and worked in Sài Gòn-Chợ Lớn. He was a member of the National Front for the Liberation of the South.  

He died in 1966 in battle. His body has never been found.

Trang created more than 30 works and all feature Vietnamese characteristics. Most of them have been recognised as canonical cải lương and have been staged many times by different generations at home and abroad.

For his contributions, he was posthumously awarded the Hồ Chí Minh Prize by the Government in 1996. 

The renovation of the 600-seat Hưng Đạo Cải Lương Centre was funded by the city government’s budget under the efforts of local authorities to preserve cải lương in recent years.

New shows will be staged every weekend from May 20 at the centre at 136 Trần Hưng Đạo Street in District 1. Tickets range from VNĐ100,000 to 200,000 (US$4.5 to 9) and are available at the box office.

Sành wins fifth stage of cycling event

Bùi Văn Sành won the fifth stage of the Return to the Countryside cycling tournament on Sunday.

Sành of Hiệp Nhất-Tịnh Biên Province won the 128km from Cao Lãnh City to Cần Thơ City with a time of 3:17.22 and average speed of 38.912 kmh.

Quàng Văn Cường of Gạo Hạt Ngọc Trời-An Giang and Nguyễn Minh Luận of Premium Cycling Vĩnh Long were the runners-up.

Cường won the yellow jersey for the best overall time of 13.37.27 after five stages, followed him by Yoeun Phi Yuth of Cambodia and Luận.

Yuth retained his green jersey as the best sprinter with 71 points.

Gạo Hạt Ngọc Trời-AnGiang took the lead in the team rankings with the best overall time of 40:53.20. Domesco Pharmacy Đồng Tháp and Premium Cycling Vĩnh Long finished second and third.

Today, cyclists will compete in the sixth stage from Cần Thơ to Sóc Trăng City over 82km.

National Economics University strengthens cooperation with Taiwanese university

Leaders of Vietnam’s National Economics University (NEU) and more than 60 students in the Executive Masters of Business Administration (EMBA), sixth course, met on May 11 with leaders of Taiwan’s Changhua University of Education (NCUE) and discussed future cooperation and relationships between the two universities.

The meeting was also attended by representative of the Vietnam Culture and Economy Office in Taiwan and leaders of Changhua city in Taiwan.

On behalf of the NEU, Associate Professor Hoang Van Cuong, Vice President of NEU, said the NEU is willing to cooperate with the NCUE.

On the same day, the NCUE opened the Global Startup Innovation Center and signed an MoU with NEU’s Graduate School.  “The signing provides the premise for both universities to enter into a new innovative period,” said Dr. Cuong. 

“The MoU will not only help to enhance knowledge for students at NEU and NCUE but also bring opportunities for cooperation between businesses in Vietnam and Taiwan seeking cooperation in the near future.”

Dr. Cuong hoped that the 60 students in the EMBA program would take this chance to find opportunities in human resources training and cooperation with Taiwanese businesses at the meeting, because graduates of EMBA now hold senior positions in Stated-owned enterprises as well as private enterprises in Vietnam.

NCUE was initially established in August 1971 as the Taiwan Provincial College of Education. In 1980, it was renamed the National Taiwan College of Education. In August 1989, it was renamed once again, becoming the National Changhua University of Education.
Founded in 1956, the NEU is one of the leading universities in Economics, Public Management and Business Administration in Vietnam. 

It places a high priority on the quality of teaching and on preparing students for employment in an increasingly competitive international environment. With over 1,300 faculty members and staff, NEU currently offers training to nearly 45,000 students annually at the Bachelor, Masters and PhD levels.

It has signed cooperation arrangements with nearly 80 universities and institutes from around the world, including in the UK, the US, France, Belgium, and South Korea. In recent years, it has cooperated with NCUE in student exchanges.
According to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Vietnam, Taiwan is the No.1 source of foreign investment in Vietnam, if taking into account indirect investments from other sources, such as mainland China, Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong. Taiwan has also been one of the largest economic partners of Vietnam in trade and investment for many years.

