Rising trend of young female Vietnamese smokers 

 

At a seminar held in Hanoi on May 27 to review 10 years of implementation of  the government’s "National Tobacco Control Policy 2000 -2010”, it was found that although the rate of female smokers had fallen to 1.4 percent, achieving the 2 percent target was still unreachable.

 

Although the number of smokers in the country have reduced substantially, medical experts and WHO say Vietnam is amongst the 15 countries with a very high rate of male smokers (15 million adult smokers). The country has an estimated 21 million male smokers.

 

Moreover, medical workers fret as the number of smokers contracting tobacco-related diseases is increasing. This shows that the ban on smoking in public places has been ineffective.

 

According to the Ministry of Health statistics, the ratio of smokers have reduced since the last 10 years of the resolution though the results are still lagging. Male smokers have fallen from 56 percent in 2001 to around 47 percent in 2010.

 

Meanwhile the ban on smoking in public places issued in 2010 was not successful as people still smoke in bus stations, parks, schools, hospitals and offices.  One year ago, some smokers were fined for smoking in public places.

 

According to WHO estimates, by 2020 the mortality rate due to tobacco consumption will be higher than the mortality rate for HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, road accidents or suicides combined.

 

Ninh Thuan bus crashes due to speeding

 

An early morning bus accident in Thuan Nam District, southern Ninh Thuan Province, killed four passengers and injured 15.

 

The bus, travelling on a north south route, overturned on Highway 1A.

 

Local police and authorities immediately assisted victims, transporting the injured to the provincial General Hospital and contacting victims' families in order to inform them of the crash.

 

Initial investigations, still underway, have revealed that the bus driver had been speeding, causing the bus to lose grip on the wet road.

 

HCM City ports lack sufficient transportation infrastructure

 

HCM City's ports are suffering due to a lack of roads that is preventing them from operating effectively and causing losses for investors.

 

Director of the municipal Transport Department Tran Quang Phuong said that new ports had been built in suburban areas to replace those near the city centre under a plan to develop ports in HCM City – Dong Nai – Ba Ria – Vung Tau by 2010 with a vision towards 2020. The plan was approved in 2007 by the Prime Minister.

 

However, the volume of goods moved through the ports was not as much as expected due to inadequate transport infrastructure.

 

Vietnam Investment Review quoted the transport department leader as saying "HCM City's ports are losing clients because there are no roads to service them, forcing businesses to use ports in the neighbouring province of Vung Tau."

 

He also predicted that if the situation remained, the volume of goods shipped through the city's ports would fall from 50-70 per cent.

 

For example, Phu Huu Port in District 9 was built to replace Ben Nghe Port. Work began in 2007 and was finished last July, but the only way to get to the port was a 2.5km road that had degraded so badly that heavy trucks could not use it.

 

As a result, he said, the port, with it's modern facilities including three container cranes, a 2,500-sq.m storehouse and a 600-metre-port bridge, had only received five ships.

 

Director of Ben Nghe Port Ltd Company Nguyen Ngoc Thao, also an investor in Phu Huu Port, said that the municipal People's Committee had approved the construction of a road to link Nguyen Duy Trinh Road to the port in March, 2011. With a total investment of over VND 460 billion (US$22.4 million), the project was expected to be completed next year.

 

Similarly, construction of Sai Gon-Hiep Phuoc Port in Nha Be District was due to be completed next month, but construction of a road to serve the port has yet to start.

 

Deputy director of the transport department Bui Xuan Cuong said that the road to Sai Gon-Hiep Phuoc Port ran through Hiep Phuoc Industrial Park, so park investors were responsible for building it.

 

However, according to park investor Tan Thuan Industrial Promotion Company, although the road ran through the industrial park, its main purpose was to transport goods from Hiep Phuoc and Tan Thuan Dong.

 

The company said the city should share the expense for the construction of the road.

 

According to the city's Planning and Investment Department, funding for the project would come from a State budget loan of VND500 billion ($24.3 million).

 

Meanwhile, Secretary of the HCM City Goods Transportation Association Thai Van Chung said that the city's seaports were losing their competitiveness in the midst of stiff competition, although 70 per cent of the southern region's imports and exports are now moving through the city's ports.

