Le Quoc Phong elected as First Secretary of HCYU Central Committee

Le Quoc Phong, alternate member of the Party Central Committee and President of the Vietnam Students’ Association, has been elected as First Secretary of the tenth-tenure Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union (HCYU) Central Committee (2012-2017).  

At its meeting in Hanoi on April 21, the HCYU Central Committee heard the Politburo’s personnel report introducing Secretary of the Central Committee Le Quoc Phong for the position of First Secretary.

Phong, 38, then won 100% of the yes votes by participating delegates through secret ballot.

Earlier on April 20, the 14th meeting of the HCYU Standing Committee, by voting, allowed Nguyen Dac Vinh to withdraw from the HCYU Central Committee as well as the position of First Secretary of the tenth-tenure Central Committee.

Vinh has been assigned by the Politburo to serve as Secretary of the Nghe An provincial Party Committee.

Hanoi Science-Technology University handed over to Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology

The Ministry of Education and Training held a ceremony in Hanoi on April 20 to officially hand over Hanoi Science-Technology University (HSTU) to the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST).

The event was held in accordance with the Prime Minister’s decision issued on March 18, 2016 on assigning the VAST to directly manage HSTU.

Speaking at the ceremony, Deputy Minister of Education and Training Bui Van Ga spoke highly of the support in terms of management, staff training, research, and international co-operation made by the VAST to HSTU since its foundation.

As a leading scientific research and postgraduate training institute in Vietnam, the VAST is believed to provide HSTU with favourable conditions during its professional development stage, Deputy Minister Ga noted.

In 2011, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved loans of US$190 million for the establishment of HSTU – a state-of-the-art institution which supports research, technical innovation, and skills development.

The French government also complemented the ADB assistance by extending about EUR100 million over 10 years to help develop the university, which has a contribution of US$23 million from the Vietnamese Government.

Kidnapping alert issued in Nghe An's district

Police from Tuong Duong District in the central Nghệ An Province have alerted local police units about a high kidnapping risk in the area.

According to Tương Dương District police, last Saturday in the district’s Hòa Bình Township, a three-year-old child was picked up by a stranger right in front of his house. However, the kidnapper let go of the child when his father heard him crying and ran after him.

The day before that incident, a four-year-old child in Xá Lượng Commune in the same township went missing. Local authorities and her family have been unable to find her.

Previously, in a kindergarten in Diễn Lâm Commune of Nghệ An Province’s Diễn Châu District, a stranger who identified himself as the grandfather of a child came and asked to pick the child up. The caregiver, however, refused to let the stranger take the child. Later in the day, the child’s actual grandfather came.

Another kindergarten in Diễn Thọ Commune issued a warning yesterday and urged parents to keep an eye out for people disguised as salesmen or grandparents hanging around schools.

Tương Dương District police units in wards and townships have been ordered to issue warnings to local residents while ramping up surveillance of strangers coming and going in their areas.

Nationwide activities mark 2016 Vietnam Book Day

The Book Publishing Month marking the 2016 Vietnam Book Day (on April 21) has been launching from April 1 to May 1 by the Ministry of Information and Communications, with the participation of 33 cities and provinces throughout the country.

The event aims to honor the value of books, the publishing industry, and encourage insiders to release, collect and promote books as well as promote reading habit in the community.

The Department of Information and Communications in Ho Chi Minh City will organize a ceremony of the Vietnam Book Day on April 21.

Seminars on Vietnamese  romantic literature in the early 20th century, the importance of old books and the hobby of collecting books will be held at Nguyen Van Binh Book Street on April 23. A book exhibition and exchanges between writers and readers will take place at the book street. On this occasion, books will be offered at a 20-50 percent discount.

In response to the Vietnam Book Day, a book festival will also be held at Thong Nhat Park in Hanoi on April 20-24.  Around 87 publising houses, such as Nha Nam, Kim Dong, Alphabooks, the Youth Publishing House, the Women’s Publishing House and others will join the event.

Many preferential programs will be presented during the book show, such as discussions on book and the living, Vietnam's sea, islands sovereignty, skill training program for preschool-age children.

In addition, a book festival titled “Book-Integration, renewal and development” honoring collectors and publishers will take place at the Vietnam National Library in Hanoi on April 21.

Hanoi drainage project runs behind schedule

The Hanoi Drainage Project for Environmental Improvement which was started more than a decade ago is still under progress while the capital's inadequate sewers are still unable to cope with heavy flooding.

