Hand, foot and mouth disease strikes Hanoi

A health official from the Hanoi Health Department says a surging outbreak of hand, foot and mouth disease in ten districts in Hanoi has infected 36 people so far this year.

According to the official, there have been five separate outbreaks reported and there is an especially high risk of a widespread outbreak in Bac Tu Liem district with six infected cases recently reported.

There is no vaccine to prevent the disease, the official said.

Vietnam recorded 80,685 cases of hand-foot and mouth disease in 2014 including eight deaths while Hanoi reported 1,170 infected cases in 26 out of 30 districts citywide.

The disease is a contagious viral illness that commonly affects infants and young children. Symptoms usually begin with a fever, sore throat, painful sores in the mouth. Complications include viral meningitis, myocarditis, and acute pneumonia, which can be fatal.

To reduce the risk of catching the virus, both children and adults should wash their hands often with soap and water many times throughout the day, disinfect touched surfaces such as toys and doorknobs and timely isolate infected patients.

Volunteer year illustrates youth enthusiasm for community activities

The 2014 Youth Volunteer Year proved to be a success, with a series of activities held across Vietnam demonstrating the youth’s dynamism in campaigns for community interests.

Voluntary activities towards the country’s seas and islands were a highlight of the year and were warmly received by youth nationwide, especially amidst China’s illegal placement of an oil rig in Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf from May to July of last year.

A programme run by the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union (HCYU) and the Naval High Command mobilised more than 2 billion VND (about 95,240 USD) in donations for residents and soldiers on the Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago.

Meanwhile, the Central Committee of the Vietnam Students’ Association built eight flag poles on islands using money donated by undergraduate students across the country. It also called upon businesses to give lifebuoys and 900 national flags to residents in Phu Quoc Island, offered free check-ups to Tho Chu islanders, and presented gifts to children on the islands.

The youth visited and encouraged residents and soldiers on the Truong Sa archipelago as well as the families of coast guard servicemen and fishery resource surveillance forces performing their duties at sea. A fund to support fishermen working around Hoang Sa (Paracel) was also established.

In 2014, youth participation fuelled progress on the national new-style rural area building programme, a Government-launched initiative to improve and develop Vietnam’s rural areas since 2011.

During the summer volunteer campaign, youth teams were sent to disadvantaged localities in the northwest, Central Highlands, and southwest regions where they worked together to build infrastructure facilities including irrigation systems, roads, hygienic toilets, cultural centres, and playing grounds.

Volunteers advised rural residents about profitable production models, animal and crop farming techniques, and technology transfer while disseminating information on laws and encouraging the young to practice healthy cultural activities.

Also in 2014, a wide range of traffic safety-themed activities were conducted by HCYU chapters to raise awareness of traffic safety models; the Hanoi chapter established 30 volunteer teams who assisted police in ensuring traffic safety at congestion sites and accident hotbeds and also organised traffic law and skill courses for local residents.

Such efforts greatly contributed to the 4 percent decrease in the number of fatalities and a 13.8 percent reduction in accidents in 2014.

Construction sector owes USD25m in unpaid wages

Workers in the construction sector are owed VND528bn(USD25m) in unpaid wages, according to a review by the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour.

Trade and labour unions from 63 provinces and cities took part in an online meeting January 15 led by Dang Ngoc Tung, chairman of the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour.

A highlight of the meeting was the problem of unpaid wages. Statistics from labour unions showed the average monthly wage in 2014 was VND5.8m per employee. But unpaid wages in 22 provinces and localities were a major feature of the construction sector.

Do Van Quang, vice chairman of the construction trade union speaking at the meeting.

As of December 31, 2014, 85 companies, or 17.2 percent of listed companies, owed employees VND395.3bn in unpaid wages alone. The construction trade union said the companies blamed a lack of cash flow for the unpaid wages.

"In 2010, there were no unpaid wages, but this problem has been rising since 2011. There is a VND4trn project that has been completed with bank loans, but the customer has yet to pay and the company doesn't have the funds to pay wages," said Do Van Quang, vice chairman of the construction trade union.