 

"The ports in HCM City will have to compete with more deep water seaports in the near future, plus a shortcut up the Hau River will attract businesses to Can Tho City Port," Chung said.

 

Red Cross launches blood drive

 

The Viet Nam Red Cross officially launched a blood drive yesterday specifically for children.

 

Deputy chief of the Viet Nam Red Cross Nguyen Huu Hong said the demand for blood specifically for children was growing with the increasing number of procedures available in the country, including heart operations and organ transplants, and the treatment of haemophilia and leukemia. According to Hong, blood banks only met 39 per cent of the demand last year.

 

"Children have less blood in their bodies than adults and struggle to cope with a loss of blood. Only a small blood loss can be potentially fatal," he said. " The severe shortage of blood for young patients is a problem in major hospitals nationwide, so this campaign will be a huge help for thousands of children across the country."

 

The campaign aims to get 183,500 people to donate about 130,800 units of blood (one unit equals 200ml). It will also present 6,500 gifts to children with a total value of VND3 billion (US$143,000).

 

The campaign is being run under a four month parent programme that started earlier this month. The programme is aimed at building a national on-line database of donors. It also targets to get 6,500 organisations, enterprises and offices to participate, and identify at least 6,500 people who are willing to donate blood when there is an urgent demand.

 

Ambulances without permits dog Nghe An

 

Dozens of ambulances operate in the central province of Nghe An, but only 10 of them are licensed.

 

Phan Xuan Duan, who lives in Hoa Thanh Commune, Yen Thanh District, said that at the end of last month, his brother fell ill with bronchitis and his family had to call 115, the emergency operator for an ambulance.

 

The operator told him that all the ambulances were busy, but Duan insisted, so the operator called an ambulance from a private company for Duan.

 

"However, when the ambulance arrived, we were surprised because there wasn't a doctor, nurse or any emergency aid in sight," said Duan.

 

The driver quickly drove away after Duan threatened to call the police and report him.

 

Pham Van Long, deputy director of Hospital 115 said that the ambulance had belonged to the hospital more than a year ago, but they had sold it to a member of the public.

 

Ngo Xuan Tao, head of the provincial Department of Health's Professional Management Division, said that the 10 licensed ambulance included six from Hospital 115 and four from Truong An Surgery in Dien Chau District. Any others were operating without permits.

 

"Some of the unlicensed ambulances were bought from hospitals, and others were made to resemble the real thing," he said.

 

The number of unlicensed ambulances has increased quickly because there are not enough licensed ambulances to cope with the demand, especially in remote areas where there is only one ambulance per district, he added.

 

"Permit applications are also too strict and complicated," said Tao.

 

To apply for permits, ambulance owners must demonstrate that they have approval from the Ministry of Health and a certified paramedic and nurse to man the vehicle. They must also be equipped with crutches, a stretcher, an oxygen cylinder and emergency medicine.

 

The Nghe An Department of Health sent a number of reports to the provincial People's Committee, the Department of Transport and the Transport Police to ask for help but received no reply, said Tao.

 

Deputy Director of the Nghe An Department of Transport Hoang Van Hue said that the department's inspectors had punished unlicensed ambulance drivers on numerous occasions, but fines of VND3-5 million (US$150-250) were not enough to stop them from re-offending.

 

"We impound unlicensed ambulances for 30 days based on regulations, but that seems to have little effect," he said.

 

The department would ask the provincial People's Committee to increase administrative fines, and work with relevant bodies to develop stricter measures to tackle the issue, said Hue.

 

Campaign aims to prevent child malnutrition

 

Children between 6 and 60 months old and their mothers will be provided with Vitamin A and iron capsules to prevent nutrition deficiency during the Micro-Nutrient Day Campaign on June 1-2.

 

"Viet Nam should encourage the prevention of malnutrition effectively and widely through comprehensive measures such as the strengthening of family meals and supplements like iodine, vitamin A and iron," said Deputy Minister of Health Trinh Quan Huan at the campaign launch ceremony in Ha Noi on Saturday.

 

The campaign aims to reduce under-weight and malnutrition in children under five years of age to below 10 per cent and reduce stunted growth in children to less than 23 per cent by 2015, said Huan.

