Survey says firms admit to giving bribes

Most enterprises believe that bribery has become a common practice and an “unwritten rule” in Vietnam, according to a survey on corruption sponsored by the U.K. Department for International Development (DFID).

The survey which was conducted by local consulting firms in Hanoi said enterprises commit bribery acts because they think other companies will do the same with an aim to smoothen operations while government officials also look forward to taking bribes.

“No one requires such a thing but we voluntarily attach a sum of money of between VND50,000 and VND2 million in documents for submission, “ a surveyed firm said.

Inspections carried out by the state officials are often seen as opportunities for bribery. A banker in HCMC said there are two investigations every year. Unofficial costs intended for such occasions can take the form of money, gifts or invitations for parties.

“On average, we have to spend around VND30 million on each member in an inspection team,” the banker added.

The report stated no enterprise can calculate precisely how much bribe should be, as it varies on different transactions and business fields while they tend to include such sums into other common expenditures. However, bribes often account for 4% to over 30% of the total value of contracts, projects or sales.

For example, a company in Hanoi said it had to raise prices of commodities by nearly 40% in order to win a package at a provincial hospital.

Data of the General Statistics Office (GSO) and the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) showed that each company spent an average VND460-600 million on informal payments but earned a pre-tax profit worth VND512-646 million a year between 2009 and 2011. Such ‘kickbacks’ were equivalent to 78-107% of enterprises’ pre-tax profits.

These figures indicated that local firms can make more pre-tax profits if they do not give bribes.

Some other companies participating in the survey admitted that bribes can be considered as a kind of business cost. However, the competitive pressure can also force them to compromise quality.

In the banking sector, corruption is likely to heighten risks when lenders make substandard loans.

In addition, enterprises involved in corruption may negatively affect their employees’ mood. Because such wrongdoing has become too prevalent, it is hard to have faith in their employees.

Japan applies single tourist visas for Vietnamese citizens

The Japanese Embassy in Hanoi announced that on November 20, Japan started a simplified application procedure for single tourist visas for Vietnamese nationals as part of efforts to further promote people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.

Accordingly, Vietnamese individuals are able to apply for single tourist visas when they take part in package tours (with a stay of less than 15 days) organised by local travel agencies registered with the Japanese embassy and consulate general located in the country.

The list of the 56 Vietnamese companies is available at http://www.vn.emb-japan.go.jp .

Under the new procedure, the applicants are no longer required to submit documents that attest to their ability to pay for travel expenses.

Citizens of Indonesia and the Philippines also enjoy the policy.

2 million benefit from "germ-free toilet journey" project

More than 2 million Vietnamese have benefited from the "Germ-free toilet journey" project in 2012-14.

Jointly organised by the Ministry of Health, Unilever Foundation and its Vim brand, the programme is carried out through a "strategic partnership agreement on improving sanitation in Viet Nam".

Sanitation has been improved through educational and behavioral-change activities to encourage people to use germ-free toilets, and build standardised toilets for students to improve hygienic conditions and prevent diseases.

In addition to this programme, the ministry and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development are implementing a pure water and sanitation programme for rural areas from 2012 to 2015.

The primary objective is to improve pure water supply, sanitation, hygiene awareness and behavior change by 2020 to reduce environmental pollution, and enhance health and life quality for rural residents.

By 2015, the sanitation programme targets that 65 per cent of rural households will have clean toilets; 45 per cent of households that farm and 100 per cent of primary and secondary schools, local clinic centres in rural areas will have standardised toilets.

Rainy season paddy needs preservation

The development of rainy season paddy plays an important role in preserving rare genetic resources, enhancing biodiversity, preventing dyke breach and adapting to climate change.

Nguyen Van Kien, head of a center for rural research and development under An Giang University, was highlighting the role of rainy season paddy at a seminar held in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang on research on rainy season paddy grown in the province’s Tri Ton District.

According to the research, a combination of growing rainy season paddy and other crops brings much higher profit to farmers, and helps preserve fishery resources, improve biodiversity and protect the environment.

Le Cong Quyen from the faculty of agriculture and natural resources at An Giang University said there was a high concentration of 49 flora and 35 fish species which were found during the research on biodiversity in rainy season paddy fields.

As for economic value for farmers, Dang Thi Thanh Quynh from the center for rural research and development said the rainy season paddy cultivation could not create higher profit than two or three high-yielding paddy crops a year.