"On the other hand, many companies had to borrow money from banks due to difficulties, and as soon as clients transfer funds, the money is taken by the banks. I know of a company that replaced its directors three times in order to improve its financial situation."

Quang suggested companies make unpaid wage problem a priority and meet employees to try to find ways of improving their businesses.  

Hao Duong delays paying environmental pollution fines

Hao Duong Leather Tanning Company on January 12 asked the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee for an extension in the payment of VND6.3 billion ($296.000) in environmental pollution fines, according to Lao Dong newswire.

“Hao Duong admits to the wrongdoings and commits to mitigating the consequences and submitting the VND6.3 billion in fines,” Tang Van Duc, chairman of Hao Duong, said, but added that paying was hard, because “Hao Duong hasn’t been operating for the past 14 months and thus is in a difficult financial situation. The company is paying salaries to its 300 workers who were temporarily out of work due to the factory closure, as well as improving its waste water treatment system, maintaining equipment and compensating foreign customers, which cost a total VND25 billion ($1.17 million).”

Duc said he hoped the people’s committee would allow the firm to pay in multiple installments, “to help reduce the financial pressure, so that the firm can continue operating and finish paying the VND6.3 billlion fine”.

He also asked if Hao Duong could be allowed to re-open the factory on a trial basis this month. If Hao Duong does not meet the standards set by authorities, it will close and admit all responsibilities. The request is still being considered by the local authorities.

Hao Duong, located in the Hiep Phuoc Industrial Park in Nha Ba district, Ho Chi Minh City, was forced to suspend operation in November 2013 after repeatedly violating environmental laws by discharging toxic waste into the nearby Dong Dien River. From 2005 until the date of the factory closure, Hao Duong were caught and fined 10 times with the fine of a few thousand dollars each. The company never paid the fines and they did not stop discharging liquid toxic waste.

The VND6.3 billion fine Hao Duong was subject to pay was said to be the highest-ever level levied on an corporate environmental polluter in Vietnam.

As many as 3,000 part time jobs awaiting students during Tet

The Student Supporting Center in Ho Chi Minh City is carrying out the annual program to support poor students on the occasion of the Lunar New Year (Tet holiday) that peaks on February 19 this year, said Le Xuan Dung, deputy head of the center.

This year, the program will give bus tickets to 3,000 needy students who can not afford the ticket to return their homeland on Tet holiday. Students can register until February 10.

Along with this program, the center will sell cheap tickets with the discount of 30-50 percent to disadvantaged students. The program begins from January 17 to February 10.

In addition to the ticket supporting program, the center also organizes a get-together for students who stay in the city. As usual, the center will give 1,500 gifts to them. The program will mobilize local enterprises to offer around 4,000 part-time jobs to students who stay in the city to earn money during Tet holiday.

The center said, there are about 3,000 part-time jobs for students including shop-keepers in supermarkets, safeguard for the flower street. This year, the technology University in HCMC will hold a program “Vui tet Xa Nha” ( Receiving a New Year away from Home) for students.

The school management will send wishes to all students, give them lucky money and traditional foods for Tet. Moreover, musical performance and folk games are hoped to bring happiness to students.

Poly-Technique University has also encouraged businesses to provide 175 charitable tickets to poor students who are good at studying and social extra-activities. Total amount for charity tickets is over VND87 million (US$ 74.7 million).

Similarly, Pedagogy University, Bank University and Economic University follow suit to organize get-together for students and give supporting bus fare to students, aiming to help them returning hometown.

Chemical traders ignore dangers: HCMC

Several chemical traders have operated without business license and not complied with related safety regulations in Ho Chi Minh City, resulting in five chemical - related fires and explosions which killed eight and injured six people last year.

Kim Bien Market is well-known for chemical trading in Ho Chi Minh City with tens of stalls in the market and surrounding roads. They sell hundreds of kinds of chemicals including industrial chemicals, food preservatives and toxic types also.

These chemicals are contained in plastic bottles and bags without origin, instructions for use and expiry date.

