Around 2,000 poor labourers to work in the RoK

The first computer-base Korean language test for labourers from 62 poor districts was held on August 20 by the Overseas Labour Centre (OLC) under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs.

Le Duc Quang, head of the OLC’s Selection Department, said around 2,650 people from poor districts across the country have registered to take part in the test. The Republic of Korea (RoK) will choose more than 2,000 candidates to work in the agricultural sector.

Ethnic minority labourers will be fully supported in training, accommodation and travelling fees while poor labourers will be covered for half of expenses.

Luong Duc Long, OLC Deputy Director, said in the RoK, labourers will get more than US$900 per month each for growing vegetables and flowers, harvesting mushrooms and raising cows, pigs and other cattle.

Long added that Vietnam has so far sent 250-300 ethnic minority and poor labourers to the RoK under the Korean Employment Permit System (EPS) program.

HCMC: New bus acquisitions lag

Many of the existing buses in HCM City have yet to be replaced by more environmentally friendly buses as agencies have been slow to contribute suggestions required by city authorities.

According to the HCM City Department of Transport, the project to buy 1,680 new buses, including 300 that use compressed natural gas (CNG), was submitted to the People's Committee two years ago.

Under the proposal, passenger transport companies would have to pay up front in cash 30 per cent of the value of each new bus. The remaining would be paid with bank loans taken out by these firms. Total investment was expected to be VND2 trillion (US$96 million).

The State budget would pay some of the interest on the seven-year bank loans, estimated at VND700 billion.

As part of the project, in early July, 25 buses that meet Euro 3 emission standards were put into operation in HCM City to replace old ones that are polluting the city's environment.

These 60-seat new buses running on bus route No. 122 from An Suong Bus Station in District 12 to Tan Quy in Cu Chi District have been locally manufactured with a total investment of around VND42.5 billion.

Nguyen Van Toi, deputy head of the May 19 Co op., operator of bus route No. 122, said that his cooperative wanted to replace old buses to help protect the environment.

However, he insisted on loan-interest support from the State.

According to Duong Hong Thanh, deputy director of the HCM City Department of Transport, bus route No. 122 is the first to use Euro-3-standard buses in HCM City.

Under the scheme to buy the new buses, the department has also focused on acquiring new vehicles meeting Euro 3 standards.
Currently, most buses in HCM City fail to meet Euro 2 emission standards.

The city still has up to 527 12-seat buses not meeting transport conditions regulated by the Government.

The project to replace polluting buses was mapped out by the department after it conducted an inspection in July 2010, revealing that 20-30 per cent of HCM City's bus fleet had exhaustion emissions exceeding permitted levels.

$48,000 gifts for mountain schools

Non-profit ChildFund Viet Nam is going to give presents, totalling VND1 billion (US$48,000), to mountainous children to mark the start of the new school year.

More than 12,000 presents will be handed out to children in 29 communes in Hoa Binh, Cao Bang and Bac Kan provinces from today.

Most of the gifts include school kits, books and warm clothes.

US$150 million for disaster management project

The Prime Minister has approved the results of a negotiation for disaster management project and relevant legal documents.

The US$150 million project, funded by loans from the International Development Agency (IDA) under the World Bank (WB), will be implemented in five years from 2012 to 2016 in 10 central provinces. They are Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Binh Dinh, Ninh Thuan and Danang.

This is a follow-up to the community-based disaster management project which has been implemented in the central provinces since 2005 to support Vietnam in coping with and mitigating natural disasters.

The Prime Minister has authorised the governor of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) to sign a loan agreement and relevant legal documents with the WB and to work with relevant agencies on finalising all necessary procedures to be implemented as soon as possible.

South Africa, Vietnam to sign deal on rhino horn trade prevention

Vietnam and South Africa are set to ink a deal to prevent rhino poaching and the illicit trade in rhino horns.

AFP quoted an official of the wildlife trade monitoring network (TRAFFIC), saying a memorandum of understanding between South Africa, home of the largest rhino population in the world, and Vietnam, the biggest consumer market, will be signed soon.

At the launch of a report in Johannesburg on August 20, Tom Milliken, TRAFFIC's head of rhino and elephants project, announced the news and expressed hope that the MoU will make some changes in halting the illicit trade.  

Mavuso Msimang, a South African official, also stressed the importance of cooperation between the two countries in an attempt to stop the export of rhino horns to Vietnam.  

Vietnamese Deputy Foreign Minister Le Luong Minh held talks over illegal wildlife hunting, trade and trafficking with his South African counterpart Ebrahim Ebrahim in Johannesburg last week.

South Africa is home to about three quarters of Africa's 20,000 or so white rhinos and 4,800 critically endangered black rhinos.
Almost 300 rhinos have been poached across the country since the start of the year. Their horns are suspected to have been smuggled out to Southeast Asia, including Vietnam, AFP reported.

Baby formula found to lack iodine

Four more Japanese baby formula brands belonging to Meiji, Morinaga and Wakodo have been found to contain low levels of iodine that could affect brain development, according to the Food Safety and Hygiene Administration yesterday, Aug 20.

All above formula samples have not yet been granted products standard certification by the administration.

