Mekong Delta strives to cut poverty rate

Mekong Delta provinces will strive to help more than 44,000 households escape poverty this year, bringing the region’s poverty rate down to 6% from 7.2% at the end of 2013.

Toward this goal, policies will be adopted to facilitate the development of household economy and farms as well as small industry and traditional crafts, thus increasing incomes for farmers.

At the same time, vocational training and job placement in rural areas will be improved to help poor labourers find a suitable livelihood.

A programme to build new residential areas safe from flood will continue to be implemented this year with the goal of settling 138,000 households including 27,000 poor families. More poor ethnic minority households will be given land for housing.

Provinces in the region will also grant health insurance cards to poor people to cushion them against risks.

Another target of the region this year is to raise its annual average per capita income to VND37 million (roughly US$1,740), up 6.9% from 2013.

The country’s annual average per capita income was US$1,960 last year.

The Mekong Delta region, the largest granary and aquaculture region of the country, comprises of 12 provinces and one centrally-run city with a population of 18 million.

PM takes measures to stop wildlife trafficking

Viet Nam should act firmly against trafficking in rare and endangered animals or their parts to restore the nation's tarnished reputation in wildlife protection, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has said.

In a directive asking inter-sectoral forces to conduct more patrols and inspections in border areas including international airports and ports, Dung drew attention to the recent discovery of trafficking in endangered and rare wild animals including the rhino horn, African elephant tusks and tigers.

He said the situation was "complicated" and has caused several negative impacts including the depletion of natural resources, increased risk of new infectious diseases and threats to national security.

It has worsened the image of Viet Nam in implementing international conventions to protect wild animals, which the country has ratified, he said.

He ordered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to educate and mobilise overseas Vietnamese to refrain from any involvement in the trade and transport of wild animals or animal parts in the countries they reside.

The Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Development has been tasked with monitoring implementation of the directive, tackling ensuing problems and sending annual reports to the Prime Minister.

Dung also asked mass media outlets to severely criticise all violations related to wildlife trafficking and increase the frequency of disseminating information about wildlife conservation so as to raise public awareness of its importance.

NGO role in climate change fight strengthened

Nearly 100 civil organisations and 20 poor communities in 23 cities and provinces will benefit from a project strengthening the role of Vietnamese non-governmental organisations in climate change communications and policy advocacy.

Vu Thi Bich Hop, director of the Centre for Sustainable Rural Development (SRD) and head of the Network of Vietnamese Non-Governmental Organisations and Climate Change (VNGO & CC), announced the project at a workshop in Ha Noi on Tuesday.

Conducted by the SRD, the Centres for Marine Life Conservation and Community Development, Community Health Research and Development, Rural Development in Central Viet Nam and the Research Institute for Climate Change, the initiative will focus on the Mekong Delta, the Red River Delta and provinces vulnerable to climate change.

Viet Nam is one of five countries projected to suffer the most severe effects of climate change, according to the United Nations.

"With a total budget of more than AUD224,000 (US$200,000), including over AUD200,000 funded by the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), the project aims to improve the efficiency of response to the impacts of climate change by improving the ability of the Chief Security Officer (CSO) and strengthening NGOs' participation in policymaking on climate change," said head of the Climate Change Department under the SRD Pham Thi Bich Ngoc.

It will also help the VNGO & CC work more effectively by improving the organisational and coordination structure of operations, Ngoc said.

Also in Ha Noi, the SRD held a workshop on Wednesday on behalf of the management board of the Network of Vietnamese Non-Governmental Organisations and Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (VNGO-FLEGT). The meeting focused on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade Voluntary Partnership Agreements.

"Approved in 2003, FLEGT was one of the European Union's responses to international concerns about illegal logging and trading; the document sets out supply-and-demand measures to combat the problem. Meanwhile, Viet Nam is currently one of the 15 largest timber-exporting countries in the world, with two major markets in North America and European," Hop said.

The FLEGT VPA develops control and licensing procedures in countries that produce and process timber in order to ensure that only products made from legally-harvested timber can enter the EU.

Participation will help the country maintain the two large markets, while reducing illegal logging and trading and encouraging afforestation, according to Hop.

The EU has so far concluded a FLEGT VPA with five African countries and one Asian country, Indonesia. It is currently negotiating with other countries including Malaysia, Gabon and the Democratic Republic of Congo.—

Delta water project demonstrates green power

The living conditions of rural people in the Mekong Delta will be improved thanks to the construction of a water supply station using solar and wind energy in the province of Soc Trang.