The first phase of the project was carried out from 1995 to 2007. The second phase was started in 2008 and was expected to be completed in 2013 but its deadline has been extended several times. The city authorities plan to clear the canals, upgrade the sewers and the water-holding capacity of various lakes. However, ground clearance and resettlement of households has proved to be a huge challenge for the authorities.

Vo Tien Hung, director of Hanoi Sewerage and Drainage Company, said last year, they recorded 29 locations that were often flooded and had successfully dealt with 13.

"The sewer system is overloaded when it has to deal with heavy rains including rain for less than 40 minutes," he said. "It's because people still block the sewers when it rains with rubbish. In addition, rivers and canals are being affected by 17 on-going constructions inside the city."

He went on to say that 90 percent of the project had been completed and the streets would not be flooded when less than 10cm of rain fell per square metre in two hours. A stronger deluge would still cause problem. Hung promised to co-operate with the police and deploy personnel and equipment quickly to flooded locations for the coming monsoon season.

"But for a long-term solution, we have to build a new sewer system in flooded areas," he said.

PM works with Ministry of Planning, Investment

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc on April 21 had a working session with the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), one of the first ministries that the new PM has worked with.

Deputy PM Vuong Dinh Hue and leaders of some ministries and agencies also joined the event.

The PM praised the role of the MPI in consulting the Party and Government about measures on socio-economic development, and reminded it of new, tougher tasks in the new context.

In 2016, the nation has to face difficulties and challenges, especially droughts and sea-water intrusion which are forecasted to decrease the national economic growth as well as low price in oil and gas and the East Sea issues.

The PM asked the ministry to discuss measures to follow the situations to take fast and prompt responses and ensure growth.

Minister of the MPI Nguyen Chi Dung said that GDP grew 5.46% in the first quarter, of which the agriculture, forestry and aquatic sectors experienced a drop of 1.23%, while the industry and construction sectors expanded 6.72% and service sector, 6.13%.

The Government and local authorities have launched a number of measures to address consequences caused by natural calamity over the recent three months of the year.

Crocodile alert for river near Ho Chi Minh City

Long An Province has issued an alert warning the public about a crocodile on the loose in the Soai Rap River, which runs between the province and Ho Chi Minh City.

Relevant forces are still hunting for the crocodile with nets and electrocution guns, said Nguyen Anh Dung, chairman of Can Giuoc District People’s Committee.

“According to witnesses, the crocodile weighs around 40-50 kg. It has probably escaped from a farm in other places because there is no crocodile farm in Can Giuoc.”

“The district police are coordinating with park rangers and fisheries agency to hunt for it,” he said.

Local authorities have warned people not to swim or wash clothes in the river to avoid being attacked, Dung said.

Earlier on April 18, local residents found the reptile swimming in the river near Tan Tap Port.

Local authorities have proposed shooting it after police and fishermen failed to catch it with nets.

However, the provincial authorities rejected the proposal, saying that it is unnecessary, and ordered relevant agencies to catch it alive.

HCM City to build more pedestrian flyovers

The HCMC Department of Transport has won approval to build three more flyovers for pedestrians to safely cross crowded streets and reduce traffic congestion.

The projects include one close to the entrance of the University of Economics and Law at the National Highway 1 section in Thu Duc District, one near the HCMC University of Technology on Dien Bien Phu Street in Binh Thanh District, and one near Gia Dinh Park in Go Vap District.

The local government has also approved an additional VND33.3 billion for the city’s fund used to finance minor and urgent infrastructure projects in 2016 to cover the building cost of the three flyovers.

Construction work is scheduled to last three months. The department has been told to use capital arranged for the first construction phase of this year for the projects to ensure their smooth progress.

The city currently has pedestrian flyovers on Cong Quynh Street in District 1, Nguyen Trai Street in District 5, Hoang Van Thu Street in Phu Nhuan District, No Trang Long Street in Binh Thanh District, and Dien Bien Phu in Binh Thanh District, and at Suoi Tien Theme Park in Thu Duc District.

This year, the department plans to start construction on 69 infrastructure projects at a combined cost of over VND4.9 trillion (US$222.82 million), including 50 bridges and the remainder in the fields of waterway transport, water supply and drainage.

Besides, the city expects 47 projects to be completed, including 36 new bridges.

