Vietnam has been a pioneer in the implementation of "green" commitments and praised by the international community for making significant contributions to the “common home” of humanity, said an official.

Dr. Ta Dinh Thi, Deputy Chairman of the National Assembly's Committee on Science, Technology and Environment made the statement on the occasion of the World Earth Day on April 22, themed “Invest in Our Planet,”. It stresses the urgent need for governments, businesses and individuals to invest in a better future for the planet.

According to Thi, Vietnam is one of the six countries most vulnerable to climate change. At the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP 26) in Glasgow, Scotland in late 2021, Vietnam pledged to develop and implement measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by its own resources with the cooperation and support of the international community to achieve the net-zero goal by 2050.

In order to realise commitments at COP 26, the Vietnamese Government and the International Partners Group have officially approved the Political Declaration on establishing the Just Energy Transition Partnership with Vietnam (JETP).

To achieve this goal, Vietnam needs to promote the development of renewable energy, improve energy efficiency and focus on energy transition with an appropriate roadmap, while ensuring environmental protection and climate change response, minimising costs, and improving productivity, quality, and efficiency of the economy.

According to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the country currently has 1,322 domestic waste treatment facilities, including 381 solid waste incinerators, 37 fertilizer production lines and 904 landfills. The main sources of emissions come from landfills, accounting for 50.3%, and from wastewater treatment, 43.2%.

The National Plastic Action Partnership Program in Vietnam (NPAP) and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in Vietnam have provided technical support to a group of scientists at the University of Natural Sciences, Vietnam National University, Hanoi to make a report on the status of plastic waste in Vietnam in 2022.

The initial findings show that on average, the composition of plastic waste in domestic solid waste in Vietnam accounts for about 12%. The total volume of plastic waste produced was 2.9 million tonnes in 2021 and rose about 5% per year. The volume of plastic waste released to the environment was 0.42 million tonnes and only about 0.07 million tonnes went to rivers, lakes and seas.

Environmental experts said this is a great source of input materials for the fields of plastic waste recycling. However, the composition of plastic waste in domestic solid waste in Vietnam is mostly thin plastic bags, food packaging, and disposable plastic utensils.

According to Vietnam's updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) 2022, the country has set a target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the waste sector to 29.4 tonnes of CO2 (63%) by 2030 with international support.

HCM City food festival showcases nation's best dishes

The Food and Culture Festival, organised by the Saigontourist Group, has officially opened at Văn Thánh Tourist Site in Bình Thạnh District with the participation of more than 40 tourism providers, including five-star hotels. 

The festival is arranged into three areas, North, Central and South, corresponding to the cuisine of the country's three regions and gathers 40 food stalls, ten more than in 2022.

Visitors can enjoy dishes prepared by chefs from 5-star hotels such as Caravelle Hotel, New World Saigon Hotel, Rex Hotel, Hotel Majestic, and Grand Hotel Saigon.

Phạm Huy Bình, Chairman of Saigontourist Group, shared that from the success of the 2022 festival, this year's festival returns on a larger scale and is more impressive in terms of both content and expression.

Deer jerky from Central Highland provinces. Special dishes from provinces and cities across the country will also be served to diners.

In addition, the festival also arranges folk games and ten traditional handicraft village booths, such as cooking wine, making tofu, vermicelli, puff pastry, candy, bamboo knitting, and conical hat making. 

Earthquake jolts Central Highlands again

An earthquake measuring 3.2 on the Richter scale hit Kon Plong district ò Kon Tum province in the Central Highlands on April 22 afternoon.

The earthquake occurred at 13:54 (Hanoi time) with a magnitude of 3.2 at a depth of about 8 km in Kon Plong district, said the Earthquake and Tsunami Warning Centre under the Institute of Geophysics of Vietnam.

No damage was reported in the aftermath of the earthquake, said the centre, adding it is continuing to monitor the situation in the area.

A 2.7 magnitude earthquake also hit Kon Plong district on April 21 and caused no damage.

Kon Tum province in general and Kon Plong district in particular belong to the small fault zone. Previous studies show that earthquakes in the area have a magnitude of no more than 5.0.

