WB-funded project helps renewable energy development in Vietnam

An overview of the workshop on renewable energy 

The Renewable Energy Development Project (REDP) has helped dozens of projects and training establishments improve investment and construction capacity and train human resources in the field of renewable energy.

The assessment was made at a conference to review the implementation of the project during 2009-2018 held by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) in Hanoi on June 21.

REDP is sponsored by the WB and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs with official development assistance (ODA) worth 204 million USD. It aims to develop renewal energies to connect with the national grid in order to serve sustainable development.

Nguyen Van Thanh, deputy head of the MoIT’s Electricity and Renewable Energy Agency, stated that the project is significant for the community and has provided all-round assistance for the Vietnamese Government in making renewable energy development policies and attracting investment in the field.

REDP has helped businesses to successfully invest in 19 small hydropower projects with total capacity of 320MW and combined electricity output of nearly 1.3 billion kWh annually, thus contributing to ensuring power supply during peak hours and for far-flung areas, he added.

Marcel Raymond from the Swiss Embassy in Vietnam said that Vietnam holds great potential in renewable energy. With technical assistance and low costs from the REDP, the country can compete well in renewable energy development.

A report summarising the implementation of the project showed that the project has helped several State agencies complete policies and institutions on renewable energy development and on how to use foreign aid in conformity with Vietnam’s situation.

It has also contributed to building a database on wind measuring and wind power development. 

With its current economic scale and annual economic growth of around 7 percent, Vietnam has huge demand for energy and electricity.

Therefore, developing renewable energy in Vietnam is essential to diversify primary energy supplies and protect the environment.

Vietnam boosts hepatitis B vaccination for newborns in remote areas

A medical worker prepares to administer vaccine to a baby in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak 

Vietnam is promoting hepatitis B vaccination for newborns in mountainous and remote areas where the customs of giving birth at home still challenges immunization efforts.

In the first three months of 2018, vaccination coverage was expanded on schedule. The rate of babies getting hepatitis B shots within 24 hours of birth reached 16.9 percent, compared to 16.2 percent in the same period of 2017. 

Meanwhile, the immunization rates of tuberculosis vaccine (BCG), polio vaccine (OPV), and combined DPT-VGB-Hib vaccine against diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, hepatitis B, and haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) have also been higher from a year earlier, according to the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE) under the Ministry of Health.

NIHE Deputy Director Duong Thi Hong said the vaccination coverage has surpassed 95 percent nationwide. However, how to increase the immunization rate and quality in mountainous and rural areas remains a big challenge to the country. Unfavourable transport conditions, different ethnic languages and the custom of shifting cultivation have hampered ethnics’ access to immunization.

Although the rate of hepatitis B vaccination among babies in their first 24 hours has been improved, it still needs to be boosted in some mountainous and remote provinces where the custom of giving birth at home is popular, she added.

NIHE Director Dang Duc Anh said from now to the end of 2018, the expanded immunization project will continue working with the health ministry’s Department for Medical Examination and Treatment Management and the National Hospital of Obstetrics and Gynecology to step up vaccination against hepatitis B virus at medical facilities with delivery rooms.

With the help of the World Health Organisation (WHO), the project will pilot administering hepatitis B vaccine to newborns at home in the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai in 2018. 

He noted that the immunization will also be expanded in rural clinics in northern Yen Bai, Son La, Bac Kan and Bac Giang provinces and central Nghe An, Quang Binh and Khanh Hoa provinces.

Best laid beds of mice

Money doesn’t grow on trees, and neither do houses, but enough money may get you a house, as some shopkeepers in Việt Nam recently discovered.

The shopkeepers found their hard-earned money was disappearing without a trace, and tension about its whereabouts was palpable.

Determined to find out who was stealing, they tracked everything that moved in the shop. The result was rather stunning.

A Facebook user named Mai Vũ recently posted her shop’s surprising tale online. In the attached photos, two newborn mice were cuddling, beneath and around several polymer cash notes.

