A ceremony was held on April 22 to inaugurate the upgrade work at the Hanoi Radiation Centre under the Vietnam Atomic Energy Institute.

Radiating fruits 

The event forms part of the activities to mark the 30th founding anniversary of the centre.

Director of the Centre Dang Quang Thieu said the centre, founded in 1986 with the support of the International Automic Energy Agency (IAEA) was the first of its kind in Vietnam , serving to irradiate fruits for export.

It helped lay the foundation for development of the radiation industry in the south, with the establishment of the Research and Development Centre for Radiation Technology (VINAGAMMA) in 1999 in Ho Chi Minh City , Thieu said.

The upgrade to the centre, which was approved in 2015 is expected to help domestic organisations, enterprises and farmers to expand their export market and increase their agricultural production.

It plans to produce and use medical radiation for early dectection of cancers and other diseases.

At the event, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Tran Viet Thanh presented a certificate of merit to the centre for its outstanding contributions to the development of the sector in the 2011-2015 period.

Thanh also hailed the achievements the centre has made over the past 30 years, saying that they contributed to helping ensure the quality of agricultural products for export.

VNA