Nearly 74,000 volunteers join Exam Season Support 2016

The launching ceremony for the 2016 Exam Season Support campaign was held in Danang on June 18 with the participation of more than 3,000 young volunteers and students from universities and colleges in the central city.

The programme is held across 63 provinces and cities with volunteers are ready to support exam candidates and their family members at 70 exam venues for university and college entrance exam and 50 venues for the high school graduation exam.

Communications on the programme, training for volunteers and co-ordination among localities, student unions and schools hosting the exams have been deployed since early May.

Around 1,876 volunteer teams with nearly 74,000 volunteers have been set up. The organising board has provided 13,000 T-shirts and caps, 710 umbrellas, 30,000 consulting manuals and 8,000 barrels of drinking water at supporting venues.

Supporting activities will be held from June 28 to July 5, targeting counseling and providing information on the exams to candidates, ensuring security and order, easing traffic flow, providing cheap and free accommodation for candidates and their relatives, guiding the travel of candidates and supporting the with exam procedures.

This is the 15th consecutive year the programme has been co-organised by the Vietnam National Union of Students, the Ministry of Education and Training, Youth Newspaper, and Thien Long Group.

* The same day, Hanoi municipal Youth Union launched the 2016 summer volunteer campaign with the participation of more than 1,000 youth union members and students in the capital city.

The campaign includes a range of sub-programmes to offer free medicine to about 15,000 policy beneficiaries, clean pollution hot spots in the city, provide training for around 1,000 rural youth and offer free swimming courses for around 10,000 children.

Deputy PM urges salt purchases to help farmers

Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Ðình Hu? has urged the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to buy salt to help salt producers, especially in areas with significant salt storage.

The direction of the deputy prime minister was sent yesterday to the ministries of Agriculture and Rural Development, Planning and Investment, Industry and Trade and Finance, as well as to the State Bank of Vietnam and the Vietnam Northern Food Corporation.

The Vietnam Northern Food Corporation, which is in charge of salt purchases, will use the public funds from the mother company. The purchase of salt will follow market prices to help salt producers gain a profit.

The corporation will take responsibility for purchasing salt and repaying the public funds used after the purchase is complete.

The corporation was asked to report to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development if any difficulties arose.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade was assigned to coordinate with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to supervise the salt purchase in various localities. It also encouraged enterprises to consume domestic-produced salt if it meets requirements for chemical production and its price is not excessive compared to imported salt.

Vietnam aims to promote human development in ethnic minority areas

The Government has issued a resolution on promoting human resources development in ethnic minority inhabited areas in 2016-2020, with orientation towards 2030.

Objectives of the plan are to comprehensively improve health, awareness, manners, education and vocational skills for people from ethnic minority groups, especially those that remain limited in human resources development.

This is expected to gradually narrow the development gap between areas, thus meeting the demands for the country’s development and the labour market at present and in the future.

It also aims to increase the number of intellectuals, entrepreneurs and skilled workers in ethnic minority communities, towards fuelling the nation’s socio-economic development and sustainable poverty reduction.

The plan set to increase the life expectancy of ethnic minority people to 73 years old by 2020, and 75 in 2030, while reducing the malnutrition rate in ethnic minority children under five years old to 29 percent in 2020, and 19 percent ten years later.

The number of ethnic minority students pursuing studies in universities and colleges is expected to reach 130-150 out of every ten thousand people, and over 30 percent and 50 percent of ethnic minority people in the working age will be trained in vocational skills by 2020 and 2030, respectively.

To realise the set targets, the resolution put forward many solutions like opening more boarding schools in disadvantaged districts, increasing the number of ethnic minority teachers, and granting more scholarships to students in boarding schools.

Poor ethnic women living in remote areas and children aged between 2-3 will be supported in line with policies on productive health and nutritional caring.

Centres for high-quality vocational training will be established, while consultation and job introduction to ethnic minority labourers will be intensified.-

Parents, stop posting your children’s photos online over this law!

A new law coming into effect in June next year will outlaw the act of posting personal information, including photos, of children in Vietnam online without the consent of the kids and their parents.