According to the Institute of Geophysics of Vietnam, earthquakes have occurred more frequently in the area in recent times and they have tended to increase in magnitude. Despite no damage recorded, seismic activities caused by the earthquake have made a certain impact on local people’s lives in the area.

The Institute has set up observatory devices in the earthquake prone area to monitor and release warnings in advance.

Basketball teams to compete at Asia Tour 3x3 in Manila

Việt Nam's national basketball team is set to make its mark at the upcoming Asia Tour 3x3 tournament in the Philippines, showcasing their skills against top-tier teams across Asia and Oceania.

With the competition featuring a mix of both national and professional squads, the stage is set for an exhilarating battle of the best.

This event, taking place at the prestigious Mall of Asia Music Hall, is the first in a series of multi-city competitions that are set to take the sporting world by storm.

With a whopping US$25,000 in prizes up for grabs, it's no wonder that 20 teams from six countries have descended on Manila to showcase their talent, including 12 men's and eight women's teams.

For the Vietnamese squad, this is a chance to show their mettle and prove that they have what it takes to compete at the highest level. 

The women’s side will have two groups during the pool phase composed of four teams that will figure in qualification games in a single round-robin format. The top two teams at the end of the qualifying round advance to the crossover knockout semi-finals.

Việt Nam Red&Gold team, which took home the silver medal in the last Southeast Asian  (SEA) Games in Hà Nội, is bringing in a formidable squad with twins Trương Thảo My and Trương Thảo Vy and captain Huỳnh Thị Ngoan. Newcomer Nguyễn Thị Tiểu Duy joins them.

Other squads are Uratex Tibay, Uratex Dreams and Discovery Pelas of the hosts, along with Malaysia’s Harimau A and B, Singapore’s SG Lioness and Thailand’s Sniper.

Only the top two teams will advance to the crossover semifinals, with the winners facing off in the championship game. The champion will take home the $5,000 cash prize, while the runner-up will bag $2,500 in this FIBA Lite Quest level five event.

On the men's side, 12 teams are divided into four groups. Việt Nam has two representatives, The Performance Lab and the national team Việt Nam Red&Gold.

Other teams include TNT Triple Giga, Cavitex and Demigod of the Philippines. Rising Star, Harimau A and Harimau B fly the colours of Malaysia, while SG Lion from Singapore and 3BL from India represent the pride of their countries.

Teams will play a single-round robin format in the pool phase. The top teams from each group get an outright ticket to the quarter-finals, while the second and third placers figure in a crossover play-in matchup to determine which last four teams will advance to the playoffs.

The male champions will receive $10,000 and qualify for the FIBA Challenger events. Two runners-up will take $5,000 and $2,500, respectively.

After Manila, the national teams will return home and move to Phnom Penh for their SEA Games campaign, where they both target top positions after missing their gold medals in the last seconds at the previous Games on home soil.

Oanh to compete three times in two days at SEA Games

Nguyễn Thị Oanh, the golden girl of Vietnamese athletics, faces her toughest rival yet - scheduling - as she prepares to defend her three SEA Games titles this May.

But for Oanh, who has battled illness and adversity to reign supreme at the regional sport meet for years, it's just another challenge to overcome.

Oanh is set to compete in most events of any Vietnamese athlete at the tournament. She will challenge in the 1,500m, 3,000m and 5,000m steeplechase, where she is the reigning champion.

Athletics events will take place over six gruelling days from May 6, with Oanh's first race, the 1,500m, scheduled for 10am on May 8th. Last year, she clinched gold with a blistering time of 4min 14.98sec.

Just seven hours later, Oanh will be back on track for the 5,000m, a race she dominated in 2022 with a time of 16:44.06.

Then, the following day, Oanh will compete in her strongest event - the 3,000m steeplechase. At the Hà Nội Games, she took home the gold and set a new record of 9:52.44.

As Oanh prepares to defend her hard-earned titles, all eyes will be on the indomitable athlete to see if she can once again overcome all obstacles and emerge victorious.