 

Health ministry statistics show that malnutrition among children under 5 remains high in Viet Nam, with stunted growth at 30 per cent and nearly 30 per cent of women at fertile age suffering iron deficiency anemia.

 

The annual campaign to raise public awareness of essential nutrition and promote food hygiene and safety distributes Vitamin A and iron supplements for mothers and children and offers education on food processing methods for pregnant women and infants, especially in remote and mountainous areas, island areas, and areas in economic difficulties.

 

Current deposit interest rates maintained

 

The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has not yet made any adjustments to either deposit interest rates or lending rates in Vietnam Dong (VND), said SBV Governor Nguyen Van Giau.

 

Mr Giau said that the SBV has worked with eight commercial banks, and all of them have proved good liquidity. According to the law, commercial banks are allowed to impose negotiated interest rates. However, the SBV has the right to intervene in banks’ interest rates when the local market faces problems and it is authorized to make decisions on ceiling deposit interest rates, he stated.

 

The SBV Governor elaborated that the domestic gold and USD markets have shown positive signs in recent times, thanks to a decline in demand, as well as a reduction in overspending and public investment.

 

The current price of gold in Vietnam is still below the global price, which is having a positive impact on the local gold and foreign currency markets, he added.

 

Vietnam, Cambodia cooperate in rubber planting

 

Vietnam is currently implementing rubber growing projects in Cambodia, aiming to plant 100,000 hectares of rubber trees in five Cambodian provinces by 2012.

 

The projects are part of a trade promotion plan approved by the Prime Ministers of both countries at the Vietnam-Cambodia business conference in April 2011.

 

A seminar was held in Phnom Penh on May 27 to offer tax reductions and exemptions for businesses involved in rubber growing projects in Cambodia.

 

Cambodian officials highlighted the significance and benefits of these projects, saying that the projects helped upgrade infrastructure, provide clean water, build houses for workers and pagodas for religious followers, thereby improving local people’s incomes.

 

Vietnam boost fisheries cooperation with Malaysia and Indonesia

 

A Vietnamese delegation led by Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Vu Van Tam is on a week-long visit to Malaysia and Indonesia from May 23-29.

 

During two days in Malaysia, Mr Tam held talks with Deputy Minister of Agriculture, M.Johari Baharom and other Malaysian officials. The two sides agreed to boost cooperation on fisheries, cultivation and husbandry. They discussed issues related to aquaculture, management of ships, information exchange and coordination in dealing with the seizure of fishing vessels and fishermen from both sides.

 

The Vietnamese delegation visited and learned experiences in managing and supervising Malaysia’s offshore.

 

They worked with the Indonesian Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries on May 26 to discuss how to implement the memorandum of understanding signed by the two ministries in October 2010 and boost cooperation in solving cases of fishing boats and fishermen seized by the two countries in accordance with the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and in the spirit of close cooperation among ASEAN member countries and humanitarian treatment of fishermen.

 

The two sides agreed to soon set up a joint technical committee (JTC) in the fisheries sector that will meet on a periodic and rotational basis.

 

Hanoi hosts third job fair for youth

 

The third job fair for youth was held at Hanoi National University on May 29 with the participation of 120 corporations, businesses, training centres and universities in the capital city.

 

At the event, young people were advised to choose suitable jobs and schools by experts and managers.

 

They all expressed their eagerness to join efforts in the process of renewal and international integration.

 

During the fair, talks and seminars on creating jobs for handicapped people also took place.

 

According to the organising board, over 6,300 young people visited the fair and more than 1,900 job seekers were accepted by businesses. 

 

Forum helps mitigate losses by natural disasters

 

A forum was held in the flood-prone central province of Quang Tri on May 28 in response to the National Day for Natural Disaster Reduction.

 

The forum provided participants with knowledge and documents about the measures to prevent and reduce losses by equipping rescue facilities for ships and food, drinks and lifebuoys.

 

It was jointly held by the province, the European Commission and Plan International, with the aim of helping local people mitigate losses caused by natural disasters in the future.

 

Statistics showed that, between 1989 and 2010, natural disasters left 225 dead and missing, injured 753 people and caused losses of nearly VND5.5 trillion.

 

Tourism investors keen on Hoi An

 

Its reputation as the most attractive tourism spot in the central region has helped Hoi An attract more private investors who want to invest in tourism properties.