It turned out that the mother mouse, without knowing the value of what she was stealing, used notes ranging from VNĐ50,000 (US$2) to VNĐ200,000 to make a luxurious dwelling for her and the babies.

Some notes were damaged and no longer usable, while others were still intact. According to Mai Vũ, the shop was able to get about VNĐ200,000 back from the mice.

A feeling of relief finally came to the humans in the story, but maybe not so for the mice. What price a roof over your head? 

European countries implement climate change projects in Mekong Delta

The Mekong Delta suffers from severe drought and salinity intrusion in 2016 

The European Union (EU) and European countries have been carrying out a number of climate change adaptation and sustainable development projects in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam.

The biggest partners and donors are the EU, Germany, France, Denmark, Sweden, Hungary and Romania, according to the Foreign Ministry’s information released at the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Conference on Climate Action to Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals – Ways Forward in Can Tho city on June 18-20.

Specifically, the EU implemented a project building a sustainable tra fish (pangasius) supply chain from April 2013 to March 2017 with total investment of 1.9 million EUR (2.2 million USD) and another conducting scientific studies on climate change and coastal erosion in Quang Nam, Ca Mau, and Tien Giang provinces in 2016-2017 worth 1 million EUR (1.15 million USD).

The EU also carried out a 108-million-EUR Energy Sector Policy Support Programme to increase access to sustainable energy in rural, mountainous, sea and island areas in Bac Lieu, An Giang, and Can Tho.

In Ca Mau, the German and Australian governments co-financed 68.39 billion VND (2.9 million USD) in official development assistance (ODA) for a project under the Integrated Coastal Management and Climate Change and Coastal Ecosystems Programme (ICM/CCEP) and authorised the German development cooperation agency (GIZ) to implement.

The German government also funded Ca Mau 1 million EUR to implement a project on restoration of mangroves through sustainable shrimp farming and emission reduction.

Ca Mau province is also making preparations to carry out a project combining coastal protection and mangrove forest land restoration using loans of about 331 billion VND (14.5 million USD) from the German development bank KfW.

In Soc Trang province, the German government is carrying out the second phase of the project on natural resources management in coastal areas from September 2014 to August 2018.

Germany also provided a non-refundable aid package of 5.1 million EUR (5.9 million USD) for Bac Lieu province to conduct two projects on the sustainable management of coastal ecosystems, second phase from 2015 to 2018, and on climate change adaptation through promoting biodiversity.

Meanwhile, the French government offered 52.35 million EUR (60.6 million USD) in loans, including 1 million EUR in non-refundable aid, for the implementation of a project enhancing climate change resilience for areas prone to extreme climate patterns and rising sea level in Can Tho city along with Ninh Binh northern province and the central province of Ha Tinh.

The Danish government supported Mekong Delta provinces to cope with environmental changes through the national target programme on climate change in 2009-2015.

Denmark has become the biggest donor with around 40 million USD in assisting the Mekong Delta, especially Ben Tre province, in piloting measures to prevent saltwater intrusion prevention and climate change adaptation models such as building flood-proof houses, irrigation networks, salt-to-fresh water treatment factories, and automatic rain gauging stations, contributing to the improvement of the natural disaster warning system.

The European country also spent over 4.3 million DKK (668,091 USD) to provide water by renewable energy in 2012-2014 for rural areas in 12 provinces in the Mekong Delta. 

From 2011, the Danish government has supported Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to implement a project assisting the agricultural sector, including the improvement of post-harvest services for households in the Mekong Delta, which increased the proportion of dried rice to 31 percent of total output from 13 percent in the previous time.

In An Giang province, the Swedish government implemented a project enhancing local capacity and building a scheme for the development of rice husk-fuelled thermal power plants in combination with rice milling plants in 2014-2015 with a budget of nearly 345,000 EUR (399,506 USD), including nearly 105,000 EUR (121,588 USD) in local corresponding capital.

The Romanian government carried out a project piloting the establishment of a biodiversity conservation site for sustainable eco-tourism development in Ba Tri district of Ben Tre province.

