50,000 remaining North-South train tickets for Tet holiday

Nearly 50,000 train tickets on the North-South route for the upcoming Lunar New Year 2019 (Tet) holiday are now available (Illustrative photo: VNA)

Nearly 50,000 train tickets on the North-South route for the upcoming Lunar New Year 2019 (Tet) holiday are now available, said the Hanoi Railway Transport JSC (Haraco).

A total of about 230,000 train tickets have been sold already, of which 190,000 are on the North-South route.

Meanwhile, tickets on peak days from January 28 to February 2, 2019 (from the 23rd to 29th day of the 12th lunar month), and on February 9-12 (between the fifth and eighth day of the new lunar year), are sold out.

In the calendar New Year, Haraco will arrange an additional 15 trains for inter-provincial routes from Hanoi to Dong Hoi, Vinh, Thanh Hoa, Lao Cai, and Hai Phong.

Passengers are advised to visit the company’s new ticket sales portal vetauonline.vn to purchase suitable tickets at reasonable prices. 

According to initial plans, a total of 300,000 seats will be available for the 2019 Lunar New Year holiday. 

Exhibition features Vietnamese generals in resistance wars

An exhibition featuring Vietnam’s generals in two resistance wars against the French and American troops commenced at the Vietnam Military History Museum in Hanoi on December 20.

More than 200 photos, documents, and objects on display depict the care of the Party, State, and late President Ho Chi Minh to generals of the Vietnam People’s Army in the resistance wars, and capture the generals in major fights and battle fields in the wars.

The event marked the 74th founding anniversary of the Vietnam People’s Army and the 29th anniversary of All-people Defence Festival.

Director of the Museum Mai Thi Ngoc said the exhibition manifests the tribute to the generals who rendered services to the resistance wars.

It aims to impart the national pride and patriotism to the armed forces and people, especially young generation, to resolutely safeguard the homeland in the new circumstances.

The exhibition is taking place at 28A Dien Bien Phu street.

Deputy PM describes Nguyen Dynasty archives as priceless

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam (third, right) examines the preservation of woodblocks from the Nguyen Dynasty at the National Archives Centre IV on December 20 

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam has described all archives kept at the National Archives Centre IV, based in Da Lat city of the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong, as priceless assets of the nation.

He made the remark while examining the preservation of woodblocks from the Nguyen Dynasty (1802-1945) – part of the Memory of the World Register – in Lam Dong on December 20.

Dang Thanh Tung, Director of the State Records and Archives Department of Vietnam under the Ministry of Home Affairs, said the National Archives Centre IV, established in 2006, is tasked with managing the woodblocks of the Nguyen Dynasty and other archives of the central and Central Highlands regions. It is currently preserving 34,619 woodblocks from the period.

The department has successfully applied modern techniques in cleaning up the woodblocks. It has also devised solutions to improve the preservation environment and archive restoration.

Pointing out difficulties in preserving the woodblocks, Tung said they are being kept in rooms designed for preserving paper, tape, and dish archives. Meanwhile, the volume of such items is substantial, which feature reverse carvings written in Han Nom (old Chinese-like characters of Vietnam), so it will take much time and effort to translate them.

Deputy PM Dam said that as these archives are priceless assets, it is necessary to step up publicising them for all to see.

He asked archivists to promptly digitalise the woodblocks and other archives. They should also pay attention to applying traditional preservation and restoration methods, aside from modern solutions, and invite experts and investors to the work.

The woodblocks of the Nguyen Dynasty helped to record official literature and history, as well as classical and historical books. They were included in the Memory of the World Register in 2009.

Binh Thuan reviews project to enhance agricultural opportunities for women

A workshop was held in the central province of Binh Thuan on December 21 to review the results of the project “Enhancing Opportunities for Women’s Enterprises (EOWE)”, which has been underway in the province since 2016.

