More Vietnamese nurses, orderlies recruited to work in Japan

The Department for Overseas Labour Management on October 20 announced the recruitment of 180 nurses and orderlies to work in Japan as part of the Vietnam-Japan economic partnership agreements (EPA).

Selected candidates will take part in a one-year Japanese-language course, starting in mid-December this year. All expenses for tuition and accommodation are covered, while the cost of health check-ups and passport applications need to be carried by the successful candidates.

Deputy Head of the Department for Overseas Labour Management under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Tong Hai Nam said his department was the only one permitted to partner with Japan to implement the programme.

He warned that no human resources enterprises or individuals were authorised to carry out this programme, so prospective employees should research carefully and only apply to the government-approved programme.

Applicants for the position as orderly are required to hold a university degree, while candidates for nurse positions must have at least two years’ professional experience and a practice certificate issued by the Ministry of Health.

Successful candidates will be able to take examinations for Japan’s national certificates, and if they pass, they can work in the country in the long-term.

For more information, prospective applicants should contact the department at No.41B, Ly Thai To Street, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi , or online at www.dolab.gov.vn .

Japan has one of the world’s most rapidly aging populations. In ten years’ time, the country will need up to 600,000 nurses and orderlies to take care of its elderly.

In 2012, 138 candidates were selected to participate in a similar programme and worked in Japanese hospitals and sanatoriums.

Vietnam is the third country to cooperate with Japan in this field, after the Philippines and Indonesia.

UNESCO supports the ASEAN Dream

A press conference on October 21 in Ho Chi Minh City was held to announce the launch of a UNESCO funded  project named ‘Today’s Voice’, aiming to educate Vietnamese students about the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC).

Under the project,a series of workshops on the issue will be organized for 500,000 students from 10 universities across the nation to provide the man opportunity to learn about the advantages and disadvantages of integration.

Moreover, seminars and workshops will also share the experiences of speakers from the business community and academia on the important skills, knowledge and language needed to compete and succeed in the world after integration.

In addition, students will get a chance to participate in internships at leading enterprises in Vietnam and Singapore as well as online communities on websites and social networks to learn more about the AEC.

Market waste causes a stink in Long Bien area

People living near Ba Dinh district's Long Bien Market in Ha Noi, the biggest wholesale market in the northern region, complained of rotten produce and wastewater smells affecting their daily lives for nearly a decade.

The 22-year-old market has polluted the surrounding environment for a long time, said Hoang Dinh Thanh, deputy head of Long Bien Market Management Board. The broken drainage system leaves wastewater collecting in the market, causing a putrid odor, he said.

"The stinky smell from the market bothered our family even when we closed the doors very tight," said To Thi Lieu, who lives by the market. "Sometimes, we had to wear masks when we slept due to the smell."

The management board assigned 17 environment workers to clean up and collect about 2.5 tonnes of waste from the market everyday, he said. The board also hired an environmental hygiene company to collect and destroy waste. Despite environmental workers' best efforts, their cleaning has had little effect, because of the sheer amount of waste being discharged.

Traders must commit to seriously obeying environmental protection regulations when doing business in the market, he said. But the sanctions in place have not managed to deter violators.

According to Thanh, the People's Committee of Ba Dinh has planned to spend VND70 billion (US$3.3 million) to upgrade the market. The construction is expected to start on December 30.

The Long Bien Market covers 27,100sq.m and hosts 1,100 traders.

Medicine sector in mountainous districts faces difficulties

Medical workers in the mountainous districts in the North are not only suffering severe climate and far-off and difficult terrain but also working in the absence of facilities and equipment. Moreover, health sector in mountainous and rural districts is facing a workforce crisis.

Though the medical center of Muong Ang District, 50 kilometer far from Dien Bien Phu Town, it is just a few dilapidated cluster of houses with several health equipments.

Dr. Bui Thanh Hai, the center’s director, said that in addition to facility shortage, Muong Ang is facing shortage of medical workforce, especially specialists.

The district has 191 medical workers with only six specialists. Medical centers are so poor and underserved that some people’s committees and border guard stations are turned into medical centers to receive a large number of patients, said. Dr. Hai.

The Ministry of Health said that the 15 mountainous districts in the North have over 2,.560 medical centers; more than 2,200 of them are in poor repairs. The mountainous northern provinces of Ha Giang, Son La, Cao Bang, and Bac Giang have around seven doctors per 10,000 residents and 0.56 pharmacists per 10,000 population.

Dr. Nguyen Cong Huan, director of Health Department of Lai Chau Province, said that the province has 15 medical clinics and 108 centers. However, 70 percent of medical centers have been dilapidated and have no doctor.

To reach to remote villages such as Thu Lum, Ka Lang, and Muca for providing examination or treatment, doctors have to spend for one or two day walking.