Her title-defending campaign will last only 31 hours, considered an exhausting physical tryout that the 29-year-old has never done before.

Vietnam, Cuba look to step up sci-tech cooperation

Minister of Science and Technology Huynh Thanh Dat had a meeting with Cuban Deputy Prime Minister Ines Maria Chapman Waughn, and a discussion with Minister of Science, Technology and Environment of Cuba Elba Roza Perez Montolla, on April 21 (local time), on the occasion of NA Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue’s official visit to the Latin American nation.

Previously, on April 20, Dat and his Cuban counterpart signed a Plan to implement the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on science and technology cooperation between the two countries, which was inked in 2018 during the official visit to Cuba by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

During their meeting, Deputy PM Waughn and Minister Dat focused their discussion on science and technology cooperation between the two countries in recent years and the main contents of the plan.
 
The Vietnamese official expressed the desire to further promote cooperation between the two countries in the field of biotechnology, and pledged to give necessary resources to successfully implement commitments signed by the two sides.

He took the occasion to invite Cuban biotech companies to invest in Vietnam's hi-tech parks.

For her part, Waughn highlighted the tradition of the special relations between the two countries, and spoke highly of Vietnam’s outstanding development, with the contribution of science and technology, affirming that the Cuban Government has always paid attention to developing science and technology, and recognised the results of sci-technology cooperation between the two countries.

She urged the two ministries to enhance cooperation in biotechnology, and information technology, and called on the Vietnamese ministry to support Cuba in building the Global Innovation Index (GII).

She briefed on achievements of Cuba's biotechnology industry, including the successful research and production of vaccines against COVID-19 and many other vaccines; and invited the Vietnamese ministry to attend an international conference on science, technology and innovation scheduled for September 16-17 this year.

During the talks, representatives of the two ministries discussed issues related to the two countries’ strategies for science and technology development and innovation; law on development of high technology and hi-tech zones; the implementation of national-level science and technology tasks and projects; and the building of GII.

Minister Dat reviewed science and technology cooperation between the two countries within the Framework Agreement on Scientific and Technological Cooperation in 1997, the MoU on Science and Technology Cooperation in 2018, and the newly-signed Plan to implement the MoU.

The two sides agreed to deepen their cooperation in science and technology, contributing to further tightening the special cooperation between Vietnam and Cuba, bringing long-term benefits to the community of scientists and the people of both nations.

He expressed his hope that the two sides would continue to strengthen join works, share experience in promoting innovation in Vietnam and updating Cuba's socio-economic development model; and enhance the exchange of delegations of the two friendship associations.

HCM City promotes film industry development into 2030

The HCM City is working on a plan to develop the film industry through 2030.

Under the plan, the city will host a short film contest in May which will be a platform for the launch of its first international film festival.

Nguyễn Thị Thanh Thuý, deputy director of the Culture and Sports Department, said at a conference in HCM City on April 14 that the department would cooperate with the city Cinematography Association to organise the short film contest as a start for the first HCM City International Film Festival.

The city now has several short film contests, attracting thousands of filmmakers, such as the CJ Short Film Project and the 48 Hour Film Project (48HFP) from which winning films have been sent to compete at international film festivals.

Thúy added that apart from film festivals, the city would issue favourable policies for developing its film industry.

The department has suggested the city build a new film studio in the outlying district of Củ Chi, covering an area of hundreds of hectares.

The studio will provide modern equipment and technologies for filming, and also become a new tourism destination in the city.

The city now has only a few studios for filming. Most of them are small with an area of thousands of square metres and can be used for making TV series, music videos, commercial videos and game shows.

There is only Hoà Phú Studio in Củ Chi District of the HCM City Television Station, with an area of 49.5 hectares, which can be used for both indoor and outdoor filming, and for all kinds of movie themes from rural and urban life to war.

The studio was the setting for many TV series about the life of people in the south in the early 20th century such as Tơ Lòng Vương Vấn (Missing Love) and Con Nhà Nghèo (The Poor).

The department also plans to build a film production centre, offering services in filming, preproduction and post-production.