The new Children’s Law, which was passed by the lawmaking National Assembly in April and will take effect on June 1, 2017, is an upgraded version of the current Law on Protection, Care, and Education of Children.

The new law lists 15 strictly prohibited acts, including the publication or disclosure of information on the personal life and secrets of children over seven years of age without their consent and their parents’ or guardians’.

According to lawyer Nguyen Thanh Cong, member of the Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association, those who violate the provisions, including parents themselves, will be punished in accordance with the Civil Code, which means they would have to compensate for any proven damage caused by the revelation of such information.

Legal experts in the country, however, asserted that the law’s provisions are still too general to be implemented in practice, for vague terms such as “the rights of children to privacy of personal life” is still left undefined.

According to these experts, more specific guidelines would need to be issued before the law could make any major impact on legal cases concerning children.

Lawyer Cong added that at present the law is only used as a framework for people to adjust their actions accordingly, without any concrete punishment for their violation.

“At the moment, the Children’s Law doesn’t state clearly any penalty for violators,” Cong said. “I think lawmakers should work on drafting guidelines for the law before it comes into effect next year.”

In the meantime, parents in Vietnam are learning the hard way not to publish their children’s photos on the Internet.

H., a mother in District 3, Ho Chi Minh City, recalled how she had made her 13-year-old daughter vulnerable to online sexual predators after posting pictures of the girl wearing a bikini on Facebook, following a family outing at the beach.

“After a while, my younger brother phoned and told me to take the photos off the site immediately,” H. recounted. “When I asked him why, he said he had come across her photos on a porn site with her real name, age, school, and even the price for a night with her.”

H. said she was shocked and regretful for having inadvertently harmed her daughter.

According to lawyer Nguyen Duc Chanh, member of the Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association, the act of posting personal information online for the public to view is dangerous, as predators can use it to easily follow the child for assault or kidnapping.

Three detained in fatal tourist boat sinking in Danang

Three men have been detained in connection to an investigation into the sinking of a tourist boat which claimed three lives in Danang on June 4.

Danang police on June 17 arrested the boat owner Vo Quoc Hung, 44, and Nguyen Ngoc Quan, 25, a tour guide who was responsible for selling the boat tour to customers. The pilot, Le Cong Chi, was arrested earlier.

Two children and a man drowned after the Thao Van 2 tourist boat overturned on the Han River on June 4 evening.

According to the police, the boat was not licensed to carry tourists.

The police considered overloading the primary cause of the sinking. The vessel, which was originally a fishing boat, had a capacity of only 28 passengers, but was carrying 56 people when it capsized.

The reputation of Danang's tourism industry has suffered from the sinking, said the chief of Danang Party Unit, Nguyen Xuan Anh.

Following the tragedy, Danang authorities suspended the operation of all tourism boats on the Han River.

They also suspended the issuing of license for tourist boats modified from fishing boats.

Investigation is ongoing.

Vung Tau now gives away Wi-Fi to tourists

Authorities in the southern beach town Vung Tau have announced that free Wi-Fi hotspots are now available at its hydrofoil pier and the popular beach Bai Truoc.

These hotspots, operated by Saigon Post and Telecommunications Service JSC, can serve more than 1,000 users a day, the authorities said.

They also said that the service will soon be expanded to other places in the town including the city's central market, Bai Sau Beach and the cable car site. The town is around two hours' drive from Ho Chi Minh City.

Several other destinations in Vietnam such as Hoi An, Halong Bay and Danang are also providing free Internet access at major tourist spots.

Free Wi-Fi is available at almost all cafés, restaurants and airports in popular cities in Vietnam, which ranks seventh in Asia and 18th worldwide in terms of Internet usage, according to the 2014 White Book on Vietnamese Information and Communication Technology.

The number of Internet users in Vietnam reached 33 million in 2013. The country’s population is 89.7 million.

Vietnam also ranked eighth in terms of lowest telecom and Internet charges, according to the White Book released last October by the Ministry of Information and Communications.

VTV24 launches major beach cleanup campaign

VTV24 news center, a unit of Vietnam Television station, has announced a beach cleanup campaign in 28 of the nation's 63 cities and provinces to raise public awareness of environmental protection.

