Family of Vietnamese in ferry tragedy arrives in RoK

Family members of 29-year-old Vietnamese Phan Ngoc Thanh, who was on board the capsized vessel off the Republic of Korea’s southwestern coast on April 16, have arrived in the RoK to wait for new information about her fate.

Born in the southernmost province of Ca Mau, Thanh got married and naturalised in the RoK last July under the name “Han Yun Ji”, with two children. She and her husband and son onboard the vessel are still unaccounted for while her five-year-old girl Kwon Ji-yeon was saved as the youngest passenger from the disaster.

Thanh’s father Phan Van Chay and her sister Phan Ngoc Hanh flew to the RoK on April 19 evening, with the assistance from the Vietnamese Embassy and the RoK’s Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Family and Gender Equality.

They relatives met with Kwon Ji-yeon and were taken to Chindo district where the center overseeing the rescue operation of the capsized Seawol ferry is located.

Chay said his family is still clinging on to the hope of a miracle to happen and stands ready for the worst situation.

The aunt who is taking care of Kwon Ji-yeon said there is no information on the spouses and their six-year-old son Kwon Hyuk-kyu.

The capsized five-storey ferry carried 476 crew and passengers, mainly high school students, to the RoK popular holiday destination of Jeju island.

The latest confirmed deaths from the disaster amounted to 104 and 198 others are still unaccounted for.

Over 60,000 Vietnamese women are married to RoK citizens and many people from the RoK are residing in Vietnam.

Phu Yen's "Village of lost teeth"

Nearly everyone in a village in the central province of Phu Yen suffer from severe dental problems leading eventually to tooth loss, and they blame it on the water source.

The people of Go Mia Hamlet, in Hoa Dinh Tay Commune, regardless of age, do not dare smile at strangers. Major dental problems there have become so ubiquitous that the place has come to be known in the region as the "Village of lost teeth".

Lam, a 45-year old local man in Hoa Dinh Tay Commune said, “Everyone in the hamlet, from the young to the old, men and women, all lose their teeth. People here try to avoid going out as much as possible. They work the fields and then hide in their houses, trying to avoid contact with strangers.”

Tran, a 34-year old woman from the hamlet, is one such person. She now only has six teeth, two of which are little more than stumps while the other four have turned black.

Her teeth started to decay when she was 20, and by the age of 32 had only six left. "If you were to cover my face and only see my mouth you would probably think I was an elderly woman," she said.

All four members of 42-year old Tien's family have also lost teeth. Recently, they have had to switch to a diet of rice gruel. "I'm so embarrassed when I have to do things like attending weddings. I completely avoid joining in on activities like singing," Tien lamented.

According to Lam, children in Go Mia Hamlet usually start to show visible signs of tooth decay around the age of ten, when they begin to turn yellow. By the time they hit puberty, most children's teeth have already started to turn black, and when they become old enough to marry some teeth have already fallen out.

"Many young women from the hamlet have a hard time finding a spouse," he added.

Even though the village is comprised mainly of farmers, many families have had to spend millions of VND on dental care.

“I bought artificial teeth for Tet. They cost VND5 million (USD236.8). Now I feel more confident when I talk to people. Before that, I would never speak in class," said one high school student.

Go Mia is a poor and isolated hamlet and home to around 25 families and 100 people. Residents say that they have asked for help from medical officials and the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment. They eventually came to the conclusion that it was the village's water supply causing the problems.

Most of those who suffer from severe tooth decay grew up in the village or have lived there for years.

Nguyen Phi Ho, Vice Chairman of the communal People’s Committee, said that a clean water system was built at a cost of over VND3 billion (USD142,079) several years ago, but people no longer use it because of the distance residents had to travel. Now the system is idle and aging.

Many of the village's residents still use water from local streams for daily use. Some have dug wells and only a few families were able to install a water purification systems.

Government assists farmers to convert rice into other crops

Ministries of Agriculture and Rural Development, Finance, and Planning and Investment are drafting a policy helping farmers convert part rice fields into other crops in the Mekong Delta this year.