 

"Every day, there are around 15 – 20 real estate transactions, focusing on garden-houses or land plots next to the river and sea. Most of the customers come from Ha Noi," said lawyer Nguyen Van Hai, head of the town's notary's chamber.

 

The land transaction values range from VND2 – 10 billion (US$100,000 – 500,000).

 

Currently, the fishing village urban project number 4 in Cam An ward is the most popular among investors, thanks to its geographic position: one side connects with Co Co River and another links with Cam An Beach.

 

In addition, the road along the sea has helped increase the price of the land 2.5 times, from VND3.5 million ($170) per one square metre in the middle of last year to VND8-9 million ($400-450).

 

The price is expected to rocket as the 13.5-metre wide road along the sea and other infrastructure will be completed.

 

Along the road, investors are interested in the VND303 billion ($15 million) Phuoc Trach – Phuoc Hai Urban project invested in by the Civil Engineering Construction Company No 501.

 

"In the coming time, when Cua Dai bridge is completed, our project will become an important satellite town to connect all tourism urban projects from Cua Dai beach to Chu Lai," Le Tu Tam, director of the company, said.

 

The number of transactions for the project reach 10 cases a day with the price on paper VND6.5 million ($320) per square metre, while the real price may go two to three times higher.

 

In addition to this trend, Hoi An authorities have encouraged community tourism, which involves local residents and tourism companies cooperating to open home-stays. Investment in garden-houses has skyrocketed because of this relatively new opportunity.

 

Wood factory fire causes $48,600 loss

 

A fire at a wood-processing factory in Ho Chi Minh City’s Binh Chanh District this morning destroyed goods worth around 1 billion ($48,600).

 

At around midnight, workers at the Nhat Quang Trade and Services Co Ltd’s factory in Vinh Loc A Commune called the local fire station after discovering smoke billowing from the plant and the smell of something burning.

 

Fire stations in Binh Chanh and Binh Tan Districts sent several fire engines with 100 firefighters to the scene, where the fire spread rapidly and engulfed the entire 2,000-square-meter factory.

 

The roof collapsed, causing difficulties in spraying water.

 

The blaze was eventually put out at 4 a.m. No casualties were reported.

 

The police are investigating the cause of the fire.

 

Vietnamese fisherman shot dead off Thai waters

 

A fisherman was shot and killed last Saturday when his fishing boat from Ca Mau Province that had been operating close to Thai waters came under fire from an unknown vessel.

 

The boat’s captain, Lam Van Tinh, said the “strange” vessel approached from Thai waters at around 4:15 am fired many rounds at his boat.

 

Huynh Van Tra, 21, from the province's Khanh Binh Tay Bac Commune, died after being hit twice.

 

Tinh said he immediately ordered his pilot to turn off the navigation lights and head back to the Ca Mau coast.

 

The province Border Guard Command filed a report to the provincial police who have performed an autopsy on Tra and begun investigations.

 

Bank official flees with $975,000

 

The police are hunting for an executive of the Mekong Housing Development Bank in Dong Thap Province who allegedly ran a Ponzi scheme on the side and fled with around VND20 billion (US$975,000) worth funds.

 

They have also asked the immigration department to ensure Nguyen Huu Quang, director of the bank’s Lap Vo District transaction office, does not leave the country.

 

Nguyen Ngoc Thach, director of the local branch of the State Bank of Vietnam, said the amount was just a preliminary estimate by the bank.

 

Quang, 35, a native of Cao Lanh city and director of the branch since 2006, was rated as a good employee by the bank.

 

He reportedly collected deposits paying interest of 3-5 percent a day, even 6 percent in some cases. Many people were therefore lured and deposited their money, investigators said.

 

Nguyen Thi B., a trader in Lap Vo District, told them: “Initially, Quang paid the principal and interest to us fully and in time. So we trusted him and continued to hand our money to him.”

 

Fourteen people have complained to the Dong Thap police saying they lost a combined VND18 billion ($875,000).

 

Newswire VietnamNet said Quang could owe people as much as VND60 billion ($2.92 million).

 

The investigators said Quang could also have been involved in fraud at the bank by lending VN2.6 billion ($127,000) to Tran Van Hien, a Lap Vo resident, using other borrowers’ mortgages.

