Typhoon Nari lands in East Sea

Typhoon Nari swept across the Philippines’ Luzon Island on October 12, entering the East Sea, the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting reported.

At 10:00AM, the storm’s centre was approximately 700km to the east-southeast of Vietnam’s Hoang Sa archipelago.

It was packing winds gusting up to between 118 and133km per hour near its eye.

The typhoon is expected to move west over the next 24 hours at a speed of around 20km per hour, and is liekly to regain strength.

Over the following 24–48 hours, experts predict the storm will change course to west-northwest and head for north-central province of Vietnam early next week.

The central provinces of Da Nang, Khanh Hoa, Quang Ngai, and Quang Binh have coordinated with the coast guard, urging more than 36,000 boats carrying 150,000 fishermen to seek ports of shelter as soon as possible.

Police force of central Quang Tri Province brought prosecutions in the aftermath of three new-born babies dying after hepatitis B vaccinations at provincial Huong Hoa Hospital on July 20.

The Ministry of Health immediately co-operated with provincial agencies to investigate the babies' deaths but clear reasons could not be found. The ministry then started working with the Ministry of Public Security.

Two staff have been suspended: Doctor Le Thi Kim Phuong, who was in charge during the shift; and Nguyen Thi Hai Thuan, who carried out the vaccinations.

Petrol tank truck catches fire in Nha Be

A petrol tank truck suddenly caught fire at 11am on Friday while parked at Dang Nhu Lam Street in HCM City's Nha Be District.

People nearby were evacuated because of smoke from the fire, and for fear that the truck would explode. Electrical power was shut down for safety.

After 10 minutes, two fire engines carrying 10 firefighters arrived and extinguished the fire. Part of the vehicle and petrol pipes were damaged due to the fire.

Police are investigating the cause of the fire.

10-tonne whale stranded in Soc Trang

Fishermen and authorities in Vinh Chau town of southern Soc Trang province are trying to rescue a 10-tonne whale stranded on October 11.

The whale is around 12 metres long and two metres wide.

Local police and border guards have been mobilised to maintain security and help the whale return to the ocean.

However, a burning sun and low tide are hampering rescue efforts.

Vietnam joins Minamata mercury treaty

Vietnam has officially joined the United Nations Minamata Convention on Mercury with a view to minimising the metal’s significant adverse impact on human health and the environment.

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Le Duong Quang, on behalf of the Vietnamese Government, signed the Convention in Japan on October 11.

The Convention regulates the production, export-import, trade, distribution, transport, usage, storage and disposal of mercury. Treaty members are responsible for working out their own agenda for 2020–2025 to end all mercury mining.

Addressing the signing ceremony, Quang called for technical and financial support among member nations to reach the Convention goals for a safer world.

According to Dr. Phung Ha, head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Department of Chemicals, Vietnam will be able to learn from global experiences in mercury management and work with industrialised nations to develop mercury-free products and technologies to minimise its discharge.

Established in 2009, the Minamata Convention on Mercury is named after the Japanese city where tens of thousands of people were poisoned – around 2,000 of whom have since died – by eating fish and shellfish taken from waters polluted by mercury discharged from a local factory.

Mercury is now widely used in Vietnam in industrial production and medical equipment but it has yet to be closely controlled.

As a national agency in charge of managing chemical activities, the Ministry of Industry and Trade is pursuing the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management – a policy framework to foster the sound management of chemicals. It has assigned representatives to attend the Inter-Governmental Committee for negotiating the Convention since 2010.

 Preventive measures reduce deaths from natural disasters

The number of dead and missing people as the result of natural disasters in Vietnam fell from 2,030 in the 2002-2007 period to 1,868 during 2008-2012, as a result of a series of preventive measures.

According to Deputy Chief of the Office of the Central Committee for Flood and Storm Control Van Phu Chinh, the country has shifted its policy from countering natural disasters to prevention, as shown in the promulgation of the law on natural disaster prevention, as well as many legal documents and policies in the field.

The Government has approved a plan for irrigation system development in the Mekong Delta, the Red River Delta and the central regions to cope with climate change and rising sea levels.

The country is also working on modernising the hydrological observation network to facilitate forecasting work. Meanwhile, fishermen in 28 coastal provinces have been provided with 7,000 tools for weather forecasting and 3,000 satellite communication systems installed for offshore fishing vessels.

At the same time, the country has been building infrastructure projects to mitigate disasters’ consequences. The Prime Minister has approved a programme to upgrade the sea dyke system stretching from Quang Ninh province in the north to Kien Giang province in the south and another plan to improve river dykes.