In 2015, it ranked fourth in investment in Vietnam, with 2,504 projects and total registered capital of over $31.16 billion, was Vietnam’s fifth-largest trade partner, with two-way trade of nearly $12 billion, including $9.47 billion in exports to Vietnam and $2.51 billion in imports, was the largest importer of Vietnamese labor in 2015, with 168,000 people now working in Taiwan, and was the fifth-largest source market in tourism in 2015, with 438,000 Taiwanese tourists visiting Vietnam.

There are more than 5,000 Vietnamese students studying in Taiwan. Areas of cooperation such as banking and finance (BIDV established an office in Taipei in 2015), science and technology, health, and education have all developed well.

Taiwan’s new administration has announced a new policy for strengthening its trade and investment relations with ASEAN countries. Vietnam, with it implementing an economic liberalization policy to remove trade barriers through free trade agreements, is considered a focal economic partner of Taiwan in its new policy.

Canon lights up more rural roads in Bac Giang province

An additional 9km of rural roads in the northern province of Bac Giang have been lit up thanks to a project launched by Japanese-invested Canon Vietnam Co. Ltd.

The street light systems were inaugurated at a ceremony in Huong Mai commune of Viet Yen district, Bac Giang province, on May 14.

Canon Vietnam said the systems were built in over two months at a cost of some 200 million VND (8,800 USD).

The beneficiary hamlets are Hoang Lai in Thanh Van commune; Dinh Ha and Quyen in Tan Trung commune; Ngoc Son in Chu Dien commune; and Xuan Lan, Tam Hop, Xuan Minh and Dong Ich in Huong Mai commune.

Niimura Minoru, Deputy Director of Canon Vietnam, said his firm began the “Light up the countryside” project in 2013. It has so far funded the construction of street lights for nearly 85km of roads in 35 hamlets in Bac Giang and nearby Bac Ninh province.

The company is scheduled to unveil the lighting system for over 9km of rural roads in Bac Ninh on May 26, benefiting the hamlets of Guot, Cau Dao, Phuong Tri and Ngoc Noi in the province’s Que Vo, Gia Binh, Luong Tai and Thuan Thanh districts.

Winners of Vietnam-Laos relations songwriting contest awarded

Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will award prizes to ten entries in a songwriting contest on Vietnam-Laos relations.

The organising board will present three second prizes to Pham Van Minh, Thai Duong and Van Thanh Nho. Meanwhile three third prizes went to Le Xuan Hoa, Hinh Phuoc Lien and Viet Trung. In addition, four consolation prizes were also presented.

The songs affirm the eternity of the Vietnam-Laos special friendship and solidarity.

The competition is one of a number of activities to mark the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Vietnam and Laos and the 40th anniversary of the Vietnam-Laos Amity and Cooperation Treaty.

It is designed to further cement the friendship between the two Parties, Governments and peoples that has been keenly nurtured for more than seven decades, as well as helping to strengthen cultural and economic cooperation between the two countries.

Suggested themes include the Vietnam-Laos relationship established by Presidents Ho Chi Minh and Kaysone Phomvihane and nurtured by subsequent generations of leaders, and the two countries’ shared vision for peace and prosperity.

Exchange programme honours outstanding examples

The Party Central Committee’s Commission for Education and Communications co-ordinated with Vietnam Television to hold an exchange programme for outstanding examples in studying and following President Ho Chi Minh’s moral example on May 12.

The event was attended by Politburo member Vo Van Thuong, who is also head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Education and Communications, and some leaders of departments and ministries, along with eight outstanding individuals, such as Doctor Tran Huu Loc; engineer Van Cong Hoa; composer Do Minh Quang; C’Ho ethnic woman K’Hieu; Vietnamese oversea in Thailand Nguyen Thi Xuan Oanh.

The honoured individuals represent 24 organisations and 48 individuals, which have gained outstanding achievements in reviewing one year of implementation of the Politburo's Directive No.5 on learning and following Ho Chi Minh's thoughts, morals and style.

They paid tribute to President Ho Chi Minh, and shared their views about the basics and values of Ho Chi Minh’s thought and his moral example.