Singer Thu Minh, the ambassador of the beach cleanup campaign of VTV24, is seen at a press conference in District 1, HCMC on Wednesday - PHOTO: KIEU GIANG

In the past, the campaign attracted over 4,800 youths to clean up 7.5 km of beach on the central coast, donated 4,000 gifts worth VND2 billion (US$90,000) to 4,000 poor fishermen and installed 10 garbage classification baskets at public beaches.

The organizer looks to run the campaign for a long term to help improve the environment. Apart from mobilizing local people to tidy up beaches, the program will set up a hotline for people to report on threats to the environment.

Le Binh, head of the program, told a recent press conference that the organizer had picked popular singer Thu Minh as the campaign’s ambassador thanks to her experience in inspiring local youths through her own stories. And the organizer is looking for a community influencer to accompany this long-term social campaign.

As part of the campaign, there is a gala music program at Sam Son Beach in the north-central province of Thanh Hoa on June 18, with the attendance of around 8,000 spectators.

The program will be broadcast live at 8:10 p.m. on VTV1. It will feature leading local artists, including director Pham Hoang Nam, musician Thanh Phuong, and choreographer Tran Ly Ly, over 50 singers like My Linh, Ha Tran, Trong Tan, Ta Quang Thang and Dong Hung, and Da Lab band.

Project helps reduce HIV infection among ethnic minority groups

Ethnic minority people in 46 remote communes in seven districts of the northern mountainous province of Son La, which shares border with Laos’ Hua Phan province, have benefited from the Greater Mekong Subregion Capacity Building for HIV/AIDS Prevention launched in 2015 by the Asian Development Bank.

As many as 30 training courses and conference were held in Song Ma, Thuan Chau, Quynh Nhai, Phu Yen, Bac Yen, Yen Chau and Muong La districts, thus enhancing the local officials’ capacity in providing adequate treatment to people living with HIV as well as locals’ knowledge of preventive measures against the disease.

Besides, the project has launched a pilot model to offer treatment services to Vietnam and Laos, focusing on normandic groups in the boundary communes of Chieng Khuong and Muong Hung in Song Ma district, and Chieng Tuong and Chieng On in Yen Chau district.

Meanwhile, guiding documents in Vietnamese, Lao and Thai languages have also been provided to locals.

This year, the project aims to expand local health staff network in Son La by organising management and professional capacity building in HIV/AIDS prevention and control for local officials.

In 2016, Son La targets a drop to under 0.6 percent in the number of HIV/AIDS infection in the community.

Danang, WB discuss US$449mn railway station relocation project

The administration of Danang City and the World Bank conferred on a project to move the current railway station out of the central area at an estimated cost of nearly VND10 trillion on June 17.

Huynh Duc Tho, chairman of the Danang People’s Committee, convened a meeting with a delegation from the World Bank to discuss ways to relocate the railway station to Hoa Minh and Hoa Khanh Nam Wards in Lien Chieu District.

The relocation period will be from 2017 to 2023, local officials said, adding that the plan will cost almost VND10 trillion (US$449 million).

World Bank consultants said in the plan that the new railway station will consist of both passenger and freight terminals, according to the Danang Portal.

The passenger terminal will be located in Hoa Minh Ward, whilst the freight terminal will be constructed in Hoa Hiep Nam Ward.

The new location of the train station is expected to link with the planned Lien Chieu Port and the Danang-Quang Ngai highway, according to the consultants.

A bus rapid transit (BRT) system will also be built between the railway station and the city center to connect to Danang International Airport.

The Danang government has also intended to develop the surroundings of the new train station into an urban area where financial and logistical centers will be established, while the current station in Thanh Khe District will be converted into a commercial-service zone.

VNA attends news agencies meeting at SPIEF 2016

The Vietnam News Agency (VNA) attended a conference of world news agencies held on the sidelines of the 20th Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF 2016) in Russia.

VNA Deputy General Director Le Duy Truyen was among representatives of 24 leading news agencies worldwide participating in the conference, including TASS of Russia, AP of the United States, ANSA of Italy, AFP of France, Canadian Press, Kyodo News of Japan, Xinhua of China, DPA of Germany, India Today and Prensa Latina of Cuba.