The EOWE Project, part of the “Funding Leadership and Opportunities for Women (FLOW)” programme, is being implemented in the provinces of Binh Thuan, Ninh Thuan, Quang Binh, and Binh Dinh by the SNV Netherlands Development Organisation between 2016 and 2020, with funding from the Netherlands’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The FLOW-EOWE project aims to advance women’s economic participation and self-reliance by creating a conducive environment for female entrepreneurship as a vehicle for change. It focuses its support on women working in agribusinesses by increasing their access to agribusiness models, assets, technology, markets, and information. 

In order to increase incomes and improve the livelihoods of women in agriculture value chains, the project supports and promotes climate-smart agricultural business models and female leadership in farmer groups and cooperatives.

In addition, it works to transform traditional gender roles within households and communities that inhibit women from starting or advancing businesses; increase the gender-sensitivity of key policies and laws; and establish a women’s economic platform and network.

In Binh Thuan, the project has brought positive changes to local awareness of gender equality. Activities to promote gender equality have been held in various forms, for example, family group meetings and dialogues among households to help women alter the way they see themselves and consequently live their lives; and community festival events to promote the notion of housework being shared equally, despite gender stereotypes.

Under the project, the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has partnered with the local Women’s Union in a range of activities to raise women’s income from agribusiness, with the main focus on rice, cashew nuts, and dragon fruit farming.

The project has helped develop rice farming models using the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) on a total of 115ha in Tuy Phong, Bac Binh, and Tanh Linh districts. It has also built sustainable value chains in cashew farming in Duc Linh district and supported women to grow dragon fruit that meets VietGAP and GlobalGAP standards.

Furthermore, the project has assisted local agricultural cooperatives in developing collective trademarks, trademarking their branded logo and package design, and marketing their products.

According to the provincial Women’s Union, over the three years since it started, the project has inspired new business ideas for many women and translated them into reality. This has not only enabled women to improve their income, but also enhanced their economic empowerment and obtained greater equality in family dynamics.

In the coming time, the local Department of Agriculture and Rural Development and Women’s Union will continue campaigning and persuading more women to take part in the project’s activities. Binh Thuan expects to raise awareness of gender equality among about 100,000 locals, increase income for 20,000 women, and support at least 18 women to start their own businesses.

New technologies needed to improve waste treatment: seminar

Workers sort plastic waste for recycling in Lao Cai province 

The application of new waste treatment technologies is now a national urgent requirement amidst the mounting waste volume and shortcomings of current disposal methods, heard a seminar held in Hanoi on December 21.

Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Vo Tuan Nhan said that the fast growth of the economy and population have resulted in a steep increase in solid waste.

According to reports from provinces and cities nationwide, urban areas generate about 38,000 tonnes of solid waste per day, while rural areas produce another 32,000 tonnes, with only 85 percent and 40-55 percent of waste collected, respectively.

In many remote areas, the collection and treatment of solid waste is very difficult. Most waste is directly dumped into the environment or in makeshift landfills that do not meet environmental protection standards.

The transport of solid waste is also facing obstacles as landfills are located far away from residential areas, and the current environmental fees collected from households are not enough to cover waste collection and transport. 

While qualified landfills have just been built in some provinces with larger budgets, treatment facilities in rural areas and low-income localities have yet to meet environmental standards.

Notably, residents in many places have objected to the construction of waste treatment plants as they fear negative impacts like water and air pollution, participants at the seminar said.

The Ministry of Science and Technology said that there is an urgent need for new technologies that reduce the burden of waste burial to help save land resources.

The three main waste treatment methods in Vietnam are burial, microbiological fertiliser production, and burning. Only 30 percent of existing landfills meet green standards, while most of the nearly 300 incinerators nationwide are small-scale. There are only about 30 facilities producing organic fertilisers from waste at present.

In some areas, residents have been instructed to dispose waste by using biogas digesters, but this activity is still limited. Meanwhile, imported technologies do not suit Vietnam’s situation due to different lifestyle and climate conditions, according to the workshop.

Experts said the country should perfect existing technologies, especially those converting waste into energy, to limit the creation of new landfills.