They plan to convert 112,000 hectares of low-yielding rice farms into other crops or fish farms from 2014-2015.

Cultivation of other crops like maize, soybean, peanut, sesame, watermelon and vegetables have profited farmers more than rice, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The State will support farmers maximum VND 2 million (US$95) per hectare to buy seeds for new crops.

Master plan for Hanoi’s fifth ring road approved

The Prime Minister has approved the master plan for the Hanoi region’s fifth ring road, which will be more than 330 kilometres long.

The ring road is planned to run through Hanoi and seven provinces including Hoa Binh, Ha Nam, Thai Binh, Hai Duong, Bac Giang, Thai Nguyen and Vinh Phuc.

The move came following the approval of master plans for the Hanoi region and the development of Vietnam’s highway system.

According to the plan, the fifth ring road will have 41 kilometres overlapping the Noi Bai – Ha Long, Hanoi – Thai Nguyen, Noi Bai – Lao Cai Highways and National Highway 3.

Total investment for the ring road is estimated at over VND85.6 trillion (US$4 billion).

It is scheduled to open to traffic by 2020, with either two or four lanes and will be expanded to four lanes on the entire route over the next decade.

Students hospitalised due to food poisoning

Thirteen students of My Tan primary school in the northern province of Nam Dinh were hospitalised yesterday for alleged food poisoning after consuming Dutch Lady-brand fresh milk products.

They complained of stomach ache, difficulty in breathing, and nausea. Doctors from the provincial children's hospital said the students were initially tested for digestive disorder.

A report stated that another eight students had been hospitalised last Friday after drinking the milk and were discharged the same day.

The milk samples have been sent for examination.

The case is under investigation.

61 detained fishermen to return home from Indonesia

Kien Giang province called a meeting on April 21 to discuss protocol to bring home 61 Vietnamese fishermen who were detained in Indonesia for violating its fishing regulations.

Eight Vietnamese vessels had fished in Indonesia’s waters under a contract signed between Vietnam’s Dai Duong (Ocean) Joint Stock Company and Indonesia’s Papua Fishery Development Company. The contract was approved by the Vietnam Directorate of Fisheries.

On January 4, four out of the eight vessels with 61 fishermen on board were detained by the Indonesian marine police. According to the Indonesian Foreign Ministry, the four Vietnamese vessels violated the country’s fishing regulations.

At the April 21 meeting, Dai Duong JSC agreed to pay fees and initiate the necessary procedures for the safe and timely return of all 61 fishermen. It will also be accountable for maintaining the four seized vessels in Indonesia.

Dai Duong and vessel owners will work together to settle all disputes relating to fishermen’ interests.

Truck collides with minibus, killing 2

A truck rammed into a minibus in the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai's Bao Yen District yesterday afternoon, killing two people and causing serious injuries to another person.

According to witnesses, the accident occurred when a trailer-towing truck, carrying 70 tonnes of rice, tried to dodge a 20-seated bus parked at a rest stop in Bao Yen District's Pho Rang Town. The truck suddenly overturned and crushed the bus, killing the bus driver and a motorbike driver nearby on the spot. The truck driver sustained injuries.

All the 20 passengers of the bus were fortunately safe as they were out of the vehicle at the rest stop.

It took the local police about two hours to clear the traffic jam and the rice scattered on the road.

The police claimed that high-speed driving and careless overtaking might be the reason of the accident.

Ageing population poses challenges to Vietnam

Ageing population is requiring the health system to renew in terms of services provision and healthcare finance.

The information was released at a seminar in Hanoi on April 21.

According to experts, Vietnam’s population is aging at one of the world’s five fastest paces, which will result in the lack of human resources for national development in the coming decades.

Statistics show that there were more than 8.6 million elderly people of 60 years old and above in 2011, accounting for nearly 10% of Vietnam’s population, while the rate of over 65-year-old was 7% and is predicted to rise rapidly to 14.75% by 2039.

Meanwhile, the group of the elderly, while accounting for only 10-20% of the population, uses up to 70% of a nation’s total medical expenses and 50% of medicine consumption.

Difficulties faced by the health sector when implementing the health insurance coverage for all people were also put on table.