A chemical deliverer in the market named Le Thanh Tai said that besides chemicals that are permitted for sale, other banned types are also available. The banned are not displayed at shops but put in other places to avoid inspectors.

Similar condition is also occurring at another chemical trading area in To Hien Thanh Street, District 10.

Stalls in Kim Bien Market and To Hien Thanh Street are packed with many kinds of from solid to liquid chemicals. However each of them has been equipped with only a small fire extinguisher.

In addition HCMC has hundreds of establishments producing and trading chemicals without licenses. They have poured industrial chemicals from big cans into bottles and arranged them in confusion with unsafe electricity system which easily triggers fires and explosions.

The HCMC Fire Fighting and Prevention Police Department has implemented an instruction by the city People’s Committee to strengthen inspection over chemical businesses in the city to prevent fires and explosions.

According to Commander Nguyen Duc Vinh from the department, they have inspected trading establishments and uncovered a lot of issues especially from the management of authorized agencies with overlapped and asynchronous regulations.

For instance traders must get business licenses not only from the city Department of Planning and Investment but also the Department of Industry and Trade.

Last year HCMC saw five chemical-related fires and explosions killing eight, injuring six people and causing a financial damage of VND40 billion (US$1.9 million). Safety regulations were not ensured in the process of transportation, preservation, blending, and usage of chemicals permitting the substances to leak out and react with water and oxygen.

HCM City aims to increase health insurance coverage

HCM City this year aims to have 76 per cent of its population covered with health insurance, Cao Van Sang, head of the city Social Insurance Agency, has said.

At a meeting on social and health insurance held yesterday in the city, Sang said 68.25 per cent of the population was covered in 2014.

More than 5.4 million people bought health insurance, an increase of 8.35 per cent compared to 2013. At least 909,970 people voluntarily bought health insurance.  

With the increase in the number of contracts signed between the social insurance agency and local hospitals and clinics, the total number of insured patients treated at local hospitals rose, Sang said.

These health establishments have also improved treatment quality to ensure the trust of insured patients, he added.

The city's health insurance fund paid VND70 billion (US$3.3 million) to insured patients who were treated at hospitals last year, Sang said.

However, despite successes last year, Sang said the agency was short of qualified staff with sufficient medical knowledge who could uncover cases of abuse of insurance funds by doctors and healthcare staff. These staff are in charge of examining patients' health records.

The agency's report showed that nearly 1.9 million employees joined the social-insurance scheme last year, an increase of 75,969 compared to 2013.

The city's total collection of social and health insurance funds last year increased to VND33.5 trillion (US$1.5 billion), a rise of 21.28 per cent compared to 2013.

The agency inspected 3,668 enterprises and organisations that bought health and social insurance.

It sued 1,717 enterprises that failed to pay social insurance for their employees within six months, which is required by law. The agency later recovered VND129.9 billion ($6.2 million).

Sang said that lawsuits were one of several ways that the city could force enterprises to pay social insurance to their employees.

Health sector works to improve services

The Ministry of Health has strengthened efforts to improve healthcare services by working on key issues, including IT, medical equipment management and transparency.

Deputy director of the ministry's Information Technology Department, Nguyen Hoang Phuong, said at a conference on IT application in the healthcare sector yesterday that IT was key to improving healthcare services and simplifying related administrative procedures.

The ministry had applied IT to organise online conferences, diagnosis, treatment and consultation, he said.

He reported that all national hospitals had employed the use of IT, but provincial and district hospitals trailed behind.

Information connections between hospitals using IT remained limited.

Addressing the conference, Deputy PM Vu Duc Dam said IT in the healthcare system was important but its application remained low.

"The reason is that only a few specialised enterprises work in the field of medical IT, leaving many hospitals on their own," he said.

"This is a market that has a lot of potential and can be sustainable; enterprises should make their move," he added.

He called on IT businesses to work more in the field of healthcare and the ministries of Health and Information and Communications to promote IT application in the healthcare sector.

Deputy PM Dam earlier called on the ministry to tighten the management of medical equipment, particularly in the bidding process and the assessment of equipment quality.