At the conference, attendees discussed how latest technologies are confronting traditional journalism and whether artificial intelligence poses a threat to journalism.

The robust development of the digital era has changed the practice of journalism worldwide. According to AP, Canadian Press and Kyodo News, many news agencies have been applying solutions for automatic data processing that enable faster production of news with higher quality.

Delegates agreed that the news agencies need to apply more advanced technologies in their works and urged journalists to make themselves adapt to the changes in technologies.

Vietnam joins in reducing climate change impacts on public health

Vietnam has called on countries to integrate measures for protecting community health and ensuring the right to food, housing, and education into national climate change response programmes and policies.

The process should focus on gender equality and the rights of vulnerable groups like women, children, the elderly and persons with disabilities, said Ambassador Nguyen Trung Thanh – head of the Vietnamese delegation to the United Nations (UN), the World Trade Organisation and other Geneva-based international organisations.

He delivered a speech at a discussion on a study on the impacts of climate change on the right to health on June 17. The function took place on the fringe of the 32nd session of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva, Switzerland.

The discussion drew representatives of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the World Health Organisation, the UN’s Special Rapporteurs on the right to health and the human rights of migrants. It was also attended by delegates from over 30 countries and many international organisations.

Ambassador Thanh said the multi-dimensional impacts of climate change on the right to health as shown in the OHCHR’s study are also facing Vietnam. They include sea level rise, saltwater intrusion, severe storms and droughts, and a rise in many diseases and the number of patients in the summer.

Vietnam is among the five nations most susceptible to climate change. Some forecasts suggest that by the end of the 21st century, temperatures there may rise by 2 – 3 degrees Celsius ever year, leading to a 1-metre rise in the sea level which, in turn, may respectively flood 40 percent and 11 percent of the area of the Mekong Delta and the Red River Delta.

In that scenario, about 10 – 12 percent of the country’s population will be directly affected and 10 percent of the GDP will evaporate, he noted.

At the discussion, speakers stressed that climate change has been causing severe weather conditions such as prolonged drought and floods and strong heat wave, which affect human health through air pollution, water scarcity, food shortages, and increasing tropical, infectious and mental diseases. Those negative influences can be seen most clearly in vulnerable groups like women, the elderly, children and the disabled, especially in developing countries.

That fact requires stronger political commitments, resources and practical actions of all nations, participants added.

On June 16, the UNHCR held a dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the right to health to share experience on improving the health on adolescents.

The Vietnamese delegation noted the country’s achievement of almost all health-related Millennium Development Goals. Health care and community health has been at the heart of all public policies, and protecting people’s health is the responsibility of the entire society and political system, not only of the medical sector.

At the dialogue, the Special Rapporteur said there remain numerous challenges to caring for the health of adolescents, who number 1.2 billion globally. Recognising adolescents’ rights is also a way to improve their physical and mental health.

At a dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights on June 14, the Vietnamese side highlighted the importance of promoting economic, social and cultural rights in eradicating extreme poverty.

As poverty reduction efforts are being threatened by economic recession, natural disasters, epidemics and conflicts, Vietnam called on all countries to take more pragmatic actions to ensure low-income people benefit from socio-economic attainments. It also stressed its willingness to cooperate with and assist other nations in poverty relief.

Viet Nam News marks 25 years of development

Viet Nam News, a publication of the Vietnam News Agency (VNA), held a ceremony to celebrate 25 years of development in Hanoi on June 17.

Uong Chu Luu, member of the Party Central Committee and National Assembly Vice Chairman, presented the Labour Order, third class, to the newspaper.

He congratulated Viet Nam News on its achievements over the past 25 years and expressed his belief that the young, enthusiastic, dynamic, and well-trained newspaper staff will build on the attainments and implement more effectively the political missions of one of the leading external information agencies in the country.

The legislator urged Viet Nam News to reform and improve quality of information and develop itself into a prestigious English external newspaper in the region and around the world.

Apart from promptly and exactly providing the Party and State’s external policies and refuting erroneous information, the newspaper serves as a bridge to connect Vietnam and the world as well as popularise Vietnamese history, its land and people, he said.