Participants proposed amending policies and laws on health insurance and better controlling the cost for treatment of health insurance card users.

As of December 31, 2013, more than 61 million people participated in health insurance, accounting for 69% of the total population.

Vietnam is striving to expand the coverage to 80% of the population by 2020.

During the seminar, the Japan International Cooperation Agency presented the results of its survey on the health insurance coverage and ageing population in Vietnam, which had been carried out in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and the provinces of Dien Bien, Nam Dinh and Hoa Binh from January 5-22 and from February 16-March 1.

It pointed out shortcomings faced by the sector in these issues, including the lack of geriatricians and the unclear classification of health insurance users.

HCM City vows to combat corruption

Ho Chi Minh City vows to resolutely combat corruption and wastefulness through creating a consensus, self-awareness and high determination in Party organisations and members, administrations, and State offices and employees.

This has been stated by Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee Le Thanh Hai, who is a Politburo member, at a conference to carry out the anti-corruption and wastefulness work in 2014.

He reiterated that the combat against corruption is difficult and complicated, becoming a regular task of the Party, State and people in the course of national construction and defence.

To that end, the city continues to step up the popularisation of the fight while working to refine the regulations on socio-economic and cultural management and stringently implement policies and mechanisms related to personnel.

A mechanism encouraging and defending whistle-blowers is needed while severe punishments should be given to those who cover up corruption, Hai stressed.

America helps deal with war aftermath

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) is working closely with localities to support disabled people, including dioxin victims, in accessing new treatment and reintegrating into society.

KC Choe, Director of the USAID’s Environment and Social Development Office, was speaking at the second round-table of the Vietnam-US Dialogue Group on Agent Orange/dioxin, held in Bien Hoa City, Dong Nai province, on April 21.

She announced the first phase of a dioxin remediation project at Danang Airport will be completed this year, and the second phase will continue until 2016 to turn the airport into a dioxin free zone.

She added that the agency is evaluating environmental impacts at Bien Hoa Airport to come up with appropriate remediation methods.

Both Danang and Bien Hoa airports were used by the US military during wartime to store defoliants, containing lethal dioxin. The toxic chemicals were then loaded on to aircraft to spray over Vietnamese land and forests.  

Statistics show from 1962 to 1971, more than 20 million galons of defoliant were stored at airports and US military bases in Vietnam. At least 4.5 million Vietnamese people have been exposed to these toxic chemicals.

Although the war ended nearly 40 ago, the destructive aftermath of war, especially unexploded ordnance and AO/dioxin chemical, still affects the lives of millions of Vietnamese people and US war veterans.

Ha Huy Thong, head of the group, said soon after the war ended, the Vietnamese Party and State have devised a number of policies to reduce the harmful effects of dioxin on people’s health and the environment.

He added that the US Government has cooperated with Vietnam in dealing with the issue, for example a project to clean up dioxin-contaminated soil at Danang Airport.

Delegates evaluated programs in dealing with the consequences of AO/Dioxin chemicals in Vietnam and proposed measures to tackle the issue more effectively in the future.

The same day, delegates made a fact-finding tour of hotspots at Bien Hoa Airport and visited a disabled children’s centre in Bien Hoa City.

Health minister inspects measles control in Hanoi

Health Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien on April 21 visited several hospitals in Hanoi to inspect the containment of measles.

Tien pointed out the main reasons for the outbreak of the disease in recent days, including vaccine shortages, an increasing number of patients in central hospitals, the lack of medical staff and high humidity levels.

Since the beginning of this year, more than 3,360 cases of the disease have been reported in 61 out of 63 cities and provinces.

It has claimed 25 lives so far, mostly children aged under 10 years. At the same time, 116 deaths have been caused by complications arising from the disease.

The Health Ministry is carrying out urgent and drastic measures to contain measles in order to reduce fatalities and complication cases.

Hospitals have been asked to keep measles patients isolated to avoid cross infections.

Vaccinations against this disease have been stepped up over recent days. As many as 57.5% of unvaccinated children have been given shots during the additional round of the national vaccination campaign.

