The Animal Health Department of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has reported a new H5N1 bird flu outbreak in the northern mountainous province of Cao Bang.

The outbreak was detected at two breeding households in Ngoc Xuan ward, Cao Bang city, in which 700 birds died and 2,004 others, including 1,974 ducks and 30 chickens were culled.

Right after the report on the outbreak, the provincial animal husbandry sub-department and local authorities have taken required measures.

The new incident brought the number of A/H5N1 outbreaks in the country to six and the A/H5N6 outbreak to two.

Affected localities include Cao Bang, Can Tho, Vinh Long, Dak Lak, Quang Ninh and Thua Thien-Hue.

The Animal Health Department said there are high risks of bird flu spread and required localities to proactively act and intensify the control of fowl smuggling to promptly detect any outbreaks. 

It warned that though A/H7N9, A/H5N2, A/H5N8 strains are yet to be found, they are likely to enter the country via the transport and trade of smuggled poultry without origin, especially in northern localities.

Oncologists share experience in cancer diagnosis, treatment

Nearly 300 professors, doctors and leading oncologists have gathered in central Da Nang city to take part in a national conference on cancer prevention and control which opened on April 27.

More than 80 studies and reports were presented during the conference, focusing on the treatment methods for breast, liver and lung cancers and reviewing the cancer treatment results at hospitals across the country over the past years.

The two-day conference provided a forum for leading oncologists nationwide to share professional experience as well as scientific advances in early detection of cancers and treatment, said Director of the Da Nang Oncology Hospital Nguyen Ut.

The event also aimed to encourage the research and application of technological advances in improving healthcare services, he added.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), there are about 23 million people living with cancers worldwide. More than 14 million new cancer cases and 8 million cancer-related deaths were reported each year.

In Vietnam, 130,000-160,000 people are diagnosed with cancer and around 85,000-115,000 people die of the diseases each year.

The most common types of cancer in men are lung, liver and stomach cancer while breast, cervix and stomach cancer is the most common among women. The leading causes of cancer are environmental pollution, habit of drinking beer and alcohol and smoking.

Experts believed that the number of people suffering from cancer is likely to double by 2030.-

Quang Nam launches photo contest

The central province of Quang Nam has launched a photo contest to promote the sixth Quang Nam Heritage Festival to be held on June 9-14.

The provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism said the contest is open for all Vietnamese and foreign photographers on topics covering nature, cultural events, architecture, sculpture, crafts, daily life and landscapes of Quang Nam.

Each competitor can send four photo collections with a minimum of eight photos taken between 2015-17.

According to the department, the winner will take home a cash-prize of 15 million VND (664 USD), while two runners-up will pocket 3 million VND (132 USD) each.

Three third-place photographers will get 2 million VND (88 USD) each, and five encouragement prizes of 1million VND (44 USD) each will be awarded.

The award ceremony and contest winner will be announced on June 5.

As scheduled, the province will host 35 cultural events during the sixth Quang Nam Heritage Festival in Hoi An.

The opening ceremony of the festival will take place at Tam Thanh beach in Tam Ky city on June 9, while the closing ceremony will be in Hoi An city on June 14.

The province expects nearly one million visitors to enjoy the festival.

New road crack prompts evacuation in An Giang

A new crack in a road alongside the Ông Chưởng River in An Giang Province prompted local authorities to urgently evacuate four households yesterday.
The two-metre wide crack, running about 200 metres long from the riverside to the road connecting Kiến Thành and Kiến An Communes in Chợ Mới District, triggered fears of landslides.
Chợ Mới authorities decided to ban trucks from passing the area.
“This is the only road linking two communes of more than 18,000 residents, so it will be extremely difficult for the residents should landslides occur,” Chợ Mới People’s Committee Chairman Trương Trung Lập told vnexpress online.

Three-day conference on breast cancer in Hà Nội

Around 115 experts from Việt Nam and France are attending a three-day conference on breast cancer, which began on Wednesday in Hà Nội.