Health sector calls for blood donations ahead of Tet

Students of People’s Police College give blood during a blood donation festival in Hanoi 

The National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion has called on the community, especially those with type O blood, to donate blood in an effort to avoid a shortage during the upcoming Lunar New Year (Tet) holidays.

It is estimated that over the next three months, the institute needs about 90,000 blood units, including more than 36,000 units of type O blood, to meet the demand of first aid, treatment and supply for hospitals, said the institute’s director Bach Quoc Khanh.

At the moment, about 75,000 people have registered to donate blood, Khanh said. “We need more support from the community to have 90,000 blood units to meet the country’s demand during the year-end," he said.

During the Tet holidays, the number of blood donors often reduces while the need of blood for emergency treatment increases. The director said a blood shortage is likely to occur if the health sector has not prepared enough blood reserves. This would endanger patients.

Therefore, Khanh said, an increase in blood donation is the only way to handle the shortage, especially of type O blood, during the end of the year and the Lunar New Year holidays.

According to Dr. Khanh, despite many blood donation programmes, there still is a risk of shortage because the country’s demand increases every year.

At present, the institute has provided daily about 1,200 units of blood for emergency treatments. During the period between December and January, the institute needs about 30,000-35,000 blood units. In February, it needs between 20,000 and 25,000 units of blood for Tet.

People can visit the institute on Pham Van Bach street, Cau Giay district, Hanoi to donate blood from 8am to 8pm every day.

Officials extend X’mas greetings to Catholics in Ninh Binh, Nam Dinh

Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh talks to Bishop Joseph Nguyen Nang and other dignitaries of Phat Diem Diocese 

Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh visited Phat Diem Diocese in the northern province of Ninh Binh on December 22 to extend greetings to local Catholic dignitaries and followers on the Christmas season.

Talking to Bishop Joseph Nguyen Nang and other dignitaries, the Deputy PM informed them of the country’s important socio-economic development achievements in 2018, with all 12 set targets fulfilled, and affirmed the contributions made by the Catholic community to the success.

The Government official reiterated that the State always respects and guarantees the right to freedom of religion and beliefs of all people, considering it a consistent policy to ensure the rights and legitimate interests of religious followers, thus strengthening the national great unity for national development.

The Deputy PM praised the Phat Diem diocese for organising a wide range of social and charity activities and voiced his hope that the Bishop and other dignitaries will organise a warm and safe Christmas holiday, and continue encouraging the community to exert greater efforts to contribute more to the country.

Bishop Joseph Nguyen Nang shared the delight at the country’s important achievements in renewal and national development, and the recognition of the contributions made by the Catholic community to the growth of the locality and the nation.

The Catholics in Phat Diem diocese will continue to do their best to contribute to social development, especially in issues related to education and health.

In Ninh Binh’s neighbouring province of Nam Dinh, local leaders also visited local Catholic dignitaries and followers on the occasion of Christmas.

Visiting Bach Tinh Parish in Nam Truc district, Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Pham Dinh Nghi said that the locality has fulfilled all 2018 socio-economic criteria and collected over 4 trillion VND (171.2 million USD) for the State budget. 

Nam Dinh is one among the localities leading the country in terms of new-style rural area building with five out of 10 districts recognized as new-style rural areas.

Nghi attributed the results to joint efforts of the local Party Committee, authorities and people, including the Catholic community.

He expressed his hope that Catholic dignitaries and followers will continue following the Party’s policies and State’s laws, responding to patriotic emulation movements, and joining hands to further develop the nation and the province.

Programme honours outstanding ethnic minority figures

Outstanding figures of border ethnic minority communities are honoured on stage 

A ceremony honouring outstanding figures of border ethnic minority communities took place in Hanoi on the evening of December 21, as part of activities to mark the 74th founding anniversary of the Vietnam People’s Army (December 22).

The event, co-organised by the Communist Review, the Government Committee for Ethnic Affairs and the Border Guard High Command, gathered 163 delegates of 45 ethnic minority groups, who are village patriarchs, village heads and other prestigious figures hailing from across 34 border cities and provinces. The oldest of them is 82 years old and the youngest is 28.