Building a cinema museum will be one of the city’s targets to promote Vietnamese history, culture and people to the world.

The museum will display artefacts and equipment about the history and development of the film industry in Việt Nam and HCM City.

In addition, the department is working with relevant agencies to build a human resources plan for the film industry. 

Toronto conference spotlights Vietnam growth after 48 years of reunification

About 45 Canadian scholars and experts gathered at an online conference in Toronto on April 24 to discuss the development of the Vietnamese nation and people after 48 years of national reunification.

Philip Fernandez from the Canada-Vietnam Friendship Society said that the historical milestone of the victory on April 30, 1975 was a start of Vietnam's success in various fields, especially economy, diplomacy and human development towards the UN targets.

Vietnamese Consul General in Vancouver Nguyen Quang Trung recalled the difficulties that Vietnam burdened after the national reunification and affirmed its achievements in economy and external relations that have been recognised by the international community.

The results show extraordinary efforts of Vietnamese people under the leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam, he stated.

The diplomat noted that Vietnam has posted a growth rate of 6-8% annually since the beginning of the millennium. Particularly, despite COVID-19 pandemic, the country still recorded an expansion of over 8%, the highest level in the recent 10 years.

Vietnam has also continued to maintain friendly relations with all countries in the world, with twice serving as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council. Vietnam has always been an active member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and has made responsible contributions to world peace, stability and prosperity, Trung added.

The event was part of activities to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam-Canada relations (1973-2023).

Vietnam and Canada have enjoyed fruitful partnership, with two-way trade hitting over 10 billion CAD (over 7.3 billion USD) in 2022. Vietnam has become Canada's largest trading partner among ASEAN countries. The two countries celebrated five years of their comprehensive partnership last year.

Exhibition features inspiring Vietnamese, Italian women

The Embassy of Italy in Hanoi and the Bat Trang Museum on April 21 launched the exhibition entitled “Substance - The inspiring Vietnamese and Italian women” at Casa Italia (Italian House) in Hanoi.

The exhibition is part of the activities to celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Italy and Vietnam.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Italian Ambassador to Vietnam Antonio Alessandro said that this is the second time the Italian Embassy and the Bat Trang Museum have partnered in an art project after the first one in 2022.

He highlighted the similarities between the two countries, which have a traditional culture with art quintessence as well as craft villages.

“Substance” features the work of renowned Vietnamese make-up artist Pham Ha Phuong, also known as PSI. After many years in the make-up profession, for the first time PSI explores multimedia art and creates an original tribute to the beauty and value of women.

In doing so, she drew inspiration from the famous Venetian masks, elaborated with traditional techniques and handcrafted with plaster, leather and papier-mâché. By “turning human beings into artworks”, PSI creates a unique and profound combination between contemporary art and Italian cultural heritage.

The exhibition brings together 21 outstanding women from different professions, each of them representing a generation of Vietnamese and Italian women living in Hanoi who have made significant contributions to the society.

The artworks displayed in “Substance” are created through life-casting, a common technique in the movie industry. Twenty-one characters become artworks made of different materials, representing the inherently diversity of "substance" with a contemporary touch.

The audience will discover the inspiring stories of these characters through artworks, photos and documentaries displayed physically in the venue and digitally on the exhibition’s official website: www.trienlambanthe.vn.

The exhibition opens for free from April 22 to May 5.

Vietnam, South Africa exchange local audit experience

A Vietnamese delegation from the State Audit Office of Vietnam (SAV) on April 21 had a working session with the regional State Auditor General of Western Cape province, South Africa to strengthen cooperation and exchange experience between the two sides.

During the meeting, the two sides exchanged experience in state audit activities and processes as well as in ensuring budget resources, handling financial wrongdoings during auditing, and environmental auditing, among others.

Nguyen Ba Dung, Director of the SAV's Department of International Cooperation, said the Vietnamese delegation was very impressed with the auditing report of Western Cape province's regional audit agency, especially in ensuring audit quality and professionalism.

Dung also praised the province’s strength in applying information technology with cutting-edge applications and software in the audit process.

