A ceremony was held on March 8 to inaugurate a VND1.5 billion (US$65,790) primary school in Dak Koi commune of Kon Ray district, one of the three most impoverished localities in the Central Highlands province of Kon Tum.

The school consists of two fully equipped classrooms, toilets and a playground, giving local children a high-quality place of learning. This is part of the “Xay dung tuong lai” (Building the future together) programme in 2016 of Prudential Vietnam.

At the ceremony, students of the school received gifts, including school bags and notebooks.

Hoang Dinh Hai, deputy head of the Department of Education and Training of Kon Ray district, said the new school will create more favourable conditions for students living in remote areas and from ethnic minority groups.

From 2013 to 2016, the programme has provided aid of VND33.6 billion (US$1.4 million) for the construction and upgrading of 28 kindergartens and elementary schools in remote localities.

Conference gathers int’l scientists to address pollution

An International Conference on Environmental Pollution, Restoration, and Management gathered international scientists in central Binh Dinh province to discuss environmental issues as well as share research results and management experience.

It takes place at the International Centre for Interdisciplinary Science and Education (ICISE) in Quy Nhon city between March 8 and 11 with 170 scientists, policy-makers and students from 19 countries and territories in attendance.

The event is held by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Meet Vietnam Association and the Binh Dinh provincial People’s Committee.

As many as 150 representations will be given during the conference, with three plenary presentations including “Natural resource damage assessment and restoration for oil and chemical spills” by Dr. Lisa Dipinto from the US-based National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), “Are harmful algal blooms becoming the greatest global threat to water quality?” by Prof. Bryan Brooks from Baylor University, USA; “Plastic pollution from a system perspective: linking sources, transport, distribution, and impacts” by Dr. Chris Wilcox from Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIRO).

In his opening remarks, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha said Vietnam is threatened by soil, water and air pollution as a consequence of rapid economic growth. The declining biodiversity, poor environmental management and complicated climate change have bad impacts on Vietnam’s environment and development sustainability, he added.

The minister stressed that Vietnam determined to develop long-term policies to increase international cooperation in coping with environmental issues.

On March 8, Minister Ha had a dialogue with attending scientists on current environmental issues in Vietnam and ways to manage the country’s environment in the coming years.

During the conference, which is part of the 13th Meet Vietnam programme, there will be a short-term training course and three seminars. -

Requiem for Vietnamese fallen soldiers held in Thailand

A requiem to commemorate Vietnamese soldiers who laid down their lives to defend national sovereignty was held in Khanh An pagoda in Thailand’s northeastern province of Udon Thani on March 8.

At the ceremony, overseas Vietnamese (OVs) recalled the nation’s glorious history and paid tribute to 64 soldiers killed while protecting Gac Ma (Johnson South) Reef in Vietnam’s Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago on March 14, 1988.

Tran Minh Duc, President of the Association of Vietnamese in Udon Thani province, said that Vietnam’s sea and islands - inseparable parts of the country are constantly protected by Vietnamese soldiers. 

Vietnamese from all walks of life always remember the soldiers’ sacrifice, he noted.

The requiem for Vietnamese martyrs in Udon Thani province is held annually by OVs in Thailand. This is part of activities to help OVs gain more understanding of the country’s history, sea and island sovereignty and national protection.

Trauma system saves lives at City hospitals

A 70-year-old Japanese tourist was admitted to Chợ Rẫy Hospital in HCM City on Lunar New Year’s Eve with a sudden onset of severe chest pain.

Mikochi had chest pain and passed out just as his flight was arriving at Tân Sơn Nhất Airport.

He was sent to an international clinic for immediate resuscitative efforts and transferred to Chợ Rẫy Hospital’s emergency department due to his critical condition.

He was diagnosed with Stanford type A acute aortic dissection, which requires early treatment for survival, Nguyễn Thái An, head of the cardiac surgery department, said.

Trauma red alert Quy Trình Báo Động Đỏ, the highest level, was activated and an operating room was readied within 60 minutes, he said.

Administrative procedures were skipped to carry out the life-saving surgery immediately, he said.