Difficulties and scarcity of equipment, facilities and workforce have caused the treatment and healthcare mission in remote mountainous districts in the North to meet many troubles.

Nguyen Nam Lien, head of the Department of Planning and Finance under the Ministry of Health sad that statistics of malnourished children in the regions, showed that the mortality proportion of children aged under one and five is quite high compared to the country’s average rate.

Health Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien pointed out that the region has extensive area of land and people live dispersively, the distance of medical clinics and villages is large which accordingly hinder inhabitants’ access to medical services.

It is urgent to improve treatment quality in the areas, besides, it should focus on building more facilities which can provide good first-aid to local people.

The Ministry will spend more on medicine in remote mountainous districts. For instance, the Ministry will give VND100 billion (US$4,708,097) from the Millennium Goal Program on medicine  building five standard medical centers each in 15 mountainous provinces in the North.

On the other hand, the Ministry will send more good doctors to these districts with aiming to help their counterparts and young physicians work voluntarily here.

The Health Minister stressed that the investment in remote mountainous districts not only helps reduce pressure on big hospitals in major cities but also bring more equality in accessing to medical services of people here.

She called for more contribution from the government to the medicine sector in disadvantaged regions nationwide.

Speed limit permitted at 120km/h on HCMC-Long Thanh-Day Giay Highway

Speed limit on Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh – Dau Giay Highway and Thang Long Boulevard is 120 kilometers per hour, instructed by the Ministry of Transport in a document sent to relevant sides on October 20.

The document was sent to Vietnam Road Administration, Hanoi Department of Transport, and Vietnam Expressway Corporation.

The highway on the Belt Road No.3 in Hanoi, stretching from Thanh Tri Bridge to Mai Dich Intersection, will have a speed limit of 100 kilometers per hour.

The Ministry instructed relevant sides to examine the above highways, ensure road quality and traffic safety before applying the new speed limit. They should supplement sign board systems on the highways and approach roads.

Program CCS to be introduced in schools for students’ logical thinking

The program Creative Chess System –CCS would be introduced in schools in Ho Chi Minh City and some other provinces.

Chess Master Luong Nhat Linh and brain researcher Kim Thi Phuong introduced the program CCS to help children developing logical thinking and improving analysis and observation skills in Hanoi on October 18th.

The program is based on researches on benefits of playing chess to education for children. The program has introduced to more than 3,000 children aged from 4 to 13 for five years,. The program is focused on student-centered teaching methodologies in which students solve problems, answer questions, and discuss.

This year, 12 excellent students will be granted full scholarships worth each VND48 million (US$ 2,262).

22,300 students take part in 2014 TOEFL Junior Challenge

The opening ceremony of the 2014 TOEFL Junior Challenge were hosted in Ho Chi Minh City on October 19 with the participation of 22,300 students from 228 secondary schools in the first qualifying round.

In the qualifying rounds, candidates have to pass the TOEFL Primary test of Institute of Educational Testing Service (ETS) as the criteria to evaluate the proficiency of participating students.

After passing the qualifying rounds, 100 best students will continue to pass TPO-TOEFL Practice online test in the finals.

This is the annual English competition in Vietnam designed for secondary school students hosted by HCMC Department of Education and Training and IIG Vietnam.

Young man creates street library in Danang

A young man has become locally famous in Danang for his work contributing to the culture of the city, including the creation of a free street library.

Despite having to deal with the daily grind of earning a living as everyone else, 24-year-old Nguyen Van Hoan, has found enough time to initiate a number of projects, such as a roadside library and free life skills classes. His other projects include a motorbike taxi service, tourist guide services and tutoring for university exams, all given free of charge.

Hoa's commitment to social contribution while he was still a student at Danang University of Economics, where he initiated projects to help disadvantaged children. Since his graduation, he has only expanded his scope and taken his ideal of public service in several different directions.

The free library was started in late 2009, with a goal to provide people, both students and those with a love of reading, with books. He saw that one of the obstacles between many ordinary people and literature was the cost of books, and so began trying to make books more accessible.

The first incarnation of the library was at Park 29/3. In the following year later he moved between several other locations in Danang, including Hoa Cuong Bac and Bai Say parks. In July, he moved to To Huu Street, near Danang University of Foreign Languages. The library is open twice per week, on Tuesday and Wednesday.

“I hope that people will get information from these books, but perhaps more importantly, they might nurture a real interest in reading. I usually change locations when I can see that people in one area have taken on the habit," said Hoan.

The experiment has paid off, as it now attracts visitors of all ages. The only rule is that anybody who takes a book leaves another. There have also been several book donors to the project, which now boasts a collection of more than 500. More recently, Hoan has also started making e-books available to those interested.