At the conference, the 100 Vietnamese and 15 French experts will share experiences on diagnosis, treatment and surgery for breast cancer. Also, Dr Bosc Romain from Henri Mondor Hospital in France will share a plastic surgery model for patients who have undergone mastectomy.

The conference is an excellent opportunity for local experts to learn from the experiences of their French counterparts, especially with regards to breast cancer prevention and control, Ministry of Health Nguyễn Thị Kim Tiến said. 

The ministry will create favourable conditions for French experts working in Việt Nam as well as for Vietnamese medical workers who wish to study in France, he added.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the conference, Associate Professor Trần Văn Thuấn, director of the National Hospital for Cancer, or K Hospital as it is known, said the number of cancer patients across the world, including Việt Nam, is rising.

In 2000, data revealed that Việt Nam saw 69,000 new cases of cancer every year. That number has now reached 126,000, with 94,000 fatalities every year. It is estimated that Việt Nam will see 190,000 new cases of cancer every year by 2020.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women, Thuấn said. As per the hospital’s latest study, the ratio of breast cancer patients is 28.1 per 100,000 women.

“In recent years, cancer prevention and control in general, and breast cancer prevention and control in particular, in Việt Nam has seen good achievement,” said Thuấn. 

With modern equipment and technology, there’s early diagnosis, and that eases the treatment period, he said. As a result, treatment costs have reduced, and patients are living longer.

Breast cancer is now often being detected at an early stage. The percentage of patients who live more than five years after detection has reached 85.6 per cent; it was only 67.7 per cent in 1990.

Japan-Việt Nam Friendship Association donates bicycles to poor kids

The Japan-Việt Nam Friendship Association of Japan’s Kawasaki City donated more than 210 bicycles to poor students yesterday, the organisation’s annual charitable donation to Việt Nam.    

Usuda Reiko, a member of the association, told Việt Nam News that underprivileged kids in Đà Nẵng’s Cẩm Lệ, Hòa Vang, Ngũ Hành Sơn districts and Quảng Nam Province will benefit from the bicycle donation this year.

She said the association has called Japanese people and more than 12,000 second-hand bicycles have been delivered since 2003.

Đà Nẵng and Hội An boost cultural exchange with Japan annually by hosting the annual Việt Nam-Japan Culture Exchange Festival in August.

Japan plans to open a Consulate General in Đà Nẵng as a way of boosting tourism and exchange between Japan and the central city.

Japanese language teaching has been taught at some junior secondary schools as part of the city’s foreign language teaching programme for 2012-20.

Đà Nẵng also reserved a 1.2ha area for developing the Japan-Việt Nam Culture Centre in Ngũ Hành Sơn District as well as launching direct flights from Đà Nẵng to Osaka.

Hoài wins stage, Dương maintains top spot

Nguyễn Tấn Hoài secured the 16th stage of the HCM City Television Cycling Tournament yesterday.

Hoài of Domesco Đồng Tháp finished the 129km race from Nha Trang City of Khánh Hòa Province to Phan Rang-Tháp Chàm City of Ninh Thuận Province in a time of 3hr 21.39sec.

Lê Văn Duẩn of VUS-HCM City came second, followed by Nguyễn Thành Tâm of Gạo Hạt Ngọc trời An Giang. Nguyễn Văn Dương of Bikelife Đồng Nai was not among the top three, however, he was one of the cyclists finishing in the first group.

It helped him maintain the top spot in the overall ranking with a total time of 37:15.30.
Nguyễn Nhật Nam of Domesco Đồng Tháp was second with a gap of about one minute.

Nguyễn Minh Luận of Premium Cycling Vĩnh Long was third with a time of 37:18.19.
Dương also bagged the white jersey as the best young rider of the annual tournament till date.

Currently, Lê Nguyệt Minh of HCM City’s youth squad is the best athlete. He will start with the green jersey in the next stage.

