Vietnamese, Lao provinces cooperate in border management

Officials from Vietnam’s central Thua Thien–Hue province of and Sekong province of Laos held an annual meeting on the border work in Hue city on July 26 and signed the minutes on border management. 

The event was co-chaired by Vice Chairman of Thua Thien-Hue’s People’s Committee Nguyen Dung and Thavon Phommalaylun, Sekong’s Deputy Governor and Head of the provincial border work steering committee.

At the meeting, the two sides lauded the efforts of border security forces in border protection and management, safeguarding border markers and maintaining social order and political security along the shared border.

They have also maintained visits of delegations to share border work experience, contributing to boosting people-to-people exchanges and cross-border trade. 

Thua Thien-Hue province has helped Lao residents in the border areas of Sekong province stabilise their lives by providing them plant and animal varieties and free healthcare. Meanwhile, the Sekong side supported Vietnam in searching for and repatriating hundreds of remains of Vietnamese soldiers who died in Laos.

The two provinces agreed to strengthen border management and cooperation in combating border crimes and trade frauds, while taking measures to raise public awareness of border laws and regulations.

They also pledged to enhance border trade cooperation, priotising infrastructure investment to support trade activities and increasing import-export turnover between the two provinces.

Cat Ba to be eco-smart island

Cat Ba island, off the northern port city of Hai Phong, is set to become an eco-smart island and a national tourism site, according to the city’s tourism development plan period 2017-2020.

The city wants investment in a high-end ecotourism resort and entertainment complex, which will include an aquarium, six-star hotels, a golf course system and entertainment zones.

Secretary of Cat Hai district’s Party Committee Bui Trung Nghia said that all internal combustion engine vehicles will be phased out on the island to prevent air pollution. Cable cars and electric vehicles will be used to transport tourists.

Hai Phong is working with investors on measures to provide free transportation for locals, he added.

As part of the plan, the city has called businesses like Sun Group to invest in an cargo port, tourism wharf, cable car station and logistics site.

Southeast Asia’s longest cross-sea bridge, Tan Vu-Lach Huyen, is expected to form a complete transport network by the end of this year, facilitating travel to Cat Ba Island. The 5.4 kilometre bridge connects areas in the east of Hai Phong with Lach Huyen International Port in the island district of Cat Hai and the Hanoi-Hai Phong Expressway.

In the past seven months, the island welcomed more than 1.4 million visitors and earned 775.9 billion VND (34 million USD) from tourism services, up 10.3 percent and 10 percent, respectively, from the same period last year.

Located east of Hai Phong and 150 kilometres from Hanoi, Cat Ba consists of 366 large and small islands, beaches and limestone mountains. In 2004, Cat Ba island was recognised by the UNESCO as a World Biosphere Reserve.

Central Highlands strives to improve school facilities

Central Highlands provinces have invested heavily in repairing and building thousands of classrooms and purchasing teaching aids for the new school year, according to the region’s Steering Committee.

The provinces have prioritised improving school facilities from kindergartens to high schools in remote and border areas and where ethnic minority people live. 

The Central Highlands province of Dak Lak, which has the largest student enrollment, has invested more than 100 billion VND (4.4 million USD) annually in building new and upgrading more than 500 classrooms and equipping them with new equipment. 

The province has more than 1,000 schools at all levels with concrete buildings instead of bamboo, thatched-roof structures. All of its communes have at least one primary school.

Apart from local government budgets, the provinces also raised dozens of billions of VND from the private sector for the construction of new schools and classrooms for students in far-flung areas and from disadvantaged ethnic minority groups.

Thanks to such efforts, the region's school facilities have been much improved and the number of teachers has been increased to enhance the local learning and teaching conditions.

The average number of students per class fell from 33.9 in 2001 to 25 in 2016, with the figure at secondary schools falling from 43 to 30.2 in the period.

The region is currently home to 3,351 schools at all levels, 67 more than last school year, including more than 1,000 meeting national standards.

Millions wasted on poverty-reduction projects

Despite significant funding to support poor people in Quang Ngai Province, most projects have proved to be ineffective and ill-thought-out.
  
Statistics from Quang Ngai Province show that the number of poor and near-poor households account for 22.4% of the total population. 42% of the poor households are in the mountainous areas. Most of them are ethnic minority people.

The state gave over VND6.7trn (USD294m) to Quang Ngai from 2011 to 2015 and nearly VND1trn from 2015 until now. Over VND10bn have been sent to Son Lien Commune in the past years to help locals buy seeds and livestock to fight poverty. However, most of the projects have been ineffective.