Trial flight anticipating air balloon festival in Thua Thien-Hue

A trial flight to prepare for the International Hot Air Balloon Festival 2016 was held at Ham Nghi Yard in central Thue Thien-Hue province on April 20.

According to the organising board, the air balloon event scheduled to tee off on May 4-5 as part of the 2016 Hue Festival is expected to attract pilots and balloonists from 9 countries across the globe, including the UK, the Netherlands, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam.

Each balloon is 25 m high with a diameter covering 18 m.

The event will give tourists an opportunity to enjoy fantastic flying performances and to contemplate the beautiful landscapes of Thua Thien-Hue from high view.

In addition, a photo contest and an exchange with the pilots will be planned.

Myanmar fisherman dies in Hoang Sa (Paracel) waters

Vietnam Maritime search and Rescue Coordination Center (VMRCC) on April 20 sent a ship coded SAR 412 to save a Myanmar fisherman, who had suffered head trauma and fainted after falling from a Korean ship, 130 nautical miles from the central city of Danang.

SAR 412 carrying two doctors got access to the victim at 4.15pm on the same day. However 25-year old Thi Ha Tun died two hours earlier, they said.

The ship brought the body of the ill-fated fisherman to Danang port.

The VMRCC in Danang has worked closely with relevant agencies to repatriate the remain of the fisherman to his home country.

Campaign features manga character to raise children’s road sense

Doraemon, a famous Japanese manga character, is featured in a traffic safety campaign targeting Vietnamese children that was launched in Hanoi on April 20.

Doraemon is popular among children in Asia, including Vietnam, and has served as a symbol of traffic safety for decades in Japan.

The “Doraemon with traffic safety in Vietnam” programme aims to popularise effective ways Japan has conducted to educate children about traffic safety, thus reducing accidents in the country.

As part of the drive, a slogan contest is open for students aged between six and 15 under the theme “Be careful on the way to school”. Others aged 16 and over can create slogans under the topic “For children’s safety” to vie for prizes.

The best slogan will be used as the road safety slogan of the year and appear on posters hung at primary schools nationwide, said Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Quang Nhat, head of the traffic law dissemination division of the Ministry of Public Security’s Department of Traffic Police.

Traffic safety classes will be opened at three schools in Hanoi and two others in Ho Chi Minh City from September. Local traffic police officers along with the Doraemon costumed characters will come to popularise the traffic law and guide primary students how to commute safely.

Each student at those schools and 20 others in the two cities will also be presented with a road safety handbook and a badge featuring the winning slogan and Doraemon, Nhat said.

Tsuneda Teruo, Managing Director at Japan’s Mainichi Newspapers Co. Ltd – the campaign’s co-organiser, said about 15,000 Japanese people were killed by traffic accidents every year during the 1980s.

To deal with this problem, his country launched a traffic safety programme featuring Doraemon 30 years ago. Japan is now one of the countries with the safest traffic network in the world, while its people have very good road sense. The number of traffic-linked deaths has shrunk to around 4,000 a year.

Vietnam is facing the same situation that Japan experienced in the past, he said, noting that more than 9,000 people die of traffic accidents in the country annually and many of them are children.

Tsuneda Teruo said it is adults’ responsibility to ensure traffic safety for their children, and they must educate children about this. He said he hopes that Vietnamese parents will take part in the traffic safety campaign since their children often copy what they do.

Female candidates receive training for parliament election campaigning

First-time female candidates in the upcoming elections for the National Assembly and People’s Councils of southwestern provinces are honing their skills in election campaigning at a training course in Ho Chi Minh City.

The 45 candidates from 10 provinces in the southwestern region, will learn how to build and present their action plans to voters, talk to the public and work with the media during the two-day course, which opened on April 20.

Learning materials of the course, titled “Ready for success”, are specially designed by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

UNDP senior technical advisor Jean Munro said if the 14 th National Assembly can realise its goal of having a minimum of 35-percent female representation, Vietnam can lift its position in the IPU ranking to be ranked 30th from the 67th as recorded in February.

The election of deputies to the 14th National Assembly will be held on May 22.

Map & book exhibition on Paracel & Spratly Islands opens in Quang Nam

Department of Information and Communications of Quang Nam province collaborated with the People’s Committee of Duy Xuyen district yesterday opened a map and book exhibition under theme of “Paracel and Spratly Islands of Vietnam - Historical and legal evidence” at the Culture and Sports Center of Duy Xuyen district.