However, the combined cultivation of rainy season paddy and other crops will help farmers earn more money, Quynh added.

According to some experts, the cultivation of rainy season paddy plays an integral part in producing straw for growing other crops because its straw is durable and capable of covering soil for a period of six to seven months compared to other types of straw which can last two to three months only.

Thanks to its strong growth during the flood season which is fertile ground for a wide variety of fish and plants, rainy season paddy fields can become agri-tourism attractions.

Trang Thi My Duyen, who researched the potentiality of rainy season paddy agri-tourism, said 92% of 100 local and foreign tourists in An Giang want such tourism.

However, the research shows incomplete infrastructure and a lack of diverse tourism products are hindering the development of agri-tourism, Duyen noted.

Experts call for Mekong Delta residents to use rainwater

The use of rainwater for daily activities is seen as an effective solution to cope with the excessive pumping of groundwater and the increasingly severe pollution of surface water resources.

The information was released on Monday at a meeting on climate change adaptation via sustainable development held in Can Tho City. The project is funded by the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), also of Australia.

Nguyen Nguyen Minh at the CSIRO told the meeting that the project aims to study and find solutions to improve water quality and manage and use water resources in an effective and sustainable way.

Minh said a pilot study on collecting and treating rainwater for locals’ daily needs has been carried out in some parts of the Mekong Delta. “This is a solution to improve the efficiency of water use to cope with the depletion of groundwater and the rising pollution of surface water resources,” said Minh.

However, some experts advised rainwater should be used for some daily activities such as bathing and washing, but not eating, as the project’s studies showed rainwater has yet to meet drinking standards.

Dinh Diep Anh Tuan at the Research Institute for Climate Exchange under Can Tho University noted that locals should not collect rainwater from some early-season rains and from unclean roofs to ensure hygiene.

Despite a low cost of VND4-5 million for installing a rainwater collection system, the implementation of the project has faced certain setbacks, especially in rural areas, due to low income of people there, Tuan added.

Vo Thi Hong Anh, vice chairwoman of Can Tho, said the city will implement the project on a wide scale as it helps restrict the use of groundwater and adapt to climate change. “This solution also helps farmers in rural areas get better access to clean water given the high cost of building an underground water pipeline here,” said Anh.

Officials disciplined over bus subsidy irregularities

Many officials at the HCMC Public Passenger Transport Management and Operation Center under the Department of Transport have been disciplined over irregularities in commuter bus fare subsidies.

The most serious infringement involves the bus routes serving students and workers with losses put at over VND3.7 billion.

According to a conclusion by the Inspection Commission of the HCMC Party Committee early this month, Le Hai Phong, director of the center, Van Cong Diem, deputy director of the center, and Nguyen Tien Thinh, head of the center’s Finance and Accounting Department, have been reprimanded by the Party.

Nguyen Lam Hai, deputy director of the center, and Pham Dinh Duc, head of the Road Transport Management Division of the HCMC Department of Transport, have received milder warnings.

Four officials at the Department of Transport are just required to draw on experience, including Nguyen Thi Xuan Hieu and Do Thi Thu Hien, head and deputy head of the Transport Department’s Finance Division, Nguyen Ngoc Giao, deputy head of the Road Transport Management Division and Duong Hong Thanh, deputy director of the Transport Department.

HCMC chairman Le Hoang Quan told the city’s departments of home affairs and transport to propose appropriate sanctions against violations.

A report from the city’s Department of Transport indicated violations involving the management of subsidized bus routes have been taking place for years.

The center’s lax management, supervision and inspection have made it possible for transportation businesses to falsify documentation on the number of passengers they transported to get State subsidies.

The most serious violation involves Bau Sen Primary School in District 5 because the school had no contract with Phuong Lam Transportation Cooperative. But the cooperative faked the school’s signature and seal to appropriate subsidy money in 2012 and the first half of 2013, causing losses of around VND214 million for the city’s budget.

The HCMC Department of Transport withdrew subsidies in 2011, 2012 and the first half of 2013 from One Member Limited Liability Passenger Car of Saigon. The agency also took VND214 million from Phuong Lam Transportation Cooperative to pay back to State budget.

HCM City plans 25 new schools next year

The HCMC Department of Education and Training is working on a plan to build 25 new schools next year, deputy director Le Hoai Nam of the department said on November 11.