The locals were given 22 Zebu cattle that cost VND786m (USD34,500). After two years, two cattle died and the rest get ill because of the weather and lack of food. In 2016, 40 goats that cost VND190m (USD8,300) were given to the people in Son Mua Commune. But not long after, they get sick and died. Only three goats are still alive.

Moreover, hundreds of clean water supply equipment broke just after a short time being put into use.

Quang Ngai Vice Chairman Pham Truong Tho also said it was such a waste when only a handful of projects work. The main cause of the problem is lax management from local authorities who didn't gather public opinions about the projects, he said.

In some cases, the local authorities allocated trees and livestock that are not suitable for the areas. Quang Ngai provincial authorities have ordered to revise all projects.

According to Tay Tra District Vice Chairman Hoang Nhu Lam, another reason is the lack of knowledge about business.

"They won't remember the instructions. They need to be guided step by step. Without the knowledge and ability to do business, they will remain poor even if we pour in tens, hundreds of billions of VND into poverty projects," he said.

For 2016-2020 period, Quang Ngai Province aims to achieve an annual poverty reduction rate of 1.5-2%. A total of VND10.70trn (USD470m) will be spent on poverty projects, of which VND10.18trn are from the state budget, VND381bn from the local budget and VND140bn from other sources.

Forum promotes smart agriculture in response to climate change

Smart agricultural models adaptive to climate change are being introduced at a conference held in the Mekong Delta province of Bac Lieu on July 26-28.

The event is attended by representatives from sub-projects of the Global Environment Fund (GEF) in 15 provinces and cities, as well as from agencies, departments and localities in the Mekong Delta region.

Participants have shared orientations in implementing public initiatives on biodiversity protection and smart agriculture as well as experience in mobilising resources for developing relevant projects in localities.

Challenges to sub-projects and measures to duplicate initiatives to develop agriculture sustainably are also on the table.

According to the GEF, in the context of complex development of climate change in the Mekong Delta region, the forum creates opportunities for scientists, managers and programme developers to discuss and find out solutions to bottlenecks in applying advanced techniques in protecting the environment as well as promoting production linkages and farm produce consumption.

Vietnam’s outstanding academic performance at odds with its innovation

The growing number of achievements claimed by Vietnamese students at international science competitions is doing little to boost the country’s limited scientific progress.

Vietnam erupted in celebration last week when its student competitors at international Olympiads in math and physics posted their highest scores in history, outperforming the country’s previous records at both competitions and bagging several gold medals in the process.

At the 49th International Chemistry Olympiad in Thailand earlier this month, Team Vietnam tied China for second place, taking home three golds and one silver, the best Vietnamese performance in the competition since the country’s first appearance in 1996.

Over the past three years, Vietnam has consistently ranked among the top performers at these three major science Olympiads, claiming a total of 44 medals, half of which have been gold.

However, Vietnam’s scientific achievements in competition are proving to be a poor indicator of actual scientific advancement within the Southeast Asian country.

According to Prof. Dr. Le Tuan Hoa, director of the Vietnamese Institute of Mathematics, a country’s performance at international student competitions should not be taken too seriously, as living under the illusion that success in competition leads to success in reality can put unnecessary pressure on students.

“Winning international prizes proves that these students are smart and capable, but it doesn’t mean that their entire lives will revolve around the subjects in which they’ve won,” Hoa said.

 “It’s perfectly normal for medal-winning students in math and physics, for example, to pursue higher education in law, economics, or medicine.”

The math professor also dismissed the suggestion that high rankings at international competitions are an accurate measure of a country’s actual potential in a respective field of science, calling it a delusion.

“Equating competition results with advancements in actual science is a horrendous mistake, since the two have nothing to do with each other,” Hoa stressed.

Meanwhile, Prof. Ngo Bao Chau emphasized the importance of improving teaching standards in universities across Vietnam if the country actually seeks progress in fundamental research.

“Most [Vietnamese] students who have claimed prizes at international contests have opted to pursue a research career in their respective fields of fundamental science, often with success owed to their innate talent and passion,” Chau said. “The problem is that most Vietnamese with talent in basic science have achieved success abroad. They have furthered their study in a foreign country, and decided to stay for work and research.”

Chau is no stranger to that situation. In his junior and senior high school years, the Hanoi-born professor participated in the 29th and 30th International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) and became the first Vietnamese student to win two IMO gold medals.

He later pursued higher education in France where he earned his PhD and French citizenship, making him a dual-citizen of the European country and Vietnam.

In 2010, Chau became the first Vietnamese national to receive the Fields Medal, a prize awarded by the International Mathematical Union to distinguished mathematicians under 40 years old, and viewed as the equivalent of the Nobel Prize for mathematics.

