NA Chairman leaves for Cuba, Argentina, Uruguay visits

Chairman of the National Assembly (NA) Vuong Dinh Hue and his entourage left Hanoi on April 18 morning for official visits to Cuba, Argentina and Uruguay from April 18-28.

The visits are made at the invitations of President of the National Assembly of People's Power of Cuba Esteban Lazo Hernandez, President of the Chamber of Deputies of Argentina Cecilia Moreau, and Speaker of the Senate of Uruguay Beatriz Argimon Cedeira.

Accompanying the top Vietnamese legislator are Vice NA Chairman Tran Quang Phuong, NA Secretary General and Chairman of the NA Office Bui Van Cuong, Chairman of the NA’s Foreign Affairs Committee Vu Hai Ha, Minister of Construction and Chairman of the Vietnam Sub-committee of the Vietnam-Cuba Intergovernmental Committee Nguyen Thanh Nghi, and leaders of many ministries and localities.

Deputy PM Tran Hong Ha leads Committee on Population and Development

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has assigned Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha as Head of the National Steering Committee on Population and Development.

The steering committee, established in 2022, is responsible for coordinating ministries and sectors in handling important and interdisciplinary issues on population and development and putting fowards proposals on population and development. 

The Ministry of Health was assigned to serve as the permanent agency of the steering committee.

Viet Nam is likely to welcome the 100 millionth citizen in April, according to the Population and Labor Statistics Department under the General Statistics Office (GSO).

Viet Nam is set to become one of 15 countries in the world and one of three countries in Southeast Asia, to have a population of 100 million or over. 

A population of 100 million people will bring great human resources in many aspects for the socio-economic development of the country.

Viet Nam has now entered the period known as the ‘golden population structure’, which means that there is only one dependent person for every two or more working-age persons aged 15-64 years.

Moreover, the working-age population is currently approximately 68 million which provides a huge labor resource for the country.

According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Viet Nam, having a population of 100 million means that the country has a large domestic market with the possibility to attract more foreign direct investment with the availability of a well-educated and skilled labor force who have innovative and creative minds in the country.

It is expected that Viet Nam's golden population period will continue until 2039, with more young population groups who have high labor productivity; therefore, the country has the advantage of population structure to promote economic growth.

However, fertility decline is one of the challenges which push up Viet Nam’s aging population process.

Declining fertility rates and limitations on the number of children and available technologies have resulted in widespread gender-biased sex selection and it is estimated 47,000 missing female births annually.

It is forecasted that the country will have an excess of 1.5 million men aged 15-49 and the number will reach 2.5 million by 2059.

Trial of 12 accused in medical equipment bidding scandal at Hanoi Heart Hospital begins

The trial of 12 people, including former officials and leaders, for "violating regulations on bidding, causing serious consequences" in medical equipment bidding at the Hà Nội Heart Hospital began on Monday. 

The defendants stand accused of causing more than VNĐ53.6 billion (US$2.2 million) in damages to Hà Nội Heart Hospital and the Social Insurance Fund.

Of the defendants, five are former officials and leaders of Hà Nội Heart Hospital, including Nguyễn Quang Tuấn, former director and chairman of the hospital's Procurement Council; Hoàng Thị Ngọc Hưởng, former deputy director; Nguyễn Thị Dung Hạnh, former chief accountant and head of the finance and accounting department; and Đoàn Trọng Bình and Nghiêm Tuấn Linh, both former deputy heads of the medical equipment department.

The other seven defendants included three from Hoàng Nga Medical Equipment Joint Stock Company, namely Nguyễn Đức Đảng, former chairman of the Board of Directors, Phạm Huy Lập, former director, and Phạm Thị Kim Oanh, former chief accountant.

Phan Tuấn Đạt is the former chairman of the Board of Directors and former deputy director of Kim Hòa Phát Biotechnology Joint Stock Company.

Three other defendants were from AIC Vietnam Investment and Valuation Joint Stock Company. They are Trần Phú Hưng, former deputy general director; Nguyễn Hồng Dung, deputy general director, appraiser; and Nguyễn Trung Dũng, appraiser.