"Transparency in all stages including licensing, bidding and quality assessment is the strongest and most effective method to improve the quality of medical equipment," Dam said at the conference on Wednesday.

He asked all hospitals and local health departments to publicise their bidding on new equipment and quality assessments on the ministry's official website and on the Ministry of Planning and Investment's (MoPI) State bidding network.

The Ministry of Health has also worked closely with other ministries to support domestic companies that produce medical equipment.

A large number of domestically produced medical products like beds, gloves and infusion lines were often purchased by state hospitals, said Health Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien.

However, domestic companies failed to provide advanced medical equipment, leaving hospitals with no choice but to import equipment, she said.

Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Dang Huy Dong said that an independent specialist board had been jointly established by the ministry and the Ministry of Science and Technology. The board assessed all medical equipment to be purchased with the State budget, whether it was imported or produced by a domestic company.

"All products will be assessed based on the same criteria of technological sophistication and cost, therefore it will make competition for domestic companies fairer," Dong said.

The board members include representatives from domestic companies, import companies, foreign manufacturers and specialised management agencies.

Commune-level clinics need more staff

Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long said at a conference held in Ha Noi yesterday that about 50 per cent of the commune-level clinics nationwide need to be upgraded.

He added that their staff was inadequate in terms of numbers and capability, especially in the remote and mountainous areas, despite both central and local investments being made in recent years.

The Ha Noi conference was held to hear reports on the performance of the commune-level clinics.

The country currently has about 10,000 such clinics, employing about 68,000 health workers and providing more than 100 healthcare services, said Long. However, many services reportedly do not meet the people's healthcare demands due to lack of appropriate facilities and limited workforce.

CDS project aims to create city-development strategies

Tam Ky and Quy Nhon will be the first cities included in the Vietnam City Development Strategies Project (CDS), officials announced on January 13 at a workshop in Hanoi.

The CDS project aims to create city-development strategies that involve all stakeholders, using the cities themselves as the driving force behind development.

"Cities contributed up to 75 percent of the country's GDP and created millions of jobs, serving as economic hubs to boost development," said Do Viet Chien, Director of the Ministry of Construction's Urban Development Agency.

However, Chien added that Vietnam had started to experience unwanted results of unplanned development in cities across the country, such as waste and inefficiency.

City development, even when planned, could still backfire if un-coordinated and lacking strategic vision, said Dinh Thanh Tam, Director of the Ministry of Planning and Investment's Department of Planning Management.

"The country's development plans are often poorly constructed and lack community support," Tam said.

In addition, these plans complicated the development process instead of helping it and caused substantial damage to the environment in the process, according to the director general.

"With one-third of the population and major economic and social activities taking place every day, the country needs a model to guide the development of its cities now more than ever," said Nguyen Quang, UN-Habitat Programme Manager in Vietnam.

Quang said that CDS, a tried and tested model for city development, would be a useful tool for policy-makers and businesses in dealing with the emerging issues faced by fast-growing cities across the country, such as climate change, energy preservation and the development of competitive advantages.

D. Ajay Suri, Regional Adviser of the Cities Alliance, said the CDS project was different from other models as it focused on ways to get the community involved, not just during the planning stage but also during the implementation process.

The workshop included a presentation on Tam Ky's use of the CDS model to come up with a strategic development plan for an environmentally friendly city and sustainable growth. Chairman of Tam Ky People's Committee Van Anh Tuan said the city would focus on products and services that were complementary to those of other cities and provinces in the region such as tourism, agriculture-forestry and fisheries while investing in human resource development as part of a long-term strategy for sustainable development.

The project will cover five more cities over two years (Hai Duong, Hung Yen, Viet Tri, Ha Tinh and Ben Tre) with sponsorship from the UN-Habitat and Cities Alliance, a global partnership for urban poverty reduction and the promotion of the role of cities in sustainable development.

River dykes to be upgraded comprehensively

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai has asked for accelerating the reinforcement of river dykes as a proactive measure against flood.

The programme upgrading river dyke systems to 2020 was approved by the Prime Minister in Decision 2068/QD-TTg released on December 9, 2009.