The first phase of a scheme to build flood-proof residential complexes and clusters in the Mekong Delta has been completed and the second phase is now underway, alongside with a pilot programme to build flood shelters for residents in flood-vulnerable areas in the central localities.

Speaking at the third national forum on disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation on October 10, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat said Vietnam has been using resources effectively to reduce the risks caused by disasters.

In the coming time, the country will further promote disaster management by applying technology, while working closely with international organizations and donors in the field.

RoK university helps improve Quang Nam’s health care

Yonsei University from the Republic of Korea (RoK) on October 10 donated medical equipment worth over VND3.5 billion (US$164,500) to the Quang Nam Paediatrics Hospital in the central province of the same name.

In addition to the medical equipment, which was channelled through the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), Yonsei University has so far this year organised many training courses on paediatric care for nurses and doctors of the Vietnamese hospital.

With the university’s funding, a doctor of the Quang Nam hospital has been sent to the Hanoi-based Paediatrics Hospital for professional skill improvement.

Meanwhile, central doctors have been dispatched to the local hospital to provide lectures there.

French loan to help improve infrastructure system

The Vietnamese cities of Da Nang and Can Tho will be provided with a loan of 10 million EUR each by the Agency of French Development (AFD) to improve their respective infrastructure systems.

According to a lending contract signed in the Mekong delta city of Can Tho on October 10, the two cities are to receive additional non-refundable aid worth 500,000 EUR, which aims to provide technical assistance and ensure the spending of the loan is effective.

The loans are expected to speed up socio-economic and urban development in the two localities.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, French Ambassador to Vietnam Jean-Noel Poirier said the contract agreement will further strengthen diplomatic ties between the two countries.

France is now one of the largest official development assistance (ODA) providers for Vietnam, especially in infrastructure building, technology transfer and agricultural and industrial development.

OVs in Hungary donate to help flood victims

The expatriate Vietnamese community in Hungary has raised US$11,500 on behalf of the victims forced to bear Storm No. 10’s aftermath along Vietnam’s Central Region.

Responding to the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee’s call for assistance, the Vietnamese Embassy and the Hungarian branch of the Vietnamese People Association launched a campaign encouraging local OVs to support flood victims back home.

The US$11,500 raised will be sent directly to VFF Central Committee in Hanoi before distributing to where it is most needed.

Two nonprofit organisations used the social networking website Facebook to raise an additional US$3,300 for disadvantaged citizens.

The Vietnamese community in Hungary, around 5,000–6,000 people, are notable for their reliably enthusiastic participation in activities and campaigns linked back to the homeland.

Scholarships, gifts presented to needy students

As many as 290 scholarships worth almost 170 million VND (8,000 USD) were presented to outstanding ethnic pupils, children with disabilities and orphans in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak on October 11.

The scholarships, donated by philanthropists and enterprises in and out of the province, are awarded every year by the provincial Fund for Children to encourage and help disadvantaged pupils overcome difficulties in studying.

The same day, the representative office of the Vietnam Agriculture Newspaper in Thai Nguyen province and VINGROUP presented 100 bicycles to poor children in the province’s two districts of Phu Luong and Phu Binh.

Another 400 bicycles, also under the programme “Go to school with you”, will be presented to disadvantaged children with good school performances in Vinh Long, Kien Giang, Thai Nguyen, Tuyen Quang and Yen Bai provinces.-

Sorrow, hope, efforts of women featured at exhibition

As many as 45 photos on life, sorrow, hope and the efforts of women who have suffered from violence and human trafficking are on display at a three-day exhibition in Hanoi that opened on October 11.

The exhibition, jointly held by Plan International (PI) and the Centre for Studies and Applied Sciences in Gender, Family, Women and Adolescents (CSAGA), is one of the activities to promote the Because I Am A Girl (BIAAG) campaign in Vietnam.

In opening the exhibition themed “My life, my dream”, CSAGA Director Nguyen Van Anh said the event shared the wish for a safer and more friendly society for women.

Anh further said her organisation has incessantly raised initiatives to create more opportunities and favourable conditions for women, victims of domestic violence, sexual abuse and discriminatory treatment to improve their quality of life and involvement in social activities.

At the event, Country Director of PI in Vietnam Glenn Gibney highlighted the five-year BIAAG campaign to support ethnic minority girls and women in remote and difficult areas as well as those who are vulnerable in urban zones.

The campaign was launched by PI for the first time on this day last year, with a view to helping four million girls around the world gain necessary skills to change their lives.