For her part, Sangeeta Kallen, business executive at the State Auditor General of Western Cape province said that the Auditor General of South Africa (AGSA) is willing to share its lessons and experience in information technology auditing, an area that Vietnam is interested in.

She also showed her interest in handling financial wrongdoings during auditing, especially forcing officials to take responsibility for their violations.

Earlier, the SAV delegation had a meeting with the Auditor General of South Africa. The two sides shared experience in the implementation of auditing standards of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) and agreed to step up bilateral cooperation and exchanges to share experience, especially in fields of each side’s strength.

Photo Hanoi’23 promotes cultural creative activities in capital city

The Photo Hanoi'23 - International Photography Biennale was jointly opened by the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports and the French Institute in Vietnam on April 21 in the capital city of Hanoi.

As an impressive event in the field of photography, the programme features a variety of activities such as photo exhibitions, talks and hands-on photography experiences.

Photo Hanoi'23 offers the public a fresh and fascinating look at contemporary photography in Vietnam and the world, contributing to introducing and promoting beautiful images of the capital and its people.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Director of the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports Do Dinh Hong affirmed that in the coming time, Hanoi will realise the city's initiatives in the application for joining the UNESCO Creative Cities Network by action programmes and plans to connect people to promote the city’s culture and creativity while promoting linkage programmes between Hanoi and other creative cities in the region and the world.

The event is expected to become a rendezvous for photographers, artists, researchers and educators in the art field in Vietnam, while encouraging multi-dimensional dialogues on the role of visual language in contemporary contexts.

The Photo Hanoi'23 sees the participation of more than 100 Vietnamese and international photographers, curators, speakers and experts in the field of photography. More than 40 solo and group exhibitions and side activities will be held within the framework of the event.

Educational technology exhibition gets underway in Ho Chi Minh City

BESS VIETNAM 2023, an international exhibition on educational technology, IT, equipment, toys, and school supplies, officially opened in Ho Chi Minh City on April 21, attracting the participation of leading companies of the UK, Vietnam and other countries around the world.

In his opening speech, Lam Nguyen Hai Long, chairman of Ho Chi Minh City Computer Association, noted the exhibition is part of practical activities to mark the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the UK. It also provides an ideal venue for businesses of the two sides to ramp up cooperation in developing the education system.

Caroline Wright, president of the British Education Technology Suppliers Association (BESA), said the exhibition represents the best time for both sides to jointly develop the education system in the post-pandemic period, and at the same time seize up cooperation opportunities through a series of activities to be held at the expo.

BESS VIETNAM 2023 has been designed to offer students the chance to engage in exciting activities such as virtual reality glasses, drones, smart assembly, career guidance tests, and STEAM educational experience.

A number of seminars will be held during the two-day event to help education managers and teachers gain access to advanced educational technology solutions and share their various experiences in applying digital transformation to improve the quality of teaching, training, and scientific research.

Vietnamese U17 women’s football team to bring joy to local fans

The Vietnam U17 women’s football team will try their best to earn victory at the 2024 AFC U17 Women's Asian Cup.

Japanese head coach Akira Ijiri made the statement at a press conference on April 21 ahead of the opening qualification matches in Group C.

Playing in the home turf will give the Vietnamese team an advantage and they aim to achieve the best results possible, he said, adding the 2024 AFC U17 Women's Asian Cup will present a chance for the team to look ahead to the future over the next three to five years.

Evaluating the opponents in the group stage, the Japanese coach shared that both Uzbekistan and Palestine are strong and well-invested teams, and Vietnam must play cautiously as information about the two visiting teams is very limited.

Meanwhile, head coach of the Palestinian team Remah B.M. Mahmoud expressed high appreciation for the Vietnamese team, and said his team are ready for the upcoming fixtures.

Palestinian girls have trained very hard and have familiarised themselves with the field before the official matches. They are ready now, said Mahmoud.

There will be two rounds of qualification matches played as part of the 2024 AFC U17 Women's Asian Cup, with the first round scheduled to be played between April 22 and 30 and the second round slated to run from September 16 to 24. 