Phan Hoàng Thái of Domesco Đồng Tháp keeps the red jersey for being the king of the mountains.In the team ranking, Gạo Hạt Ngọc Trời An Giang are in top place. 

Domesco Đồng Tháp and VUS-HCM City are second and third, respectively. 

The 17th stage today will be from Phan Rang-Tháp to Đà Lạt City of Lâm Đồng Province. As part of the 128km tour, riders will have to conquer the Ngoạn Mục and Prenn hills.

Bình Điền Long An advances to volleyball semi-finals

VTV Bình Điền Long An yesterday secured the last ticket to the semi-finals of the International Women’s Volleyball Tournament in Tây Ninh Province.

The host team defeated Liên Việt Post Bank 25-16, 22-25, 25-20, 25-14 to rank second in Group A. They will join China’s Yunnan Club in the final four round.

Earlier, Yunnan came from behind to win 22-25, 25-20, 25-12, 25-18 over Altay Club of Kazakhstan.

In Thursday’s action in Group B, Bangkok Glass of Thailand will play 4.25 Club of North Korea and Vietinbank will clash China’s Fujian Club.

Two pig farms’ operations stopped after reservoir contamination

Two pig farms in the central province of Hà Tĩnh’s Can Lộc District have been asked to halt operations after they were found to be polluting a reservoir water near the area.

Dân Trí online newspaper reported recently that Vực Trống reservoir, which supplies water to thousands of households and some 3,500 hectares of paddy fields every day, was seriously contaminated.

Around a year ago, the colour of the reservoir’s water changed and the water started stinking, affecting local people’s lives and livelihoods, the newspaper reported.

It’s not just the local residents who didn’t dare to use the water, even the cattle didn’t drink it. Many aquaculture farming households gave up operations after the contaminated water killed their fishes.

Đặng Ngọc Sơn, vice-chairman of the People’s Committee, led an inspection team to check the reservoir, and found the water cloudy and foul-smelling. The team then inspected two pig farms, which local residents alleged, had contaminated the reservoir.

Inspection revealed that both farms had seriously violated post-production environmental treatments; one of the farms was found to be discharging untreated wastewater directly into the surroundings.

Both farms will have to put wastewater treatment solutions in place before they can resume operations.

The committee has also asked the provincial environment and agriculture departments to coordinate with locals and inspect all farms in the reservoir area. 

HCM City voters fret over worsening environment

Voters in HCM City’s Districts 1, 3 and 4 told President Trần Đại Quang yesterday that they were concerned by the deteriorating natural environment in the country.

They said they were also worried about the failure to settle complaints about land use rights.

Worsened traffic congestion in the city was another concern, they told the President as the latter collected voters’ feedback ahead of next month’s parliamentary session. 

Agreeing that protecting the environment had become an urgent task, Quang said Việt Nam has adopted the stance of not sacrificing the environment for economic development at any cost.

He said the environmental impacts of all projects will be carefully evaluated to ensure sustainable growth. 

The Government has recently halted several projects with dubious environmental impact assessments, he noted. 

The Party, State and localities were paying great attention to the question of settling land disputes, the President said. 

Referring to the recent incident in Đồng Tâm Commune in Hà Nội, the Party Central Committee has directed Hà Nội leaders to draw proper lessons from it and prevent similar occurrences in the future, the President told voters. 

While authorities should maintain discipline, they should also stay close to voters and sort out their problems through constructive dialogues, Quang said.

He also noted down voters’ opinions on a number of draft laws including the revised Law on Corruption Prevention and Control, a guiding decree on the Land Law and revisions to the Law on Denunciation.

President Trần Đại Quang on the same day also met with voters in HCM City’s Cần Giờ District.

He suggested Cần Giờ look towards rapid and sustainable development with a focus on marine economy, agriculture, and ecological-historical-craft village tourism. 

HCM City should improve Cần Giờ’s transport infrastructure, Quang said, accelerating the construction of a bridge connecting Cần Giờ with Nhà Bè district while strengthening dykes to prevent erosion in response to climate change. 