Between 2010 and 2013, localities approved 277 projects on strengthening 2,169 km of river dykes worth over 42.9 trillion VND (2.04 billion USD), with 166 projects accomplished and 1,164 km of dykes fortified and 332 km of embankments built.

The Deputy PM requested the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) instruct target localities to guarantee technical and safety standards after assessing thoroughly the state of their river dykes.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Planning and Investment was assigned to ensure allocated funding reaches the MARD and localities for the implementation.

The People’s Committees of target provinces were required to build medium-term and annual projects related in accordance with their budget balance.

63 billion VND allocated to preserve mangrove forest ecology

A 63 billion VND (3 million USD) project has been launched in the southern province of Tra Vinh to preserve the Long Khanh mangrove forest ecosystem between 2014 and 2018.

The project aims to preserve and foster the reproduction of the fauna and flora ecosystem diversification in the Long Khanh commune in order to serve the research and development of an eco-tourism site in the area.

The majority of the funds, 54 billion VND (2.6 billion USD), will be dedicated to planting 73 hectares of forest, reproducing monkeys, crocodiles, iguanas and other wild animals, building stations and grids, and purchasing machines and equipment to protect the forest.

Primeval Long Khanh mangrove forest has been under State protection since 2006, including mangrove, date, and African mahogany flora and squirrel, weasel and bird fauna preserved within the conservation area.

Tay Ninh spends 50 billion VND on environment protection

The southern province of Tay Ninh will invest nearly 50 billion VND in environmental protection in 2015, according to the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

It has set to tackle all polluted produc tion facilities and ensure all residential zones have standardized waste treatment systems.

Solid wastes and wastes discharged by hospitals will be collected and treated to standard environmental levels and up to 96 percent of rural people access clean water.

Among 27 environment protection projects and programmes intended for the work, Tay Ninh will firstly focus on addressing pollution o the Dong Nai River and other rivers running through the locality.

Besides, it will prioritise building concentrated wastewater treatment facilities for Tay Ninh urban city and Duong Minh Chau town and improving solid waste and wastewater treatment systems at nine district and municipal hospitals and healthcare centres.

In 2014, all industrial and export processing zones in the province have built their own wastewater treatment systems and 95 percent solid, hazardous and hospital wastes were collected and treated. Up to 94 percent of private production workshops installed equipment to treat their wastewater.

Efforts to expand health insurance coverage to HIV patients

Vietnam is taking measures to expand health insurance coverage to more HIV/AIDS patients, as only 30 percent are currently covered.

These measures are part of efforts to gradually shift the payment of treatment fees from foreign-funded project and programme resources to the country’s health insurance fund.

The health sector is encouraging people living with HIV to go to local medical facilities where health insurance cards cover all of their treatment costs, instead of outpatient clinics.

Unfortunately, many patients are still avoiding visiting medical facilities near their homes over concerns that relatives, friends and neighbours will become aware of their HIV status and stigmatise them, posing a significant barrier to covered health insurance treatments.

To widen the health insurance coverage, experts propose applying health insurance card payments in outpatient clinics and HIV test centres under the Health Ministry’s Preventive Medicine Department, the preferred access sites for people living with HIV.

According to the Director of the general hospital of Tinh Bien district in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang, Duong Hoang Dung, their outpatient clinic has been working as a facility of the general hospital since April of 2012, facilitating the acceptance of health insurance cards in outpatient clinics.

Currently, 415 out of the 542 known HIV/AIDS patients in the district have insurance cards, or an impressive 76.5 percent. Health insurance has also helped Tinh Bien reduce international project spending by roughly 60 million VND (2,820 USD) on check-ups and treatment.

Looking forward, the health sector plans to mobilise resources from the State budget to simplify access to insurance for people living with HIV, including subsidising part or all of the insurance card fees for those living near or below the poverty line.

Homeland Spring 2015 set for TET holidays

It has emerged that this year’s annual Xuan Que Huong (Homeland Spring 2015) programme to welcome Overseas Vietnamese (OVs) is set for February in Hanoi to coincide with the Lunar New Year (Tet) holidays.