He asked the newspaper to train more writers who can produce in-depth analysis articles and consult the Party and State about communicating external information, while building a journalist staff with foreign language proficiency and modern journalism skills.

The newspaper should improve its technical infrastructure and organisation in addition to bettering the capacity of management and enhancing international cooperation to reinforce its position as the leading English newspaper in Vietnam.

NA Vice Chairman Luu also asked the VNA and Viet Nam News in particular to continue to reform news reporting methods, to better implement the Party and State’s missions, including the implementation of the Resolution adopted at the 12th National Party Congress.

Addressing the celebration, VNA General Director Nguyen Duc Loi recognised the achievements made by Viet Nam News in reporting external information.

The newspaper is accompanied by 11 VNA external information units, who provide daily information for both domestic and foreign press agencies and readers through 10 different languages and various forms such as bulletins, photo, audio programmes, online news and a TV channel, which create a large-scale and effective external information network, he said.

He added that the celebration offers an opportunity for Viet Nam News to look back on its 25 years of development, learn from experience, and address difficulties and shortcomings.

He said he hopes the newspaper will continue to reinforce its position as the leading English daily newspaper in Vietnam, a reliable source of information for readers at home and abroad, and that it will make further contributions to the VNA, to build the agency as a strong national multimedia complex.

Born on June 17, 1991, Viet Nam News has incessantly evolved from publishing a four-page newspaper printed in black and white, to eight, and then 28 pages with colour printing.

In 1998, Viet Nam News Online was officially launched, marking its new development into the digital era.

As one of the five members to establish the Asia News Network (ANN), Viet Nam News has actively shared articles, photos and exchanged correspondents and editor training with others, while enhancing press cooperation and organising international events to increase the status of the VNA and the newspaper, domestically and globally.

Books share Japan’s policy, official training experiences

Japan has shared its policy experiences and methods for training public officials in two books – a result of the cooperation between the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics (NAP) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

At the book debut ceremony in Hanoi on June 17, Deputy Director of the NAP Nguyen Tat Giap said the academy is tasked with training high-ranking officials, but it has encountered an array of challenges, especially in reforming training curricula and methods.

The JICA support, as part of a project to improve the training capacity of the NAP and the National Academy of Public Administration, will help the academies fulfill their political tasks farmed out by the Party and State, he added.

In the books, Japanese experts have not only cited successful policies in their country but also analysed failures and unexpected consequences in the enforcement of some policies, he noted, adding that those are valuable lessons for Vietnam.

Notably, the book on Japan’s policy experiences was compiled by senior Japanese officials and professors at well-known universities. It introduces the country’s experiences in such fields as water resource management, transport infrastructure development, industrial development and environmental protection, and State-owned enterprise restructuring, Giap noted.

Kakioka Naoki, Vice Chief Representative of JICA Vietnam, said he hopes information in the books will be applied and help with Vietnam’s development.

PM urges Tây Nguyên to develop its economy

Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc has urged authorities in the Tây Nguyên (Central Highlands) to focus on socio-economic development and improve living conditions for local people.

Speaking at a working session with the Tây Nguyên Steering Committee in Đắk Lắk Province’s Buôn Ma Thuột City yesterday, PM Phúc said local authorities should pay more attention to the management of land, water and forest resources.

“It is necessary to create favourable conditions for local people to have land for stable living and cultivation in Tây Nguyên,” he said.

The Government leader added that it was crucial to restore forests in Tây Nguyên and keep the region green.

He also urged local authorities to ensure social security and order, which would be the concrete foundation for sustainable development.

The PM suggested that the steering committee create conditions for business development and take advantage of the region’s potential.

“The steering committee and localities should focus on training and fostering cadres for the region’s development,” Phúc said.

Deputy head of the Tây Nguyên Steering Committee Trần Việt Hùng reported to the PM on recent developments in the region.

He said that the committee had outlined infrastructure improvements as the key task in the coming time.

The system of national highways and provincial roads in the region served residents’ interests, but had yet to serve the region’s economic development, Hùng said.

The steering committee also suggested adding the construction of small hydro-power plants to the national programme on building new-style rural areas to help cope with climate change.