As part the Danish-funded project, three water supply stations will be built in remote areas that are densely populated by Khmer ethnic people: Chau Thanh district, Prey Chop hamlet and the Vinh Phuoc ward of Vinh Chau town.

With a total investment of 1 billion VND (47,000 USD), the stations have a daily capacity of between 30 and 70 cubic metres each and run by solar energy or both solar and wind power.

The construction has been supported with non-refundable aid of 4 million Danish krone (14.8 billion VND) along with over 2.3 billion VND contributed by the 12 provinces and cities benefiting from the project.

The development aims to promote a sustainable water supply for rural communities in the Mekong Delta while proving the efficiency of greener energy supply methods, increasing local understanding for the benefit of Vietnamese rural people, the environment and the economics of the region.

Vietnam’s Mekong Delta is believed to be one of the most vulnerable areas to the impacts of climate change in the world.-

Bird flu inspections strengthened at border gates

The Health Ministry has taken drastic measures to strengthen health checks and the inspections of imported goods at border gates, with the aim of preventing bird flu viruses from entering the country.

Tran Dac Phu, director of the ministry’s Preventive Medicine Department, said that since the beginning of this year, nine teams have been established to assist northern border provinces in the fight against the H7N9 and H5N1 strains of avian flu.

They have also supervised localities carrying out poultry smuggling investigations.

Phu confirmed that no avian flu H7N9 case has been reported so far this year in either humans or poultry. However, the country has been facing a very high risk due to the sudden increase in H7N9 cases in neighbouring China, he added.

Therefore, the ministry has intensified inspections 24/7 by using infra-red body temperature measuring machines at border gates as around 130,000 Chinese enter Vietnam each month. Unusually high temperatures can be a symptom of avian flu.

In the time to come, the health sector will continue strengthening quarantine work at border gates, and improving the capacity of doctors to avoid fatalities.

Yen Bai gives measles vaccination to 48,000 children

Nearly 48,000 children under 15 years old in the northern mountainous province of Yen Bai are expected to receive vaccinations against measles during immunisation campaigns from February 20-28.

The children are from 218 villages and communes in districts of Van Chan, Van Yen, Yen Binh, Tran Yen and Luc Yen, where the ratio of measles vaccination was low.

This year, Yen Bai province aims to have 98 percent of children fully vaccinated against measles.

The locality has so far this year seen 350 measles cases, including one death due to poor awareness of the danger of the disease, especially among parents from ethnic minority groups.

The provincial People’s Committee has asked localities to increase communication activities among parents about the benefits of vaccination while reviewing the immunisation against the disease in all communes to prevent it from outbreaking.

Severe measles is more likely among poorly nourished young children, especially those with insufficient vitamin A, or whose immune system have been weaken by diseases, it said.

In 2013, the country saw 1,048 measles cases, mostly in children under the age of 10 (75.9 percent).-

Localities step up efforts against diseases in animals, poultry

The southern province of Tay Ninh has injected 3 billion VND (141,000 USD) from its budget into the struggle against foot-and-mouth, blue-ear disease and bird flu.

Accordingly, animal health agencies have conducted disinfection and vaccinations at border districts, border gates and live poultry markets in order to limit the spread of such diseases.

As of February 21, the Cambodia-bordering province has reported seven bird flu hotbeds in Ben Cau and Chau Thanh districts, with a total of more than 6,000 sick fowls.

The Mekong Delta city of Can Tho has also asked for an additional one million doses of vaccine as the number of sick poultry continues to rise.

The municipal agricultural sector has, so far this year, detected seven avian influenza outbreaks in Phong Dien, Thoi Lan, O Mon and Binh Thuy districts.

Although A/H5N1bird flu appears to have left the northern province of Bac Ninh, the locality has continued conducting a range of preventive measures.

From February 22 to March 21, the locality will launch a disinfection drive along with taking samples of poultry to ease early detection of any disease.

The provincial health department has tightened its inspection of flu in humans and boosted its use of quarantining risky patients.

Meanwhile, the northern mountainous province of Yen Bai set up five quarantine posts in Yen Bai city and surrounding areas.

Along with increasing awareness-raising work, the province has also keep a close watch on the import of poultry from across its borders.

Since February 2014, Yen Bai has used 234 litres of disinfectant and checked the transportation of tens of thousands of heads of animals and poultry.

According to the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, avian influenza, foot-and-mouth and blue-ear disease have all struck the locality in the past.

A/H5N1 has so far this year killed two people in the southern provinces of Binh Phuoc and Dong Thap.

Vietnam-Poland Friendship Association meets

The Vietnam-Poland Friendship Association congress for the 2014-2019 term has selected Nguyen Dang Cuong to helm its newly elected 14-member executive board.