To help the public fully understand the disease and preventive measures, the ministry also issued an updated guideline on measles diagnosis and treatment.

The guideline has been published in all localities across the country, while experienced doctors have been sent to local hospitals to support them in treatment.

Int’l seminar discusses life in the universe

Scientists, physicists and astronomers from 20 countries are meeting in Binh Dinh province to discuss the basic thousand year old question – whether life exists beyond earth or outside the solar system.

In an opening speech, Swiss astronomer Michel Mayor said that humankind has at some time or other, questioned if earth is the sole place with existing life or whether other worlds and civilisations exist in the universe. The question stimulates the development of science and scientific aspiration.

During the April 21-25 seminar, participants will discuss and research the newest scientific issues in astrophysics, such as precise measurements of planets, attributes of small exoplanets and spectrum collected from the latest generation of astronomical telescopes in seeking planets like earth.

They will also look at the development of equipment to seek life in the galaxy, future ground stations and Antarctic research stations.

Professor Michel Mayor is the first person in the world to find exoplanets from Keck Observatory. He discovered a quarter of more than 1,000 planets.

He is due hold a lecture for scientists and scientific students in Quy Nhon City on April 24.

The seminar is part of activities to mark the 10th Meeting Vietnam, founded and presided over by Professor Tran Thanh Van, a French of Vietnamese origin.

Khmer-Vietnam friendship school inaugurated in Cambodia

A Khmer-Vietnam friendship primary school was inaugurated in Svay Rieng province in southeast Cambodia on April 21.

President of the Cambodia-Vietnam Friendship Association Men Sam On chaired the ceremony, which saw the presence of representatives from Vietnamese localities.

Addressing the event, Sam On, who is also Cambodia ’s Deputy Prime Minister, spoke highly of efforts made by the Association of Cambodians of Vietnamese Origin in promoting free education for Cambodian-Vietnamese children.

The school is a vivid manifestation of the traditional solidarity and mutual assistance between the two peoples, she stressed, adding that it also serves as a place where children can learn about their origins.

She instructed Svay Rieng provincial authorities and people to facilitate the training of Khmer and Vietnamese languages at the school.

The school, including four well-equipped classrooms, was built at a cost of US$110,000, with US$95,000 provided by Vietnam’s Long An province, which shares the border with Svay Rieng.

Promoting social services for migrant women

Vietnam has always paid due attention to protecting the interests and welfare  of its emigrants and has actively worked with other countries to safeguard the rights of its labourers.

Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Thanh Hoa made the statement at a seminar in Hanoi on April 21.

The seminar was held by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as part of an inauguration ceremony for the Women Entrepreneurs Network (AWEN).

It aims to realise the ASEAN leaders’ declaration on social welfare and development related to the rights of ASEAN women and children and identify dangers and challenges facing migrant women. It also shared successful examples and helped to build a network for providing social services for migrant women.

Hoa said Vietnam is an active member of the ASEAN Committee on the Implementation of the ASEAN Declaration on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers (ACMW). It has cooperated with other ASEAN countries in drafting ASEAN documents on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers, including women.

The Nationality Law has been revised to support and ensure the rights of nationality and citizenship for women who get married to foreigners, as well as enhancing communications to raise public awareness and to avoid risks related to emigrants, Hoa added.

Delegates agreed that domestic and international migration is common in many countries around the world, particularly in the current process of international integration.

Migration has brought about many advantages for the development process including knowledge, skills, income and various other benefits for emigrants. However, there are still challenges and risks for emigrants if it is not managed well, such as human trafficking, overexploitation and abuse.

Participants proposed solutions for promoting social services for migrant women, and strengthening cooperation networks and partnerships among the ASEAN Women Committee, AWEN, UNHCR and relevant agencies to protect the rights of migrant women throughout the region.

VN, US review AO recovery efforts

The Viet Nam–US Dialogue Group on Agent Orange/Dioxin convened a second roundtable conference in the southern Dong Nai Province yesterday to review recovery efforts following Agent Orange (AO) exposure.

The toxic chemical, AO, was sprayed by the US troops during the Viet Nam war.