After seeing the success of the project, two of Hoan's supporters are cooperating with him to expand the project this month by setting up a reading club in the city.

“I think the more you give the more you receive. This is the principle behind the free services I provide," he added.

Illegal fireworks manufacturing suspected in factory explosion

The illegal manufacturing of fireworks has not been ruled out in the incident which caused an explosion at a factory ostensibly manufacturing fertilizer.

The chemicals found after the recent accident at the Dang Huynh Company included potassium chlorate, potassium nitrate, anomiac, sulpher and zinc. Because these are the common ingredients for fireworks, the possibility that the facility was being used to produce illegal fireworks has not been ruled out.

Results from the pending investigation seem to show that the volatile chemicals were mixed by hand and that gas stoves were used in the packaging and labeling process.

The HCM City Police Department of Fire Fighting and Prevention said that it was likely that the company had just been negligent about safety protocol, but the possibility that the facility was manufacturing illegal fireworks could not be ruled out.

Three were killed and five injured in the October 17 explosion, which also destroyed at least seven homes in the vicinity. Five others were seriously damaged, according to District 12 authorities. A 1.2 metre-deep hole is still present at the site of the explosion.

Nguyen Toan Thang, chairman of District No12 People's Committee, said that the municipal authorities have provided VND30 million (USD1,400) in compensation to the families of deceased workers, and VND15 million to those injured.

Hanoi plans 15,500 social housing units

According to the Hanoi Construction Department, the city is promoting the adoption of an urban construction plan with a view towards 2015 with a goal of building 15,500 new social housing units low income families.

Leaders of the Hanoi Construction Department are currently facing difficulties in in acquiring funds, however, which could delay these plans. Some projects have already been put on hold.

The director of the department has announced that five projects have already been completed, accounting for 3,102 of the total planned units. These homes are already in use.

The has city also finished three workers' hosing projects, providing accommodation for 15,320 workers. In total, it is estimated that the projects built under the plan will provide shelter for over 56,000 people.

The plan also includes student housing projects that will accommodate around 12,000.

New head of traffic safety commits to reduction of accidents

Nguyen Van Thach, the newly-appointed head of the Ministry of Transport's Traffic Safety Department, said he would focus on policies that reduce road accidents.

During the lead up to his appointment, Thach said that the seven candidates for the position were required to prepare plans for what they would do with a view towards 2030. The most serious traffic problem in Vietnam is road accidents. About 96% of traffic death belong to road sector so his solutions for Vietnam's traffic problem mostly focus on road safety.

Thach further explained that he would give priority to low-budget tasks such as road safety audits. "The experience of the US shows that, if 300 sections are audited, the number of traffic accident can be reduced by 30-40% and the expenses would only be 0.35-0.5% that of the cost of new construction," he said.

The issue was recently brought to attention by an incident in which a bus driver caused multiple accidents and then tested positive to drug use. Thach has vowed to deal with these problems as well, saying, "In the decree on business-related road transport, we proposed several adjustments to better manage drivers, such as health checks and issuing new classes licenses for drivers of passenger vehicles."

He said that Vietnam could learn from from the experiences of other countries. For example, in some places private companies operate traffic cameras, which can save valuable revenues for the government, according to him. His other suggestion is to install a comprehensive traffic awareness campaign.

Nguyen Van Thach has a masters degree in traffic safety from the University of Sydney and 10 years of experience as the deputy head of Department of International Cooperation under the Ministry of Transport.

Vietnam, Indonesia boost co-operation in wildlife law enforcement

Vietnam and Indonesia have agreed to boost co-operation in wildlife law enforcement at a bilateral meeting held in Hanoi on October 20.

As members of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), the two sides will also increase exchanges in managing natural resources for sustainable development and controlling wildlife trafficking.

Speaking at the meeting, Nguyen Ba Ngai, Deputy Director of Vietnam Administration of Forestry (VAF) spoke highly of the close co-operation between the VAF and the Indonesia Directorate General of Forest Protection and Nature Conservation, which has contributed to realising the CITES.

At the meeting, the fifth of its kind to be held so far, Vietnamese and Indonesian agencies shared their experiences in wildlife protection, contributed opinions to form a joint action plan in the field, and mapped out directions to fulfill the two sides’ international commitments in the issue.

Nearly 230 cows for needy ethnic minority people

Nearly 230 breeding cows were given to needy ethnic minority people at Luc Hon, Hoang Mon, Dong Van communes, Binh Lieu district, Quang Ninh province, on October 20, aiming support poor people in disadvantaged areas.

The programme was held by the Border Guard High Command and the Vietnam Military Telecommunications Group (Viettel) in co-ordination with Quang Ninh Provincial People's Committee.

After presenting cows, Quang Ninh province will continue to help the ethnic peoples in breeding cows in the coming time.