On the same day, Prime Minister Phúc visited and presented gifts to ethnic people in HĐơk Village in Eakao Commune.

Earlier on Saturday, the Prime Minister received local authorities from Trà Vinh and Bến Tre provinces at separate meetings in Hà Nội.

Speaking with a Trà Vinh provincial official, he said that the best way for the province to fulfil its socio-economic tasks in the next few years would be to foster economic restructuring in an extensive, practical and effective manner.

He applauded the Mekong Delta province’s development efforts in the first half of 2016, when it was severely affected by saltwater intrusion and unfavourable global and domestic economic conditions.

However, he pointed to Trà Vinh’s weaknesses, such as the modest number of businesses, slow economic restructuring and underdeveloped infrastructure. As the Government has no plan to adjust socio-economic development targets for this year, the province should take every measure to address difficulties facing local residents and businesses, he said.

It must try to improve the business environment and support enterprises’ operations, the PM said, adding that Trà Vinh also needed to step up the construction of new-style rural areas.

He asked concerned agencies to help the province cope with short- and long-term problems. They should soon carry out infrastructure projects to enhance the province’s ability to respond to saline encroachment and climate change.

Trà Vinh, a coastal locality in the southeast of the Mekong Delta, relies mostly on agricultural and sea-based economic activities. It is still a low-income province with a large number of ethnic minority people.

The recent drought and saltwater intrusion have affected 29,067ha of rice in Trà Vinh, while 18,770 rural families have lacked water for daily use.

From January to June, the province’s gross regional domestic product grew by 6.26 per cent, lower than the 11-12 per cent target, including declines of 12.8 per cent and 10.12 per cent in agriculture and aquaculture. However, industrial production there rose by 98.9 per cent, construction by 10.89 percent and services by 4.32 per cent.

Meeting Bến Tre officials the same day, the Prime Minister said he supported the idea of building a startup ecosystem.

The PM said this novel mindset would contribute to reducing poverty, improving management in State-run agencies, and supporting farmers and entrepreneurs.

A startup ecosystem is formed by people, startups in their various stages and different types of organisations in a location, interacting as a system to create new startup companies.

The PM extolled Bến Tre for proactively enacting measures to cope with saltwater intrusion and ensure social welfare.

He suggested that the province promote the spirit of innovation in management and concentrate financial resources on tackling barriers to local development goals and improving local living standards.

It was important to boost the application of science and technology in farming and raise public awareness of integrating economic development with climate change adaptation, he added.

The Government leader asked the locality to diversify and mobilise capital resources to build climate change-adaptive facilities, as well as prioritise investment in transport, irrigation and water resources projects to ensure sustainable development.

Addressing the event, Deputy PM Trịnh Đình Dũng suggested Bến Tre review its planning scheme in line with that of the Mekong Delta, focusing on transport infrastructure development and economic restructuring in accordance with the provincial and regional climate change strategy.

He urged the province to improve roads and waterways while developing a seaport system to develop industry and marine transport.

The province should develop its land fund as a primary factor to appeal for investment, he said, adding it should balance financial resources, select suitable investment models and prioritise build-operate-transfer (BOT) projects to yield higher efficiency.

With a 65km coastline and favourable infrastructure network, Bến Tre boasts strengths in aquaculture and rice production. It also connects the Mekong Delta with the southern key economic zone.

Like other Mekong Delta localities, Bến Tre had to bear the brunt of the severe saltwater intrusion in the first half of 2016. The total economic loss was estimated at VNĐ1.5 trillion (US$67.5 million). In addition, more than 20,000ha of rice and over 4,000ha of fruit were damaged.

In January-June, the gross regional domestic product (GRDP) increased by only 2.68 per cent against the same period last year, failing to reach its target of 6.5 per cent and recording the lowest growth over the past few years.

Ba Ria-Vung Tau must push ahead with sustainable development

Ba Ria – Vung Tau province must press on with sustainable development and focus on sea-based economic activities and marine sovereignty protection, Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong said.

The Party leader had a working session with local officials on June 18 as part of his two-day tour of the southern province.

He stressed that Ba Ria – Vung Tau, holding a strategic position, has made great strides over the past years and boasts huge potential for stronger development in the near future.