“[Their decision to stay abroad] is understandable, as there’s still too big a gap in working conditions between researchers in Vietnam and researchers in foreign countries,” Chau explained. “Maybe that’s why we have an abundance of human resources but still find ourselves struggling to find innovators capable of moving the country’s fundamental research forward.”

According to Prof. Chau, Vietnam has yet to make any significant scientific contributions to the global discourse.

“There’s even an opinion that our [approach to] fundamental science hasn’t changed for the past 10-15 years,” Chau said.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Phan Bao Ngoc from the Vietnam National University – Ho Chi Minh City asserted that inadequate remuneration policies for fundamental researchers have been a pivotal factor in the country’s brain drain.

“There’s only a handful of talented students each year, but if they follow a career in fundamental research in Vietnam, their monthly income will only hover around VND10-15 million [US$440-660], about the same as an Uber or Grab driver,” Ngoc pointed out. “That’s nowhere near attractive enough for them to stay.”

Even Hoang Huu Quoc Huy, a Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province student who posted the highest individual score at the 2017 International Mathematical Olympiads in Brazil, has revealed his intention to pursue education abroad.

“I plan to study computer science at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Science,” Huy said. “During my time there, I can gather enough knowledge and experience to apply to a foreign institution. In the future, I see myself working in applied mathematics, for that has always been my passion.”

“That was the plan whether or not I was successful at the IMO,” Huy said. “My vision has always been to enroll in a university in Vietnam and eventually seek opportunities to go abroad.”

Remains of 106 soldiers repatriated from Cambodia

The remains of 106 soldiers killed in Cambodia during the past war with the US have been returned to Vietnam and interred at a national cemetery in the southern Vietnam Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap.

The repatriation ceremony held today, July 27, was attended by thousands of distinguished guests from throughout Vietnam and Cambodia along with family members, friends and relatives of the fallen heroes, among others.

Notable guests at the event included representatives from Military Zone 9, the National Steering Committee 1237, the Dong Thap Province People’s Committee and Team 91 K of Dong Thap Province.

Speaking at the ceremony, Doan Tan Buu, vice chair of provincial people’s committee, said the remains were discovered in the Cambodian provinces of Prey Veng and Pursat where they killed by bomb blasts during US military air campaigns.

He thanked Team 91 K members and the 1237 Steering Committee for their exhaustive multi-year effort to search for, identify and return the remains of the soldiers so they could properly be laid to their final resting place in their homeland.

Bridge over historical river opened for use

A bridge across the Thạch Hãn River in the central province of Quảng Trị was opened for public use on Wednesday.

The nine-span Thành Cổ Bridge is 311m long and 15m wide, with reinforced abutments placed on a bored pile foundation.

It is part of a 5.9km bypass of National Route 1 that passes through Quảng Trị Province, costing VNĐ680 billion (US$29.9 million) to build, which was also opened for public use on Wednesday.

The bypass starts from the Lê Lợi-National Route 1A junction in the province’s Triệu Phong District and ends at the Long Hưng-National Route 1 junction in Hải Lăng District.
The bridge and the bypass connect Quảng Trị and Ái Tử towns in Triệu Phong District, two administrative and economic centres of the province, and also connect other localities with the province’s Đông Hà City.

Speaking at the Thành Cổ Bridge launch ceremony on Wednesday, Nguyễn Đức Chính, chairman of Quảng Trị People’s Committee, said the bridge has significant meaning since it crosses the Thạch Hãn River where thousands of soldiers died during the war, the Dân Trí online newspaper reported.

“The bridge will facilitate travel and visits of residents to the national historic site of Quảng Trị Citadel,” he said.

“It is also part of an important traffic infrastructure that will help with socio-economic development of the province and localities, as well as ease traffic congestion on National Route 1A,” he added.

The bridge was launched on the occasion of the 70th War Invalids and Martyrs Day, which is on July 27.

Remains of Vietnamese volunteer soldiers buried at home

A memorial and reburial service for 106 volunteer soldiers, who fell down in Cambodia during wartime, took place at the martyrs’ cemetery in Tam Nong district, the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap, on July 27.

The remains were unearthed in the Cambodian provinces of Prey Veng and Pursat by the K91 search team under the Dong Thap military command. 

Speaking at the ceremony, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Doan Tan Buu stressed the martyrs’ contributions to the nation’s independence and peace will be always remembered.