Speaking at the ceremony, Politburo member and standing member of the Party Central Committee’s Secretariat Tran Quoc Vuong described the delegates as the important links connecting the Party and villagers.

They are the pillars of the community where they live, he said.

Pointing to latent complicated problems in sea and border security, including unplanned internal migration and activities of hostile forces, the Party official urged ministries, sectors, and armed forces to strengthen their ties with the prestigious people in ethnic communities.

He asked the delegates to continue encouraging villagers to engage in protecting the border security, building new-style rural areas, and getting rid of outdated customs.   

Earlier the same day, Party General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong had a meeting with the ethnic minority delegates.

According to Minister-Chairman of the Government Committee of Ethnic Affairs Do Van Chien, Vietnam has 1,019 border communes in 235 districts of 44 provinces neighbouring Laos, China, and Cambodia.

HCM City has first public-private partnership hospital

A view of Gia An 115 Hospital (Source: http://cafef.vn)

Gia An 115 Hospital – the first health care facility constructed in the form of public-private partnership (PPP) in Ho Chi Minh City – was inaugurated on December 22.

The hospital, a joint effort of Hoa Lam Corporation and People’s 115 Hospital, has a 10-storey building with 367 patient beds and 60 check-up rooms along with medical equipment meeting international standards. 

Licensed to operate as from August 31, 2018, Gia An 115 is a general hospital with specialized departments such as cardiology, neurology and stroke, endocrinology, physical therapy and rehabilitation services.

The hospital has the professional support from People’s 115 Hospital with the consultations of leading experts and doctors in many fields.

Gia An 115 Hospital is the second facility in the International Hi-tech Healthcare Park of Hoa Lam Shangri-La, a healthcare complex founded in 2008 with more than 1,700 inpatient beds. The complex is expected to host six general and specialized hospitals, as well as auxiliary facilities.

Addressing the inauguration ceremony, Prof. Dr. Nguyen Tan Binh, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health said that the policy of developing PPP health care has been implemented by the city for years, but the scale of past projects remains small.

This is the first time a PPP hospital has been built in the city, marking a fruitful cooperation between a public hospital and a private business, he noted.

Along with helping ease overload in central-level hospitals in the city, the hospital will provide quality health care services at reasonable cost to local patients, he stated.

The official affirmed that in the future, the city’s health sector will continue implementing more similar project to better meet the medical demand of locals.

Mui Ne set to become national sea tourism centre in 2025

Mui Ne beach, with its warm and windy climate, has been favoured by surfers from the UK, France, Russia, Germany, and Australia. 

The well-known tourist attraction of Mui Ne in the south central province of Binh Thuan will be developed into a national hub for sea resort and sport tourism.

Under a master plan for the development of Mui Ne National Tourism Site in 2025 with a vision to 2030, which has been approved by the Prime Minister recently, Mui Ne’s infrastructure will be completed to attract strategic investors, making it an important site in the tourism industry of the coastal south central region and the whole country.

In 2030, Mui Ne National Tourism Site is envisioned to become one of the top destinations in the Asia-Pacific region.

The site is hoped to welcome about 9 million visitors, including 1.5 million foreigners in 2025. The respective figures are expected to reach 14 million and 2.5 million in 2030.

Tourism revenue of the site is set to hit about 24 trillion VND (1.03 billion USD) in 2025 and about 50 trillion in 2030, according to the planning. The local tourism industry is expected to create 24,000 direct jobs in 2025 and more than 45,000 jobs in 2030.

The plan makes clear that traditional markets such as Russia, European and Southeast Asian countries will continue to be developed, while necessary steps will be taken to tap into the high-end section of the Chinese and Northeast Asian markets such as the Republic of Korea and Japan.

Major products of Mui Ne include sea-based tourism, eco-tourism and sport tourism.

Alongside, Mui Ne will also develop cultural tourism, community-based and urban tourism.