“I am honoured to have been born and raised in Cần Giờ,” a resident of An Thới Đông Commune told the President.

“This place contributed so much to the American War but the infrastructure and the roads are yet to be developed to meet residents’ demand,” he said.

A number of residents also proposed ideas to promote agricultural production and investment attraction.

As the only coastal and poorest district of the southern metropolis, the municipal authorities must promptly consider locals’ suggestions regarding capital, animal breeds and plant varieties, technological application in goods manufacturing, and education-training, Quang said, adding that further attention should be paid to social welfares, poverty reduction, vocational training and job creation. 

He urged them to fine-tune support policies for the poor, armed forces, war heroes and those in charge of protecting and managing biosphere forests. 

Australian Endeavour Scholarships and Fellowships now open

The 2018 round of the Australian Government’s Endeavour Scholarships and Fellowships is now open.

The Endeavour Scholarships and Fellowships are internationally competitive scholarships that offer high-achieving individuals the opportunity to undertake vocational or post-graduate study, research, or professional development in Australia and for Australians to do the same overseas. 

The program aims to promote knowledge, education links, and enduring ties between Australia and its neighbors.

Vietnamese scholars, researchers, and professionals are encouraged to apply for the 2018 Endeavour Scholarships and Fellowships. Applications are online, open to all fields of study, and there is no age limit for applicants.

Vietnam has a strong record in competing for Endeavour Scholarships and Fellowships. Since 2007, 436 Vietnamese citizens have been successful in gaining an Endeavour Scholarship or Fellowship. Since 2007, 37 Australian students have come to Vietnam under an Endeavour Scholarship or Fellowship.

“The Endeavour Scholarships and Fellowships support high-achieving scholars, researchers, and potential leaders,” said Australian Ambassador to Vietnam, H.E. Craig Chittick. 

“I am confident that, after returning from Australia, Vietnamese Endeavour recipients will apply their new knowledge, skills, and experience to contribute to Vietnam’s future and will maintain strong and productive links with Australia.”

Applications for the 2018 Endeavour Scholarships and Fellowships will close on Friday, June 30, 2017 at 11.59pm AEST (8.59pm in Vietnam). Further information is available at https://internationaleducation.gov.au/Endeavour.

RoK supports Vietnam to enhance e-learning training model

The Hanoi Open University held a ceremony on April 25 to inaugurate the project ‘Infrastructure investment and implementation of e-learning training method’ funded by the Republic of Korea (RoK).

The project received US$3 million of the official development assistance (ODA) from the Korea International Co-operation Agency (KOICA) and VND13 billion under Vietnam’s reciprocal capital.

Facilities built under the project include seven servers and auxiliary equipment, eight multi-functional computer classrooms in seven localities, two rooms developing the system and contents and three studios.

According to the University’s Director, Dr. Truong Tien Tung, the project aims to create a premise for the University to have the first Cyber University in Vietnam as well as become the leading training facility in the field of E-Learning by 2020.

Thanks to support from the RoK Government, the Hanoi Open University has effectively deployed the project’s items including infrastructure, training management software, and human resources training to develop e-learning curriculums and contents.

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Consul General of Republic of Korea's Embassy to Vietnam Park Sang-sik, said that the project has significantly contributed to improving the quality of e-Learning training system at the University as well as distance learning in Vietnam.

With the aim of building a Cyber University, the project is expected to foster many talents for Vietnam as well as develop high quality e-Learning technology and online learning materials, he added.

Popular children program returns this summer

The HCM City's leading drama troupe, IDECAF will present to little audiences the new drama, Hoang tu- Cong chua va 9 vi than ..bi bat (captured princes,  princesses and 9 genies) in this summer.
 
The play directed by Vu Minh tells the stories about five siblings, including princes and princesses who make all efforts to rescue genies, Sun, Moon, Earth, Water, Wind, Forest, Mountain, Fire from the Dark genie. The works aims to give children lessons of love and bravery.