The exhibition introduced more than 150 maps of Vietnam, China and Western European countries; posters, ancient atlases, 19 Nguyen dynasty texts, documents of versions of Han- Nom texts and foreign documentary sources, aiming to affirm strongly Vietnam's sovereignty over Paracel and Spratly Islands.

At the exhibition, Textbook Printing and School Equipment Company and library of Quang Nam province offered 750 books to Duy Phuoc, Duy Trinh and Duy Son commune, and 300 books to the People’s Committee of Duy Xuyen district.

The exhibition will last until April 22.

Hà Nội, Bắc Giang work together for safe food

Hà Nội and Bắc Giang northern province have agreed a co-operation programme to develop safe agricultural product consumption from 2016-2020.

At the seminar held in Hà Nội on Tuesday, Trần Thị Phương Lan, deputy director of Hà Nội Department of Trade and Industry said it was an annual joint programme with three main contents: Bắc Giang will set up an association from safe agro-product growing to consumption, select key agro-products that were produced in accordance with the biological safety process, and stabilise the supply to the capital city.

Hà Nội will organise events to introduce the city’s commodities at Bắc Giang market.

For this year’s plan, Hà Nội Department of Trade and Industry will hold two events for Lục Ngạn litchis sales in the city (in mid June) and in Bắc Giang Province (in November).      

Deputy Chairman of Hà Nội People’s Committee, Nguyễn Doãn Toản said the city will create favourable condition for lorries weighing under 5 tonnes to carry Bắc Giang agricultural products to the city.

City authorities will support Bắc Giang Province’s enterprises in expanding consumption market including at whole-sale markets, supermarkets and processing companies, he said.

Dương Văn Thái, deputy chairman of Bắc Giang People’s Committee said the programme would help Hanoians purchase safe agricultural products and help farmers.

Bắc Giang authorities determined creating safe products started from safe seed production and safe breeding.

Besides establishing safe product trade names, Bắc Giang enterprises will use brand- name stamps to attest to the origin of products.

Toản said proving safe origins would ensure sustainable agricultural development with quality products.

According to the Hà Nội Plant Protection Department, safe vegetable distribution in the city are through six forms: agricultural enterprises contracts with supermarkets (accounting for 1.5 per cent of total safe vegetable output), retail agencies (1.5 per cent), restaurants or collective kitchens (1.8 per cent).

The other forms include whole-sale traders (12.6 per cent), farmers themselves carrying vegetable to sell at residential quarter’s market (26.8 per cent) or at whole-sale markets (55.8 per cent).         

The department has granted certification on safe vegetable production to 5,100ha in the city.

Nguyễn Duy Hùng, the department director said safe vegetables without brand-name stamps were sold at residential areas and whole-sale markets.

National radio broadcasting festival kicks off

The 12th National Radio Broadcasting Festival officially kicked off at a ceremony held in Nha Trang, in the southern central coastal province of Khanh Hoa on April 20.

The opening ceremony saw the presence of representatives of central and local ministries and branches, along with more than 400 officers, reporters and editors.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Deputy General Director of the Voice of Vietnam (VOV) Vu Hai emphasised that people’s desire for access to information anytime and anywhere has forced radio and television stations to renovate and develop a multi-base communication model that is harmonious combination of tradition and modernity.

This year’s event attracted 265 programmes from 78 radio and television stations and centres around the country.

The organising board selected 199 works, including 55 reports, 30 interviews, 33 radio stories, 53 mixed programmes and 28 live programmes to enter the final round.

Seventeen gold, 33 silver and 62 bronze medals and 87 certificates of merit will be awarded to the most outstanding radio broadcasts.

In addition, VOV will collaborate with Ministry of Defence, the Vietnam General Federation of Labour and the Vietnam Electricity Group will present awards to the best works on soldiers of the Vietnam People’s Army, workers and trade unions and electricity, and life.

Three seminars, themed ‘Radio in the era of booming multimedia communication’, ‘Elements creating a unique radio report’, and ‘New technology trend in broadcasting’, will also be held on the sidelines of the festival.

The 2016 National Radio Broadcasting Festival will wrap up on April 22.

A joint programme to encourage 100,000 livestock breeding households to commit to not using banned substances in their breeding work was signed yesterday in Hà Nội.