Mui Ne beach, with its warm and windy climate, has been favoured by surfers from the UK, France, Russia, Germany, and Australia. It also consists of massive sand dunes, suitable for activities such as sand-boarding. 

Mui Ne boasts many attractive landscapes such as Hon Rom, Hon Lao Cau and Bai Rang. Coming to this beach, travellers also have the chance to witness the daily life of fishermen in a humble fishing village. 

Last year, Phu Quoc island in Kien Giang and Mui Ne beaches of Vietnam have been listed among 20 most idyllic beaches in Asia by CNN travel. 

362 billion VND spent on Tet gifts to revolution contributors

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has agreed to empower the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs to submit its proposal on Lunar New Year (Tet) gifts to revolution contributors to the State President.

The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs has proposed presenting cash gifts worth of 400,000 VND and 200,000 VND to those who rendered services to the nation’s revolution.

The gifts are estimated to be worth over 362 billion VND (15.5 million USD).

According to the Ministry, as of the end of 2017, 9 million people were recognised as revolutionary contributors, including 1.2 million fallen soldiers, 127,000 heroic mothers and 800,000 wounded and sick soldiers.

A view of Can Tho city 

After seven years of implementation, the project to upgrade urban areas in the Mekong Delta region, part of a larger project at national level for the 2009-2020 period, has benefited nearly 1.2 million people.

With a total investment of nearly 398 million USD, including 292 million USD as loan from the World Bank, the project covers six regional cities of Ca Mau of Ca Mau province, Can Tho, Cao Lanh of Dong Thap province, My Tho of Tien Giang province, Rach Gia of Kien Giang province, and Tra Vinh of Tra Vinh province.

It aims to promote poverty reduction in urban areas through the upgrading of infrastructure systems and living conditions of the poor, and increase the engagement of the community in the plan-making process.

Between 2012 and 2018, the project benefited 1.153 million people, including 566,000 direct and 587,000 indirect beneficiaries. Particularly, 305,000 people living in low-income areas have accessed upgraded infrastructure system, including 240-km roads and 374-km irrigation pipe, as well as many social works such as schools and health care facilities.

Resettlement areas have been built for 3,141 households affected by the project in the six cities. A survey showed that the households are pleased at the infrastructure system in their new residential areas.

Chairman of the People’s Committee of Cao Lanh city of Dong Thap province Phan Van Thuong said that the project has changed the face of the young city as a clean, green sustainably developing urban area.

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong asked the General Department of Natural Disaster Prevention and Control to continue improving its forecast and coordination capacity to minimize damage caused by natural disasters in 2019.

He was addressing the General Department’s conference to review its 2018 performance and launch its tasks in 2019 in Hanoi on December 21.

The General Department needs to pay special attention to giving warnings and applying scientific advances in preventing and fighting natural disasters.

It should speed up the building and implementation of strategies, programmes and plans, such as the national natural disaster prevention and control plan, the master plan on preventing riverbank and coastal erosion, and the master plan on relocating residents living in areas constantly affected by natural disasters, the minister said.

In 2018, floods in the Mekong delta cost no lives though it was of the same level as that in 2011 when it took the lives of 89 people. The results were attributed to local authorities and community’s pro-active preparations and sufficient investment into infrastructure, plus prompt instructions given by the Prime Minister and the steering committee on response to flood, he said.

As by December 20, 2018, the country suffered 13 typhoons and low pressure depressions, 14 flash floods and landslides, 11 heat waves, 23 cold spells, and more, which caused a total economic loss of 20 trillion VND and left 218 people died and missing.-

Christmas wishes sent to Evangelical Church of Vietnam

Vice President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh in Ho Chi Minh City 

Vice President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh offered warm wishes to the General Confederation of the Evangelical Church of Vietnam (South) and its head Pastor Thai Phuoc Truong ahead of the Christmas holiday during her visit in Ho Chi Minh City on December 20. 