The play is part of the popular children program Ngay Xua Ngay Xua (Once Upon a Time) that begun in 2000 by IDECAF.

Performances will take place at Ben Thanh Theater in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 1 at 4 p.m., and 8 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday every week, starting from May 20-June 25.

Biological industry development overall plan approved

The PM has ratified the biological industry development overall plan till 2030.

Accordingly, the plan aims to mobilize resources for biological industry development, renew mechanisms and policies, take advantages of international cooperation and assistance, facilitate businesses to invest and produce items from the biological industry to make it become a crucial economic-technical sector, promoting economic development, serving for social security, protecting the sustainable development and ensuring national security and defense.

It aims to increase the number of businesses operating in the industry by 20% by 2025 and 50% by 2030 and raising the contribution of the industry to the GDP to 5% by 2025 and 7% by 2030.

Businesses operating in the biological industry will be encouraged to make products in the three main sectors of agriculture-forestry-aquaculture, pharmacy and environmental protection.

Mistakes awash in District 1 management of sidewalk use

An inspection into the management of temporary sidewalk use for two-wheeler parking in District 1 reveals many shortcomings, including unlicensed parking lots, illegal fee collections by operators of free parking lots or failure to collect taxes on parking lots.

The total number of permits for temporary use of sidewalks for a fee that are still valid in the district is 25, according to information provided early this year by the District 1 Urban Management Office. However, after working with the District 1 tax office, the inspector found that only one of these 25 sidewalks has fulfilled its tax obligations.

In addition, there are three other two-wheeler parking lots overseen by the urban order management team of District 1, with a permit for temporary use of pavements, but these sites are not named in the aforesaid list of 25 parking lots.

Other inadequacies in the management of sidewalks in District 1 are also pinpointed. For example, many areas are only licensed for parking of one row of two-wheelers, yet vehicles are organized in two rows or occupying the entire pavements, as seen along Phan Chu Trinh, Hai Trieu, Huynh Thuc Khang and Nguyen Du streets.

These violations have already been sanctioned by the urban order management team of District 1, but the parking lots keep committing the same infringements.

The inspector also concludes that there had been many unlicensed parking lots across the city as of end-2016.

For instance, in Nguyen Cu Trinh Ward, there are six cases of using sidewalks for two-wheeler parking without a permit. In Ben Thanh Ward, there are three cases of temporary use of pavements but vehicles are often kept for a fee.

Notably, many parking lots do not use the right tickets issued by tax offices.

From the mistakes and inadequacies mentioned above, the inspectorate of District 1 said the urban order management team has let the management of two-wheeler parking lots go unchecked. In addition, they have not instructed individuals and organizations to seek approval for the temporary use of sidewalks in accordance with the need, making it difficult for taxation, causing State budget revenue losses.

The urban order management team of District 1 with 85 members, 25 civil servants and 60 collaborators, is a subordinate unit of the District 1 Urban Management Office, responsible for assisting the district government in State management of urban order, security and environment.

Reportedly, the government of District 1 is asking for a review to strictly handle operations of two-wheeler parking lots that go against the law, check the financial obligations of parking lots for a fee, and collect taxes from organizations and individuals licensed to temporarily use sidewalks to keep two-wheel vehicles.

Vietnamese scientist in British Council finals competition

Scientist Pham Ha My has been selected to represent Vietnam at a communication competition that allows applicants just three minutes to talk about a scientific concept while being judged on the three ‘C’s – content, clarity and charisma.

The competition –  FameLab – sponsored by the British Council is the world's biggest science communication competition designed for scientists and engineers who can explain science, technology and engineering concepts in ways that interest and entertain the general public.

The competition is open to all who work in STEMM (science, technology, engineering, math and medicine) and can explain a scientific concept to a general audience in just three minutes, without the use of presentation slides.

Pham Ha My will join the FameLab International round in the UK this coming June 6-11 for a chance to win prizes including a scholarship for science communications, a ‘Master Class’ on communication skills and the opportunity to visit the lab of her choice in Europe.