In other business at the February 23 meeting in HCM City, the congress adopted orientations for the association’s activities in the new term and devised key tasks aimed at fostering the time-honoured friendship and all-sided cooperation between Vietnam and Poland.

They agreed to focus on intensifying the dissemination of information about Party and State guidelines and policies along with a range of activities to deepen mutual understanding and diversify between the two nations.

HCM City Union of Friendship Organizations President Le Hung Quoc said he optimistic that the association’s activities will contribute to promoting people-to-people exchanges, peace and friendship between the two nations.

Established in 1990, the association is one of the friendship organizations set up soon after Southern Liberation Day. It has so far attracted postgraduates and those who once lived and worked in Poland and launched diverse activities as positive contributions to external affairs.

PPP aims to improve healthcare

Vietnam needs to develop a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model in the health sector to help mobilise non-State sectors and improve healthcare check-ups and treatment quality, while easing overloading in public hospitals.

The issue was raised at a workshop held by the Ministry of Health and the World Bank on February 20 to discuss measures to foster co-operation between the Government and the private sector in the healthcare industry.

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam said public hospitals in Vietnam were constantly overloaded while private hospitals failed to attract patients.

After recently visiting some hospitals in Hanoi and HCM City, he found that many private hospitals are equipped with modern devices and applied high sanitation standards, but only 30% of their patient beds are used.

Vietnam has 100 private hospitals with 6,000 beds and more than 30,000 private clinics which could play an important part in reducing overloading in public hospitals.

Meanwhile, most central-level public hospitals use up to 120% of their bed capacity.

However, it is a question of how to utilise this private health check-up and treatment system to help ease overloading in public hospitals.

Many participants said one of the answers to this problem was to promote the PPP model in the health sector.

Dam said the private sector had actively participated in the health sector over the past years, but had still failed to meet the actual demand.

More comprehensive policies and mechanisms from land and capital to human resources to help attract new investment capital sources for healthcare projects under the PPP were needed to maximise the capacity of modern private hospitals, he said.

Deputy Health Minister Pham Le Tuan said increasing public demand for health check-ups and treatment, overloading at public hospitals and strong development of private hospitals and clinics were the reasons for developing the PPP model in the health sector.

Yet, a shortage of policies and mechanisms on PPP in the health sector made projects unattractive to private investors.

Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Dao Quang Thu said many countries such as Canada, the UK, India and the Republic of Korea had successfully adopted the PPP model in the health sector.

In Vietnam, the health sector has potential for the development of the PPP model.In reality, the participation of the private sector remains limited.

Most participants said the most important thing was to form specific policies and mechanisms for PPP in the health sector, focusing on land, capital and human resources.

Many countries are facing increasing financial pressure from public service sectors, particularly in the field of healthcare, with a global expenditure for this sector surpassing US$4 trillion, equivalent to 9% of global GDP, according to experts from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank Group.

Public spending often failed to meet people's demand for health check-ups and treatment services, and in many low-income countries, people had to pay up to 60% of healthcare fees, they said.

It was important not to consider the PPP model as a tool to provide better healthcare services for those who could afford them, but to help poor patients without health insurance, they said. It meant that the PPP model would help poor patients to be able to access qualified healthcare services.

Dirk Sommer from the IFC said Vietnam needed to learn from other countries in order to form a sustainable PPP model.

A successful PPP model depended on politics, the economy and the implementation of the project, he said.

Sharing his experience in applying the PPP model, the director of the health department in the northern province of Phu Tho Ho Duc Hai, said the Phu Tho General Hospital had mobilised different investment capital sources to upgrade facilities and equipment, and improve staff training.

This co-operation had helped to increase the hospital's daily turnover to nearly VND10 billion (US$$470,000) from VND100-200 million, he said, adding that it had also helped to ease the city's overload.

Deputy Health Minister Tuan said the ministry would ask the Government to draft legal documents for the PPP model, eliminate procedural difficulties and allocate capital and human resources to ensure its success.

Doctors at Tam Duc Heart Hospital in HCM City, the biggest private hospital in the country, conduct an operation on a patient.

HCM City strives to improve vocational training

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam’s largest economic hub, will implement measures to improve the quality of vocational training and raise the number of trained workers to 68% this year.

The municipal Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs said that the city’s vocational training has yet to meet the demand of businesses and the labour market.

The city will focus on diversifying the modes of training and developing reliable occupations.

Many facilities have paid attention to vocational training for people with disabilities, soldiers who complete their military service and rural labourers.

Ho Chi Minh City now has 430 vocational training facilities. The number of trained workers in 2013 accounted for 66% of the city’s total employees.