All the members of the hospital’s rapid response team were present in the surgery room though it was New Year’s Eve.

In the event, the surgical intervention saved the patient’s life. He was discharged six days later in stable condition.

Trương Thế Hiệp, deputy head of the hospital’s emergency department, said it receives an average of 350 patients every day, most of them with multiple injuries.

A third of them need emergency surgical intervention, he said.

In some cases doctors have to provide cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and perform surgery at the emergency department’s surgery room since any delay could be fatal, he said.

The hospital’s rapid response system helps save dozens of critically ill patients every year.

Since paediatrics trauma alert red was initiated in 2008, doctors at the HCM City Paediatrics No.1 Hospital have performed around 20 emergency surgeries required upon its activation.

Last September Nguyễn Thị Hiếu Thảo, 20, of Hóc Môn District suddenly developed severe eclampsia when she was nine months pregnant and was admitted to Thống Nhất Hospital for emergency attention.

She was in a coma, her blood pressure was a high 210/120 mm Hg. She later went into cardiac and respiratory arrest.

Doctors provided cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and called Hùng Vương Obstetrics and Gynaecology Hospital’s emergency response team for immediate surgical intervention.

Hùng Vương’s rapid response team of obstetricians, medical assistants and nurses performed a caesarean section to deliver the baby within 20 minutes of the activation of the alert.

Thảo and her 3.4kg boy soon became stable and were discharged a one week later.

Nguyễn Thị Lệ, Thảo’s mother, said, overwhelmed: “It was like a miracle. I almost passed out. I thought my daughter would die.

“The doctors were so good they could save the life of mother and son.”

“As soon as we receive an alert call, we have to act rapidly and concentrate intensely,” Nguyễn Thị Anh Phương, deputy head of Hùng Vương Hospital’s obstetrics department, said.

“The goal is to save the patient’s life.”

Phương has twice been on the rapid response team to provide emergency out-of-hospital surgical care.

The successful operation on Thảo was attributed to close co-ordination between doctors at the two hospitals and the activation of the alert, which circumvents procedures and facilitates immediate surgery.

It was one of six out-of-hospital surgeries performed since the city Department of Health introduced the inter-hospital alert last year.

Tăng Chí Thượng, deputy director of the department, said the inter-hospital alert for rapid response emergencies is a life-saving measure for critically ill patients who would otherwise die on the way to hospital.

“Co-ordinated action by multi-disciplinary physicians and hospitals are crucial to successful emergency life-saving surgical intervention.”

The department has recommended implementation of hospital-wide and inter-hospital alerts across the city to improve survival rates.

Chợ Rẫy Hospital plans to set up surgery rooms in various departments to simplify the process for emergency surgeries, Phạm Thế Việt, head of the hospital’s general planning department, said.

The number of patients admitted to Chợ Rẫy Hospital with life-threatening conditions has soared in the past few years, he said.

Last year there were 15 cases that triggered trauma alert red, and doctors managed to save 10 of the patients.

In the first two months of this year there have already been eight, Việt said.

The activation of hospital-wide alerts should also be standardised with an integrated set of co-ordinated actions so that it can operate smoothly and effectively, he added.

Robot design contest for primary school students

A contest to design, build and programme robots from LEGO pieces for primary school students will be held in HCM City and Đà Nẵng in May.

It will be organised by the cities’ Department of Education and Training, Việt Tinh Anh Joint Stock Company’s LEGO Education and HTV3 channel.

The two best teams in the contest will qualify for the First Lego League Asia-Pacific Open Championship in Australia in July.

Nguyễn Quang Vinh, head of the HCM City Department of Education and Training’s primary education division, said the contest would help students use the knowledge they acquire in science and maths to design and programme robots.

It would help develop their creativeness, he said. 

Photo contest on Vietnamese families of gender equality kicks off

To celebrate International Women’s Day, the Swedish Embassy in Việt Nam, the Việt Nam Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Vietnamese Women’s Museum have jointly organised a photo contest on gender equality in Vietnamese families.

