To celebrate 40 years of the city named after late President Ho Chi Minh, the municipal Department of Culture and Sports launched a song-writing and poster contests on March 3.

All Vietnamese citizens living in Vietnam and abroad are eligible to participate.

The drawing competition, themed “the city of good quality of life, civilisation, modernity and friendliness” opens for submissions between now and May 1. Entries should be sent to the information and exhibition centre at No. 56 in District 1’s Nguyen Thai Binh Street.

Meanwhile, songwriters can submit their work from now to May 5 by emailing to cuocvandongsangtac.ttvhtphcm@yahoo.com.vn . They can also send by post to the culture centre at No 97 in District 1’s Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street.

Forty years after changing its name from Sai Gon to Ho Chi Minh, the southern city has turned itself into a vibrant metropolis of the country.

Local authorities are targeting an 8 percent economic growth in 2016.

The city is also set to increase the rate of trained workers to 75 percent, reduce the rate of poor households by 1 percent, and supply clean water to all households.

It will strive to be among the top five localities nationwide in terms of the provincial governance and public administration performance index, the provincial competitiveness index and the public administration reform index.

VNA