This year, the programme will help Vietnamese girls in urban areas access public services and places in an easier and more comfortable manner.

In one year, PI has supported 13,000 female children in Ha Giang, Quang Binh and Quang Tri provinces and Hanoi, expecting to reach 100,000 by 2015.

2,300 billion VND to help poor in Northwestern region

Nearly 2,300 billion VND (108 million USD) has been raised for social welfare programmes in the Northeastern region in the 2009-2013 period.

The figure was revealed during an October 11 conference in Hanoi to review the coordination between the Steering Committee for the Northwestern Region and the Vietnam Red Cross Central Committee in the abovementioned period.

Participants at the event agreed that cooperation between the two sides has been realised with the engagement of many businesses, kind-hearted individuals and collectives as well as international organisations, giving a helping hand to poor people in the Northwestern region.

However, they also pointed out that some limitations are still seen in both cooperation contents and forms.

In the 2013-2017 period, the two sides will intensify their cooperation, including the implementation of the “New Year for the poor and Agent Orange/Dioxin victims” and “Cow Bank” programmes in poor and border areas.-

Project improves domestic violence prevention

A Spanish-funded project to promote domestic violence prevention has proved a success in Vietnam since it started two years ago.

The assessment was agreed by participants at a meeting on October 10 in Hanoi to review the communications project to promote the implementation of the Law on Domestic Violence Prevention.

Over the past two years, the project, sponsored by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation, has focused on raising awareness of domestic abuse via publications and television programmes, along with improving the role of men.

The success of the work has helped change public understanding of domestic violence prevention and happy family building.

On this occasion, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism granted an insignia to Silvia Vaca Sotomayor, Head of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation, for her contribution to the project’s success.

She affirmed that she is willing to continue sharing her experiences in gender equality with Vietnam for its fair and sustainable development.

UNICEF fundraises to prevent VN child deaths

The United Nation Children's Fund (UNICEF) will hold the UNICEF ZERO awards at the InterContinental Asian Hotel in HCM City on December 5 to raise funds to reduce the preventable deaths of children to zero.

The event is the first to be held to raise funds to fill the gap of international aid that has been given to Viet Nam in the last 50 years, according to Lotta Sylwander, a representative of UNICEF Viet Nam.

Much of that international aid has now been reduced as Viet Nam was declared a middle-income country by the UN in 2010.

UNICEF ZEROawards will also raise funds to honour inviduals, organisations and businesses that have contributed to the goal of reducing the number of preventable child deaths and vulnerable children to zero.

The funds raised from the event will support children throughout Viet Nam, especially in HCM City and the provinces of Lao Cai, Dien Bien, Gia Lai, Kon Tum, Ninh Thuan, An Giang and Dong Thap.

It is an initiative of Believe in ZERO, a global UNICEF campaign launched in Viet Nam this year that aims to reduce the number of preventable children deaths to zero, the number of exploited or abused children to zero, the number of children deprived of clean water and the number denied access to school to zero.

Sylwander said the campaign would be founded on the belief that no child should ever die from a preventable cause and that all children should grow up in a healthy environment, receive comprehensive education and have a bright future.

UNICEF believes that the support of the community, along with today's medical and technological advances, will eventually lead to zero preventable child deaths in Viet Nam.

According to the latest statistics and surveys, Viet Nam has 2 million children who have suffered permanent physical and brain damage caused by malnutrition.

In Viet Nam, 100 children die every day because of preventable causes like diarrhea or pneumonia. Three million children do not have access to clean water and one child dies every hour due mainly to drowning or traffic accidents.

Ha Nam province launches first Intelligent Transportation System in Vietnam

An Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) on the Cau Gie – Ninh Binh highway in Ha Nam province was made operational on October 11, the first of its kind in Vietnam.

Speaking at the launch, Minister of Transport Dinh La Thang said that the installation of the ITS in Vietnam marks a milestone for Vietnam Expressways Corporation (VEC) in improving traffic management.

Vietnam’s Control - Automation Software JSC and China’s Guangxi Transportation Research Institute were the contractors for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) project.

By utilising modern informations, toll stations and traffic management based on advanced software, the system manages and monitors vehicles travelling on the route 24 hours a day, reducing traffic accidents and traffic jams while maximising the efficiency of transportation on the highway.

The 50-kilometre Cau Gie – Ninh Binh highway project began in January 2006, running across Hanoi, Ha Nam, Nam Dinh and Ninh Binh provinces. Since its completion in June 2012, the highway has greatly eased congestion on the Hanoi – Ninh Binh route.