Head of the group, Ha Huy Thong, briefed the US guests on Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung's recent plan of action, which will serve as a blueprint for action between now and the year 2020, for effectively dealing with the consequences of AO exposure.

He also hailed the US government for coordinating with Viet Nam in this endeavour, citing its four-year Da Nang airport dioxin clean-up project as an exemplar.

The first stage of the project will conclude this year.

The Ministry of National Defence and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) launched a US$43 million project in August to clean up an estimated 67,000 cubic metres of contaminated soils and sediments at Da Nang Airport area by 2016. — VNA/VNS Photo Tran le Lam

Director of the US Agency for International Development (USAID)'s Environment and Social Development Office, Kyung Choe, remarked that the USAID is conducting a study on the environmental impacts of AO/dioxin in a location around the Bien Hoa airport.

Coordinating with the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and localities across the country, the USAID has offered support to those disabled and victimized by exposure to AO, especially children, she noted.

A representative from the Viet Nam Federation on Disability reported that Vietnamese war veterans suffering from exposure to the toxic chemical should have also reaped the benefits of the US social welfare policies similar to those availed by victims from the United States, Australia, and New Zealand.

Between the period 1962 and 1971, 20 million gallons of defoliants were sprayed over several US airports and military bases across southern Viet Nam, destroying 5 million acres of forests and 500,000 acres of vegetation. At least 4.5 million Vietnamese were exposed to AO and other toxic herbicides.

Internet HIV prevention efforts prove successful

Le Son of HCM City openly admits that he has been using smartphone applications to contact other men for friendship.

"Smartphone applications such as Jacks, Grindr, Boyahoy and Hornet can help me seek men who have sex with men (known as MSM) within a radius of 10 kilometres," Son said in a recent interview.

Son was chosen by the HCM City's AIDS Prevention Committee to head an online HIV intervention group for MSM to provide knowledge about HIV transmission and prevention.

He said it had been difficult to persuade the men to take HIV tests because of fears about discrimination and a lack of privacy.

Apart from smartphone applications, Son has also used online dating sites or chatrooms where MSM congregate to spread the word about the importance of HIV tests.

"Smartphone applications and the internet are the best tools to engage MSM in the city's HIV prevention programme," Son said.

Nguyen Thi Hue, head of the AIDS Prevention Committee's Harm Reduction Division, said the use of an internet-based outreach was based on the findings of surveys of 20 internet forums and chatrooms for MSM seeking dating partners.

Dr Donn J. Colby, senior technical advisor for the Centre for Applied Research on Men and Health in HCM City, said 99 per cent of MSM in the city use the internet for many purposes, including seeking information for HIV prevention and care, based on research conducted at the centre.

"MSM are a small subgroup of the population so we cannot reach them on TV or with billboards on the street," he said.

"We have to go where MSM are, and at this time it appears they are on the internet," he said, adding that there was not one location where even one per cent of MSM could be found at any given time.

From July 2012 to June 2013, Hue said that internet-based outreach contacted 5,481 men, with only 507 of them willing to seek HIV counselling and testing services. Forty-one of them tested positive for HIV.

The centre's target is to reach more and more MSM and increase the number of MSM using voluntary HIV tests in order to detect HIV early and provide treatment.

An internet-based approach saves costs as well, Hue said, adding that only VND215 million (US$10,240) was allocated for internet outreach, while the division had spent VND3.2 billion ($152,380) for traditional outreach programmes.

"These positive results have encouraged us to continue an internet-based outreach, and we will increasingly use apps," Hue said.

The division's report shows that HIV prevalence among MSM in HCM City was about 15 per cent annually between 2011 and 2013, rising from 5.4 per cent in 2006.

According to the findings of a cross-sectional survey conducted by Colby, published in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes in 2003, the mean number of sexual partners for MSM was 3.3 in one month.

Only 32 per cent of 219 surveyed MSM used condoms when having sex and only 50 per cent had knowledge of HIV transmission and prevention, the survey findings showed.