 

Tran Van Khang, chief of the Lap Vo District people’s committee office, said the police were investigating and would confirm how much money Quang had actually mobilized.

 

Truong Thi Bich Tuyen, Quang’s wife, told the police that she had not been aware of his activities.

 

She had heard that Quang once went to Cambodia to gamble.

 

Before he disappeared, he had sent her a text message saying “Goodbye forever.”

 

Meanwhile, MHB has appointed Pham Thien Hai to replace Quang as director of the Lap Vo branch.

 

Girl drowns in sea, another missing

 

A 16-year-old girl drowned while another is missing after they were hit by a giant wave when they were swimming in a beach in Phong Dien District in the central province of Thua Thien – Hue yesterday.

 

The deceased, Le Thi Thoa, the missing girl, Hoang Thi Them, and six others who were with them were all from Hue.

 

Two of the others are in an unconscious state at the Hue Central Hospital.

 

VN backs global framework on climate services

 

Vietnam supported the Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS) proposed at the 16 th congress of the World Meteorology Organisation (WMO) in Geneva from May 16-June 3, said a Vietnamese senior official.

 

The GFCS, one of the congress’ priorities, was designed to improve the quality of information products, serving different customers, such as state agencies, hydro-meteorological agencies and businesses, Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha, who headed the Vietnamese delegation to the congress, told a Vietnam News Agency (VNA) correspondent in Geneva , Switzerland .

 

The framework would help increase mechanisms of exchange at international, regional and national levels, and give priority to countries heavily affected by climate change and developing countries, including Vietnam .

 

Climate change would severely impact on Vietnam and was a risk factor in achieving the target of poverty reduction as well as implementation of other Millennium Development Goals and sustainable development of the country, the Deputy Minister said.

 

He stressed the dangers of negative impacts caused by climate change, such as flooding, land area reduction, salinity and severe storms that affect agricultural and industrial production, tourism, and services.

 

He spoke of Vietnam’s weather forecast capacity in the region and emphasised that the country lacked an advanced and exact forecast technology and needed more investment in the sector.

 

Trafficked women in Mekong delta receive help

 

Sixty-six women who were victims of sexual abuse in nine Mekong delta provinces have been assisted to reintegrate into the community under the second phase of the VND2.2 billion project funded by the Anti-Trafficking Alliance (AAT).

 

Under the project, which was jointly implemented by the Vietnam Women’s Union (VWU) Central Committee and the Can Tho Women’s Association from June 2008 to May 2011, a centre to assist trafficked women was set up to provide services to help the victims in mental and physical rehabilitation, vocational training and job generation.

 

The project has extended assistance to almost 70 victims who were trafficked abroad and provided 54 million VND to help 39 out of 66 victims become established in animal breeding and conduct small businesses to stabilise their lives.

 

At a ceremony held in the Mekong delta city of Can Tho, to review the second phase of the project, VWU Vice President Tran Thanh Binh committed to continue collaborating with Can Tho City and Mekong delta provinces to increase the fight against this social evil and expand effective models to help victims.

 

Under the third phase of the project from June 1, 2011 until May 31, 2014, the centre was expected to help another 60 victims in the region.

 

Cruise operator's facilities closed down

 

After the deadly cruise boat accident on May 20, Binh Duong Province’s Transport Department yesterday closed down Din Ky Restaurant Private Enterprise’s unlicensed quays and floating restaurant and suspended its hotel ship.

 

The department ordered Din Ky to dismantle its quay in Binh Nham Commune in Thuan An Town, where the Din Ky restaurant ship set off on May 20 despite bad weather and later sank, killing 16 passengers.

 

Two other quays in Din Ky’s Vinh Phu and Thanh Canh tourist sites must also be suspended for safety reasons.

 

Din Ky’s 2-storey Din Ky Cruise Ship Hotel is also suspended for falling short of river way transport safety regulations.

 

So is Din Ky’s floating restaurant which encroaches on over 200 square meters of the Saigon River and does not meet safety requirements.

 

Talking with VnExpress yesterday, deputy director of the provincial Transport Department, Dam Trong Cuong, said a joint inspection team had been set up to inspect all businesses engaged in river way transportation next week.