According to the indictment announced at the trial, since 2015, Nguyễn Quang Tuấn directed Hoàng Nga Company and Kim Hòa Phát Company to send medical supplies to be used in advance by Hà Nội Heart Hospital.

Afterwards, extensive bidding procedures were legitimately completed, shortened bidding was designated, and Tuấn approved the decision for these two companies to win the bidding for extensive packages in 2016 and four designated packages in 2017.

Defendants Nguyễn Quang Tuấn, Hoàng Thị Ngọc Hưởng, Nguyễn Thị Dung Hạnh, Nghiêm Tuấn Linh and Đoàn Trọng Bình abused their positions to intervene in bidding activities illegally.

These people colluded with the defendants at Hoàng Nga Company and Kim Hòa Phát Company to carry out many violations from the bidding dossier, unit price, type, quantity of stents, and other medical supplies.

Afterwards, the defendants at Hà Nội Heart Hospital colluded with the defendants at AIC Company to issue appraisal certificates at the request and a fixed price of Hà Nội Heart Hospital, which Nguyễn Quang Tuấn approved.

This ensured that Hoàng Nga Company and Kim Hòa Phát Company won the bids and sold medical equipment in violation of the Procurement Law, causing more than VNĐ53.6 billion ($2.2 million) in damages to Hà Nội Heart Hospital and the Social Insurance Fund in all five bidding packages mentioned above. 

New COVID-19 cases tend to rise: official

The number of COVID-19 cases has increased rapidly since the beginning of April, said Prof Phan Trong Lan, director of the Department of Preventive Medicine under the Ministry of Health (MoH), at a conference on the pandemic prevention and combat held on April 17 in Hanoi.

In the first week of April, Vietnam recorded 278 cases, but the second week saw 2,000 new ones. On April 17 alone, the country documented as many as 1,031 new cases, a record in the past nearly six months,

A total of 2,070 new cases were reported across the nation in the first three months of this year, with 160 recorded per week on average.

No fatality has been documented over the past 108 days. The total number of deaths due to the COVID-19 was 43,186, or 0.4% of the total infections.

Nguyen Thanh Ha, deputy director of the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases, said the number of the patients of the pandemic being hospitalised has been rising remarkably since the beginning of April. The hospital received 47 cases in the first week and 85 in the second week. On April 17 afternoon, it was treating 146 cases, including 21 severe ones.

Decree on Personal Data Protection promulgated

The Government on April 17 issued Decree on Personal Data Protection which specifies measures and conditions to ensure the work.

Under the document, which will take effect from July 1, 2023, those to protect personal data include management and technical measures implemented by organisations and individuals involved in processing personal data; measures implemented by State management agencies with jurisdiction in accordance with this decree and related laws and regulations; investigation and prosecution measures carried out by State agencies; and other measures as stipulated by law.

They must be applied from the beginning and throughout the process of handling personal data.

The Department of Cyber Security and Hi-tech Crime Prevention of the Ministry of Public Security is the specialised agency for the work, tasked with assisting the ministry in implementing State management on the protection of personal data.

The national portal on personal data protection provides information on policies of the Party, and laws of the State on personal data protection; disseminates policies and laws on personal data protection; updates and receives related information and data through the internet; and provides information on the assessment of personal data protection activities of relevant agencies, organisations and individuals.

In addition, it also receives notifications of violations of regulations on personal data protection; issues warnings about risks and actions of infringing personal data as prescribed by law; and performs other activities in accordance with relevant regulations.

The decree specifies that agencies, organisations, and individuals are responsible for disseminating knowledge, skills, and raising public awareness of personal data protection; and ensuring material facilities and conditions for the specialised agency in implementing its tasks.

The Ministry of Public Security is assigned to develop specific programmes and plans to develop workforces specialising in the work.