She extended Christmas wishes to Protestant dignitaries and followers, congratulating the confederation on its strong growth of nearly 1 million followers in over 2,000 chapters nationwide. 

Thinh thanked them for standing side-by-side with the Party and State and wished that Protestant dignitaries and followers would continue the sense of unity to contribute to the nation. 

Truong, for his part, thanked leaders of the Party, State, and the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee for providing support for Protestant followers to join religious activities, adding that since the Law on Belief and Religion took effect earlier this year, Protestants’ religious activities have expanded across the nation. 

He pledged to continue calling on Protestant dignitaries and followers to actively contribute to national development.

Christmas greetings sent to Hue Archdiocese

Head of the Government Committee for Religious Affairs Vu Chien Thang (L) presents gift to Archbishop of the Hue Archdiocese Joseph Nguyen Chi Linh 

Head of the Government Committee for Religious Affairs Vu Chien Thang and authorities of the central Thua Thien-Hue province visited and extended Christmas greetings to dignitaries of the Hue Archdiocese on December 20. 

At the event, Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Phan Ngoc Tho highlighted the achievements made by the province this year and expressed thanks for the contributions made by Catholic dignitaries and followers. 

He wished that the Catholic community would continue its sense of unity, contributing to local development. 

Archbishop of the Hue Archdiocese Joseph Nguyen Chi Linh, who is also President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Vietnam, affirmed that in the spirit of solidarity, the local Catholic community will join hands in the cause of national growth. 

On the occasion, the Hue municipal chapter of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee also held a meeting with representatives from the Parish Pastoral Council, the Evangelical Church of Vietnam, as well as both Catholic and Protestant followers. 

In the town of Huong Thuy, local leaders visited and congratulated seven religious establishments and Catholic followers in the locality. 

Local Catholic dignitaries vowed to continue calling on Catholics to follow Party policies and guidelines, and State laws to further contribute to the national cause.

Da Lat to be developed into smart city

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam (standing) speaks at the working session with Lam Dong officials on December 20

The Central Highlands province of Lam Dong plans to build Da Lat into a smart city, and is currently seeking the Government’s assistance in the work.

This cause was among the issues brought up at a working session between local authorities and Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam in the province on December 20.

Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Doan Van Viet said that in 2019, Lam Dong will invest all efforts into the plan to develop a smart Da Lat city, focusing on smart tourism, smart agriculture, and smart administrative management.

The province proposed that the Government provide technical support for it to realise this plan.

Deputy PM Dam said Lam Dong should first create an information-sharing mechanism among its agencies, sectors, and localities to serve as a foundation for smart city building.

The Government will send an advisory group to help the province build an initial basis for the plan, he noted.

He added that the local administration should actively seek their own methods of resolving outstanding problems.

At the meeting, Viet also reported on local development in 2018, elaborating that 87 of the 116 local communes have been recognised as new-style rural areas, while the household poverty rate has been reduced by 1 percent to 2.9 percent.

The province issued a resolution on developing high-quality tourism, helping to raise the number of three- to five-star hotels. Businesses have also been requested to upgrade local tourist sites and diversify tourism services.

Lam Dong welcomed about 6.5 million tourist arrivals this year, with the number of foreign visitors up 21 percent from 2017, the official said.

Aside from the smart city plans, the province will also push on with agricultural restructuring, forest management and protection, and attracting investment into farm produce processing and environmentally-friendly manufacturing, Viet added. 

Programme launched to improve helmet safety amongst children

A programme improving the frequency of helmet wearing amongst children was launched in the central province of Binh Dinh on December 20. 

As many as 2,500 vouchers for children’s helmets were presented at the programme, which was co-organised by the National Traffic Safety Committee, the Ministry of Public Security’s Department of Traffic Police, and the provincial Public Security’s Traffic Police Office. 

The provincial traffic police popularised the benefits, responsibility, and styles of wearing helmets for children, and presented vouchers for pupils at Ngo May elementary school in Quy Nhon city. 