 

Deep potholes cause 7 accidents one night

 

In just one night, two big deep potholes on the newly-built Nguyen Chi Thanh Street in Ban Me Thuot City in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak caused seven traffic accidents.

 

From 8 p.m. to midnight, four taxi cabs fell into a big pothole, about one meter deep, and got stuck there.

 

The taxi drivers had to call local resident for help to get their cars out. Fortunately, nobody was injured.

 

At 9 p.m., Y Ble E Ban, from the province’s Cu M’Gar District, and the motorbike he war riding also fell into the pothole. He was seriously injured in the nose and mouth and was taken to a hospital nearby.

 

After being informed of the accident, Ban’s father, Y Bram Nie, drove a car to the hospital and his car fell into the same pothole.

 

Meanwhile, a 45-seat bus got stuck in another big pothole nearby and all of the passengers had to get off the vehicle while it was raining.

 

The two accidents had caused a heavy traffic jam before the drivers and passers-by could manage to lift the cars from the holes.

 

Le Quy Phong, head of the construction team that built the street, said the road was not yet completed and his team was still fixing it before handing it over to relevant authorities.

 

“We have just temporarily leveled the surface for vehicles to travel,” Phong said. “We didn’t build it carelessly.”

 

Since there have been no serious consequences, his team doesn’t consider paying any compensation, he said.

 

HCMC tightens control over imported drinks

 

As hundreds of Taiwanese companies are recalling those food and drink products found to contain the carcinogenic chemical diethylhexylphthalate (DEHP), the Ho Chi Minh City Market Management Department is increasing control over imported drinks.

 

DEHP, a cost-effective general plasticizer used chiefly to make PVC soft and pliable, is commonly used in fruit jelly, yogurt mix powder, juices and other drinks to keep emulsions well dispersed.

 

Dang Van Duc, head of the HCMC market department, said market management units in Districts 5 and 6 had started inspecting all imported drinks, especially Taiwanese products at many markets, including Binh Tay and Kim Bien wholesale markets.

 

The inspectors would check all documents related to drinks being sold at these markets to identify their origins and quality, Duc said.

 

They would also take sample of drink products manufactured by Taiwanese company Jin Zhuan, one of the 168 Taiwanese food processors that have been recalling more than one million food and drink products containing DEHP.

 

Jin Zhuan’s syrup and fruit juice products have reportedly been sold at restaurants and shops in HCMC.

The syrup is sold in plastic bottles of 2.5 liter for VND120,000-130,000 (US$5.8-6.3) each.

 

The samples will be sent to relevant agencies for DEHP testing, Duc said.

 

Dong Nai’s river intoxicated by willful polluters

 

Farmers in Phu Ngoc and La Nga communes in Dong Nai Province who breed fish along La Nga River say either they or those whose continuous waste discharge is choking off the river will have to move.

 

Not that communal or district authorities seem to be listening to what they have to say.

 

When the farmers tried to contact these authorities to report that the waste discharge from yeast producer AB Mauri and La Nga Sugarcane Joint Stock Company had turned so foul it was killing their fish, no one answered their calls.

 

When they were at last able to reach local officials through the provincial environmental police, the officials showed up at the site of destruction but didn’t take sample or go through any other common step in the investigation process but met the polluters and quietly left the scene.

 

The farmers also told Sai Gon Tiep Thi Newspaper that two of the three-member team set up by local authorities to investigate the case have relatives who work for the polluters.

 

However, even when higher levels of government did take action, these companies seemed undaunted.

 

In 2009, for instance, both polluters had to compensate local farmers after their unprocessed waste water discharge killed the fish.

 

As recently as this May, the sugarcane manufacturer was again requested to compensate the farmers after its molasses container accidentally broke, destroying 90 tons of fish bred in the river.

 

In the same month, AB Mauri was also fined VND180 million for air pollution by the southern region environmental police.

 

These fines, however, don’t seem to be able to prevent La Nga River from being destroyed.

 

“People can’t breed or catch fish there and the collective doesn’t have any fish to buy,” said Le Thi Hai, chairwoman of the Phuoc Loc Commune Collective which buys raw fish from the farmers.

 

“Who should we report to now?”