The contest follows the success of the previous one, Vietnamese Dads, which was held last year. It is an opportunity for the two countries to share experiences with gender equality.

The organisers expect to promote gender equality in families and argue for equality in child care, housework, careers and societal contributions .

“Sweden is one of the world leaders in gender equality, but I believe that there are still many things for us to learn to promote feminism. Therefore, I look forward to seeing beautiful photos and learning more about gender equality through images captured by Vietnamese photographers,” said Swedish  ambassador Pereric Hogberg.

“Following the success of the previous photo contest, Vietnamese Dads, we want to continue to invite both professional and unprofessional photographers nationwide to continue down that road,” said Nguyễn Phương Hòa, vice director of International Cooperation Department, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

“This time, we have expanded the theme and hope to receive truthful and moving works that reflect different viewpoints towards gender equality among mothers and fathers and other members in Vietnamese families,” she added.

The director of the Institute for Social Development Studies, Khuất Thu Hồng, said he highly appreciates the photo contest and considers it a practical activity to encourage equal work among family members.

“Sustainable gender equality has to originate from families in which all members share responsibilities and support each other so that everyone has equal opportunities to learn and pursue their career. Equality is the foundation for a happy family,” she said.

Over 30 photos will be selected and displayed at an exhibition. The winning and runner-up prizes will be decided by the jury, while the third place will go to the photo with most likes on the Embassy of Sweden in Việt Nam Facebook page.

The photo contest will receive entries from March 8 till May 15. Participants can submit their entries via post office or email.

New titles released for Book Month

Nearly 160 new books by international and Vietnamese authors will be released this month as part of the “Tháng 3 Sách Trẻ” (Youth Books for March) programme.

The event is being held by the Trẻ (Youth) Publishing House and other 49 publishers and bookstores in Việt Nam.

The publications include novels by young Vietnamese writers, including Chuyến Tàu Nhật Thực (Train in Eclipse) by Đình Phương, Nhân Giang Nằm Nghiêng (Sloping World) by Đinh Hằng, and Bữa Đời Lạc Phấn (Flavourful Life) by Ka Bình Phong.

Trường An is presenting his debut novel Ngoài Bờ Đông Là Mặt Trời (Beyond the East is the Sun), a chronicle of the life of Vietnamese royalty in the 19th century. It won praise from veteran authors and critics.

The picture version for the second book from the Harry Potter series will also be released.

As part of book month, talks with writers and book introductions will be featured at the pedestrian-only Book Street in District 1.

The Trẻ Publishing House will host a play based on best-selling author Nguyễn Nhật Ánh’s Chuyện Xứ Langbiang on the occasion of the release of its reprint.

The play is about two teenagers and their adventure to a witches’ land called Langbiang. It will be staged by the Tuổi Ngọc (Childhood) drama troupe, which has performed plays for children over the last 20 years.

The play will take place on March 11 on Book Street.

Nguyễn Minh Nhựt, director of the publishing house, said it had made an effort to release new books, especially those by young Vietnamese writers.

As many as 330 reprinted editions of famous local and foreign writers have been released for the occasion, he said.

As part of the programme, the publishing house will offer a 20 per cent discount on all of its titles at bookstores nationwide.

Thousands of rare and old books are now on display at the Day of Old Books Fair at the September 23 Park in District 1.

The three-day fair includes 20 stalls of secondhand books from bookstores.

Vietnamese poetry books and novels, history books and foreign literary works are featured, as well as exhibitions on southern Vietnamese literary works in the 1930-1945 period.

Three talks by booksellers, collectors and writers are also being held.

All books at the event are being sold at a 50 per cent discount.

VPMilk becomes HAGL’s top sponsor

VPMilk inked a two-year contract yesterday with V.League 1 side Hoàng Anh Gia Lai (HAGL) to become the main sponsor of the club and the HAGL-Arsenal-JMG Football Academy.

The contract is valued at VNĐ50 billion (US$2,173,913).

Under the terms, VPMilk will travel with HAGL for activities like Việt Nam junior football training and provide the team’s nutrition.

The sponsor will also create favourable conditions for HAGL players to train and compete abroad.