Vietnamese fencers to compete in Grand Prix ahead of SEA Games

Vietnam's top fencers are set to compete in the Seoul Grand Prix from April 27-29, hoping to earn crucial points for their Paris Olympics campaign and prepare for the 32nd SEA Games in Cambodia.

Representing Vietnam in the men's sabre category are Vu Thanh and Nguyen Van Quyet, while Bui Thi Thu Ha, Pham Thi Thu Hoai, and Phung Thi Khanh Linh will compete in the women's class.

The team faces a tough challenge as they go up against some of the world's strongest fencers in Seoul.

An, the Southeast Asian No 1, is ranked 224th in the world, while Quyet is ranked 174th.

They will face formidable opponents such as world No 1 Sandro Bazadze of Georgia, No 2 Aron Szilagyi of Hungary, and No 3 Bolade Apithy from France.

The women's team faces an even greater challenge, with Linh ranked 271st, Hoai ranked 375th, and Ha not yet ranked.

They will be up against world's top three fencers Misaki Emura of Japan, Despina Georgiadou of Greece, and Anna Bashta of Azerbaijan.

Although none of the Vietnamese fencers advanced to the top 10 at the Italian Grand Prix in February, the team remains determined to qualify for the Paris Olympics in 2024.

Vietnam's plan includes international training courses and tournaments to help athletes like An earn enough points for their world ranking to qualify for the Paris event.

After Seoul, the fencers will return home and join their teammates for final preparation before leaving for Phnom Penh for the 32nd SEA Games.

Fencing will be held from May 11-16 at the Chroy Changvar International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

At SEA Games 31 last May, Vietnam won five golds, one silver and five bronzes, placing second in the medal tally.

Painting exhibition highlights lingering effects of Agent Orange

A painting exhibition highlighting the effects of Agent Orange on humans with works by the US’s famous painter David Thomas and the Boston Printmakers opened at Da Nang Arts Museum on April 17.

On display are 70 paintings that have been arranged in two spaces.

The first space, themed “Finding Parkinsons”, showcase artworks by painter Thomas who was born in Portland, Maine, in 1946.

He is a US war veteran and was the first foreigner to be awarded a "For the culture cause" order in recognition of his contribution to Vietnam’s culture in 1999. In 2010, he was presented an insignia "For the cause of Vietnamese fine arts" by the Vietnam Fine Arts Association.

In 2015, Thomas was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease which he believed to be caused by exposure to Agent Orange during wartime. After seeing X-ray films of his brain, he created visual images of the battle with the disease.

The second space displays artworks by 37 members of the Boston Printmakers, intended to promote solidarity and mutual understanding between Vietnamese and US artists.

Founded in 1947, the mission of the Boston Printmakers is to promote public knowledge of graphic paintings and encourage the development of the graphic art.

These artworks themed “Peace, Love, and Understanding” will be donated to the Da Nang Fine Arts Museum after the exhibition closes on April 21.

PM hosts Vice Chairman of Global Infrastructure Partner

Vietnam is ready to welcome and facilitate the Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP)'s business cooperation in the country, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh told Jim Yong Kim, former President of the World Bank and Vice Chairman and Partner at the GIP on April 17.

Vietnamese ministries and agencies will be assigned to actively exchange and concretise cooperation contents with the GIP on the principle of efficiency and practicality, and in line with the needs and capabilities of the two parties, the PM said.

He appreciated Kim’s contribution to promoting the good relationship between the World Bank and Vietnam, especially in providing financial resources and advice on many socio-economic development policies for the country.

The Government leader hoped that in his new position, he will continue to support Vietnam in accessing international financial resources and promoting high-quality investment projects, especially in obtaining capital sources from such funds as the GIP.

The PM highlighted the important achievements the country has gained since the Doi moi (renewal) process was launched in 1986.

For his part, the GIP Vice Chairman expressed his admiration for Vietnam's socio-economic development, saying that this is the motivation for him and his associates to further strengthen cooperation with Vietnam.

The GIP is interested in pouring capital in the fields of transport, energy and digital technology, he said, revealing that it is willing to invest 1 billion USD in Vietnam.