In the first round, Vietnam have been drawn in Group C alongside Bahrain, Palestine, and Uzbekistan. All matches of Group C will be held at the Vietnam Youth Football Training Center on April 22, April 24, and April 26, respectively.

Vietnamese basketball team announced the lineup for the 32nd SEA Games

The Vietnamese men's basketball team has named the players that will attend the upcoming 32nd SEA Games in Cambodia.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism this week approved a series of official lists of Vietnamese teams participating in the 32nd SEA Games, including the basketball team. 

Compared to last year's SEA Games held in Việt , this year's basketball team has many changes from the coaches to the player roster. 

For this SEA Games, Todd Purves will replace Kevin Yurkus as head coach.

Todd Purves is a veteran coach in the VBA, leading the Hanoi Buffaloes to the VBA finals in 2018 and creating many surprises when leading the young team of the Nha Trang Dolphins to reach the playoffs last season.

In the position of assistant coaches, there will continue to be two familiar names in Vietnamese basketball, Phan Thanh Cảnh and Hoàng Thế Vinh, the most experienced domestic coaches in the VBA.

For the players list, there are many unexpected changes compared to the squad that won fourth place at the previous SEA Games.

The first change is the absence of a series of key Vietnamese overseas players such as Chris Dierker, Christian Juzang, Sang Đinh, and Justin Young.

These absences will deeply affect the team's play as these are all important players in the squad, especially Chris Dierker and Justin Young for defensive and rebounding, and Sang Đinh, Juzang for scoring.

Replacing the above names will be a cast of local players such as: Lê Hiếu Thành, VBA 2022 Local player of the year Huỳnh Vinh Quang, Đặng Thái Hưng, and overseas Vietnamese player Richard Nguyễn.

The absence of quality players playing in the fourth and fifth positions will be a difficult problem that Coach Todd Purves needs to solve before the event.

It is likely that rebounding will be assigned to the duo of Nguyễn Huỳnh Phú Vinh (2m03 in height) and Nguyễn Văn Hùng (1m95).

With a lineup of many domestic players, it is likely that the Vietnamese team will find it difficult to achieve high results in the SEA Games as Việt Nam is in the same group with Malaysia, Myanmar and the "redeem team" of the Philippines. 

Việt Nam face Palestine in Group C opener of women's U17 Asian Cup

Việt Nam will play Palestine in the opening match of the AFC U17 Women's Asian Cup qualification's Group C on April 22 in Hà Nội.

Another other team in the group, Uzbekistan, will play Việt Nam on April 26.

Coach Akira Ijiri of Việt Nam said it was his team's first international tournament. He wanted players to collect as much experience as possible for their later career.

The Japanese coach said it was hard to find information on other teams in the group so he presumed they were strong. He would ask his players to try their best against both rivals.

Captain Nguyễn Thị Thương was happy for her first international event and said Việt Nam would show all its ability to secure a berth in the second qualifier.

Palestine coach Remah B. M. Mahmoud said she had only two months working with her team. Some good players were called for the U20 team. So Palestine met with difficulties in the preparation for the tournament. For different reasons, they spent almost 44 hours travelling to arrive in Việt Nam hours prior to the press conference.

She said Palestine, who played two friendly matches against Bahrain and Jordan, had only one practise before playing the hosts. She believed that the qualification was a good opportunity for her girls to improve their quality and hopefully they could qualify for the final stage.

On his side, coach Vladimir Panov said Uzbekistan had a training course and friendly matches with local clubs in preparation for the Asian Cup.

He said the hot and sunny weather in Việt Nam was a challenge for his team. Players had to practice when the sun was high to adapt with the challenge and hope for positive results. 

In the first qualification, 29 teams are divided into eight groups, competing in a round robin format. Eight will advance to the second round in two groups from September 16 to 24. 

Four teams from Round 2 will advance to the finals, which is scheduled to be held in Indonesia from April 7 to 20, 2024. They will be joined by the top three teams from the AFC U16 Women’s Championship Thailand 2019 as well as hosts Indonesia. 