Four drowned in Vam Co Dong River

Four people drowned in the Vam Co Dong River in southern Tay Ninh Province of Chau Thanh District when the boat carrying them across the river overturned yesterday afternoon.

The bodies of three male victims, all aged 28, were found last night.

The body of Tran Thi Thu Ha, 26, was found this morning at a depth of 15 metres and 30 metres away from the sunken boat, said the district People's Committee chairman Nguyen Van Hai.

The committee officer noted that the four passengers were teasing each other carelessly, and as a result, the boat had tilted. The driver of the boat swam to safety.

Dong Nai: “Milk for schools” reduces child malnutrition

The southern province of Dong Nai will launch a programme called “milk for schools” in a bid to reduce the rate of malnutrition among children in the locality and promote their physical growth.

The programme, which is to start from May this year, will be implemented in nursery schools in the districts of Xuan Loc, Cam My, Dinh Quan, Tan Phu and Vinh Cuu and two others in Bien Hoa city and Trang Bom district during its first phase.

It will benefit children in all nursery schools and those from six to eight years old across the locality by 2020. E ach child will be given 540 ml of milk a week, nine months a year.

Aimed at improving the lack of micronutrients, stunted growth as well as brainpower for children under six and kids in primary schools, the programme will run at a cost of 1.3 trillion VND, with 658 billion VND coming from the state budget, 459 billion VND contributed by parents and nearly 197 billion VND from milk companies.

Dong Nai is the third locality to carry out the project, following southern Ba Ria-Vung Tau province and northern Bac Ninh province.

According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), one-third of Vietnamese children under the age of five are stunted as a result of malnutrition. But Vietnam is making progress, currently leading the way in lowering rates of malnutrition.

Data from the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals (MDG) initiative shows that the rate of child malnutrition in Vietnam is declining by 1.5 percent every year. From 44 percent in 1994, the rate has dropped to under 20 percent at present.

Phu Yen looks to achieve universal nursery education

The central coastal province of Phu Yen has recently given 15 billion VND (705,000 USD) to the building of 39 new preschool rooms to ensure children aged five in all of its communes and towns have access to education by 2015.

The rooms, each covering 110 square metres, will be completed before the 2014-15 academic year.

At present, only 64 out of the province’s 112 communes, wards and towns have achieved universal nursery education.

The main reason behind the slow progress is the lack of investment capital for construction of standard preschool rooms.

During the 2011-2012 academic year, Vietnam had 3.4 million children in nursery education.

As of Mar 2012, 59 out of the country’s 63 provinces and cities realized universal primary education at an appropriate age. All the 63 localities completed universal secondary school.

Seminar improves public administration for central provinces

Ways to improve the provincial governance and public administration performance index (PAPI) for southern central and Central Highlands provinces were discussed at a seminar in Buon Ma Thuot city, Dak Lak province on April 21.

Accordingly, it was agreed that these provinces must continue improving the efficiency of public administration at grassroots levels and ensuring the publicity of fees and charges.

They should be more transparent in budget collection and spending and land use planning while respecting people’s assessments to promote the engagement of all members of society in supervising the implementation of policies, said participants.

A recent survey showed that despite positive changes in improving PAPI over the years, the southern central and Central Highlands provinces are still named among the group of localities with poor and average public administration performance.

People have usually complained about the shortage of hospital beds, the poor attitude of health workers and the lack of transparency surrounding fees, budget collection and land use planning.

Commenced in 2010, PAPI is a policy tool that aims to measure the administration and governance efficiency of the State administration system in all 63 provinces and cities nationwide.

The index is based on a philosophy considering citizens as the customers of public administration agencies. As such, they are capable of overseeing and assessing the effectiveness of governance and public administration of local authorities.

An art performance celebrating South African culture will be organised in Hanoi to celebrate the 20 th anniversary of Freedom Day (April 27) in the country.

The information was revealed at a press conference held by the South African Embassy in Vietnam on April 21.

South African Ambassador Kgomotso Ruth Magau briefed participants on her country’s great achievements over the past two decades.

She also highlighted the traditional relations between Vietnam and South Africa, saying that the two nations will continue working closely to further develop their economy, thus bettering the living standard for their people.