The Mekong Delta comprises 12 provinces and one centrally-run city of Can Tho.

Thai Nguyen: Song Cong city recognised as new-style rural area

The Song Cong Industrial Park in Song Cong city, Thai Nguyen province 

Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue has signed a decision recognising Song Cong city of the northern province of Thai Nguyen as new-style rural area, with all four communes of the city realising the criteria of the programme.

Over the year, the city has achieved significant economic results and maintained high economic growth. 

To meet criteria of the national target programme on building new-style rural areas, local authorities have encouraged people to shift to growing new trees and breeding cattle to raise economic production efficiency, along with enhancing services development and trade, drawing new investment. 

The city focused on growing tea under VietGap standard with high technology in Ba Xuyen and Tan Quang communes. It also mobilised social sources to support the development of all economic elements, especially for businesses investing in agriculture, services and handicraft industry.

In 2017, Song Cong city’s people earned nearly 32 million VND (1,400 USD) each, while the rate of poor households in rural area stayed at 5.93 percent.

The national target programme on building new-style rural areas, initiated by the Vietnamese Government in 2010, sets 19 criteria on socio-economic development, politics, and defence, aiming to boost rural regions of Vietnam.

The list of criteria includes the development of infrastructure, the improvement of production capacity, environmental protection, and the promotion of cultural values. 

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, by February 21, 2018, there were 3,160 communes nationwide recognised as new-style rural areas, 35.4 percent of the total communes.

Ways sought to improve communications management in Industry 4.0

Participants at a national seminar in Hanoi on June 19 discussed measures to improve communications management in the context of the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0).

Associate Prof. Dr. Truong Ngoc Nam, Director of the Academy of Journalism and Communications under the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics, said the fourth industrial revolution has exerted strong influence on communications, including the reception of information from readers. 

The public not only proactively choose the information and decide what they want to read but also contribute to delivering messages, he said.

The boom of social networks like Facebook and YouTube makes it difficult for relevant agencies to keep information under control, Nam said, adding that management agencies have to deal with an “open” but “virtual” space with an array of issues relating to traditional security, hackers and dangerous information crimes.

Therefore, it is essential to adopt proper measures to limit negative impacts caused by untrue information on social networks on public opinions, he added.

Deputy Director of the Radio, Television and Electronic Information Department under the Ministry of Information and Communications Le Quang Tu Do said the management of information on social networks in Vietnam is facing a number of difficulties due to the boom of the internet and particularly social networks.

He suggested making appropriate investment in this field via building a single management model for information on social networks and strengthening coordination among relevant ministries and departments.

Vietnam has more than 58 million internet users out of its 90 million people and over 125 million mobile subscribers.

According to a report released recently by the Internet Society, 7 million Vietnamese people have used the new-generation internet so far.

The use of Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) in Vietnam in the first half of 2018 grew 6.54 percent, lifting the usage rate of IPv6 to 14.43 percent and helping Vietnam ranks 25th in the world, fourth in Asia after India, Japan and Malaysia and second in Southeast Asia in the rate of IPv6 usage. 

Statistics from the Asia-Pacific Network Information Centre (APNIC) show that the global IPv6 application rate stands at about 17.75 percent. 

IPv6 is paving the way for the explosion of smartphones, tablets, IoT devices, and other Internet-enabled devices, fundamentally altering the way people, organizations and governments are connected around the world.

Quang Binh awards units, individuals for smashing two drug cases

The People’s Committee of the central province of Quang Binh has awarded certificates of merit to three units and 10 individuals for their role in smashing two cases involving illegal transport of drug.

In April this year, Quang Binh’s border guard force, in coordination with the security forces of Laos’ Khammoune province, stopped three Lao nationals who were transporting 24,000 synthetic drug pills by motorbike. They said they intended to bring the drug to Vietnam for sale.

More recently, on June 15, authorised forces of Quang Binh and Khammoune provinces caught a Lao national at Cha Lo international border gate, who was carrying 47,727 synthetic drug pills from Laos to Vietnam.