Ho Chi Minh’s thought is a system of comprehensive and profound ideas on the fundamental issues of the Vietnamese revolution. Ho Chi Minh’s morals include absolute loyalty to the revolutionary ideals, putting the interests of the Party, country and people above all. It also includes diligence, thrift, integrity, honesty and impartiality. Ho Chi Minh’s style is independent thinking, self-reliance, democratic and scientific working style, elegance and cultured behaviour, simplicity and closeness with the masses.

At the event, Politburo member Vo Van Thuong offered flowers to the individuals and highly praised their contributions to the ‘Learning and following Ho Chi Minh's thoughts, morals and style’ campaign.

1,000 trees planted in Dalat City

1,000 trees were planted in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong’s Da Lat City after the launch program of tree planting.
 
Lam Dong People’s Committee this morning launched the program to plant trees in Dalat City. Hundreds of young people and students in Dalat City participated in the program.

1,000 trees were planted at Lam Dong Children Hospital, dormitory of Dalat University.

Mr. Ton Thien San, deputy Chairman of Dalat People’s Committee said the authority will continue planting 600,000 trees and raising awareness of local people in planting trees.

HCMC launches dengue, Zika prevention campaign

The Department of Health yesterday launched  a campaign to prevent dengue and diseases caused by Zika virus in District 8

The movement is a response to the seventh Asian Dengue Day 2017.

Speaking at the launching ceremony, Director of the Department Dr. Nguyen Tan Binh said that this year campaign was organized one month earlier than previous years because of unpredictable weather.

Activities in the campaign include persuading people to eradicate water containers where mosquitoes can lay eggs into to kill its larva. The city will hold information campaign against dengue and diseases caused by Zika virus by riding bicycles around the city to catch locals’ eyes, posters, information place in residential blocks.   

Along with campaign to kill mosquito and its larva and cleaning schools and houses in districts every week and in dengue “hot spots”, city authorities will concentrate on increasing information and issuing penalties on violations as per the medicine law.

4,485 students awarded Violympic 2016-2017

The award ceremony of the Internet-Violympic 2016-2017 for the Northern region was held at Hai Phong City, yesterday.

It started for the award ceremonies across over the country.

Nationwide has 4,485 contestants awarded at the subjects including mathematic, English, physical, Vietnamese. 757 students earned golden medal; 1,493 students grabbed silver medal and 1,481 with bronze medal.

The FPT Group and FPT University jointly launched this contest aiming to change studying method of Vietnamese students, creating new ground play for them in learning and upgrading their knowledge.

In 2016-2017 academic year, over 20 millions of accounts have registered via website Violympic covering 737 districts, cities in 63 provinces nationwide. The organization board held also the contest in Laos named Laolympic in the 2016-2017-academic year.

Student’s Korean cultural exchange program launched

The HCMC University of Technology (BKU) has cooperated with the Chonbuk National University of South Korea to launch an educational and cultural exchange program, "The Feeling Korea".

Accordingly, 20 selected students will have a chance to travel to Korea to join the event through which they can enjoy Korean culture and language fully for 2-3 weeks from July 23-August 11. 

Fee for the program will be cost US$800-US$1,200, including tuition, dormitory, meal but excluding flight and transportation.

Established in 1947, Chonbuk National University (CBNU) is a comprehensive, national university situated in Jeonju, South Korea. With 10 flagship national universities in the country, CBNU consists of 100 faculties, more than 1,000 professors, the academic staff of 700 members and 32,300 students.

Danang's colleges cooperate to develop human resources

The Empire Group and local universities and colleges in Da Nang signed a cooperation agreement to develop human resources in the tourism sector to meet the demand for 10,000 jobs in 2020.

Accordingly, five universities and colleges, including the Economics University, Dong A and Duy Tan colleges, Pegasus College and Vietnam-Australia College will organize activities for recruitment, training and practicing with support from the Empire Group.

On this occasion, the Empire Group's fund offered 10 scholarships to best students and it will be maintained to provide assistance to high-achieving disadvantaged students.

Two women arrested for sabotaging other’s assets

Investigative police of the northern city of Hai Phong’s Ngo Quyen District yesterday prosecuted two women who destroyed other’s asset.