The ambassador stated Vietnam is now one of her country’s important trade partners in Asia, stressing that the two countries are making every effort to strengthen their friendship and bilateral cooperation, especially in trade and industry development.

Vietnam and South Africa established their diplomatic links in 1993. The celebration will contribute to fostering the cooperation between the two sides, towards bringing prosperous development to both nations’ people in the future.

Locals' support key to success of new rural development

After three years implementing a national programme on new rural development, 11 communes in five Central Highland provinces have satisfied all the 19 of the programme’s criteria thanks to their efforts in mobilising support from the people, reported radio The Voice of Vietnam.

Among the 19 criteria for new rural development, developing a rural traffic system is one of the hardest to achieve because it is expensive. But Ea O commune in Dak Lak province’s Ea Kar district has found a way.

Over the past three years, the commune has managed to build two bridges and 90 km of paved roads connecting local hamlets and communes, worth around 3.5 million USD. The key was getting 500 households in the commune to voluntarily contribute their land use right, money and labour to build new roads.

Nguyen Minh Chuyen, Chairman of Ea O commune People’s Committee, said that with locals' support, the commune may complete the national rural development programme by 2015.

"In order to encourage local people to support the programme, it’s important to acknowledge their contributions in appropriate ways. For example, we went to every household to ask for a contribution, stated the contributions clearly in a report, and after the work was completed, we honoured them for their donations in public," he said.

Similarly, the communes of Quang Dien, Ea Tul and Ea Nuol have succeeded in mobilising contributions to their new rural development. Hundreds of households in these communes voluntarily moved their houses, donated their land, money and contributed their labour to building welfare facilities and making roads.

Nguyen Loc, a resident of Krong Ana district’s Quang Dien commune, donated 600 square meters of his fields to make roads and encouraged his neighbours to follow suit.

"My decision was supported by everyone in my family because we understood that we ourselves will ultimately benefit from this program. Once the roads are completed, it will be easier for us to travel and this will also increase local land prices," Loc said.

The national rural development programme has also seen improvements in communes with an ethnic minority.

Senior Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Minh Manh is the political commissar of Brigade 198, which has provided assistance to three communes in Dak Lak province in implementing the national rural development programme.

Manh attributed the programme’s success in ethnic minority areas to efforts by the local authorities to make residents aware of the programme and provide them with clear instructions on the State’s rural development guidelines and policies. Another important factor in the programme’s success, he added, is that officers and soldiers get close to the people and stand ready to support them at any time.

"We take part in any works by the local people, from supporting their daily chores to building roads, dredging irrigation canals, and so on… And this has created close bonds between the soldiers and the local people, making it easier for us to complete the new rural development programme, and carry out unanticipated tasks," he said.

Southern provinces exchange crime prevention experience

Officials of the Vietnam Fatherland Front and police officers from 15 southern provinces exchanged experiences in crime prevention at a conference in Ho Chi Minh City on April 21.

Vice Chairwoman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee, Ha Thi Lien, underlined the involvement of people from all strata in ensuring security along with the inter-sectoral coordination required in the work.

Many effective crime prevention models were presented at the conference, for example a hotline for reporting crimes in Long An province and community-based programmes rehabilitating ex-prisoners in HCM City and Binh Duong province.

Senior Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Dinh Trung from the Ministry of Public Security said there were 59,000 criminal cases in Vietnam in 2013, up 5.03 percent from a year before.

The situation is predicted to worsen in 2014, especially in organised drug and economic crime, he said, adding that all authorised agencies need to work more closely and encourage people to join together in the work.

Project opens wheelchair-accessibility to facilities

The disabled people assistance project for 2014-2020 in Ho Chi Minh City requires new facilities to provide wheelchair-accessible areas, according to the Saigon Giai phong daily.

Architects will receive training courses on designing wheelchair-accessible facilities. These include new state-run headquarters, offices, medical clinics, educational facilities, cultural houses, and public areas.

The city's Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and the Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism will be renovated for wheelchair accessibility, the paper said, adding that customers with special needs visiting these facilities will be able to receive help on the ground floors.