Defending champions and four-time winners Japan, runners-up and three-time champions North Korea, and third-placed China are the teams from 2019 to qualify directly for the finals. 

Former director of Hà Nội Heart Hospital jailed for three years

The former director of Hà Nội Heart Hospital has been sentenced to three years in prison for “violating regulations on bidding, causing serious consequences”.

The charge against Dr Nguyễn Quang Tuấn, 56, was announced on Friday after a five-day trial at the People’s Court of Hà Nội.

He was charged in accordance with the provisions of Article 222, Clause 3, under the Penal Code. He will not be banned from practicing after he has served his sentence.

The court determined that Tuấn committed the crime while the health sector faced many difficulties and the procurement of medical supplies could not be met in time due to shortcomings of legal regulations.

The court also said that it is a very serious case, infringing on the State's economic management order in the bidding for the procurement of medical equipment and supplies, affecting the reputation of the health sector and the hospital, causing insecurity among the people and going against the current fight against corruption.

Tuấn, who held the highest position at the hospital, has to take the highest responsibility for the violations, the court said.

However, the court pointed out that he was a leading doctor with high professional qualifications in the field of cardiology and was highly regarded by both domestic and international public opinion.

The court heard that during his work, he was awarded many noble medals, trained generations of doctors and saved many lives.

During the investigation and at the trial, Tuấn was sincere, especially repentant and actively re-mediate the consequences. He already returned US$10,000 that he received from Hoàng Nga Medical Equipment Joint Stock Company and VNĐ6 billion ($256,000).

These are believed to be extenuating circumstances to mitigate the sentence for him, the court said.

The court also said Tuấn’s violations are not related to his medical expertise, so it is necessary to consider mitigating his punishment than that proposed by the representative of the People’s Procuracy for him (the suggested sentence was from four to five years in prison) so that he can soon be returned to the community and contribute more to the health sector.

Also at the trial, 11 other defendants were handed sentences ranging from two years on probation to three and a half years in prison.

The court sentenced Nguyễn Thị Dung Hạnh, 54, former chief accountant of the hospital and head of the hospital’s finance and accounting office, to two years in prison.

Hoàng Thị Ngọc Hưởng, 62, former deputy director of the hospital; Đoàn Trọng Bình, 63, former deputy head of the hospital’s Medical Supplies Office; and Nghiêm Tuấn Linh, 43, former deputy head of the hospital’s Medical Supplies Office, were given a sentence of two years and a half in prison each.

Nguyễn Đức Đảng, 47, former chairman of the Board of Directors of Hoàng Nga Medical Equipment Joint Stock Company, was given three years and a half in prison; Phạm Huy Lập, 71, former director of the company, received a sentence of two and a half years’ probation; and Phạm Thị Kim Oanh, the former chief accountant of the company, was sentenced to two years in prison.

Phan Tuấn Đạt, 56, former chairman of the Board of Directors and former deputy director of Kim Hòa Phát Biotechnology Joint Stock Company, was given two years’ probation.

Trần Phú Hưng, 47, former deputy general director of AIC – Việt Nam Valuation and Investment Joint Stock Company, was sentenced two years and a half in prison; Nguyễn Hồng Dũng, 41, former deputy general director of the company, received a sentence of two years in prison; and Nguyễn Trung Dũng, 34, appraiser of the company, was given a sentence of 23 months and eight days in prison but was released as this was the same length of time he had spent in prison while awaiting the trial.

Deputy PM orders improvement of drug rehabilitation facilities

Deputy Prime Minister Trần Lưu Quang ordered the improvement of drug rehabilitation centres to relieve the workload and address the degradation of current facilities, particularly those in the central and southern regions.

He was speaking at a conference on drug control and prevention in 2022 and the key tasks for 2023 on Friday morning. 

The country recorded 196,110 drug addicts last year, nearly half of whom are not admitted to rehabilitation facilities. The 2022 total figure also decreased by 9,071 people compared to 2021. 

Việt Nam has 110 drug rehabilitation centres, of which 97 are public. Nineteen cities and provinces across the country have implemented voluntary drug habilitation at home and in the community, with 124 organisations eligible to provide the service. 