Le Thi Hoa, 31, and Hoang Thi Thanh Dung, 47, were arrested for splashing a mix of sewage water and engine lubricant on a pork vendor product's in Luong Van Can Market because their rival sold pork at cheaper price,

At a press briefing held yesterday, Deputy Chairman of People Committee in Hai Phong Nguyen Xuan Binh said the province authorities paid much attention to the case; accordingly it ordered Ngo Quyen District People’s Committee to carry out an 
investigation and impose harsh penalty.

Mr. Binh said that though the case is unique yet the local authorities will have severe penalty; through the case, the administration asked its counterparts in districts to offer favorable condition for farmers to sell their products.

 Related agencies including the Department of Industry and Trade, Market Management Boards must keep order in market to deter sellers from doing same case.

The two women confessed their wrongdoing at the police station. After the case was reported in the media, it has cause anger in the public; police has summoned Dung and Hoa to work but neither of them showed up and eventually fled their residence.

Officers had to hunt for the suspects and managed to capture Dung at 0:30 am on Saturday, whereas Le Thi Hoa turned herself in later in the morning.

Earlier, 23 year old Do Thi Xuyen in Kien Thuy District on May 11 sold pork in Luong Van Can Market at the price of VND45,000- 50,000 per kg while Dung and Hoa sold at VND70,000-80,000 a kg so Dung and Hoa splashed a mix of sewage water and engine lubricant on the meat.

Inter-department inspectors have conducted food safety in the market on May 12 as scheduled visits as per the decree before. Through inspecting, 15 booths have certificates of food safety and five of booths failed to meet the regulation including Xuyen’s . Inspectors reminded Xuyen to follow the regulations.

Resorts, restaurants abandoned after stop of Ke Ga seaport project

A slew of resorts and restaurants have been abandoned and severely downgraded after Ke Ga seaport project was stopped in Ham Thuan Nam district, the central province of Binh Thuan.

Realizing Ke Ga cap’s tourist development potential, the provincial People’s Committee called on businesses to invest in the area in early 2000. 

Afterwards, businesses built tens of resorts and high grade villas in the hope of making the area the second Mui Ne of Vietnam.

While projects were implemented and many came into operation in 2008, the provincial Department of Planning and Investment announced the policy of building Ke Ga seaport project, invested by Vietnam National Coal Mineral Industries Group (Vinacomin) with the total capital topping VND20 trillion (US$881.48 million).

By the end of 2010, the province revoked tourist projects of 12 businesses in Ke Ga area and handed over land to Vinacomin to build the seaport.

Finding the seaport project ineffective, the Prime Minister in 2013 instructed to stop construction and assigned the Ministry of Industry and Trade to work with Binh Thuan province to compensate damaged businesses.

The provincial People’s Committee sent a document proposing the ministry to approve the list of affected projects after Ke Ga seaport was halted with 11 items of compensations on January 23.

The committee asked Vinacomin to pay VND85 billion ($3.75 million) in compensation for nine projects, investors of the remaining projects disagreed with previously offered indemnities.

On January 31, Vinacomin told the People’s Committee that the group just agreed to pay VND61.5 billion for nine out of the 12 projects. The province has tasked the Land Fund Development Center to receive the amount of money and give it to affected businesses.
Still Vinacomin has yet to transfer any dong into the bank account of the center so far.

Meanwhile, resorts and restaurants have seriously downgraded for being long abandoned. Of them, The Gioi Xanh tourist site invested with over 50 high grade rooms and a system of modern restaurants is now used for chicken breeding by the site’s guard.

Empowering women in science through entrepreneurship

The second day of the Workshop on APEC Women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) continued on May 15 with discussions focusing on empowering and developing women in STEM through entrepreneurship.

Delegates from 21 member economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum discussed the role of entrepreneurship and female business-owners in strengthening and advancing the STEM pipeline. 

They also mentioned types of networking women in STEM who are starting or developing business can access and how start-ups support opportunities and skills required for STEM entrepreneurs to enter the market and succeed.

According delegates, one of the largest and most important questions that female entrepreneurs have to tackle when starting or developing their business is how they will finance their business.