Regional summit to battle synthetic drug trade begins in Hanoi 
An international conference where law enforcement, pharmaceutical companies and industry experts join together to tackle the severe problem of illegal drug manufacturing began in Hanoi today.
The two day conference will focus on law enforcement strategies to stop the manufacture of deadly amphetamines such as methylamphetamine and MDMA, commonly referred to as ice and ecstasy, respectively.
In recent years in Vietnam there has been a substantial increase in the use of synthetic drugs such as MDMA. Methylamphetamine continues to be a problem, Colonel Hoang Anh Tuyen from the Ministry of Public Security said.
The hope is that this summit will enhance our offensive on the drug trade both here in Vietnam and throughout Asia. With industry and law enforcement working with each other, we can tighten controls on precursor chemicals which makes it harder for criminals to trade in these illicit substances.
The conference brings together agencies committed to preventing the diversion of precursor chemicals into the illegal manufacture of amphetamines.
This involves a range of groups from law enforcement agencies who investigate and prosecute those who produce and sell the drugs, to the laboratories who make the drugs, the companies who make the glassware necessary in the illegal ‘cooking’ process, to the pharmacists who sell over-the-counter pseudoephedrine products.
All these groups throughout Vietnam and Asia need to work together in order to be one step ahead of the criminal networks that manufacture and sell these deadly drugs, noted Colonel Tuyen. 
Jeremy Douglas, regional representative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime for Southeast Asia and Pacific, introduced some proposed legislation to prevent pseudoephedrine products being accessible to the public other than by prescription.
It included a centralized pharmacy database system that would provide pharmacists with an enhanced ability to identify suspicious requests for pseudoephedrine-containing medications.
The legislation aims to put an end to the criminal practice of ‘pseudo running’.
Pseudo running involves criminals obtaining the pseudoephedrine products from pharmacies using fake identities, usually along planned routes throughout the entire Asian region.
Ideally, if all pharmacies could be registered and a collective database properly implemented and utilized, that would help we in law enforcement prevent diversion of products for illicit purposes.
Better legislation is also needed to address the increasing patterns of freight theft of precursor chemicals around the globe, Mr Douglas added.
The drug policies currently in place in Vietnam and Asian aren't working, so we need a fresh look by delegates at this summit to look at best alternative strategies to minimize the harm that the illegal drugs such as ice and ecstasy cause to society.

Gang of smugglers to be prosecuted

HCM City Police have decided to prosecute two people for smuggling electronic devices of different kinds from Japan into Việt Nam.
The two accused persons are 40-year-old Trần Quốc Vượng from the city’s District 10 and 41-year-old Vũ Văn Dũng from Bình Thạnh District.
According to the police investigation, thanks to his relationship with a number of businessmen in Japan, Vượng, the ring leader, bought several pieces of used machinery and equipment which was manufactured before 2000. Vượng then authorised Dũng to use legal entities of many companies set up by Dũng to complete import procedures and deliver the equipment to Vượng’s warehouses.
Dũng also instructed staff under his leadership to forge dossiers for import declaration of machinery and equipment that were actually not the imported goods.
Using the same tactic, Vượng and Dũng succeeded in smuggling hundred containers of used machinery and equipment that are subject to be banned for import into Việt Nam for consumption.
While searching Dũng’s warehouses, police discovered and seized tonnes of used machinery and equipment smuggled from Japan. Other documents and items related to the crime were also seized by the police.
An investigation into the case is underway.
The case was uncovered recently when the city police launched a campaign against smuggling and trade fraud under the instruction of the Ministry of Public Security and HCM City’s Steering Committee on Combating Smuggling, Trade Fraud and Counterfeit Goods (Steering Committee 389).

Mekong Delta city strives to complete rural building by 2020

Hanoi fights to control dengue infections, National Day of Vietnam takes place at Expo 2017 in Kazakhstan, Mekong Delta city strives to complete rural building by 2020, Bird flu outbreak found at a Vietnamese farm

The Mekong Delta city of Can Tho aims to complete building new-style rural areas by 2020, according to Deputy Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Anh Thuy.
By the end of June this year, 20 of the city’s 36 communes and one of its nine districts (Phong Dien district) met national standards in the field. 
Educationally, Can Tho recognised eight more schools at national standards in the first half of 2016, raising the total number to 119 out of 189.
In 2018, it hopes to have more six communes become new-style rural areas.
At a meeting with municipal authorities on August 29, Deputy Minister of Education and Training Pham Manh Hung, who led a delegation from the Central Steering Committee of the national target programme on building new rural areas, lauded the city’s efforts in the field.
He reminded the locality to focus on reforming and promulgating policies and mechanisms to support people in rural development, especially appealing for investment in areas like the economy, healthcare, sports and education.
The national target programme on building new-style rural areas, initiated by the Government in 2010, sets 19 criteria for socio-economic development, politics, and defence, aiming to modernise rural areas.
The criteria covers the development of infrastructure, the improvement of production capacities, environmental protection, and the promotion of cultural values.