The project’s source of capital was mobilized from Viettel’s developing telecommunication services.

In 2014, the project plans to hand over over 10,000 cows to poor people in 11 disadvantaged provinces across the country.

Laos uses Vietnam tech to make bio-fuel

The Lao Ministry of Energy and Mines has approved Makkao Lao Bio-fuel Co. to start a large-scale sale of 100 million liters of B5 bio-fuel produced based on Vietnam’s technology from early next month.

Bunchan Xaykenyachongtua, deputy general director of the company, said the bio-fuel volume is made by mixing five million liters of B100 biodiesel and 95 million liters of diesel.

The technology was invented by Vietnamese doctor Ho Son Lam at the Institute of Applied Materials Science under the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology. It allows the production of biodiesel from nuts of wood-oil trees scientifically known as Vernicia Montana.

The technology was transferred to Teak Wood – Luang Prabang Company to execute a pilot scheme to turn out the biodiesel for sale through its subsidiary Makkao Lao Bio-fuel Co. in Luang Prabang since 2013.

Currently, Makkao Lao Bio-fuel Company has a biofuel plant with a daily production capacity of 1,000 liters. The facility’s capacity will soon be increased to 2,000 liters a day to meet the large-scale sale of this product in Laos.

The company is expected to construct a new plant with a daily output of 10,000 liters in the future.

The deputy general director said besides production of biodiesel, Lam’s technology has also been used to manufacture plant protection drugs, fertilizer, and biodegradable bags.

Nielsen Case Competition to search for young talent

Winners of the Nielsen Case Competition, a contest for students in Hanoi and HCMC to solve a real-world business issue and demonstrate solutions to solving it, will have the opportunity to work as interns at market research firm Nielsen Vietnam.

The 5th annual competition in Vietnam will take place in HCMC from October 21 to 23 and in Hanoi from October 28 to 31.

Competition case studies will only be released a maximum of 20 hours in advance. All the competing students are required to analyze real business issues and their presentations will be judged based on their abilities to understand those issues, present ideas, do teamwork and solve problems.

There will be 20 teams from top universities in HCMC, including the University of Economics HCMC, HCMC University of Law, Hoa Sen University, RMIT University Vietnam, International University, the University of Economics and Law, the University of Economics and Finance, the Foreign Trade University, the French University Pole and University of Greenwich. These teams will go through a preliminary round at the Vissai Hotel Saigon on October 22 before entering the final with the participation of the best three teams at the Movenpick Hotel Saigon on October 23.

Another twelve teams from six universities in Hanoi, including National Economic University, RMIT University Vietnam Hanoi, British University Vietnam, Vietnam National University Hanoi, Hanoi University, and Foreign Trade University will compete in a qualifying round on October 29 and the best four will be chosen for the finals at the Movenpick Hotel Hanoi on October 30.

Nguyen Kim Anh, director of human resources and Hoang Thach Thao, associate director of marketing & communication of Nielsen Vietnam, will conduct the presentation skill trainings for contestants in both cities prior to the events.

According to Vaughan Ryan, managing director of Nielsen Vietnam, developing young local talent is part of Nielsen’s commitment to ensuring sustainable development for the company and the local community.

This annual competition enriches students’ experience in the professional working environment and makes them more confident after graduation from university.

New campaign for UK fashion brands

British consul general in HCMC Douglas Barnes last week announced the Great Britain shopping campaign designed to attract the attention of local customers to luxury fashion brands from the UK.

Some of the UK retailers and brands joining the campaign are Marks & Spencer, F&F, Clarks, Coast, Warehouse, Oasis, Accessorize, Izabel London, Fever London and Fiorelli London.

People with shopping bills of these brands worth VND1 million or above will receive a receipt to take part in a lucky draw with a grand prize of a pair of two-way air tickets to the UK. Other attractive prizes are shopping vouchers worth VND1 million to VND5 million.

Standard Chartered Vietnam will redeem up to VND1 million to 100 customers who use the bank’s debit cards to pay shopping bills at the above brands’ stores. For further details, visit www.facebook.com/ukinvietnam.

According to Dinh Thu Huong from the British consulate general in HCMC, a lucky draw is expected to take place in early December, alongside with the first Vietnam International Fashion Week in HCMC.

“Compared to other Southeast Asian markets like Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, UK fashion sales revenues in Vietnam have yet to match shopping potential of local consumers. Therefore, we hope Vietnamese people will pay more attention to and use more UK fashion brands,” Huong added.

Marks & Spencer, one of the UK’s leading retailers, has opened its first store at the Vincom Center on Dong Khoi Street in HCMC’s District 1. It is expected that 19 more Marks & Spencer stores will go up in Vietnam by 2020.

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