The official said he expects the Vietnamese Government to support and direct its ministries and agencies to work with the GIP in devising an investment strategy suitable for Vietnam and mulling over specific cooperation projects.

Ninh Thuan Province cracks down on illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing

Ninh Thuận province is tightening measures against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

Lê Huyền, deputy chairman of its People’s Committee, said the south-central province plans to intensely advocate against IUU fishing through mass media from now through May.

The advocacy focuses on educating fishermen about legal provisions, especially for IUU fishing prevention, he said.

The province would make public its efforts to fight IUU fishing in the past and their outcomes, which would help enhance awareness and responsibility among officials and the public, especially fishing boat owners and fishermen, he said.

It plans to check and register all fishing boats, and install a vessel monitoring system (VMS) this month on boats 15 metres or longer.

It also aims to add the registration data to the national fisheries database this month.

It is strengthening the inspection of fishing boats to ensure their VMS is always turned on during fishing trips.

The province Fisheries Sub-department is monitoring boats operating at sea through their VMS.

At ports, the Fishing Port Management Board is closely tracing the origin of catches as required by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to ensure seafood exports to the EU and certain other markets comply with traceability norms.

The board is also checking the catches on boats from other provinces and cities that dock in the province to certify them.

Authorities are making intensive inspections and cracking down on violators, especially failure to install or turn on VMS when fishing offshore and intrusion into foreign waters.

They have organised training courses for more than 6,000 officials and fishermen fishing-related laws, and got boat owners to sign a commitment not to encroach into foreign waters.

New COVID-19 cases surpass 1,000, a record in nearly six months

Vietnam documented as many as 1,031 new COVID-19 cases on April 17, a record in the past nearly six months, confirmed the Health Ministry.

Since the pandemic broke out, Vietnam has logged 11,532,103 infections, ranking 13th out of 230 countries and territories globally. In terms of the number of cases per one million people, Vietnam is placed 121st out of 230 countries and territories with 116,541 cases on average.

The same day, two patients were given all-clear from the virus, bringing the total number of recoveries to 10,615,395.

There are now 14 patients on oxygen support, including 12 on mask ventilation and two on high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC).

No fatality has been recorded over the past seven days. The total number of deaths due to COVID-19 has reached 43,186, or 0.4% of the total infections.

On April 14, 159 vaccine doses were administered, bringing the total to 266,073,566.

Da Nang begins large afforestation project

A timber afforestation project funded by Ecoculture of the United States has yielded 20,000 samples of precious timber species in Hòa Vang District, promoting the development of an "environment and smart" urban area by 2030.

The plantation, located on 18.1 hectares in Hòa Liên Commune, consists of dalbergia tonkinnensis and pterocarpus macrocarpus, which will help residents in the commune boost sustainable production and the forestry economy, as well as eco-tourism services and medicinal herb farming on forest canopies.

Most rural residents have benefited from acacia plantations, but log farms have badly impacted the soil.

To combat this issue, the city has gradually replaced acacia with indigenous larger timber species, a positive, resilient method against climate change.

The project was implemented by GreenViet, an NGO, and Hòa Liên Commune People's Committee and local farmers.

The project is a part of the "One Million Trees Plantation" project that GreenViet has been planting in public parks and pedestrian zones in Đà Nẵng, Hà Nội and HCM City to provide a "green" shadow for the community and reduce air pollution from 2021-2025.

Volunteers and GreenViet had grown 1,000 big trees in a landscape and habitat recovery project for the endangered red-shanked doucs langurs in rich biodiversity in Sơn Trà Nature Reserve.

The "One Million Trees Plantation" project also helped provide free education and a "green" rehabilitation centre for 100 children with disabilities in Quảng Nam Province.

The European Union (EU) has agreed to fund a biodiversity protection and environmental sustainability project in Đà Nẵng from 2020-23 with total funding of 650,000 euros.

