Mekong Delta needs coping measures for land subsidence

The Mekong Delta has sunk 2-4 cm a year, with low-lying coastal areas facing the most severe subsidence, said Piet Hoekstra of Holland’s Utrecht University at a seminar on Tuesday on challenges and solutions for subsidence in the delta.

Land subsidence in the delta, the country’s key rice farming area, is predicted to worsen and scientists pointed the finger at the overexploitation of groundwater. Other causes include the compression of thick layers of sediment, the impact of natural conditions, the development of infrastructure such as roads and high-rise buildings and the breakup of tectonic process.

Speaking to the Daily on the sidelines of the seminar in Can Tho City, Ky Quang Vinh, head of Can Tho Climate Change Office, said groundwater resources had been almost exhausted.

At the seminar, scientists said fast urbanization and the conversion of arable land into residential and industrial land for socio-economic development would bring huge challenges for the area in the future.

The first challenge is the demand of water for household use and production will increase, resulting in massive withdrawals of groundwater, they warned. The overexploitation of groundwater would lead to more critical seawater intrusion, flooding, arable land loss and negative impacts on infrastructure.

Tran Van Thanh, director of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Soc Trang Province, said, “Groundwater levels in Soc Trang City, My Xuyen District and Vinh Chau City have steadily decreased.”

Ky Quang Vinh of Can Tho Climate Change Office said Japan had prohibited groundwater from being pumped, so Vietnam should learn this lesson to ward off land subsidence as it takes a long time for groundwater to replenish.

Japan has banned groundwater exploitation since 1985 but it was not until 2000 that groundwater  stopped falling, he said.

According to Vinh, Can Tho City has banned groundwater exploitation but land subsidence cannot be solved by the city alone as other provinces in the Mekong Delta still allow groundwater use.

Gilles Erkens from Holland’s Deltares Research Institute said the exploitation of groundwater for industrial production had caused the Chinese city of Shanghai to subside. Therefore, Shanghai decided in 1963 to restrict groundwater use. “Since then, land subsidence there has decreased year after year and groundwater has gradually replenished,” said Erkens.

Over 120 films and projects to join Golden Kite award

An award ceremony for the Golden Kite 2016 award, organized by the Vietnam Cinema Association, will take place on April 9 at the Military Theater in HCMC.

Dang Xuan Hai, chairman of the Vietnam Cinema Association, said so far the organizer has received 118 movies and five research projects participating in this year’s award. There are 18 feature movies and other TV dramas, cartoons, documentaries and short films.

Winning works are expected to show great creativity, unique cultural features and great social impacts. There will be golden and silver kite awards and certificates of merit for outstanding movies and critics and researches in each category. Moreover, the organizers will grant a golden kite award for a movie with the producer or co-producer from Vietnam.

For the short film category, young movie makers will receive gold, silver and bronze awards for their best works. The organizers will run free screening sessions at five locations, including Cinebox, Cinestar Quoc Thanh, CGV Thao Dien, BHD, and Cinema Research and Archive Center from April 3 to 7 and a free screening program of Korean movies from April 8 to 10 at Cinebox in HCMC.

Charity golf tournament for kids 2017 ready to tee off

The Vietnam Investment Review has launched the annual charity golf tournament Swing for the Kids 2017 to raise funds for underprivileged students with excellent academic records.

The event, the 11th of its kind, will be held at Dong Mo Resort in Son Tay, Hanoi on April 22. It is sponsored by a number of big names, such as BRG Group, SeABank, VinGroup, and Samsung.

The tournament will attract about 150 golfers who have to pay 2.5 million VND (about 110 USD) in entry fee per person. The collected money will be all donated to charity.

The organisers expect to raise more than 1.3 billion VND (57,000 USD) this year.

During the press conference to announce the event on March 23, two students, Le Van Tu from the Hanoi National University of Education and Thao Seo Si from the Thai Nguyen University of Agriculture and Forestry, were granted full scholarships of 10 million VND (438.7 USD) each for the four straight year.

Downtown HCM City set to become pedestrian zone

A proposal has been submitted to transform many streets in downtown Ho Chi Minh City into footpaths, with all personal vehicles banned from entering the area.

The municipal Department of Transport has tasked the Urban Traffic Management Unit No.1 with developing a project that will establish a 221-hectare pedestrian area in the city’s center.