They said limited access to finance resources due to absence of financial markets, high collateral requirements and interest rates and additional bank charges are traditional challenges that female entrepreneurs often face.  

At the workshop, participants deliberated in groups how entrepreneurship can be strengthened in STEM through each of sub-pillars, namely opportunities and skills, access to capital and access to market. 

These discussions will delineate a workshop consensus about next steps for the APEC Women in STEM initiative.

Gala concert to raise funds for children with heart disease

Popular singers and dancers will perform at a charity concert on May 25 in HCM City to raise funds for children with heart disease.

The event, Vết Sẹo Cuộc Đời (Scar of Life), is organised by VAA Entertainment in partnership with local organisations. 

Since it first launched in 2010, the annual show has become one of the most popular charity events, attracting local and foreign organisations as well as local and expatriate residents.  

Organisers said this year’s theme, “I Love You More”, was chosen to encourage more people to contribute to the work.

The artists will sing and dance to Vietnamese music, with the highlight of the show being performances by pop star Quang Dũng and singer Hoàng Bách.

Female film producer and director Ngô Thanh Vân, owner of VAA Entertainment and a member of the show’s organising board, said, "Many audience members have been close friends of our event for the last seven years and have spent time and money to help more than 1,000 children with heart disease."

The concert will be held at 8:30pm on May 25 at the Caravelle Saigon Hotel in District 1. 

Govt boost awareness of dengue fever and Zika prevention

HCM City Department of Health on Saturday launched a campaign calling on the community to take part in the prevention of dengue fever and Zika as part of ASEAN Dengue Day.

At the launching, the department’s head, Nguyễn Tấn Bỉnh, said that the campaign aims to improving awareness of the community in the prevention of the diseases in the city.

As of now, many people still fail to destroy mosquitos and their larva at their work and homes, Bỉnh said.

“Unless larva and mosquitos are absolutely destroyed, it can lead to an outbreak of the epidemic,” he added.

He told people’s committees in the city’s districts to increase fines on violators.

Since this beginning of this year, the city has recorded 20 incidences of Zika and more than 6,000 incidences of dengue fever, a decrease of 4 per cent compared to the same period last year.

Heavy rains have occurred since the beginning of this year, Bỉnh said, adding that they could help cause the increase of dengue fever incidences this year if “we do not carry out effective preventive methods right away.”

After the launching, health officials of the department and the District 8 Preventive Health Centre came to the houses of residents in the district to educate and encourage them to destroy mosquitoes and larva.

ASEAN Dengue Day is an advocacy event agreed upon during the 10th ASEAN Health Ministers Meeting in 2010.

In Việt Nam, health departments in the country organise several programmes to mark the day each year.

Since 2005, dengue fever has become one of the most important public health problems and has received international attention, according to World Health Organisation. 

Vietnam joins Asian–Pacific Heritage Month celebration in New York

Vietnamese cultural products were showcased at the Asia-Pacific American Heritage Month Celebration held at Stony Brook University, Sufolk county in New York City on May 13.

Vietnam’s permanent mission to the UN and other Vietnamese representative agencies in New York brought to the festival images of the country’s famous landscapes, the beauty of ao dai and traditional art performances, along with key exports such as tea and coffee. 

The festival offers an opportunity for Vietnam to introduce its traditional values and diverse culture to international friends, said Nguyen Phuong Nga, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the United Nations (UN).

The Vietnamese permanent representative delegation to the UN will donate the proceeds collected from the exhibition to support Syrian children as part of charities activities of the UN.

Besides Vietnam, 10 other countries and territories participated in the Asia-Pacific Heritage Month Celebration, which is held annually by the Suffolk County Asian American Advisory Board to introduce cultural identities of Asia-Pacific countries to the US and international friends and provide them with cultural exchange opportunities.

May is the Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month in the US with festivals honouring the cultures of Asian-Pacific nations and territories.

Vietnam shares experience in building socialism in Russia

Pham Duc Vinh, Vice Secretary of the Party’s Committee in Russia, shared Vietnam’s experience in building socialism at a meeting in Moscow, Russia on May 13.