HCM City water supplier needs $215m to reach all residents

HCM City water supplier Sawaco will need investment capital of more than VND4.5 trillion (US$215million) to build water pipelines to ensure that all city residents have access to tap water this year.

Tran Dinh Phu, Sawaco's (Saigon Water Corporation) general director, told the HCM City People 's Council's Economic and Budget Commission during a meeting on Tuesday that more than 89 per cent of the population has had access to tap water, but the city will raise the rate to 100 per cent by the end of this year.

To reach the target, Sawaco needs to build 1,100km of water pipeline, 94km of which are main pipelines costing VND2.3 trillion. The remaining are small pipelines, costing VND2.2trillion.

However, Sawaco, is only able to cover less than half of the invested capital and has sought private investment for its water pipeline project.

"Many investors are willing to invest in water plants but don't want to invest in the pipeline project because it takes a long time to recover capital," Phu said.

Phu proposed to the People's Council that it use its budget to help Sawaco cover half of the investment capital of VND4.5 trillion.

According to Phu, the city will have two more water plants. The Thu Duc 3 Plant built by the Saigon Clean Water Investment and Trading Co. will start operation by the end of this year and the Tan Hiep 2 Water Plant invested by Tan Hiep Water Invesment Co., by the end of next year. Each plant has a capacity of 300,000 c.m a day.

"Sawaco will buy water from the plants to supply to city residents. It needs to invest in more water pipelines to fully use the additional water volume," Phu said.

Flyovers fail to curb traffic congestion

A series of newly-built steel flyovers have been put into use in HCM City to reduce traffic congestion. However, some have proven to be ineffective, especially during rush hours.

The Hang Xanh intersection flyover is an example. The four-lane flyover, with a width of 16 metres and a length of 390 metres, opened to traffic early last year in Binh Thanh District. The VND88 billion (US$4.1 million) flyover, which was designed for both cars and motorbikes, was expected to reduce 80 per cent of the area's traffic jams.

However, all two-wheeled vehicles were banned when this flyover was inaugurated due to safety concerns, leaving the congestion unimproved. The city tried to divide lanes and allow two-wheeled vehicles on the flyover as a trial. But after a short period, they were forced to again ban the vehicles.

Nguyen Thi Tram, resident in District 2, said she and other people were still suffering from traffic jams during rush hours, although the overpass helped ease the situation.

"I go to this road everyday and the situation has yet to get better. I feel annoyed, as the city authorities keeps banning and allowing motorbikes to run on this road."

"Many flyovers have been built, but traffic chaos still happen. I think authorities should evaluate their effectiveness before building more such projects," she said.

The same situation occurs at other flyovers, which solved the traffic jams at intersections, though traffic chaos arose in surrounding areas during peak hours.

Recently, city authorities approved building a steel flyover in Go Vap Intersection at a cost of VND354 trillion ($16.8 million).

The city has also considered a project to build two overpasses at two crossroads in District 3 and District 11.

Last year, six steel flyovers were built at serious congestion-prone areas in the city.

Doctor Pham Xuan Mai of HCM City's University of Technology, said flyovers should only be built at certain key traffic spots in the city.

"Congestion in the city has become a long stream, instead of just in spots, as in other places. Flyovers only solved the problem at the place they were installed," he said.

Doctor Nguyen Huu Nguyen of The Southern Economic Research Centre, said construction of flyovers could not ease the current situation.

In general, the area for traffic in urban areas must be between 20 and 25 per cent of the total area, while that found in Viet Nam was only 7-9 per cent. Underground bridges or flyovers could only expand 1 per cent of it.

According to experts, the city had more than 7,000 kilometres of roads, but 2,000 of these were narrow. Thus, the city should organise different vehicles to travel on different routes, with tuk tuks being the correct choice in narrow areas.

The city should invest more in the network of buses and the construction of a subway. The reduction of population density from urban to suburban areas should also be carried out.

Sugarcane farmers look to sweeter crops

Many sugarcane farmers in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta have switched to cultivate shrimp and other crops over the past two years to earn more money.

In Soc Trang Province's Cu Lao Dung District, which has one of the largest sugarcane areas in the Delta, many farmers that have already harvested their 2013-14 crop have switched to shrimp, corn, sweet potato and other plants.

Ho Thanh Kiet, head of the Cu Lao Dung Agriculture and Rural Development Bureau, said traders were buying sugarcane at fields at a price of VND700 a kilogramme.

At this price, farmers could only break even or lose after nearly one year of growing a sugarcane crop, Kiet said.

The district's sugarcane area is estimated to fall by 500ha for the 2014-15 sugarcane crop, according to the bureau.