The detailed plan to prohibit personal vehicles from a 7.35 kilometer diameter area covering sections of Le Duan, Nam Ky Khoi Nghia, Pasteur, Hai Ba Trung, Mac Dinh Chi, Nguyen Binh Khiem, Dong Khoi, Nguyen Hue, Nguyen Du, Ly Tu Trong, Le Loi, and others is set to be submitted to the municipal People’s Committee for approval prior to April 30.

The proposed area currently houses many cultural and service buildings, namely the municipal administration’s headquarters, the Reunification Palace, Ben Thanh Market, the Municipal Theater, Tao Dan Park, the Saigon Zoo, universities, and hotels.

To help commuters and tourists affected by the change, parking lots will be set up along the perimeter of the zone and public transportation such as electric buses and monorails will also be provided within the area.

A similar plan was previously laid out by the municipal People’s Committee in 2012, proposing a walking area of about 930 hectares, including four main sections, in the downtown area.

However, the scheme was never executed.

According to Tran Quang Lam, deputy director of the municipal transport department, the recent sidewalk clearing campaign has created favorable conditions to carry out the plan.

Local officials have been aggressively removing obstructions on city sidewalks in a drive approved by the top leaders over the last two months.

Lam elaborated that the initiative will be piloted on streets with higher viability such as Dong Khoi, Le Duan, Le Loi, and Nguyen Hue – already a pedestrian street.

It will then be expanded to other streets in the area according to a specific schedule.

During the first phase, such routes will only be used as walking streets on weekends and holidays, the official said, adding that they will eventually be transformed into full-time pedestrian roads.

Competent authorities are also considering the project’s impact on local residents and the socio-economic status of the area.

Many entrepreneurs and small business owners in the area have openly expressed their support for the proposition.

The establishment of the pedestrian zone will indeed pose a challenge for people who often travel by motorbike or car, Do Hong Ngoc, owner of an eatery on Do Quang Dau Street, said, adding that that he believes it will attract more local and foreign visitors to the area, thus benefiting local businesses.

Ngoc said she is willing to park her bike outside of the pedestrian zone despite living and working in the area.

Chu Khac Hieu, owner of a handbag shop on De Tham Street, also agreed to the idea, provided that sufficient parking and public transport are offered to residents.

Meanwhile, others living and working in the affected neighborhoods are still unsure of how they will travel without their personal vehicles.

Many worry that parking space will be too limited and potential traffic jams will occur along the boundary of the zone.

Electric buses and monorails should be designed to reach many destinations in the vast pedestrian areas, others suggested.

Japan-made bio-toilets confuse Vietnamese train operators

A foul smell coming from Japanese-made bio-toilets installed on Vietnamese trains was the result of improper maintenance, not faulty design, according to the provider.

Complaints of a foul smell being emitted from Japanese toilets using a water-free method of treating human waste have been made by passengers and train attendants since their installation in 2013, according to Phan Huy Giang, vice president of Hanoi Rail Company.

The toilets were installed in October 2013 as part of a pilot project by Vietnam Railways to install waste treatment systems on Vietnamese trains rather than directly dumping the waste into the environment.

The VND200 billion (US$8.93 million) project involved installing both domestically produced and imported waste treatment systems from Japan and the US on 823 train carriages.

The government funded half of the project’s costs.

At the time the project was launched, only 10% of all carriages on Vietnamese trains were equipped with waste treatment systems and public transport was dumping as much as 3,800 metric tons of human excrement onto the rails each year.

According to Giang, most of the treatment systems used in the project are provided by Ho Chi Minh City-based Petech Engineering Corporation, while the Japanese toilets, provided by Chodai Co. Ltd, are only installed on around 80 carriages.

Giang blamed the toilets’ dry-treating method for its foul smell, as human waste is stored inside an on-train tank for significant time before being removed for further treatment.

According to Chodai Vietnam, the toilets were field-tested for 13 months between 2013 and 2014 before the company was allowed to provide 199 sets at a cost of around VND110 million (US$4,900) each.

Chodai has also held training workshops for 300 Vietnam Railways officials and technicians on the installation and maintenance of the toilets.

In response to recent complaints, a Chodai representative said improper usage and maintenance were likely behind the foul smell.

In a bio-toilet treatment system, the representative said, excreta is mixed with sawdust and other bioproducts inside a heated tank.

The heat turns any remaining water in the mixture into vapor, which is then released through an exhaust fan.

The bioproducts are replaced every six months, and can be used as organic compost in agriculture, the representative said.