Uong Viet Dung, deputy head of the Office of the National Traffic Safety Committee, said the event is expected to raise awareness amongst parents and children of the need to wear helmets when out on the roads, thereby increasing the rate of helmet-wearing among children.

According to him, the rate of helmet-wearing children in the country remains low, standing at 35-40 percent. 

From December 17-31, the programme is offering helmet-wearing guidance and presenting 35,000 vouchers, each worth 100,000 VND (4.3 USD) , in 10 cities and provinces nationwide. The vouchers can be used in outlets entrusted by Honda Vietnam across the country. 

Ministry asks for concerted efforts to prevent poultry smuggling

Competent agencies detain a truck carrying illegal poultry in Lang Son 

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development asked for cooperation from cities and provinces and relevant ministries in preventing illegal transport and smuggling of poultry and cattle into Vietnam.

The move came following the concern over the increasing smuggling of poultry which are in high demand during the Tet, or traditional Vietnamese New Year holiday.

The ministry urged the cities and provinces nationwide to take drastic measures to promptly discover and prevent illegal transport, trade and trafficking of cattle, poultry and poultry products in the country and strictly punish violators.

At the same time, the local administrations are requested to keep a close watch of border gates and trails along borders, particularly in northern border provinces, to tighten control on imports of poultry and poultry products into Vietnam. 

Any batch of wild animals and animal products illegally entering the country must be destroyed without delay after samples from these products are sent to competent veterinary authorities for disease testing.

The cities and provinces must also persuade people living in border areas to not involve in the poultry trafficking or help traffickers, and further raise public awareness of possible infectious diseases caused by smuggled animals which would pose threats to the animal breeding industry and public health.

The northern province of Lang Son, which shares border with China, is among those experiencing worst poultry illegal transport and smuggling. Since the beginning of this year, it cracked down on about 102 cases smuggling a total of more than 118,000 breeding poultries, over three tonnes of poultry meat and 26,000 eggs.

Hanoi welcomes 5.74 million international tourists in 2018

The hop-on hop-off bus in Hanoi 

The capital city of Hanoi welcomed 5.74 million foreign visitors in 2018, up 16 percent against 2017, among 26 million tourists spending time in  the city.

With this outcome, the tourism sector has reached its target of receiving 5.7 million foreign tourists set out in the municipal Party Committee’s resolution on tourism development in 2016-2020 two years ahead of schedule.

Hanoi is ranked 12th among the 25 best global destinations in 2018, and one of the two cities in Vietnam to enter the most prominent group in the world in terms of room reservation. 

The city was nominated by the World Travel Awards as one of the 17 candidates for a prize of the world’s leading city destination 2018.

According to the municipal Department of Tourism, tourists from Asian nations make up about 60 percent of the total number of international visitors to the capital, Europe 24 percent, the Americas 9 percent, and the remaining from Oceania and Asia.

Hanoi’s key tourism markets include China, the Republic of Korea, Japan, France, the US, the UK, Germany, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada. 

Yoshimi Ando, a tourist from Japan, said Hanoi is attractive to visitors because of its unique culture, history and natural landscape.

He shared that during his stay in Hanoi, he visited many historical places and studied the capital’s traditional culture as well as experienced the life of people in the Old Quarter. 

Popular destinations in Hanoi can be named as the Mausoleum of President Ho Chi Minh, the Temple of Literature and National University (Van Mieu – Quoc Tu Giam), the Hanoi Old Quarter, Thang Long Imperial Citadel, Hoan Kiem Lake and Ngoc Son Temple.

The community-based tourism in Hanoi’s Ba Vi district and organic agriculture tourism in Me Linh, Thanh Tri and Ung Hoa districts, and the ancient village tourism in Duong Lam and Cu Da also attract visitors.

The city aims to greet 6.7 million foreign visitors, out of nearly 28.6 million tourists in 2019.

Inter-sectoral teams formed to check food safety for Tet

Six inter-sectoral teams will be set up to inspect food safety in 12 provinces and cities 

The Ministry of Health said on December 20 that six inter-sectoral teams will be set up to inspect food safety in 12 provinces and cities in the lead-up to the upcoming Lunar New Year (Tet) festival and spring festivals afterwards.