Vietnam customs detect Chinese woman with 140 iPhones on her body

Authorities in Vietnam's northern province of Quang Ninh have arrested a Chinese woman for attempting to smuggle 140 iPhones into the country, a local newspaper reported.

The woman, identified as Chan QianLan, 48, was detected with 140 second-hand iPhones wrapped around her body. She entered Vietnam via the province's Mong Cai border gate on April 24 without customs declaration, the daily Thanh Nien (Young People) cited the provincial customs department as saying.

The phones were worth about VND70 million (US$3,000), they said.

The Chinese woman said that she purchased the iPhones in Dong Xing City, Guang Xi Province. She failed to produce receipts and relevant documents of the goods.

With an iPhone 5 model weighing 112 grams, the woman could have carried at least 16 kilograms (35 lb) around her body.

Masked man robs Vietnamese bank, takes away nearly US$90,000

A Vietnamese major bank has reported losing around VND2 billion (US$88,000) at a branch in the southern Mekong Delta during a heist by a masked man shortly before the lender ended its business hours.

A provincial police officer said the man, who also has his head covered by a hooded coat, entered the Vietcombank branch in Tra Vinh Province at around 4:20 p.m., pointed a gun to bank employees and demanded the cash. He then drove away on a motorbike without facing any resistance.

“It’s still not clear what type of guns was used and if it was genuine or fake,” said senior lieutenant-colonel Huynh Van Khoi of the Tra Vinh Police Department.

Vietcombank, the country's biggest listed bank by capitalization, has yet to make any official announcement of the incident, whick took place at one of its four offices in Tra Vinh.

A source told VnExpress the branch was opened two months ago and has not hired any guards.

Police are checking CCTV footage for further investigation.

Bank robberies are rare in Vietnam, often conducted by a single individual and involving small amount of cash, while robbers are quickly hunted down by police.

Ceremony marks birth centennial of army’s talented commander

A ceremony was held in Hanoi on April 27 to mark the 100th birth anniversary of General Van Tien Dung, former Defence Minister and a talented commander of the Vietnam People’s Army.

The event, organised by the Central Military Commission, the Ministry of National Defence and authorities of Hanoi, saw the participation of Party General Secretary and Secretary of the Central Military 

Commission Nguyen Phu Trong, Standing member of the Party Central Committee’s Secretariat Dinh The Huynh, and Vice Secretary of the Central Military Commission and Defence Minister General Ngo 

Xuan Lich, among others.

General Van Tien Dung, alias Le Hoai, was born on May 2, 1917 in Co Nhue commune of Hanoi’s Tu Liem district (now Co Nhue 2 ward of Bac Tu Liem district).

During the resistance war against the US, he directly commanded many successful campaigns such as the Road 9 – Southern Laos Campaign in 1971, the campaign to liberate the Central Highlands in 

1975, and the historic Ho Chi Minh Campaign that liberated Southern Vietnam and led to national reunification in April 1975.

After the national reunification, he was appointed as Defence Minister, First Vice Secretary and then Secretary of the Central Military Party Committee.

Dung was promoted to the rank of General in 1974. He served as a member of the Party Central Committee from the third to the sixth tenure, and as a Politburo member from the third to the fifth tenure.

Addressing the ceremony, General Ngo Xuan Lich stressed that for more than 65 years of revolutionary activities, Dung was a prime example of an undaunted communist who was completely loyal to the 

Party and devoted himself to people. He was one of the most excellent commanders of the Vietnamese army, a strategist and a wholehearted leader greatly contributing to the struggle for national liberation, 

development and protection.

He passed away in March 2002.

Lt. Gen. Khuat Duy Tien, who used to fight under the command of General Dung, said that Dung was his teacher and a big brother and also a visionary general who developed the Party’s military guidelines 

and art of military leadership. He had a scientific working style while being serious in work but also modest and accessible in the daily life.

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