“With this dry-treating method, any water used in cleaning the toilets could potentially kill the aerobic microorganisms needed to decompose the waste,” he explained. “Littering into the toilet would also cause the treatment tank to malfunction and damage the heater.”

The representative suggested that the use of water for cleansing by train passengers and janitors might have caused water to build up inside the treatment tank, resulting in the foul smell.

“We have emphasized the importance of the human factor in maintaining the toilets in all of our training workshops,” he said.

Hanoi food festival welcomes celebrity chef Jack Lee

The Royal City Mall in Hanoi will host a food festival, April 7-9, providing visitors the opportunity to sample international foods, enjoy cooking demonstrations and meet nationally recognized chef Jack Lee.

The festivities planned for the event include food and wine tastings from hundreds of brands of more than 200 participating vendors from Vietnam, the US, Italy, France, Spain, Russia, China and Japan.

The event will also feature singers Noo Phuoc Thinh, Dong Nhi, Son Tung M-TP, Nhat Thuy and Trong Hieu performing many of their latest hit songs. The cost of tickets are US$13 without and US$22 with food and drink included in the purchase price. 

Toxic waste gushing into Vietnam's rivers and lakes - report

A new environment report paints a very bleak picture of Vietnam’s wastewater treatment, saying it only manages to treat a small percentage of the daily discharge from the country's industrial zones.

Figures from the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources showed that more than 600 industrial zones across the country release more than three million cubic meters of wastewater every day, but 70% of it goes untreated, Tien Phong (Vanguard) newspaper reported.

That means more than two million cubic meters of sewage, equivalent to the capacity of 800 Olympic swimming pools, goes straight into rivers and lakes every day.

Medical sewage is also a problem. Hospitals and medical centers across the country reportedly discharge 150,000 cubic meters of sewage a day. Around half of the hospitals do not have waste treatment facilities, said the ministry.

The new figures were released ahead of World Water Day, which this year fell on Wednesday. The U.N. has chosen “Wastewater” as the theme for this year, as it calls for a reduction in wastewater and more water recycling to achieve the global goal of giving everyone access to safe water by 2030.

The environment ministry reported 50 major cases of illegal discharges of toxic waste in 2016, including the infamous Formosa spill which was dubbed Vietnam's biggest ever environmental disaster. Foreign companies accounted for 60% of the polluters, and VND132 billion (US$5.8 million) in fines were handed out.

Dak Nong: Rice delivered to over 8,500 needy students

More than 8,500 disadvantaged students in the Central Highlands province of Dak Nong will receive over 500 tonnes of rice in the second academic semester this year as decided by the provincial People’s Committee.

Rice will be allocated to all seven districts and one town of the province for their students. Dak G’Long district will receive the largest amount with 176 tonnes of rice, followed by Tuy Duc district with over 118 tonnes.

Under the decision, each student will be supported with 15 kilogrammes of rice per month for four months.

The provincial People’s Committee asked local Department of Education and Training to join hands with the General Department of State Reserves for the southern Central Highlands region to supervise the rice quality before distribution.

Quảng Ninh harbours pockets of extreme poverty

The northern province of Quảng Ninh, with its world-famous tourism destinations like Hạ Long Bay, has recorded significant economic progress in recent decades, but pockets of extreme poverty remain.

Despite several investment and other support programmes being implemented in the mountainous commune of Đồng Văn in Bình Liêu District, the residents are still very poor.

The commune has nine villages, eight of which are in dire difficulties. In many places, there are no roads and residents are completely isolated when rains inundate the area.

The poorest locality in the area, Phạt Chỉ Village, is located about 37km away from Bình Liêu Township. There are 31 households living here, all of them belonging to the Dao ethnic minority community. Of these, 25 are poor and six are near-poor households, said Lý Văn Bình, Chairman of Đồng Văn Commune.

The families eke out a living on scarce forest resources.

Like many others in the village, Tằng Dảu Lềnh lives with his family’s other six members in a 40sq.m house. They have 2,400sq.m of rice and maize fields, two pigs and some chicken.

Every day, Lềnh goes to the forest to pick bamboo shoots, catch honeycombs or frogs, and sometimes, he works as a hired labourer, cutting down trees.

For all the hard work he does, the highest income he can earn is VNĐ300,000 (US$13) a day. The average daily income is about VNĐ100,000-150,000. Then there are days he cannot earn any money.