Nguyen Hoang Phuc in Cu Lao Dung's An Thanh 2 Commune, who has planted sugarcane for 37 years, has dug two ponds with a total area of 4,500 sq.m in his sugarcane field to breed shrimp.

"I suffered losses in the sugarcane crop for 2013-14," Phuc said.

Phuc said he had invested in shrimp even though the financial outlay for the ponds was high.

The price of shrimp has risen in recent years, so many sugarcane farmers have switched to raising shrimp.

Tran Van Be, deputy chairman of the Cu Lao Dung People's Committee, said Cu Lao Dung had decided that sugarcane was the district's key crop.

The district has the highest sugarcane yield in the delta and supplies sugarcane sugar mills in Soc Trang and the Delta's other provinces.

However, the price of sugarcane has continued to fall over the past two years because of large sugar inventories and an increase in smuggled sugar.

Last year, the district's farmers converted more than 100ha of sugarcane into shrimp ponds.

The district officials estimate that an additional 300ha of sugarcane will be turned into shrimp ponds this year.

In Tra Vinh, Ben Tre, Long An and Hau Giang provinces, many sugarcane farmers have also planted other crops after harvesting this year's sugarcane crop.

Nguyen The Tu, head of the Phung Hiep District Agriculture and Rural Development Bureau in Hau Giang, said farmers in Phung Hiep had converted 700ha of sugarcane to other crops in the 2014-15 sugarcane crop.

In Tra Vinh, the area under sugarcane cultivation has declined to 5,800ha in the 2013-14 sugarcane crop, down about 300ha against the last crop, according to the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Sugarcane cultivation in the delta has declined in recent years, and sugar mills are expected to face a shortage of raw materials in the future, according to experts.

Hospitals focus on infection

All health facilities in HCM City should monitor and assess infection control systems in order to prevent hospital infection, according to the City Department of Health's Medical Profession Division.

At the workshop on improving patient safety for nurses, which was held in HCM City yesterday, Huynh Thi Phuong, said that all health facilities in the city had established an infection control system.

However, only 68.5 per cent of them monitor and assesses the system regularly, according to Phuong.

Monitoring and assessment helps find shortcomings in the infection control systems so that hospitals can improve the systems.

Every hospital in the city has set up an infection control council.

The city also has begun programmes on hand washing compliance, and safe solid and liquid waste treatment.

Lots of the research shows that hospital infection raises mortality, prolongs the duration of illness and treatment, which increases the use of antibiotics and hospital costs.

Phuong used a 900-bed hospital and its intensive care unit in Brussels, as an example of the effectiveness of proper infection control.

The hospital started its infection control programme in 1996. It assessed the basic rate of nosocomial infection in the programme's first year, she said.

It adopted methods such as the standardisation of nursing care and hand hygiene.

The results were a reduction in the number of patients with sepsis-blood poisoning, urinary tract infections, and nosocomial pneumonia by 33 per cent over five years, Phuong said.

Phuong said that improving care techniques would help improve patient safety.

Jackie Wright, president of Australia Viet Nam Volunteers Resource Group Inc's Vic Health Education Team, said that hospital safety was a serious global public health issue.

In recent years, countries had increasingly recognised the importance of improving patient safety. In developed countries, one in 10 patients is harmed while receiving hospital care, she said.

Health facilities should improve patient safety by promoting a culture of reporting and learning from patient safety incidents, she suggested.

Collecting data from incidents would assist in identifying trends and patterns of avoidable incidents and underlying cause, as well as developing models of good practice, she added.

Mekong Delta succeeding in rural development

Mekong Delta provinces have so far poured more than 91.8 trillion VND (4.1 billion USD) into building new-style rural areas in 1,300 communes, said the Steering Committee for the Southwestern Region.

According to Nguyen Phong Quang, deputy head of the committee’s standing board, the money has been used in transport, irrigation, electricity, education, healthcare and housing.

As a result, the region’s growth rate saw a year-on-year increase of 9 percent in 2013 with agriculture up 4 percent, the export of farm produce up 10.6 percent, and industry up 11.9 percent.

Last year, the region’s average per capita income stood at 34.6 million VND (1,600 USD), 2.3 million VND higher than that recorded in 2012, Quang said.

Nearly 2,700 class rooms were built, he said, adding that the drop-out rate was cut to 0.69 percent and 97.5 percent of school-age children have gained access to classes.

Programmes on education, health insurance, housing and vocational training, among others, have been implemented effectively.

There are 21 communes in the region meeting at least 15 criteria required for building new-style rural areas and 320 others satisfying 10-14 criteria.