In the summer this year, VPMilk and HAGL will co-ordinate a search for young talent across the country.

“HAGL’s target is to develop Việt Nam football and to co-ordinate with VP Milk to look for top talent,” said Võ Trường Sơn, general director of HAGL Group.

29 illegal pick-up/drop-off locations identified

Inspectors of Hà Nội’s Transport Department have identified 29 locations across the city where coaches usually pick or drop off passengers illegally.

Of the locations, 10 locations are in Hoàn Kiếm District, one is in Đống Đa District, two are in Hoàng Mai District, three are in Cầu Giấy, three are in Nam Từ Liêm, four are in Bắc Từ Liêm and six are in Thanh Xuân District.

In the first two months of this year, transport inspectors cracked down on 265 cases related to the picking and dropping of coach passengers at wrong locations.

Under the Government’s Decision 171/2013/NĐ-CP, dated November 2013, fines imposed for such violations range from VNĐ1 million to VNĐ2 million. In addition, those flouting the rules will have their driving licence revoked for one month.

Coaches running on fixed routes are only allowed to pick or drop off passengers at departure and destination points at coach stations.

Coaches that pick up passengers from wrong locations are said to “kill” those which obey the rule.

Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyễn Hồng Trường at a meeting last week said Hà Nội was failing to crack down on the unlawful pick-ups or on illegal coaches that operated without permission.

Previously, on February 28, nearly 100 coaches without passengers, travelling on the routes of Hà Nội-Thái Bình and Hà Nội-Nam Định, drove to Hà Nội in protest. Traffic police stopped the coaches at the Pháp Vân-Cầu Giẽ Expressway tollbooth because they were concerned if the coaches reached downtown Hà Nội it would lead to traffic chaos.

The coaches were among those that were forced to move their departure point from Mỹ Đình Bus Station to Nước Ngầm Bus Station from January 1.

The protest was believed to be an attempt to urge agencies to re-consider the decision as the change in departure point meant less passengers, leading to losses.

“Passengers want to depart from Mỹ Đình Station instead of Nước Ngầm Bus Station. They would rather choose “fake” coaches or catch one along their journey than go to Nước Ngầm,” Trường said.

He asked the Hà Nội’s Transport Department to not grant more licences to vehicles to provide passenger transport services from this month.

Transport inspectors were asked to impose strict penalties, such as revoking the driving licences.

Localities proactive in planting forests

Localities across the country are preparing seedlings in service of dispersal tree planting and concentrated afforestation, according to Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

In the first two months of this year, about 4,860 hectares were greened in the north, up 102.2 percent against the same period last year.

Meanwhile, southern provinces have been growing saplings for the planting of dispersal trees but have yet to begin afforesting. 

In the reviewed months, about 10.7 million dispersal trees were planted nationwide, increasing 0.9 percent against the same period last year. 

During the time, forest fires damaged 70 hectares, mostly in the north, down 71.8 percent compared to last year’s period. The fires were mainly caused by dry weather and people’s recklessness.

Drought is forecast to take place in numerous localities, which is likely to trigger forest fires, especially in northwestern, central, southern and central highlands regions.  

The country lost 47 hectares due to deforestation, a decline of 41.3 percent compared to the same period last year. That activity occurred mostly in the central highlands localities such as Lam Dong and Dak Nong.

Women will lead the green revolution

Mr. Vu Tien Loc, Chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), told the “Women and the Green Economy” conference on March 5 in Hanoi that Vietnamese women will be the leaders in the green revolution.

He also highlighted the role and determination of woman in modern society.

The conference was held to promote the role of women entrepreneurs in the creation of a clean production platform, to ensure the health of consumers and improve living standards.

It was a chance for women entrepreneurs to discuss and share their experience, especially in applying technology in manufacturing.

“International women and Vietnamese women contribute significantly to socioeconomic development,” said Ms. Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh, Member of the Party Central Committee and Vice President. “Vietnam will be a pioneer in the implementation of social responsibility and contribute to building a green economy.”