His wife often goes to work illegally in China, and returns after a few days or even months.

According to the Bình Liêu Distrit People’s Committee, they had 2,449 poor households and 1,229 near-poor households in 2016.

In Đồng Văn and Húc Động communes, poor households accounted for 50 per cent, with the percentage as high as 90 per cent in some villages.

Bình said a lack of capital and land for production were the main reasons behind the high rate of poverty.

In the mountainous commune of Đồng Văn, 538 of 658 households are poor, and 135 are near-poor.

Scattered population density has affected infrastructure development of the region, Bình said, noting that several households do not have electricity in their homes.

Productivity in breeding livestock and in farming has remained low because of difficulties in applying modern technology, Bình added.

The programme to reduce poverty and build new-style rural areas in Bình Liêu District has not been as effective as hoped, he said.

Hoàng Ngọc Ngò, deputy chairman of the district’s People’s Committee and head of the Steering Committee for Poverty Reduction also affirmed that several programmes implemented in the district in general and in Đồng Văn commune in particular have not borne the desired fruit.

The most pressing issue was how to promote production, change local people’s awareness on poverty reduction efforts, vocational training and job creation, he said.

For many years, the main source of income for local residents has been anise and cinnamon, which is cultivated over 2,000 hectares, one-third of the commune’s natural land area, the Nông Thôn Ngày Nay (Countryside Today) newspaper reported recently.

However, the yield of these plants and trees has constantly fallen over the past five years and no one knows why, the report said.

It noted that very few enterprises have invested in agriculture in the area. Just one co-operative has taken up cold-water fish farming and another does small-scale planting and processing of radish, the newspaper reported.

Earlier this year, Bình Liêu District launched its sustainable poverty reduction programme for the 2017-2020 period. Đồng Văn Commune is waiting approval from authorised agencies for its plan to bring poor villages out of the extreme difficulties and fulfill the objectives of National Programme 135, which focuses on poverty reduction.

Under the plan, eight villages in the commune will escape extreme poverty by the end of 2019.

Vingroup organises free cancer screening, treatment for poor

The Fund for Cancer Patients - Bright Future, National Cancer Hospital, Vinmec International Hospital and Vingroup’s Thiện Tâm Fund will provide early cancer screening and treatment for poor patients.

The move is part of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the four organisations on Wednesday in Hà Nội.

Speaking at the event, Bright Future Fund Chairwoman Nguyễn Thị Xuyên said that the meaningful programme will provide poor patients access to high-tech medical technologies as well as promote the community’s knowledge on cancer prevention.

Under the framework of the agreement, the four sides will promote their abilities and professional facilities and human resources to support cancer patients’ access to advanced technologies of cancer treatment as well as to promote community’s awareness on cancer prevention.

Thiện Tâm fund will donate VNĐ10 billion (US$440,000) to the Bright Future Fund for early cancer screening and detection activities during 2017 and 2018. The National Cancer Hospital and the Bright Future Fund will select 300 cancer patients and 130 others who require tissue transplants for treatment at Vinmec Hospital.

Needy patients with liver, lung, breast and those needing liver transplants will be supported partly or wholly with regard to treatment expenses by the Thiện Tâm Fund.

“Vingroup will spend VNĐ1.5 trillion through the Thiện Tâm Fund to provide treatment for patients with cancer, brain failure and other fatal diseases at Vinmec International Hospital in 2017,” said Vingroup Deputy President Lê Khắc Hiệp at the signing ceremony.

“I believe that lives of many needy patients will be saved with collaboration of the health ministry, Bright Future Fund, National Cancer Hospital and Vinmec International Hospital,” Hiệp said.

According to statistics of the World Health Organisation, Việt Nam reported 115,000 people who died from cancer annually, equivalent to 315 daily. The number of new cancer cases has increased from 68,000 in 2000 to 126,000 in 2010 and is predicted to exceed 190,000 by 2020.

Audi to serve APEC 2017 in Viet Nam     

The first batch of 131 Audi cars will reach the Vietnamese port this month to serve the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) 2017, which takes place in Viet Nam in November.

The batch is part a contract signed between Auto Asia Company Ltd, an official supplier of Audi in Viet Nam, which is the auto sponsor for the event, and APEC 2017 Materials and Logistics Sub-committee.

Under the contract, the Auto Asia Company will sponsor 317 black Audi units, including Audi A4, Audi A5, Audi A6, Audi Q5 and Audi Q7.