The State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs (COVA), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Hanoi Municipal People’s Committee jointly made the announcement the event will be held Hanoi and neighbouring provinces on February 9, 10 and 11.

OVs choosing to participate will visit and enjoy a feast in a Red River Delta ancient village, greet and wish Happy New Year to leaders of the Party, State and Vietnam Fatherland Front and attend a banquet organized by the Hanoi Municipal People’s Committee.

They will also get a chance to participate in a programme in which the State President will send Happy New Year wishes to all Vietnamese people and enjoy an art exchange in the Culture Village of Vietnamese Ethnic Minority Groups.

In addition, the programme will organize a visit to tea cultural atmosphere, ecological ethnic village and attend an art exchange in Thai Nguyen province.

The event is expected to bring a warm and happy atmosphere to usher in the new spring 2015 for OVs returning to homeland to welcome the Lunar New Year.

OVs desiring to participate should register with the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs (COVA) at No. 356 Hue Street, Hai Ba Trung district, Hanoi.

More women in management is good for business

New ILO study shows that Vietnam ranks 76th out of 108 countries in proportion of women managers at 23 %.

While women are still under-represented in top management, the number of women in senior and middle management positions has increased over the last 20 years, a new study by the International Labour Organization finds.

 According to Women in Business and Management: Gaining Momentum, women’s %age share of all managers ranges from 2.1 % in the lowest-ranked country of Yemen to 59.3 % in Jamaica, which tops the list of 108 countries. Vietnam ranks 76th with 23 % of women in business management.

In Asia, the highest ranking country is the Philippines in 4th place (47.6 %), followed by Mongolia with 41.9 % in 17th place.

As the proportion of women managers has increased over the past years in most of the countries where the ILO has available data, Vietnam has also recorded a slight improvement. Also according to Vietnam’s Labour Force Surveys, the share of women among “leaders, managers and administrators” increased by 0.5 % to 24.4 in 2013 compared to 2012 and 0.6 % between 2011 and 2012.

“Our research is showing that women’s ever increasing participation in the labour market has been the biggest engine of global growth and competitiveness,” says Deborah France-Massin, Director of the ILO Bureau for Employers’ Activities.

“An increasing number of studies are also demonstrating positive links between women’s participation in top decision making teams and structures and business performance. But there is a long way to go before we achieve true gender equality in the workplace, especially when it comes to top management positions.”

Only 5 % or less of the CEOs of the world’s largest corporations are women, the ILO report shows. The larger the company, the less likely the head will be a woman.

In Vietnam, data from Global Women CEO Project under the France-based organization – Intelligence Financial Research and Consulting – indicate that 7 % of the CEOs among more than 600 surveyed companies are women and female board members account for 14 %.

“It is critical for more women to reach senior management positions in strategic areas to build a pool of potential candidates for top jobs such as CEO or company presidents,” explained France-Massin. “However, ‘glass walls’ still exist with the concentration of women in certain types of management functions like HR, communications and administration”, she added.

 Today, women own and manage over 30 % of all businesses globally (29.5 % of employers in Vietnam are women, according to the 2013 Labour Force Survey), but they are more likely to be found in micro and small enterprises. Getting more women to grow their businesses is not only critical for equality but also for national development, shows the report.

 The authors underline that women and girls receive almost half of all educational resources, thus representing a significant proportion of the available talent pool. The case of Vietnam is no different.

UNESCO data indicate that among those with tertiary education, women always outnumbered men in the period between 2007 and 2011.

 There is also evidence of the benefits to business of tapping into the talent pool that women represent – including being in tune with a consumer market increasingly driven by women. As women often control household budgets and financial decisions and their purchasing power has increased, they are significant consumers and clients of products and services. Therefore, decision-making roles in enterprises should be represented by both women and men.

 “Supporting women to advance in their career is not only an issue of gender equality but also makes good business sense,” said ILO Vietnam Director Gyorgy Sziraczki.

“Promoting the diversity in management by having more women in top positions is key to increase companies’ productivity and competitiveness, thereby seizing the economic and social benefits of the country’s deepening integration”, he said.

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