“Women entrepreneurs cannot compete with the scale of enterprises run by men but they can compete successfully in green business,” Ms. Nguyen Thi Tuyet Minh, Chairman of the Vietnam Women Entrepreneurs Council (VWEC), told the forum.

Ms. Thai Huong, Chairman of the TH Group, a partner of this year’s conference, who has persistently pursued the dream of green agriculture, said she applies high technology in agriculture together with advanced international scientific governance and Vietnamese methods to produce safe and organic food.

“The core value is human health, for Mother Earth and nature,” she said.

In conclusion, Ms. Minh pointed out that Vietnamese women cannot boost their business activities without government support. “It is necessary to have reasonable policies to resolve the challenges and difficulties,” she said. “The cooperation of male entrepreneurs in supply chains and value chains and support from communications agencies would contribute greatly to the development of Vietnamese women entrepreneurs.”

Other activities included booths displaying products introduced by female entrepreneurs and a Gala Dinner to create opportunities for women entrepreneurs to connect and promote their products and brands.

It was also opportunity for Vietnamese women entrepreneurs to show their talent and creativity in recognition of Women’s Day, March 8.

Vietnam to prosecute 49 inmates for leading mass rehab center breakout

Authorities in Dong Nai Province are pressing public disorder charges against 49 inmates of a drug rehab center for inciting other inmates to escape in October and November 2016.

Of the 500 inmates involved in the breakout from the center, located around 100 kilometers (62 miles) to the northeast of Ho Chi Minh City, police have identified Vo Dinh Huan, 31, along with two other addicts as the instigators after they were reportedly denied their medication.

It took local police some time to track down all the escapees, some of whom had threatened local people with sticks and machetes to demand money. Others also broke into people's houses and vandalized their property, according to eyewitnesses.

Riots over the following days at the same center and another in the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau raised serious concerns about security at the facilities.

To get to the bottom of the situation, VnExpress launched an investigation and found that Vietnam's transition toward harm-reduction programs to treat addicts has been held back by old ideas and methodologies, leaving a crowded, poorly-monitored population of detainees.

Authorities continue to remand drug users for two-year stints in compulsory drug detention centers, where they face a detox program and hard labor, a method that has drawn international criticism for years.

Vietnam developed its approach to addiction based on the presumption that it represents a "social evil" that can be cured with abstinence and re-education.

The international community agrees that’s simply not the case.

“Addiction cannot be treated by force,” Nguyen To Nhu, deputy country director of FHI360, an NGO that works on drug addiction and HIV prevention, told VnExpress International. “It’s a disease that requires lifetime treatment so the patient’s cooperation is key.”

The drug rehabilitation center in Dong Nai is currently home to nearly 1,500 inmates, double its capacity.

Several large escapes have been reported across Vietnam in recent years following a government order to increase the period of mandatory rehab treatment from one to two years.

Vietnam currently has around 180,000 addicts, many of whom are intravenous drug users.     

Ben Tre grapples with drought, saltwater intrusion

The southern province of Ben Tre is facing difficulties in the prevention of drought and saltwater intrusion.

Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Cao Van Trong said the biggest problem at present is the shortage of funds, which make it difficult for the locality to implement irrigation projects to prevent salinity, reserve fresh water and expand the fresh water supplying network to coastal districts.

To cope with the dry season in 2017, the province has carried out a number of short-and long-term projects.

More than 110 km of canals have been dredged, 73 km of embankments were upgraded, and a fresh water reservoir is being built with a designed capacity of about 800,000 cubic meters in Ba Tri district.

Construction of temporary dams is underway in Chau Thanh, Giong Trom, Ba Tri, and Mo Cay Bac districts, and hundreds of sluice gates have been repaired.

Local people were encouraged to store rainwater and freshwater for daily use and production.

In the long run, Ben Tre will continue making use of all financial resources to implement projects improving irrigation infrastructure and water resources management. 

The province has also advised farmers in coastal areas to switch from rice to other plants.

According to the provincial hydrometeorology forecast centre, salt water with salinity of up to 0.4 percent has infiltrated 38-46 km inland.

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