Vietnam seeks support from UK, EU in just energy transition

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha hosted a reception in Hanoi on April 17 for Chris Taylor, the UK’s special envoy on climate change, and Principal Adviser on Energy Diplomacy at the European Union Tibor Stelbaczky, who are on a working visit to Vietnam.

At the meeting, Ha thanked the British Government, the EU and other International Partners Group (IPG) members, namely France, Germany, the US, Italy, Canada, Japan, Norway and Denmark, for their cooperation with Vietnamese agencies in negotiating and approving the Political Declaration on establishing the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) with Vietnam.

The Vietnamese Government is implementing commitments to reducing greenhouse gas emissions towards net zero by 2050 with domestic resources and international support, he said, adding that Vietnam considers JETP a key channel to receive technological and financial support from developed countries and financial institutions for just energy transition.

Sharing content of the draft Power Development Plan VIII, which is being finalised, the Deputy PM expressed his wish that the EU and the UK will share experience and technologies in clean energy transition, smart grid development, and increasing the proportion of renewable energy, promoting energy storage technology, and ensuring the balance and stability of the energy system at a cost suitable to the level of development of the economy and income of people.

Expressing his support for the initiative to establish the JETP Secretariat, Ha also suggested the EU and the UK support Vietnam in completing the legal framework, mechanisms and policies, and choosing renewable and green energy projects to solve problems in credit, technology, and governance.

Tibor Stelbaczky appreciated the political commitments of the Vietnamese Government on green transition as well as the implementation of JETP, emphasising the partnership's role in achieving the set goals.

He showed his hope that the JETP Secretariat will soon be established to listen to comments, and a plan will be built to mobilise resources for the implementation of JETP. He stressed the need for strong commitments from relevant parties in terms of resources and technology, as well as mutual support in energy transition and green transition.

Chris Taylor expressed the willingness to support and share experience with Vietnam in the implementation of JETP, stressing the need for a harmonised policy to solve challenges, and pledging to continue to promote investment in Vietnam in the coming time.

According to him, to achieve long-term goals in JETP and green transition, the engagement of ministries, sectors, localities and people is essential. The UK and the EU are ready to support Vietnam in technical expertise, technology as well as methods of mobilising necessary resources from global partner countries, he added.

The JETP will mobilise an initial 15.5 billion USD of public and private finance over the next three to five years to support Vietnam's green transition.

Under the agreement, the partnership will support the country to deliver on its ambitious net zero 2050 goal, accelerate the peaking of its greenhouse gas emissions and transition away from fossil fuels to clean energy.

Dried shrimp making in Ca Mau seeks national intangible cultural heritage status

The craft of making dried shrimp has been proposed by the southern province of Cà Mau to be recognised as a national intangible cultural heritage.

If recognised, this will be the fifth intangible cultural heritage of the province, after Đờn ca tài tử (traditional music of southern Việt Nam), gác kèo ong (luring bees to build nests on sloping wooden poles and cultivation of honey bees in the wild), muối ba khía (the making of three-striped crab sauce) in Rạch Gốc and nghệ thuật nhạc trống lớn (a traditional drum performance).

According to Director of the Cà Mau Province's Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism Trần Hiếu Hùng, the department has submitted the necessary documents to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to consider the recognition of “the making of Cà Mau dried shrimp” as a national intangible cultural heritage.

Hùng said that dried shrimp is one of the famous specialties that is known by many locals and foreigners.

​The making of dried shrimp has created jobs for thousands of local workers and supplied tens of tons of dried shrimp to the market each year.

This profession, according to many locals in Cà Mau, has been around for many years. Dried shrimps are mainly made from shrimp living in the natural river environment or those exploited from the sea.

While most of the province's Mau dried shrimps are produced via traditional steps including boiling and drying in natural sunlight, among others, some large-scale production facilities have started to apply industrial processing technology to dry shrimp to ensure food safety and hygiene, reduce costs, and achieve higher efficiency than traditional methods.