The joint programme was signed by the Department of Livestock Production, the Animal Husbandry Association of Việt Nam (AHAV), the Agro Nutrition International Joint-Stock Company (ANCO) and the Việt Pháp Feed Joint-stock Company.

The programme hopes to spread the spirit of “saying NO to banned substances”, setting up a safe breeding sector and improving the competitive capacity of breeding products.

The programme, which runs until the end of this year all over the country, features different activities including asking 100,000 households to commit to not using banned substances, organising training courses on safe and effective breeding technology and raising awareness of the issue.

Some breeders were found to use Beta-agonist, including Clenbuterol, Salbutamol and Ractopamine, which stimulated growth of animals and made them lean. The use of these products caused concerns in the community and affected the breeding sector’s development, according to the MARD.

Hoàng Thanh Vân, director of the Department of Livestock Production, said, “Solving the problem of using banned substances in breeding is the most important work of the department this year.”

Raising breeders’ awareness and giving them assistance was a long-term measure, he said.

“We highly appreciate the co-ordination from different sectors, organisations and breeding enterprises in such meaningful programmes,” said Vân.

Đoàn Xuân Trúc, deputy chairman and general secretary of the AHAV, said, “It is easy to ban, but the difficult work is giving breeders education so that they have self-awareness and don’t use banned substances in their work.”

Power consumption set to increase in Hanoi: EVN

Electricity consumption in the capital city was forecast to sharply increase this month due to extremely hot weather, said the Electricity of Việt Nam Corporation (EVN).

The corporation has also warned that households’ bills might be much due to the high demand of power this summer.

According to the weather forecast agency, people would suffer a severe and prolonged hot weather this summer due to El Nino phenomenon.

“There would be hot waves this month and June and July. The hottest temperature might be reached to 40 degrees Celsius,” the EVN said.

“The hot weather would lead to increase of power consumption”, it said.

At present, the electric price is calculated in progressive scale. So, the more they use the more they have to pay.

People are advised to use power economically.

This year is the first time the EVN has given the warning of power payment to people. People were shocked when they got bills with higher payment in summer last year.

When applying the new electric fee scale last year and people complained of to pay much, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce asked the EVN and the Electricity Regulatory Authority of Việt Nam to set up plans of power price adjustment.

Three plans were drawn up but so far there is no one approved.

FVH presents movie The Guava House

On Thursday, April 28, the Friends of Vietnam Heritage will host a movie screening of Mùa Ổi (The Guava House) by director Đặng Nhật Minh at Hanoi Cinematheque, 22A Hai Bà Trưng Street.

The movie, made in 2000 based on Minh’s own novel, traces the changing values of society in Việt Nam through the eyes of a gentle, kind-hearted man, Hòa (played by Bùi Bài Bình). After a childhood accident left him mentally impaired, his sister looked after him for 30 years. Living as much in his beautiful memories as in the present, Hòa is drawn to return to his father’s house, now occupied by a businessman’s young daughter. They build a quiet friendship together, but are challenged by misunderstandings of others.

The film examines the complex layers of Vietnamese society – a Buddhist majority with a Government slowly embracing western and other commercial values. All these competing factors have their positive and negative aspects, which are seen through the eyes of Hòa.

After the screening, there will be a Q&A session with director-writer Minh.

The 100-minute film will be presented with English subtitles.

Exhibition focuses on soldiers’ wives

After four years of preparation, sculptor Thái Nhật Minh will unveil his latest artworks at his third solo exhibition, Chinh Phu – Chinh Phụ (Soldier – Soldier’s Wife).

Việt Nam has been through many wars over the past thousand years. Stories about soldiers leaving home and not coming back, and soldiers’ wives waiting in vain have left a profound impact, Minh said.

Using stone, aluminum casting, wood and iron, more than 200 sculptures portraying women embracing their children, waiting for their husbands until they become lonely stone statues; and army groups that show a self-defence war with misery, chronic pain and hardship of many people.

The exhibition will also display an installation with numerous metal fragments showing the devastation and fierceness of war.

The exhibition opens on Saturday, and runs until April 27 at the Viet Nam Fine Arts Museum, 64 Nguyễn Thái Học Street.

Free publications for ethnic minorities

As many as 19 publications will be given for free to ethnic minority groups and those living in extremely disadvantaged areas in 2016.

The move aims to boost development in ethnic and disadvantaged areas across the nation, according to a decision signed recently by the Prime Minister.