According to the company’s proposals, the company will not have to pay various taxes, including import, special consumption and value added taxes, for the imported vehicles serving the event until it ends.

After APEC 2017, the used vehicles will be devalued in comparison with new cars, so that the company proposed to cut 15 per cent of costs, insurance and freight (CIF), which is a base to levy import, special consumption and value added taxes.

In December 2016, Mercedes-Benz Viet Nam reached an agreement to supply 25 Mercedes S 400 L units to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as part of an overhaul of the cars of the Directorate of State Protocol. The handover will be completed in August and the vehicles will also be used to serve APEC 2017.

APEC 2017 is expected to receive State leaders of 21 member economies from the Asia-Pacific region, 2,000 ministers and high-ranking officials, 3,000 journalists and reporters and 5,000 businesses. 

Swing for the Kids 2017 set for launching

Annual charity golf tournament Swing for the Kids is ready for its 11th year.

This morning, a press conference announcing the start of Swing for the Kids 2017, which seeks to raise funds for underprivileged pupils and students with excellent academic records, took place at Vietnam Investment Review head office in Hanoi. 

Scheduled for Saturday, April 22, 2017, the 11th Swing for the Kids tournament will be held at King’s Island Golf Course in Son Tay District, about 36 kilometres from the centre of Hanoi. 

The shotgun start will begin at 12am. The event is expected to attract about 150 golfers. The awards ceremony will he held on the same day on 6pm at the Kings’ Island Golf Club.

In the opening speech, VIR editor-in-chief Le Trong Minh expressed gratitude to all sponsors.

“Like in the previous 10 years, since the first tee-off in 2007, Swing for the Kids 2017 continues to be a sport event drawing active support from kind hearts across the country and promising successive successes along the course of raising more and more scholarships, thus enabling underprivileged pupils and students to overcome adversity and reach further good marks in study,” he said.

At the press conference, two poor but excellent fourth-year students, Le Van Tu from Hanoi Pedagogical University and Thao Seo Si from Thai Nguyen University of Agriculture and Forestry, were given full scholarships of VND10 million ($463) each. 

“In the past four years, the scholarship serves as a source of aspiration helping me to overcome difficulties and achieve good academic results. By virtue of this valued support, I have a chance to realise the dream of becoming a teacher after graduation and teach right in my home province,” said Le Van Tu, who comes from the north-central province of Nghe An.

This year, Samsung Electronics Vietnam remains the Diamond Sponsor, Vingroup JSC the Platinium Sponsor while KinderWorld and Coca Cola Vietnam the Gold Sponsors. 

BRG Group and SeABank participate as the tournament’s co-organisers in tandem with VIR and the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s Foreign Investment Agency.

The Swing for the Kids is also joined by diverse media sponsors such as VTV, Dan Tri, Vietnam Economic Times, Golf Vietnam Magazine, VOVnews, among others.

 Kicked-off in June 2007, Swing for the Kids has thus far given over 13,500 scholarships worth VND11.8 billion ($536,300) to poor but excellent pupils and students while also helping upgrade numerous training and education facilities in 40 cities and provinces nationwide.

MoH releases mothers' health guidelines

The Ministry of Health has announced the launch of “National Guidelines on Nutrition for Pregnant Women and Lactating Mothers”, aimed at enhancing the health of women of reproductive age and the stature of Vietnamese people.

The ministry developed the guidelines in order to provide nutritional information and knowledge to doctors, midwives and nurses in taking care of pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers, as well as scientists and teachers teaching obstetrics and gynecology and pediatrics.

The guidelines have been compiled by leading professors and doctors working in the fields of nutrition, obstetrics and gynecology and pediatrics, with technical and financial support from Abbott Laboratories. The ministry will hold workshops to disseminate the guidelines in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang. Training will then be provided for healthcare professionals to improve the nutritional status of pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers.

“The guidelines are one of the practical activities conducted by the ministry to effectively implement the National Strategy on Nutrition for the 2011-2020 Period and Vision to 2030, approved by the Prime Minister,” said Mr. Nguyen Duc Vinh, Director of the ministry’s Maternal and Child Health Department.