SEA Games 32 a springboard for Vietnam towards 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup

The upcoming 32nd Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 32) next month is said to be a "springboard" for the Vietnamese women's football team on their journey to the prestigious 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup in July, and offers a good chance to better the quality of the team’s defence.

The 26 players joining the training in Japan from April 17 – 30 have been revealed, with two firsttimers Ho Thi Thanh Thao and Tran Thi Thuy Nga.

Nga is highly valued for the position of a central defender because of her height and experience, while Thao is often arranged as defender on the right-back.

It was a big surprise when head coach Mai Duc Chung decided to choose the two new players to join the national team in the training in Japan because he usually favours experienced ones in the national team and gives them the opportunity to play in friendly matches before considering them for the official squad.

However, to carefully prepare for SEA Games 32, the 72-year-old coach is forced to consider backup plans for the worst-case scenario.

The training in Japan and the SEA Games 32 are seen as the necessary rehearsals for the team to prepare for the biggest women's football event in the planet.

Vietnam’s Kun Khmer team eyes golds at 32nd SEA Games

As one of the seven teams to compete in Kun Khmer at the 32nd SEA Games in Cambodia in May 2023, the Vietnamese team targets gold medals.

Kun Khmer - a combat sport that originated in Cambodia – is among the three new sports that the host Cambodia brings to the 2023 SEA Games together with the Cambodian national martial arts of Kun Bokator and Ok Chaktrong (a kind of chess).

Each Kun Khmer match usually lasts 5 rounds with each lasting about three minutes. competitors must not attack when the opponent lies on the floor, not bite, hit the back of the neck or the groin, or grab the belt and the referee will call the fight to end if a fighter is no longer able to compete.

Thailand has refused to participate in Kun Khmer because it believes that it is Muay Thai.

Currently, Vietnam has established a Kun Khmer team. Nguyen Tran Duy Nhat - the world champion in Muay Thai - is now an assistant to the team’s coach and will empower young athletes to compete in this new martial art.

According to Nhat, Kun Khmer has a similar fighting style to Muay Thai and his experience will partly help Vietnamese athletes become more confident.

Sin Suoi Ho village proud to receive ASEAN Community Tourism Award

The Sin Suoi Ho commune in Phong Tho district, the northern province of Lai Chau, held a ceremony to announce the ASEAN’s recognition of the Sin Suoi Ho village in the commune as an attractive community-based tourism area.

On February 5, 2023, at the International Tourism Fair Forum in the city of Yogyakarta, Indonesia, the community tourist site in Sin Suoi Ho village was selected as a winner of ASEAN Community Tourism Awards in 2022.

Sin Suoi Ho commune is home to 944 households with over 5,100 people, 71% of whom are of Mong ethnic group and 27% are Dao. It has a cool climate all year round and friendly and hospitable people who actively protect the environment and nature.

People in Sin Suoi Ho village mainly live on agricultural production, including cardamom, fruit trees, livestock and poultry, and orchids, as well as providing tourism services.

In June 2015, Sin Suoi Ho village was recognised by the People's Committee of Lai Chau province as a community-based tourist destination.

It was ranked by the Vietnam Tourism Association as one of the four most attractive community-based tourist attractions in Vietnam in 2020.

HCM City to name part of Hà Nội Highway Võ Nguyên Giáp Street

Authorities have proposed to name part of Hà Nội Highway, from the Sài Gòn Bridge to Thủ Đức intersection, Võ Nguyên Giáp Street. The section is nearly 7.8km long.

The reason why the city authority proposed renaming the street was in recognition of the great merits of General Võ Nguyên Giáp for the cause of national liberation and reunification.

At the same time, it shows the gratitude of the Party Committee, the city's government and People's Committee to the legendary general who made great contributions to the nation.

After the renaming, the road will be Hà Nội Highway – Võ Nguyên Giáp – Điện Biên Phủ, creating a connection between historical events and historical figures – the Điện Biên Phủ campaign and General Võ Nguyên Giáp.

So far, the process of naming and changing the names of streets has been carried out in line with the Government’s Decree 91, which rules that only the People’s Council, the legislative unit in each city and province, has the authority to decide the names of streets and public works.