The event, organised by the Russian Academics of Socialist Orientation (RUSO), was an activity to mark the 100th anniversary of Russia's October Revolution.

The event was attended by representatives of RUSO from provinces, the Communist Party of Russia, and socialist-oriented parties in the world.

The Vietnamese delegate recalled that President Ho Chi Minh had found in Marxism-Leninism and the October Revolution the right way to save the nation, stressing that the Marxism-Leninism served as the beacon for Vietnam’s revolution for national liberation, and building of socialism.

Vinh said that based on experience in 30 years carrying out the Doi Moi (Renewal), Vietnam has drawn five key lessons in the building of socialism, which are being proactive and innovation; the strength of the people and bringing into play the nation’s great solidarity; reforming comprehensively and synchronously with respect for objective rules and reality; protecting national interests; and building the Party and the Political system.

Numerous workshops, roundtables and discussions on the significance and role of the revolution will also be held to mark the 100th anniversary of the October Revolution.
     
Laos’ NA House – symbol of bilateral friendship: Deputy PM

Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung has described Lao’s National Assembly (NA) House, to be built with the support of the Vietnamese Party, State, Government, National Assembly and people, as a symbol of the special solidarity and friendship between the two countries.

The Deputy PM made the comment while receiving Lao NA Vice Chairman Somphan Phengkhamy, who is head of the steering board for the construction of the Lao NA Assembly House, in Hanoi on May 14.

He said as construction of the 100 million USD project is scheduled to begin on July 18 and be handed over to the Lao side in the first quarter of 2020, the Lao side should quickly approve the project’s design and planning to promptly transfer them to Vietnam.

The official stressed that the Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam attaches importance to the projects, which will have the Ministry of Construction as the project’s main investor and Corps 11 of the Ministry of National Defence as the constructor.

Vietnam will send officials of the Construction Ministry to Laos to work on the roadmap for the construction and the schedule for the ground breaking ceremony, Dung noted.

Somphan Phengkhamy said the launch of the Lao NA House will be a major activity in various events to celebrate several big anniversaries in Laos-Vietnam relations in 2017.

According to him, Laos has established a board for the project and projected July 18 as the possible date for the ground breaking ceremony.

Prime Minister meets with Hai Phong voters

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and other National Assembly (NA) deputies of northern Hai Phong city met with voters of Do Son district on May 13 to listen to their questions in issues relating to economic development and anti-corruption ahead of the legislature’s third plenary session.

Most local voters hailed the efforts and good performance made by the Prime Minister and other cabinet members in managing and operating the national economy, ensuring defence and security, and increasing investors’ confidence.

They expressed approval of anti-corruption measures taken by the Central Steering Committee for Corruption Combat and Prevention, the National Assembly and the the Government, especially the role played by the head of the steering committee - Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, in directing the handling of 12 serious corruption cases in 2017. 

On local issues, the voters asked the Prime Minister to consider adjusting the city’s development plan and assist the locality in carrying out projects important to the city’s development. 

PM Phuc informed the voters that the upcoming 3rd meeting of the 14th National Assembly will focus on building laws and completing institutions. 

He affirmed that the Government is focusing efforts on perfecting institutions and policies in order to better meet the requirements in socio-economic management and operation, thus bringing a better life to the people. 

Phuc welcomed the voters’ opinions on anti-corruption work, stressing that NA deputies and he himself will reflect the voters’ aspiration to the legislature and Government, in order to increase the effectiveness of corruption and wastefulness prevention, and the settlement of serious corruption cases. 

On behalf of the Hai Phong NA delegation, the PM explained to local voters the mechanisms and policies to support the implementation of a number of projects in the city, especially the coastal road project to connect six provinces and cities in the north, which the PM described as a vital contribution to Hai Phong’s industry, agriculture, services and tourism development. 

The same day’s evening, PM Phuc attended an art performance programme which marked the opening of the 6th Hoa Phuong Do (Red Flamboyant Flower) Festival. The festival, comprising a series of cultural and tourism activities, has become a major annual event of the northern port city.-     

VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/TT/TN/Dantri/VNE