At the award presentation ceremony on June 19, Chairman of the Quang Binh People’s Committee Nguyen Huu Hoaik urged the border guard force to continue cooperate with Lao counterparts to timely detect and foil the illegal transport and trade of drug, thus maintaining peace and order in the Vietnam-Laos border area.

According to the Vietnam National Committee for Prevention and Control of AIDS, Drugs and Prostitution, there are about 2,300 drug hotspots across the country.

 Reports from localities showed that as of November 15, 2017, the number of documented drug addicts was 22,582, up 11,831 people from 2016. Between 2017 and March 2018, 13 ha of opium poppy plantation were discovered and destroyed.

 In 2017, police investigated 22,346 drug cases, arrested 34,494 suspects, and seized 906.7 kg of heroin and 979,487 synthetic drug pills, among other drugs.

VTV, VOV congratulated on revolutionary press day

President of the VFF Central Committee Tran Thanh Man (L) congratulates VTV General Director Tran Binh Minh on June 21 

President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee Tran Thanh Man visited the Vietnam Television (VTV) and Radio the Voice of Vietnam (VOV) on June 21 – the Vietnam Revolutionary Press Day.

The VFF leader congratulated the national television and radio broadcasters on their achievements over the past years, applauding their close relations with the VFF in disseminating information about the great national unity bloc to help build socialism and protect the nation.

He said the VTV and the VOV have performed well in popularising the Party and State’s guidelines and policies, the VFF’s activities in promoting the great national unity bloc, and major events of the country. They have also helped to improve people’s spiritual life.

Man asked them to continue proposing mechanism, policy and law revisions to the Party and State so as to better protect the interests of reporters, editors, collaborators and staff of press agencies while doing their duties. They should also step up communications to enhance people’s trust in the Party and State’s viewpoints and policies and contribute to the fight against degradation, self-evolution and self-transformation.

Meanwhile, the two national broadcasters also need to make breakthroughs to help Vietnam’s communication and press system reach the regional and world levels, he added.

At the meetings, VTV General Director Tran Binh Minh thanked the VFF’s support for press outlets to fulfill political tasks assigned by the Party, State and people. 

VOV General Director Nguyen The Ky pledged that the agency’s staff will make efforts to improve their political firmness and professional ethics and capacity to help build the great national unity bloc.

Tay Ninh spends 158 million USD on building irrigation works

The People’s Committee of the southwestern province of Tay Ninh has approved an irrigation planning scheme for the 2016-2025 period, with a vision to 2035, with total investment of nearly 3.59 trillion VND (around 158 million USD).

Of the total capital, 715 billion VND (31.4 million USD) comes from the State budget, while 2,874 billion VND (126.6 million USD) is sourced from the local budget, businesses and people.

The province will build eight irrigation canals, nine water pumping stations, 5 dykes, while dredging and upgrading 26 drainage canals and streams. A high-capacity water pumping station will also be constructed in the province’s northern border districts to serve high-tech farming.

Besides, the province is striving to ensure stable water supply from waterworks for about 81,600 hectares of crops, or 39.5 percent of total 206,650 hectares of crops needing water in 2021.

Tay Ninh will also seek water sources for industrial production and people’s daily life with capacity of 244,850 cubic metres per day.

Vo Duc Trong, Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said the province is currently speeding up the implementation of a plan to restructure the agriculture sector towards enhancing the added value and sustainable growth.

So far, the province has finished planning schemes for 15 regions and five high-tech agriculture zones with a total area of over 9,500 hectares, along with many preferential policies, including those in irrigation construction, to attract investment, he said.

Meanwhile, canals of the Dau Tieng-Phuoc Hoa irrigation work has been upgraded, but has yet to meet the demand of the locality in choosing plants suitable with the markets.

Therefore, the province needs to continue reviewing, restoring and dredging irrigation canals and interior field canals for more economical and effective irrigation in agricultural production, Trong added.