Building infrastructure, improving production capacity, protecting the environment and promoting local traditions and cultural identities are among the criteria for building the new rural areas – a programme launched by the Government in 2010.-

Work starts on Lach Giang estuary channels

Construction of channels running through Lach Giang estuary began in Hai Hau district, the northern province of Nam Dinh, on February 23.

The work is part of a major transport project expected to cost more than 201.5 million USD, with the World Bank providing a loan of 171 million USD and the remainder coming from the Vietnamese Government.

The first phase will upgrade the Viet Tri-Hanoi-Quang Ninh waterway corridors and the second will build a breakwater and canal at the Lach Giang estuary while upgrading the Viet Tri, Ninh Binh-Ninh Phuc river ports.

Speaking at the ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai described infrastructure development, especially in transport, as one of the three strategic tasks on Vietnam’s path towards becoming an industrialised nation by 2020.

He asked the Ministry of Transport, the project’s investors, management board and constructors to mobilise all resources for the work.

The ministry must closely partner with local authorities to overcome obstacles along the way and ensure successful completion of the project, he said.

Once operational, the channels will allow ships with loads of up to 1,000 tonnes to reach ports in the Red River, while heavier cargo ships will gain access to Ninh Co port in Nam Dinh province and Ninh Phuc port in Ninh Binh province.

The work is expected to be completed by the end of December 2015.

Film encourages people to say no to tiger bone glue

Education for Nature - Vietnam (ENV) has just released a short film calling upon people to join hands to stop the killing of tigers by saying no to tiger bone glue, the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Online Newspaper reported.

The film criticises the backward viewpoint of some people that tiger bone glue is not only a good medicine but also shows off one’s success and status amongst friends and colleagues.

The main character of the film is a newly appointed member of the board of directors. To impress other members of the board, he uses tiger bone glue as a gift at his first board meeting. However, the gift is not well received but creates the opposite impression of what he had hoped, tarnishing his image.

Apart from the message "Tiger bone glue will not impress anyone”, the short film also calls on viewers to protect tigers by reporting tiger crimes to authorities or via the free hotline 1800 1522.

Currently, a lot of Vietnamese people, especially men, still believe that tiger bone glue is a miracle medicine to help treat bone diseases, improve health and enhance vitality. In Vietnam, tiger bone glue is usually used as gifts among entrepreneurs, officials, and wealthy people.

Over the past few decades, the tiger population in the world has declined sharply, mainly due to poaching, trade and habitat loss. According to statistics, Vietnam currently has only about 30 tigers living in the wild. Economic development and people’s improved living standards are believed to have increased demand for tiger bone glue.

"Some people still believe that using tiger bone glue for treatment is fashionable, is a way to express their rank. However, it is the time for us to wake up, we need to think and act based on the science, and in a way suitable with a civilized era. The actions and unfounded beliefs leading to tiger hunting and trafficking need to be changed," Deputy Director of ENV Nguyen Thi Phuong Dung.

She also warned that Vietnam's tigers could soon suffer the same fate as the one-horned rhino, which was announced to be extinct in Vietnam in 2010.

This is the 18th film in a series of short films for communication to raise awareness in order to reduce consumption of endangered and rare wildlife products of ENV.

The films will be broadcast on central and local television channels.

Quang Ninh bidding to build Youth Island

The northeastern coastal province of Quang Ninh will pour 162 billion VND (7.7 million USD) into infrastructure building for its Tran Island, which now has become a national youth island.

Tran Island is among the country’s five locations named as National Youth Island under a project recently approved by the Government.

The project on building national youth islands between now and 2020 aims to encourage young people and families to act as pioneers in effectively making the most of the potential offered by Vietnam ’s sea and islands, and building a sustainable household economy on the islands.

Tran Island in Co To district has an area of 5.5 sq.km. The island, 35 km from Mong Cai city in Quang Ninh province and seven nautical miles from the Tonkin Gulf borderline, is considered a strategic location.

Since the end of 2013, Quang Ninh province has launched a project to encourage young people to reside on Tran Island .

Quang Ninh has selected 17 voluntary households to relocate to the island, and most of main workers are under the age of 40. These would-be islanders will be introduced to their new home in the second quarter of 2014.

They will be supported with free residential land, 80 percent of house building expenses and loans under concessional terms, among other incentives.

Apart from Tran Island, four others locations will also be developed into youth islands: H on Chuoi Island in the southernmost province of Ca Mau; Tho Chau Island in the southern province of Kien Giang; Bach Long Vi Island in the northern city of Hai Phong; and Con Co Island in the central province of Quang Tri.-

Oxfam climate change response project benefits Ben Tre

A climate change response project launched by the UK charity Oxfam has benefited 15 communes in the southern province of Ben Tre since 2012.