Bus drivers will also receive training to serve people with disabilities.

Children under six years old will receive thorough examinations to detect any disabilities. Parents are encouraged to provide schooling for children with disabilities to ensure education for at least 90 percent.

Private schools with special education programmes will receive tax exemptions.

The project has a total investment of 204 billion VND (9.7 million USD), the paper said.

Binh Dinh fishing vessels invest in comms

Over 1,400 high-capacity offshore fishing vessels in the central province of Binh Dinh have been equipped with high-frequency communication equipment, making it easier for fishermen to make contact with the mainland and their peers while out at sea.

The well-equipped vessels make up 52 percent of the total in the province.

The equipment will track their location and movement, said head of the provincial Department of Aquatic Resource Exploitation and Protection Mai Kim Thi.

Earlier, the department invested over 500 million VND (23,800 USD) in building a station in Tam Quan Bac commune, Hoai Nhon district in order to contact local fishing vessels.

Construction of another station at De Gi seaport, Phu Cat district is under consideration.

Int’l science workshop in Binh Dinh ponders universal questions

Seventy astrophysicists from 20 countries and territories around the world are gathering in Quy Nhon city, the central province of Binh Dinh, for an international workshop on extra-solar planets that kicked off on April 21.

Opening the workshop, Swiss astrophysicist and Professor Michel Mayor said human beings have long wondered if life can only be found on Earth and if other civilizations exist elsewhere in the universes. This question has promoted the development of science and inspired passion in those who practise it.

During the five-day function, scientists will discuss astrophysical issues, such as measuring the weight of planets, finding out properties of small exoplanets, and searching for Earth-like planets.

They will also table new scientific ideas and the development of astronomical equipment.

The workshop is part of the 2014 “Meet Vietnam” event, which offers a platform for global scientists to exchange their views on numerous scientific issues. The annual event is held by the France-based Rencontres du Vietnam (Meet Vietnam) Association.

Kien Giang boosts IT application in urban management

Vietnam’s FPT software corporation and Japan’s Hitachi and Zenrin groups will help the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang carry out a project to apply information technology in urban management.

Under a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation between the local authorities and the three groups signed on April 21, the firms will work with the province to research the feasibility of the project in order to supply IT services to the province’s administrative management.

Hitachi and Zenrin will transfer their software and provide consultancy and support to Kien Giang in implementing IT projects, especially the application of a geographical information system (GIS) for mapping, to help the province realise its socio-economic development goals set for the next five years.

According to the provincial Department of Information and Communications, the project will also help state agencies in the province improve their managerial competence.

Through the project, Kien Giang is expected to become one of the first localities to successfully apply the model of urban management by IT in Vietnam.

The project’s first phase will give priority to Rach Gia city and Phu Quoc district, towards developing the two localities into modern and smart urban areas in the future.

Coastal erosion threatens Binh Thuan province

An official from the central province of Binh Thuan has suggested relocating all people residing in Phan Thiet city’s Tien Duc hamlet to safety as soon as possible due to the dangers posed by coastal erosion.

The hamlet, which is located in the city’s Tien Thanh commune, is home to 280 households with 1,000 people. It has been the hardest hit by erosion, with 25 houses being swept away by the sea since the beginning of this year, and more than 50 others facing the same fate, Vice Chairman of the local People’s Committee Dang Dinh Hieu stated at an emergency meeting on April 21.

He noted that the city has a 57 km stretch of eroded coastline. The wearing away of land has taken place since 2012 as a result of rising sea levels, encroaching as deep as 50 meters into the mainland. More than 75 households have been completely destroyed.

Phu Quy island district, located about 120km from the city to the east, is also taking measures to prevent further damage. It is moving to relocate 280 households in danger-prone areas to safer places before a band of tropical low pressure arrives. It is also building storm shelters for fishermen during the rainy season, said Chairman of the People’s Committee Huynh Van Hung.

Vietnam, with a coastline stretching over 3,200 km through 28 coastal provinces and cities, is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to the impacts of climate change.

VNA/VNS/Dantri/VOV