Meanwhile, the executive unit of the People’s Committee is in charge of consulting related units on coming up with suggestions for those names.

Võ Nguyên Giáp, the first four-star general and the former commander-in-chief of the Vietnamese Army, died on October 4, 2013 at the 108 Army Hospital in Hà Nội. 

He started his career as a history teacher before joining the army to become a legendary general who led the Vietnamese Army to defeat the French and US invaders in 1954 and 1975, respectively. 

Localities asked to speed up transport projects

The Ministry of Transport has called on localities to speed up the construction of transport projects as many are reportedly lagging behind schedule.

The request was made by Minister Nguyễn Văn Thắng at an online meeting between the transport ministry with local departments of transport to review the progress, quality and disbursement of assigned transportation projects.

As many as 30 transportation projects with a total investment of VNĐ20.3 trillion (US$864 million) are assigned to the Department of Transport and Project Management Unit (PMU) of Đắk Lắk Province. Of 18 ongoing constructions, there are 10 behind schedule that were unable to be completed in 2022.

Delays are blamed on difficulties in land clearance in the areas of these projects. Many projects have recalled the costs of land clearance higher than the fund given. For example, the Highway 32 project between Hiền Lương and Yên Bái City got delayed since the cost for clearance exceeded VNĐ100 billion ($4 million).

The Transport Construction Investment Management Authority also mentioned some projects due to finish in 2023 but may be delayed. The reasons are the slow progress in construction, difficulties in land clearance of which costs exceeded the fund given, long settlement as well as scarce sources of sand materials for construction.

Some contractors have not gathered enough equipment and finance to start work.

Minister Nguyễn Văn Thắng confirmed that the Ministry of Transport will fully allocate capital to meet construction progress.

“With the projects headed by local PMU and Department of Transport, if they can push the project, push it to the maximum,” Minister Nguyễn Văn Thắng said. “The Ministry of Transport will fully allocate funds to meet construction progress.”

In 2023, the ministry received VNĐ94.1 trillion ($4 billion) from the State budger. Up to now, they have detailed plans on capital to allocate to transportation projects. Accordingly, the projects that are headed by the local departments of transport were assigned VNĐ2.8 trillion ($110 million), accounting for 3 per cent of the total capital.

With projects due to finish in 2023, Minister Thắng urged contractors to accumulate the workload to finish it this year. With those that haven’t finished in 2022, the minister urged local departments to complete procedures to update progress and completion time after being approved by the Prime Minister.

Air quality in northern region reaches unhealthy levels

The northern region continued to experience poor air quality on the morning of April 17, with private provider PAM Air declaring the conditions as "unhealthy" and "very unhealthy", potentially affecting the entire population.

PAM Air monitoring stations in Cẩm Xá Commune, Mỹ Hào District, Hưng Yên Province, reported that the Air Quality Index (AQI) exceeded the red-warning level, peaking at AQI 312.

The index surpassed 300, meaning everyone may experience more serious health effects.

The air quality in five stations in Hà Nội, Hưng Yên, and Thái Nguyên provinces showed the AQI at purple (AQI 201-300, "very unhealthy").

Dozens of stations in some northern localities also reported the air quality index as red (AQI 151-200, 'Unhealthy'), mainly in Hà Nội and neighbouring areas.

According to the Department of Environmental Pollution Control under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the air quality in some localities is deteriorating due to fine dust particles (PM2.5).

Moreover, the current adverse weather developments, such as differences in temperature, humidity, wind direction and thermal radiation, have also affected the diffusion of air pollutants, which makes dust stay longer in the air.

The Department of Environmental Pollution Control urges local authorities to take prompt action.

Provincial and municipal environment departments must increase the frequency of air monitoring programmes.

Local authorities must focus on inspecting and supervising industrial production facilities to control emissions and ensure companies install emission monitoring systems.

Source: VNA/SGT/VNS/VOV/Dtinews/SGGP/VGP/Hanoitimes