Funded by the New Zealand Government, the five-year project “Building resilience to disasters and climate change risks for men and women” is improving the capacity of local people in disaster management and climate change adaptation.

It is supporting livelihoods for poor and vulnerable groups like the elderly, children and the disabled along with adding the supply of clean water and local hygiene.

In 2013, it provided the 15 communes with early warning disaster equipment and other machines worth over 1.4 billion VND (66,000 USD) while training courses on community-based disaster management and disaster risk reduction were also opened.

Meanwhile, as many as 37 watermelon farming households received essential equipment while 237 breeding goats were distributed to other farming families.

In coordination with the Centre for Clean Water and Environment Hygiene, the project also assisted the construction of water containers in Ba Tri district’s Tan Xuan and Bao Thuan communes.

During the year, the project ran 54 activities at a total cost of over 17 billion VND (800 million USD).

Ben Tre is facing negative impacts of climate change like environmental pollution, typhoons and heavy floods.

HCM City’s hydrofoils need further check

HCMC’s government has given a document to the Department of Transport guiding measures against degraded hydrofoils, saying that all the vessels must remain anchored for further technical examination.

According to the traffic safety unit under the Ministry of Transport, the ministry will set up a group to look into technical safety of hydrofoils in HCMC and Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province. Inspectors will focus on issues that the city’s transport department has yet to survey or give clear results before.

Earlier, the city has reported to the ministry inspection results over hydrofoils of the HCMC-Vung Tau route. Local inspectors have found that all the hydrofoils had been in use for over 20 years, and their hulls have degraded.

They have also discovered oil leaks in four of the nine hydrofoils, broken fuel pipes in six out of nine, water leaks at the cockpit, cabin and engine compartment in three vessels, and substandard lifebuoys in four vessels.

The department has also suggested the ministry to conduct full check of durability of the vessels so as the hydrofoil service could resume soon.

On January 20, a blaze burned down a hydrofoil while it was en route from the city to Vung Tau with 92 people on board including 85 passengers and seven crewmembers.

The captain of the Vina Express vessel then drove the hydrofoil to the shore of the Saigon River in District 7, while dozens of the passengers jumped into the river. They were all rescued by passing boats and rescue teams.

High risks of bird-flu transmission to humans

The HCMC Department of Health reiterated the high risks of bird-flu transmission to humans at a meeting on Wednesday, and urged relevant agencies and residents to stay vigilant against the deadly disease.

Speaking to representatives of the Medical Preventive Divisions of 24 districts, Nguyen Huu Hung, deputy director of the Health Department, warned against the high risks of transmission from fowls to humans, especially the lethal strain of A/H7N9 that is wrecking China havoc.

“The risks of the virus spreading to Vietnam is very high, and the Health Department has proposed the city government to set up four inspection teams and prepare necessary facilities to fight the epidemic in case of outbreaks,” he said.

As of February 17, China had recorded 357 cases of human infections, with 74 people killed, mainly in provinces bordering Vietnam, Hung said, adding there are signs the virus has spread to Southeast Asia.

“It is crucial to inform the people of the high risks of A/H7N9 virus, since there are no visible symptoms on infected fowls,” he stressed.

He advised all people to come to hospital upon such symptoms as coughing, running nose or unfounded fever. Residents should informed relevant agencies when finding dead birds, Hung added.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar are countries having high risks of the A/H7N9 virus from China.

Regarding the less lethal virus H5N1, high vigilance is also important.

Vietnam currently has 35 million doses of H5N1 vaccines while the bird flu is likely to spread widely, and thus the use of such vaccine needs to be taken into careful consideration, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.

Therefore, provinces should use their budget reserves to prevent and control the bird flu, said Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat at an online meeting with provinces and cities nationwide on the H5N1 bird flu prevention held on Tuesday.

“In localities having A/H5N1 virus, there six out of 100 ducks infected with the virus and 61 out of 100 markets detected with the virus. Therefore, the bird flu is highly likely to spread and outbreak,” Minister Phat stressed.

According to the Animal Health Department, 14 provinces nationwide had been hit by the bird flu as of Tuesday. The number of poultry destroyed has amounted to 66,388.

Besides, the bird flu has occurred in some other localities but has been detected and prevented early. Two people in Binh Phuoc and Dong Thap provinces were reported to die of the A/H5N1 bird flu in January.

Pham Van Dong, director of the Animal Health Department, said that the flu could continue to occur in some localities in the coming time, resulting from farmers raising new flocks.