Earlier, two imported milk powder brands in Hong Kong were found to have insufficient levels of iodine, including 850g tubs of Japanese-manufactured Wakodo and Moringa zero-to-nine-months powdered infant formula products.

French satellite technology installed in 400 vessels

A French-funded project to monitor fishing boats and surrounding areas by satellite technology was officially launched on August 20.

Danang Radio said more than 400 fishing boats will be installed with the satellite-based Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) free of charge.

Through VMS, all information about the bad weather, disasters on the sea and hidden risks will be sent to vessels to help fishermen cope with the dangerous situation. In timely fashion, vessels can report to relevant inland agencies in case of emergency.

Fire possibly caused by electrical leakage

A fire broke out at midnight on Sunday at a laptop shop in HCM City, damaging telephones, laptops, Ipads, USBs and other electronic equipment.

Estimated losses totalled VND6-7 billion (US$288,000-$336,000), according to the city's fire department.

The fire broke out at 11pm at the Bach Khoa shop on 247 Ly Thuong Kiet St, Ward 15, in District 11. It was extinguished 30 minutes later.

An initial investigation indicates that the cause of the fire was due to electrical leakage.

Promoting cooperation between Vietnam, Laos Red Cross Societies

A delegation of the Lao Red Cross (LRC) led by its President Laoly Faiphengyoua is visiting Vietnam.

At a meeting in Hanoi on August 20, Hoang Binh Quan, member of the Party Central Committee and head of its Commission for External Relations, said the Lao delegation’s visit contributes to the people-to-people exchange activities, celebrating the Vietnam-Laos Solidarity and Friendship Year 2012.

He highly valued the outcomes of the visit, as well as effective cooperation between the two countries’ Red Cross Societies over the past time.

He expressed his hope that they will increase the exchange of information and experience, especially in reducing poverty, eradicating hunger and supporting people in difficult and remote areas, with special attention given to personel training.

Quan also called for conditions to promote the Red Cross societies at the grassroots level to strengthen cooperation and mutual support.

For his part, Laoly Faiphengyoua thanked the Vietnamese Party and State leaders and the Vietnam Red Cross Central Committee for their valuable support to the LRC over years.

The LRC will closely coordinate with its Vietnamese counterpart to effectively implement signed agreements, he affirmed

PLAN aid supports Quang Ngai development

Plan International (Plan), an international humanitarian organisation, will provide US$2.5 million in aid to the central province of Quang Ngai in 2013-2016.

A memorandum of understanding to this effect was signed on August 20 by Dinh Thi Loan, Vice Chairwoman of the provincial People’s Committee and Glenn Gibeny, Plan Country Director in Vietnam.

Plan-funded projects will focus on developing both the material and spiritual wellbeing of children and women living in difficult circumstances within the province, said Glenn Gibeny.

Plan has helped Quang Ngai carry out ten projects worth a total of VND160 billion between 2000-2009.

These included a project to support socio-economic development in ten communes of Tu Nghia, Nghia Hanh, Son Tinh, Son Ha and Ba To districts, a project on fresh water and environmental hygiene in 16 communes of Nghia Hanh and Son Tinh districts, and one to develop the material and spiritual life for children in mountainous communes.

First Vietnam-France maths congress opens in Hue

Almost 500 Vietnamese, French and international mathematicians are attending a joint congress of the Vietnamese and French Mathematical Societies opened in Hue on August 20.

President of the Vietnam Mathematical Society (VMS) Prof. Le Tuan Hoa said the five-day congress, the first held in Vietnam, will hear 13 reports focusing on the role of mathematics in the society and the relationship between the science and other fields.

The plenary session of the congress will include presentations from Ngo Bao Chau, Director of the Vietnam Institute for Advanced Studies in Mathematics; Dinh Tien Cuong from the Paris University; and Benedict Gross from the Harvard University.

On this occasion, the two societies will discuss bilateral cooperation in the field.

Binh Dinh, Champasak strengthen cooperation

A delegation from Champasak province in Laos, led by its governor, Sonsay Siphandon, is visiting its sister province, Binh Dinh in Vietnam.

The two provincial leaders held talks on August 20 to exchange experiences in Party building, socio-economic development, national defence and security, and discussed agreements to promote bilateral cooperation in the 2012-2016 period.

Binh Dinh will send agricultural experts to help its sister province develop new types of plants and livestock, train students, and organize visits for businesses to seek investment opportunities.

Champasak will support Vietnamese students in studying the Lao language, allocate land, and create the best possible conditions for Vietnamese businesses investing in Laos.

In recent years, Binh Dinh has trained 230 Lao students and six medical staff, provided scholarships for 84 students from Champasak, and sent 11 officials to study the Lao language.

On the occasion, Governor Sonsay presented the Lao Freedom Order, Itsala, third class to Secretary of the Binh Dinh Party Committee Nguyen Van Thien, Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Le Huu Loc, the People’s Committee Office and the People’s Council.

He also awarded the Friendship Order to the provincial Department for External Relations in recognition of its contributions to strengthening friendship and comprehensive cooperation between the two provinces.

VNN/VOV/VNS