They include the Nhan Dan (People) newspaper, twice a week; Tin Tuc (News) of the Vietnam News Agency - five issues per week; Nong thon Ngay nay (Countryside Today) Newspaper of the Vietnam Farmers’ Union – five issues per week; Tien Phong Newspaper of the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union – five issues per week, among other publications for children.

The project will be funded by the Committee on Ethnic Minority Affairs’ regular budget.

Thanh Hoa: 1.75 m USD funded for kindergarten meals

The People’s Committee of central Thanh Hoa province is allocating over 39 billion VND (1.75 million USD) to fund meals for kindergarten children in the province.

More than 65,000 local children aged 3-5 are provided monthly financial assistance of 120,000 VND each for lunch at kindergartens from January to May this year.

According to the provincial Department of Education and Training, the locality has more than 202,600 kindergarten students in the school year 2015-2016.

The province has requested the department, communal and district authorities to improve kindergarten education quality, particularly in terms of healthy eating.

Bac Ninh preserves Ba Chua Kho temple

The People’s Committee of the northern province of Bac Ninh has approved a project to preserve the Co Me Temple (or Ba Chua Kho Temple) in Vu Ninh ward, Bac Ninh City.

The project, worth 55 billion USD (2.47 million USD) funded by the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism will be carried out from 2016 – 2018.

It aims to upgrade the ritual areas and service facilities in the temple.

The Ba Chua Kho (Queen of Stock) Temple, built during the Ly Dynasty (1010-1225) on the Kho mountain was recognised as a national cultural historical site in 1989.-

National press awards receive over 1,660 entries

The National Press Awards for 2015 have received over 1,600 entries, a 10% increase over the previous edition, announced the Vietnam Journalists’ Association on April 19.

The entries cover various formats of print media, radio, television, online media and photography.

The works provide full, trustworthy and objective coverage of the country’s development in all fields of politics, economics, culture, diplomacy, security as well as achievements in national construction and defence.

They also introduce new figures, examples of good people and good deeds and criticised corruption and wrongful allegations against the State.

A jury, led by Vice Chairman of Vietnam Journalists’ Association Mai Duc Loc, was set up on April 12. It will work until May 12 to select the 145 best entries to the final round.

The National Press Awards have been held annually by the Vietnam Journalists’ Association since 2006 to recognise the country's most outstanding journalistic works from the last year.

Nine A prizes, 26 B prizes and 54 C prizes, selected from more than 1,460 entries, were presented in the 2014 edition.

CDIA assists Can Tho in wastewater treatment

The Cities Development Initiative for Asia (CDIA) has pledged to support the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho to carry out a waste water treatment project in the locality.

A delegation from the CDIA and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) bank held a working session with the city’s officials on April 20 to discuss the implementation of the 30,000 cu.m. per day waste water treatment project which is expected to be put into operation this year.

Vice Chairwoman of the municipal People’s Committee Vo Thi Hong Anh said rapid urbanization in the locality has resulted in several corollaries including natural water pollution due to the discharge of untreated wastewater into the city’s river system.

She said the city badly needs investment as well as experts to support the city in drainage management and wastewater treatment.

ADB’s urban development specialist Hubert Jenny said the bank will replace the German International Cooperation Agency (GIZ) to provide financial support for the project under the form of commercial loan scheme.

He added the CDIA will also send experts in the field to provide technical support throughout the project’s building and operation.

The specialist noted that the city should focus on increasing public awareness of wastewater treatment while introducing supporting policies for local households to access the project.

Dengue fever vaccine expected in Vietnam

Vietnam is expected to generalize the first-ever vaccine for the mosquito-borne disease dengue fever, after the completion of its experimental phase, according to the local drug administration.

In order for the new vaccine to be circulated, the antigenic substance must first go through clinical trials, the Drug Administration of Vietnam said.

According to Phan Trong Lan, director of the Ho Chi Minh City Pasteur Institute, Vietnam is among five Asian nations to take part in the trial of the dengue fever vaccine.

The Southeast Asian country is in the third phase of the experimental process, during which the effectiveness of the vaccine is evaluated, Lan said.

During this stage of the drug’s development, over 2,300 children between the age of two and 14 in My Tho City, Tien Giang Province and Long Xuyen City, An Giang Province, both in the Mekong Delta, volunteered to go through the trials.