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai spoke at the meeting that it was important to ban purchases and transport of poultry and poultry products via the borders in all forms. Ministries have to tightly control such activities, monitor markets, decontaminate and separate areas selling live poultry, he added.

At the meeting, most of the provinces and cities proposed the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to provide more vaccine and chemicals to prevent the flu.

Some 20 million doses of bird-flu vaccine are expected to arrive in Vietnam, and another 20 million doses on February 28, which will be distributed to all cities and provinces. When these shipments arrive, Vietnam will have sufficient vaccine for all localities.

Number of poor people in city to rise eight times

The number of poor households in HCMC will be 130,000 this year, equivalent to 7.12% of the city’s population, under the new poverty line applied on January 24 while the respective figures of last year were 16,000 households and 0.8%.

According to the new poverty line, poor people in HCMC are those with incomes smaller than VND16 million per year, or US$2 a day, instead of VND12 million applied last year.

The poverty line of HCMC is currently the highest nationwide and three times higher than the national line for urban areas.

Nguyen Van Xe, deputy director of the HCMC Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs and head of the city’s poverty reduction board, told the Daily that last year’s poverty line was no longer suitable as an annual income of VND12 million was equivalent to only VND7 million of 2011 after the price slide was factored in. The figure of VND16 million is equivalent to the living standard of a person whose income in 2011 was VND11 million, he added.

According to Xe, the poverty line increase pushes up the number of poor people, affecting allowances for the poor. However, as prices continuously rise high, the poverty line adjustment is necessary to ensure living standard for the people and ensure supporting policies of the city to reach those with low incomes.

HCMC is currently considering providing many criteria besides income such as job, education, health, accommodation and community activities. With such criteria included, the number of poor people will be higher but solutions to support the poor will be more suitable.

For instance, those whose income is under the poverty line based on the criterion of job will be supported to have a job or lent money to improve living.

HCMC will increase the cost for poverty reduction programs by nearly VND670.7 billion to VND3.504 trillion this year, and there will be around VND3.531 trillion to support poor people next year, according to Xe.

Industrial park workers to receive funding for childcare

An education fund has been set up for the children of workers in industrial zones in several southern provinces, which includes to improve preschool education.

The fund, calls for 1,000 scholarships worth a total of VND1 billion (USD47,314) to be granted to the preschool-aged children of industrial park workers in Dong Nai, Binh Duong and HCM City.

The fund, established jointly by HCM City University of Pedagogy’s Institute of Educational Research and Home Credit Vietnam will provide 350 scholarships to underprivileged children in HCM City, while the provinces of Dong Nai and of Binh Duong will be granted 325 each.

Apart from such scholarships, the fund will also invite experts in preschool education and child psychology for the purposes of training in childcare for workers in industrial parks and export and processing zones.

Dr. Nguyen Kim Dung, Deputy Director of the Institute of Educational Research, said that the areas targeted are places that house a large number of immigrant workers. These areas have been experiencing overcrowding of preschools, forcing many parents to send their children to unlicensed family-based daycare centres which lack trained staff.

“Even though the authorities have conducted regular inspections and applied fines to these low-quality centres, and in some cases asked them to shut down, several child abuse cases involving such businesses have come to light recently. More attention should be placed on pre-education,” Dung recommended.

According to her, the institute is conducting a study on the practical application of childcare at the preschool level in these three localities in order to assess the quality of education and the difficulties faced by workers by sending their children to daycare. Based on their findings, they will propose long-term solutions to improve the situation.

Student swimming contest held in cold conditions

Education authorities in Quang Trach District, Quang Binh Province have been criticised for organising an outdoor swimming competition despite cold weather.

A total of 220 secondary school students and 69 primary school students were compelled to compete in the contest, held on February 19-20.

The contest continued even though the temperatures dropped as low as 12 degrees Celsius, drawing criticism from the students’ parents, local residents and passers-by.

“I don’t know why they would hold a swimming contest when it is so cold. Several students needed to be taken out immediately after jumping in the water,” said a local boatman hired to provide rescue services during the contest.

A local woman who has two children participating in the contest said, “The adults who stood at the bank of the dam bank were cold even though they were dressed in thick clothes. I felt as if they were trying to torture our children.”

Dang Xuan Loc, Head of the district Office of Education and Training said, “We only worked in an advisory capacity for the contest, and the district People’s Committee approved the plan, which was made quite a long term ago. They couldn’t have predicted the weather being so cold. They found it dificult to delay the event to another day, as it may have affected their other plans and drove up expenses.”

Source: VNA/VOV/VNS/SGGP/SGT