He applauded the province’s sound development orientations that have tapped into local advantages in gas – power – fertiliser industries, seaport services, tourism, and agriculture.

Mapping out appropriate development directions is critical, as is fine-tuning the orientations while realising them, he said.

Ba Ria – Vung Tau should adopt only investment projects using modern technology, generating high added values and being environmentally friendly. It needs to ensure a stable investment climate where people’s strength is promoted, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong noted.

He lauded the locality’s attention to the Party and political system reinforcement, along with studying and following late President Ho Chi Minh’s moral example. The Party chief asked the province to enhance personnel training and State officials’ sense of responsibility.

At the working session, the provincial Party Committee reported that Ba Ria – Vung Tau is now home to 15 industrial parks covering 8,706ha. Local industrial production grew by more than 7 percent in the first five months of 2016.

The province plans to have 57 ports, 28 of them have been operational and are able to handle 98.9 million tonnes of goods per year. It has applied itself to developing the Cai Mep – Thi Vai deep-water port system into an international transit port.

Between January and May, the Cai Mep – Thi Vai port complex dealt with 19.7 million tonnes of goods and contributed some 5.72 trillion VND (256.9 million USD) generated from its activities to the State budget.

Meanwhile, Ba Ria – Vung Tau welcomed 7.9 million tourists and collected 245 billion VND (11 million USD) in tourism revenue for the State budget. It has also ensured security – order, environment and food safety, local officials said.

On June 17, Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong visited Long Tan commune which fulfilled all new-style rural area criteria in late 2014. He also laid a wreath and offered incense at the monument, temple and memorial house of Heroic Martyr Vo Thi Sau in Dat Do district.

Da Nang programme responds to Int’l Yoga Day

A total of 500 Yoga teachers and students participated in performances in response to International Yoga Day (June 21), which took place in the central city of Da Nang on June 19.

The programme was jointly held by the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations, the Vietnam-India Friendship Association of Da Nang city, and the Indian Embassy in Vietnam.

Its objectives were to improve participants physically and mentally and strengthen friendship and cooperation between the central city and India.

Yoga is an ancient physical, mental and spiritual practice that originated in India. The word ‘yoga’ derives from Sanskrit and means to join or to unite, symbolising the union of body and consciousness.

Today it is practiced in various forms around the world and continues to grow in popularity.

Recognising its universal appeal, on December 11, 2014, the United Nations proclaimed June 21 as International Yoga Day.

International Yoga Day aims to raise awareness worldwide of the many benefits of practicing yoga.

Hanoi: Free check-ups offered to ethnic minority

Free medical check-ups and medicines were provided for 1,200 ethnic minority people in the districts of Thach That, Quoc Oai and Chuong My, Hanoi on June 18.

The health checks were conducted by 50 doctors at communal health care centres and the Yen Binh Clinic in Yen Binh Commune, Thach That district.

Under the programme, 300 presents were also given to disadvantaged children in the mountainous areas in Thach That district.

Over the past three years, the municipal Youth Union, Committee on Ethnic Minority Affairs and the municipal Health Department have offered free check-ups and medicine to nearly 3,700 disadvantaged people.

Numerous activities have also been organised in the mountainous areas in Hanoi, such as art performances, cultural exchanges, sport games.

The essence of the Vietnamese culture was highlighted at a ceremony to wrap up the 2015 Vietnamese Culture Year in the Czech Republic in Prague on June 18.

The 2015 Vietnamese Culture Year was organised as part of over 100 activities to mark the 65th anniversary of the diplomatic ties between Vietnam and the Czech Republic and to boost the traditional ties between the two nations.

Addressing the closing ceremony, Vietnamese Ambassador to the Czech Republic Truong Manh Son said the activities during the year have made significant contribution to consolidating the relationship between the Vietnamese overseas people in the country.

The event featured a wide range of activities, including showcases of Vietnamese traditional “long-dress” costumes, handicraft items, cuisine art and photos of Vietnamese people and their livelihoods across the country.

A number of traditional art performances also drew the attention of local viewers, such as lotus dances, paper fan dances, folk singing, “Quan ho” (love duet) singing and others.

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