The Vietnam Asset Management Company (VAMC) will take drastic measures to recover around VND33 trillion (US$2.6 billion) of non-performing loans (NPLs) this year, VAMC chairman Nguyen Tien Dong said.

 The Government has issued an action programme to implement the policies on economic restructuring and building of a new growth model for the period between 2016 and 2020.

 For the first time Vietnamese doctors successfully performed a lung transplant from two living donors. 

 The festival has been an indispensable part of life in fishing villages in the city and is an important spiritual and cultural event, staged in the hope of winning favour with the sea god.

 There isn’t much room for pottery in the fast-paced modern world but for the residents of Phù Lãng ceramic village in Bac Ninh province, their products are proving not only popular but highly lucrative.

 The cherry – Yen Tu yellow apricot blossom festival is to be held in Ha Long city, the northern province of Quang Ninh on March 11-15, the organising board said at a press conference on February 23. 

 Vietnam won a berth in the semi-finals of the Junior Davis Cup, Asia Oceania Pre-Qualifying Tournament in New Dehli, India on February 23.

 Vietnam aims to create 1.6 million jobs in 2017

 The Hanoi People’s Committee has recently issued its 2017 economic survey plan for the municipality, where it will study the business sector, administrative agencies, individual business units and religious bodies.

 A Polish tourist and a Vietnamese tour guide lost their lives while ziplining Hang Cop waterfall in Xuan Tho commune, Da Lat city in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong.

 Australia is scheduled to host the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in 2018, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said on February 23.

 Chief of the General Staff of Vietnam People’s Army and Deputy Minister of National Defence Phan Van Giang met with Commanding General of the US Army Pacific Robert Brown in Hanoi on February 23.

Increasing constructive dialogue between the EU and Vietnam is the aim of the visit from February 21-23 of a delegation from the Subcommittee on Human Rights of the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs.

 Chairman of the IMI Systems Ltd from Israel Yitzhak Aharonovich affirmed that his group wants to work together with Vietnam in areas of its strengths, thus bringing the two countries’ relations to the next level.

 Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc hoped that Vietnam’s trade, investment, and defence-security cooperation with the UK will be growing strongly following the visit by Secretary of State for International Trade Liam Fox.

Vietnam has reiterated its sovereignty over the Truong Sa (Spratly) and Hoang Sa (Paracels) archipelagoes, and held that all construction and reclamation at the two archipelagoes without Vietnam’s permission are illegal. 

While many factors come into play, ensuring a stable supply of high-quality produce and diverse, value-added products will be crucial to meeting the shrimp export target of US$10 billion by 2025

VietNamNet Bridge - The first Nokia 6s have appeared in Vietnam, but many Vietnamese say they do not see any outstanding feature in the product.

VietNamNet Bridge - Vuon Chim Viet (Viet Bird Garden) in Dong My commune of Thanh Tri district in Hanoi is described as a ‘world of birds’ where rare and unique birds and waterfowl can be bred successfully.

VietNamNet Bridge - Vietnamese enterprises are working hard to become suppliers of parts and accessories for foreign electronics manufacturers.