The combined result of these trials in both Asian and South American countries showed that the success rate in terms of prevention of dengue was 66 percent for children above nine years old, minimizing harm in 81 percent of dengue fever cases that required hospitalization and in 93 percent of more severe cases, Lan elaborated.

In children below the age of nine, the vaccine proved less effective, with a prevention rate of only 44 percent, minimizing harm in 56 percent of patients that required hospitalization and 67 percent of even more serious cases.

However, Tran Dac Phu, head of the General Department of Preventive Medicine under the Ministry of Health, was cautious in his assessment of the new dengue fever vaccine.

“Dengue fever bears the heaviest burden amongst epidemics in Vietnam. There are approximately 100,000 people infected with the disease and dozens of fatalities each year,” Phu said.

The application of the antigenic substance must be carried out on a large scale, after thorough studies in terms of safety and effectiveness are conducted, according to the health official.

He expected that the cost of the vaccine will not make it affordable to everyone with an anticipated price worldwide of US$50 per shot, adding that a person must be injected with a total of three shots at six-month intervals.

The vaccine will not be provided free of charge as it is not included in the country’s expanded program of immunization, Phu continued.

“If the vaccine is effective, I believe that local authorities will provide the injection free-of-charge for poorer people,” he said.

Dengue fever is an infectious disease transmitted by the bite of an Aedes mosquito that has been infected with the dengue virus, with symptoms including high fever (39 degrees Celsius or higher), headaches, muscle and joint pains, and a skin rash similar in characteristics to measles, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

The disease is considered epidemic in 128 countries. The prolonged El Nino phenomenon between 2014 and 2016 in Vietnam is thought to have increased the risk of outbreaks.

Various vaccines against the disease have undergone 20 years of research in 17 nations.

The WHO has recently approved the use of the vaccine, with Mexico, Brazil, El Salvador and the Philippines all preparing for its production and application.

VND120 billion spent for building general hospital in Mekong delta province

The People’s Committee in the Mekong delta province of Tra Vinh has approved VND120 billion (US$ 5.4 million) for building a general hospital in Duyen Hai district to raise treatment quality in the coastal district.

The amount VND120 billion includes VND108 billion from the World Bank’s official development assistance (ODA) and the province’s state budget of VND12. The hospital is scheduled to build from 2016 to 2020.

The hospital includes treatment wards for inpatients, emergency room, intensive care ward and poisoning treatment, testing, operation, pediatric, Odonto-maxillo-facial; Otorhino-laryngo-logy; nutrition and maternity.

Airlines present special program for membership

National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines (VNA) cooperated with the low-cost carrier Jetstar Pacific (JPA) to run the Golden Lotus Program for their membership.

Accordingly, VNA’s membership will be offered with bonus points as using Starter Max and Starter Plus tickets on flights of Jetstar Pacific, Vietnam Airlines and other brand names excepting for SkyTeam.

Moreover, membership card holders can exchange their bonus points to upgrade level seat, luggage allowance, and invitation card for luxury waiting room or other categories following rules of the contract.

VNA and JPA also run additional preferential program for their members, including voucher VND 300, 000 and 500 Golden Lotus bonus points for 1, 000 new membership card. JPA will present VND 200, 000 for 3, 000 new Silver and Titan card holders as buying Starter Max and Starter Plus tickets from April 15 to June 15, 2016.

Vietnam Fatherland Front wants effective candidate-voter meetings

The Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF)’s Chairman Nguyen Thien Nhan called for fruitful meetings between voters and candidates for upcoming National Assembly and local People’s Councils elections.

In the guidelines he has issued, Nhan instructed the VFF’s provincial and municipal chapters to work with their respective local People’s Committees to effectively organise candidate-voter meetings.

He said fair and honest public communications campaigns are necessary to help voters grasp a true and clear understanding of candidates.

The guidelines also stated candidates should be informed of basic information on the local social-economic situation to help them create their action plans ahead of their meeting with voters.

Meetings, which will take place between April 27 and May 21, must ensure candidates meet a diverse cross-section of voters from the constituency they represent.

Nhan said after the three consultation rounds, the country shortlisted 879 candidates who are eligible to run for the 500 seats in the National Assembly.

Nhan also affirmed that consultation rounds have taken place in a democratic and objective way without discrimination against any candidate.