The teams from the Health Ministry, the Ministry of Trade and Industry, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development will fan out to go to Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan, Lao Cai, Yen Bai, Ho Chi Minh City, Tay Ninh, Dong Thap, Tien Giang, Hanoi, Hung Yen, Lam Dong, and Dak Nong.

The move was decided by the central inter-sectoral steering committee for food safety, which also requested localities establish inspection teams to check the safety of foods that are largely consumed during Tet and festivals.

Inspections will be carried out from January 1 to March 25, 2019, looking to ensure hygiene standards are strictly adhered during the process of producing, processing, trading and using foods and minimize food poisoning cases. 

On the day, head of the food safety department of the Health Ministry Nguyen Thanh Phong said the department has fined 99 businesses a total sum of 6 billion VND for violating food safety regulations. 

During January-October, 91 food poisoning cases have been reported nationwide, mainly involved alcohol and poisonous mushrooms, claiming the lives of 15 people.

Consultation workshop focuses on Population Strategy till 2030

The General Office for Population and Family Planning under the Ministry of Health on December 20 held a consultation workshop on a Vietnamese Population Strategy until 2030, drawing representatives from ministries, sectors, localities, and international organisations.

Speaking at the event, deputy head of the General Office Vo Thanh Dong said that based on assessments about achievements and shortcomings in the seven-year implementation of the National Strategy on Population and Reproductive Health for the 2011-2020 period, the general office completed a draft Vietnamese Population Strategy until 2030.

This workshop aimed to consult experts in ministries, sectors, localities and international organisations about the draft strategy to soon complete a final version to be submitted to the Government for approval, Dong stated.

He also pointed to current challenges facing the population work that need to be addressed, including the difference in the fertility rate in regions, serious gender imbalance, unplanned migration, population aging, and limited population quality.

The new strategy needs to address the high urban population density, bring the sex ratio at birth to below 109 boys per 100 girls, take advantage of the golden population, include population-related issues in local socio-economic development strategies, and improve public health.

At the event, delegates reached a consensus on the necessity to promulgate a new strategy as the old one has yet to solve the relationship between population and development absolutely.

They made proposals for the new strategy, including improving mechanisms, policies and laws involved in population; creating a consensus in awareness and action of the entire political system and people from all walks of life; reforming communication work.

Workshop discusses ways to develop logistics services

A workshop was held in Hanoi on December 20 to help the Ministry of Industry and Trade implement an action plan to increase the competitiveness of logistics services in Vietnam through 2025, as well as to attract investment to build logistics centres so as to boost the sale of Vietnamese goods in the European and American regions.

The event was jointly held by the ministry’s Department of European-American Market and the Institute for Brand and Competitiveness Strategy.

According to the ministry, Vietnam holds a strategic location in the region with a coastline of over 3,000 km - a great advantage for the development of international logistics centres.

However, most of the domestic logistics businesses are operating at small scale, so their financial capacity and management ability remain restricted, mainly providing cargo services.

Meanwhile, foreign direct investment (FDI) firms in Vietnam often look for integrated logistics services that are not only about freight transport but also go with other added value services such as customs clearance, storage, packaging and distribution.

Ta Hoang Linh, head of the department, highlighted factors that could affect the sustainable development of the logistics industry such as poor transport infrastructure system, rigid customs procedures, and lack of connectivity between businesses.

He held that it is necessary to take measures to boost the development of logistics centres in the European and American regions.

On July 3, 2015, the Prime Minister approved a plan to develop the logistics centre system across the country through 2020 with a vision to 2030.

Linh suggested supporting logistics centres with various types of transportation such as road, railway, shipping, inland waterway, and air lift.

Experts said logistics centres must be managed as a sole and neutral legal agency and ensure trade cooperation.

At the same time, it is necessary to have clear and reasonable regulations for the centres’ operation, especially inspection stages, they said.