“Abbott is honored and proud to be part of this journey through our scientific knowledge and financial support to the National Guidelines on Nutrition for Pregnant Women and Lactating Mothers and the upcoming national program,” said Mr. Douglas Kuo, General Manager of Abbott Vietnam. “These national guidelines will be helpful and play a key role for doctors and healthcare practitioners in consulting and caring for pregnant women, lactating mothers, and infants, and marks a milestone in improving the nutritional state of Vietnamese children in the long term.” As a global healthcare company, Abbott’s mission is to help people all over the world live the best possible life through the power of health.

Vietnam’s nutritional status has improved in recent years and it is recognized internationally as one of the outstanding countries in achieving the Millennium Development Goals relating to maternal and child health, especially in the continuous and sustainable decline of acute and chronic malnutrition among children under five years old. It still faces the double burden of nutrition, however: the number of chronic diseases relating to nutrition has a tendency to increase, such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and metabolic disorder, while many pregnant women and lactating mothers have not been provided with sufficient nutrition information.

Salt price skyrockets while farmers have no salt for selling

The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development in the Mekong delta province of Ben Tre yesterday said that salt price is currently sold at VND45,000 for 45 kg, an increase of VND20-30,000 compared to last year yet many salt farmers in communes Bao Thanh, Bao Thuan, An Thuy have no salt left.

Because of unpredictable weather with unseasonal rain, farmers could not make salt. Last year, farmers in Ba Tri District harvested over 30,000 tons of salt while it is just more than 10,000 tons this year.

Farmer Nguyen Van Minh in Bao Thanh Commune complained continuous rain resulted in making one month late. Additionally, he added, it is not sunny, causing bad crop; farmers had bumper crop last year, and salt price was low.

In Bac Lieu, Tra Vinh, and Soc Trang provinces, salt farmers also have met difficulties due to unseasonal rain. As per the Department of Agriculture and Rural in Bac Lieu Province, it have produced around 1,705 ha of salt, the highest volume in the province but farmers have harvested around 3,000 tons of salt, much lower than previous years. 

Though salt price is sold at VND1,000 per kilogram, farmers have not exhilarated. Because of uncertain income from making salt, many farmers have transferred to seafood breeding.

Vietnam Railways to add more trains on national holidays

Vietnam Railways will add more 32 trains to meet the increasing demand on the occasion of the death anniversary of the Hung Kings’ on the 10th day of the 3rd lunar month (April 6), the national Reunification Day (April 30) and May Day (May 1). 

Accordingly, Saigon Railway Transportation Company will increase more 8 trains, including  SNT3, SNT4, SNT6, SNT7, SNT8, SNT9, SNT10 and SNT11 on Sai Gon – Nha Trang and Nha Trang-Sai Gon routes; and 4 trains, SQN2, SQN3, SQN5 and SQN6 on Sai Gon-Quy Nhon and Quy Nhon- Sai Gon routes.

Hanoi Railways will provide an additional 20 trains to cities and provinces, consisting of TH1/TH2 trains on Hanoi-Thanh Hoa route; NA3/NA4, NA7/NA8, NA9/10, NA11/12 and NA13 trains on Hanoi-Vinh route; QB1/QB2, QB3/QB4 trains between Hanoi and Dong Hoi; SE17/18 trains from Hanoi to Da Nang; SP7/SP8 trains linking Hanoi and Lao Cai; and LP10 train connecting Hanoi and Hai Phong.

Groups of 10 or more persons who have a trip of at least 1,300 km on trains departing from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City will also receive a discount from 6-12 percent, announced by the Vietnam Railways.

Binh Dinh invests over 7 mln USD in new rural area building

The south central province of Binh Dinh will earmark 161 billion VND (over 7 million USD) for localities to accelerate the new-style rural area building programme, said Phan Trong Ho, Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The amount, including 110.1 billion VND (4.8 million USD) from the State budget and 50 billion VND (2.2 million USD) from the provincial budget, will be used together with other mobilised resources to complete all new-style rural area criteria in 2017.

The province targets to have additional 12 communes recognised as new style rural areas in 2017, raising its total number to 50 out of 122 communes, according to Ho.

Dao Van Sang, Chairman of the People’s Committee of Binh Hoa commune, Tay Son district, said the commune aims to complete the goals of the 2016-2020 new style rural area building programme within 2017.

The commune will speed up the building of a communal cultural house in Dong Hoa hamlet, a whole market in Truong Dinh hamlet, and a primary school.

It also provides preferential loans for local needy households, thus helping reduce the poor household rate to below five percent and raise local income per capital to 29 million VND (1,270 USD).