Ethnic minority candidates improve electioneering skills

A conference was held by the National Assembly (NA) Council of Ethnic Affairs in Hanoi on April 21-22, aiming to improve electioneering skills for ethnic minority candidates in the upcoming elections to the National Assembly and People’s Councils.

In his opening speech, Chairman of the Council Ha Ngoc Chien said the conference will help candidates from ethnic minority groups to enhance their skills in election campaigning, especially in building action plans to canvass voters for them, towards wining in the elections.

While appreciating the Council’s initiative to organise the event, NA Vice Chairwoman Tong Thi Phong said this is a meaningful activity to support ethnic minority candidates in improving their knowledge and awareness of theory and reality and their responsibilities as representatives of the people.

She said candidates should pay attention to learning about the Constitution, the laws on NA and local government organisation, and standards required for NA deputies.

Phong, who is also Vice Chairwoman of the National Election Council, noted that candidates should listen to and answer the queries of voters in a respectful and modest manner.

They also need to increase public awareness of the policies of the Party, State, NA and Government for ethnic people, while showing their ethnic group’s cultural identities during their election campaigning.

Participants to the conference heard electioneering experience and basic knowledge related to building and presenting action programmes for candidates, which were shared by experts working in the people-elected agencies.

They were also introduced to the functions, responsibilities and rights of NA deputies and members of People’s councils, and policies and programmes for mountainous and ethnic minority areas.

Candidates have worked in groups, and practised their presentation and skill in answering the press’s queries on television.

The election of the 14th National Assembly and People’s Councils at all levels will be held on May 22.

Ca Mau tightens management of coastal preventive forests

The southernmost province of Ca Mau has devised five-year measures to manage, protect and develop coastal protective forests as part of efforts to adapt to climate change.

The province aims to plant 200-300 hectares of new forests this year towards the goal of putting 1,500 hectares under forest during five years from now to 2020.

Strict measures will be taken to curb and prevent illegal logging and fishing in preventive forests.

The province will also relocate some 1,000 residents who are living in preventive forests while promoting communication to encourage the community to join aquaculture cooperatives in close link with forest development.

Currently, Ca Mau has 35,000 hectares of preventive forests stretching along its 252 km long coastline, with 25,000ha in Ngoc Hien district.

However, the province loses around 100ha of coastal forest each year due to erosion. The loss of forest again leads to further erosion of land.

In addition, the forest coverage in Ca Mau has also reduced considerably since the 1990s due to local people’s cutting down woods for shrimp farming.

Vietnam is one of the five countries in the world most vulnerable to climate change and its Mekong Delta region, Vietnam’s rice granary, is among the three hardest hit deltas in the world.

Workshop seeks sustainable measures against climate change

A workshop was held in Hanoi on April 21 to seek sustainable measures to cope with environmental changes in line with the conditions of Vietnam.

Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Nguyen Linh Ngoc said Vietnam is pioneering in the fight by implementing scores of initiatives, policies and practical activities with the support and cooperation of many other countries.

From now to 2020, Vietnam will actively carry out national strategies, programmes and action plans on climate change adaptation in various fields while strictly observing obligations under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, he added.

Vietnam is still committed to reducing 8 percent of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, and even 25 percent if the country receives effective assistance from the international community, he said, adding that Vietnam will review periodically and adjust the targets properly, based on its real conditions.

Rector of the University of Science under the Hanoi-based Vietnam National University Nguyen Van Noi said climate change will pose serious problems for locals and prone sectors in the near future.

Changes of temperature and rainfall, along with storm intensity and frequency and rising sea levels will significantly affect the economy, society and environment, he noted.

Therefore, the evaluation of climate change impacts on human and ecological systems is necessary.

Phillip Kalantzis Cope from the University of Illinois in the US suggested Vietnam define clearly opportunities and challenges posed by climate change when realising the Paris Agreement – a global agreement on the mitigation of climate change.

He also stressed the need to change social behaviour and lifestyle to build sustainable consumption and production models, promote economical and effective use of natural resources, and increase public awareness of proactively preventing natural disasters and adapting to climate change to reduce human and property losses.

To do so, the role of the Government and local authorities is significant, he added.

The European Union (EU) will support Vietnam to mitigate the impacts of greenhouse gas effects and climate change, Head of the EU Delegation to Vietnam Bruno Angelet confirmed.

The forum was jointly held by the University of Science, the Vietnam-Japan University, the University of Illinois, and the International Institute for the Inclusive Museum.

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