Nam was speaking at a press briefing on a festival featuring “40 years of HCMC education and training development” slated for March next year.

This event will review the achievements of the HCMC education and training sector and present ways to integrate the local educational system into regional and global education systems.

In addition to building those new schools, the department will inaugurate 14 others that have been constructed recently.

The department has launched campaigns to raise funds for building schools on the country’s islands and coastal provinces to allow children to have easy access to education. For instance, a kindergarten and primary school on Song Tu Tay Island of Truong Sa District off the country’s southern coast constructed at a cost of VND8 billion will be opened in March next year.

Two other schools – a VND20 billion kindergarten on Ly Son District of Quang Nghai Province and the VND120 billion Con Dao Secondary School on Con Dao District of Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province – will come into operation the same month.

During the festival, the department will organize other activities such as art performance, camping for secondary students and honor important contributors to the city’s education sector.

The three-day festival will take place at the Reunification Palace on Nam Ky Khoi Nghia Street in downtown HCMC starting from March 20.

Around 40,000 people including teachers, students, parents, investors and locals are expected to visit 500 booths of organizations and enterprises during the event.

The five-year Buy Vietnamese Goods campaign has increased the rate of Vietnamese goods consumed by local people in the central city of Da Nang to over 80 percent this year from 50 percent in 2009, the Vietnam Economic News reported.

According to Vice President of Da Nang’s Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee, Tran Van Du, over the past five years of this campaign, Da Nang has organised more than 22 industry and trade fairs to promote domestically produced goods.

Since 2011, Da Nang has held annual fairs hosting 350-400 booths for Vietnamese goods, offering a good opportunity for domestic producers to introduce their products and intensify corporate links. Local producers have been funded for technological innovation and brand protection.

Da Nang also spent 500 million VND organising sales trips to mountainous, rural, and industrial areas and funded 40 small cooperatives and production bases in the city to build their own websites.

“Nearly 90 percent of city dwellers are interested in the campaign. To benefit the spread of the campaign, domestic producers have realised their roles and responsibilities to improve product quality, reduce costs, and establish branding,” Du was quoted as saying.

In the time to come, state agencies and business associations will further boost the campaign targeting consumers, manufacturers, and students.

Periodical evaluation of the campaign’s implementation will also take place, along with related incentives and mechanisms to boost the consumption of Vietnamese goods, said Vice Chairman of Da Nang’s People’s Committee and Deputy Permanent Director of the Buy Vietnamese Goods Campaign Steering Committee Phung Tan Viet.

According to Deputy Director of Da Nang’s Department of Industry and Trade, Lu Bang, the department will strengthen cooperation with relevant departments and agencies to further promote the campaign through activities such as tracking market movements, ensuring smooth commodity circulation, effective sales promotion implementation, organising Vietnamese goods exhibitions and fairs, as well as supply-demand conferences, implementing wholesale network plans, researching and proposing solutions to support producers, and enhancing market control.-

New heart technique applied for very first time in Vietnam

Doctors from the Ha Noi-based Bach Mai Hospital conducted a surgery on a man to replace artificial heart valve in new place for the very first time.

Duong Duc Hung, head of the hospital’s Heart Surgery Division, said that doctors performed the operation on patient Nguyen The Duc, 25 in Hanoi who had undergone operations to replace man-made heart valve three times.

Dr. Hung said that the new technique to replace artificial heart valve should be applied on those who have injury in the root of the patient’s aorta. As the artificial valve is put in the normal position, it will be easily flaked off; accordingly the patient will die at anytime. The new technique can improve the flaking off.

The operation lasted 13 hours. One day after the operation, the patient has recovered and his liver and kidney function work as normal.

Over 21,000 drug addicts treated with Methadone nationwide

More than 21,000 drug addicts are treated with Methadone nationwide, said a leader of the Vietnam Administration of HIV/AIDS Control under the Ministry of Health at a forum held in Hanoi on November 20.

Up to date, 38 provinces and cities among 63 have been implementing Methadone treatment on 21,613 drug addicts. The figure has reached 27 percent of the target that expects around 80,000 drug addicts being treated with Methadone by 2015.

The Vietnam Administration of HIV/AIDS Control said that the Methadone treatment program was facing difficulties including personnel problem, shortage of medical workers and lack of funding.

VNN/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/ND