Toyota provides training facilities with technical equipment

Toyota Motor Vietnam (TMV) has provided technology training equipment to five universities and colleges in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City as part of its Technical Education Programme (T-TEP).

A ceremony was held in Hanoi on March 20 to present the equipment to the University of Transportation Technology and Hanoi University of Industry in Hanoi.

Meanwhile, similar events will be held in three others in Ho Chi Minh City to hand over the equipment to three other facilities in Ho Chi Minh City.

The gifts include three used car models of Corolla, Camry and Vios, four Toyota gearboxes, three car bodies and 15 car doors, aiming to improve practical skills of trainees, along with T-TEP standardised manuals.

Do Thu Hoang, Deputy General Director of the firm, said that the T-TEP has been launched since 200 with an aim of supporting technical training in Vietnam by improving the learning and practicing conditions for trainees.

TMV is also willing to give occupational opportunities for the trainees after their graduation, she added.

So far, TMV has introduced the T-TEP to five vocational training centres of five technology universities and colleges across the country, which has benefited 2,400 students, 536 of whom has been accepted to work at TMV system in Vietnam.

Sidewalks publicly ‘owned’ and ‘sold’ by Ho Chi Minh City vendors

Sidewalks in Ho Chi Minh City are still being occupied by business operators, with some openly ‘sold’ between vendors, despite the local authorities’ recent efforts to reclaim the public space.

A recent investigation by Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper revealed that several promenades in the southern hub are now owned and traded between local vendors.

Some ‘territories’ are even protected by gang members, paid to assist sellers in keeping the spaces from being occupied by other competitors, as well as dealing with the authorities’ inspections.

On March 2, Tuoi Tre reporters had parked their motorcycles on the sidewalk in front of the 115 People’s Hospital in District 10 when they were scared away by a young man.

A few minutes later, another man rushed to the journalists and threatened them with a knife.

“This space is not yours. Get out of here!” the man shouted.

Further along the footpath near the entrance to Cho Ray Hospital in District 5, the journalists were given similar warnings by another man.

He said that the pavement was already taken, adding that strangers could not enter the space.

“However, you can buy this location for VND50 million [US$2,205],” he continued.

On March 4, the reporters, under the guise of ‘sidewalk buyers,’ met a woman named V., who agreed to sell her section of the pavement in front of the National Hospital of Odonto-stomatology in District 5 for VND100 million ($4,411).

V. was a drink seller, whose ‘shop’ was basically a part of the sidewalk she claimed to own.

The woman promised to assist her ‘buyers’ in starting their business and dealing with the authorities whenever they inspect the area.

“If we have a deal, the space will be yours for good. You can use it or sell it to someone else,” V. assured them.

Several eateries continue to place their tables and chairs on footpaths despite the local authorities’ directive against such sidewalk encroachment.

At one coffee shop owned by P. on Pham Van Dong Street in Go Vap District, tables and chairs are often placed on the promenade during peak hours.

The owner confirmed that he sometimes had to pay some VND500,000 ($22) to a local officer, who would give him a heads-up before any inspection by local authorities.

An employee of a nearby beer bar claimed that the facility had to make regular payments to officers in order to be able to operate on the public space.

“It is not a bribe,” L., the owner, affirmed. “It’s just learning to adapt. The officers will simply inform me when a patrol takes place.”

Speaking to Tuoi Tre, Vo Minh Tri, chairman of the Go Vap People’s Committee, said that he would verify the reports and sanction those involved.

While many promenades in District 1 are now clear thanks to the measures of the local administration, some have been occupied by parking services.

At the corner of Ton That Hiep and Nguyen Hue Streets, motorbikes are parked in two long rows, taking up most of the public space and forcing pedestrians to walk on the roadway.

Parking costs VND5,000 ($0.22) per motorbike, one employee said, before adding that they were only allowed to place the vehicles in one row.

In front of the Cao Thang Technical College on Huynh Thuc Khang Street, students are charged VND10,000 ($0.44) per motorbike at a makeshift parking space.

Hundreds of vehicles are arranged in two rows on a 100 meter section of the pavement.

According to Nguyen Cong Thanh, vice-principal of the college, the parking lot is not managed by them.

Operators of the parkade said that they had been permitted to run the service, with signatures from the head of the local military command.

However, Senior Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Phong, chief of the District 1 Military Command, said that he had not given any such permission.

Vice-chairman of District 1 Doan Ngoc Hai has tasked local officers with inspecting and dealing with the violations of such parking lots.

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