For localities which not yet have rehabilitation centres, the deputy PM required utilising temporary facilities and developing a plan to construct them with the support of central departments. 

He also asked the health ministry to work on regulation adjustments to allow health workers, including the retired, to diagnose drug addiction, which currently only limits to psychiatry, general medicine, internal medicine and traditional medicine doctors according to Decree 109/2021/NĐ-CP.

Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Đào Ngọc Dung said that the status of the drug addict must be determined before they are taken to rehabilitation.

The diagnosis is exceptionally important as more cases of people using synthetic drugs are recorded, affecting local security and order. 

At the meeting, the deputy PM also praised the police forces and authorities for the measures taken for drug control and prevention. 

He required that before May 15, authorities must review the bottlenecks related to anti-drug work to put forward solutions in the near future.

The health ministry was also assigned to develop a new decree for actions and to study the methods to identify new types of drugs. 

The Ministry of Public Security reported that the illegal use of drugs has been on the rise, especially after COVID-19. Drug crimes in hotspot areas also witnessed complicated developments.

Criminals are also taking advantage of delivery services to illegally transport narcotics into the country, or using Việt Nam as a transit point. 

They also use social media and make transactions online using cryptocurrency such as bitcoin or ethereum, which is not recognised in Việt Nam but still valid for exchange in several other countries. This has made crime detection and investigation more difficult. 

Meanwhile, the illegal cultivation of narcotic plants is still taking place in several remote and mountainous areas. 

Specialised forces have been deploying multiple operations, which handled a total of 26,119 cases with 40,113 offenders, seizing 743.7kg of heroin, more than 2,100kg and 4 million tablets of synthetic drugs and over 460kg of marijuana. 

Passengers to Tan Son Nhat airport on national holidays forecasted to surge

Tan Son Nhat International Airport in HCM City has been forecasted to serve 755,910 passengers on the coming National Reunification (April 30) and International Labour Day (May 1) holiday, up 32.79 percent against the same period of last year.

Between April 28 and May 3, the airport will serve a total of 4,466 flights, up 18 percent compared to the same time of 2022. The international terminal is expected to see 255,715 passengers, while the figure for the domestic one will be around 500,195.  

The airport has planned measures to ensure safety and ease overcrowding.

A quick response team has been set up to deal with the operation of unlicensed taxis and motorbikes. The airport will arrange roughly 20 staff to assist passengers in vehicle pick-up and security screening areas from 5 to 9 am between April 29 and May 3.

More cars with at least 10 seats will also be operated to meet passenger demand.

Passenger numbers to Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi on the National Reunification and International Labour Day holiday are also predicted to rise by 20 percent.

Vung Tau dismantles illegal hotels and restaurants on Bai Sau Beach

Authorities in the southern coastal city of Vung Tau under Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province are dismantling many illegal constructions built on the Bai Sau Beach.

The work began on April 20 after local authorities decided to withdraw 28 hectares of land alongside the Thuy Van Beach, commonly known as Bai Sau, as nine renters have built several constructions illegally on the site.

According to a report from the local inspection team, the land lot was assigned to the state-owned Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province Construction and Installation Company in 1996 to renovate and develop Bai Sau at a cost of VND122 billion. The company, later changed to VRC Real Estate & Investment JSC without state ownership, leased the properties to eight other businesses who all failed to pay the rent to the city. As of December 2017, the total rental unpaid by the said company and its eight sub-lessees had surpassed VND320 billion.

In September 2018, the provincial inspection team discovered that most of the businesses exploiting Bai Sau had developed illegal and inappropriate construction projects, so they proposed the provincial authorities order the demolition of such works. In August 2021, the Ba Ria-Vung Tau Provincial People's Committee decided to reclaim the land.

The land withdrawal was set to be completed by late 2021. However, while some businesses agreed to return their leased land, others asked for to continue using the land for their businesses but their request was rejected.

Local authorities plan to build a park, square, cinemas and other public facilities on the returned land.

Bai Sau is the longest and one of the most beautiful beaches in Vung Tau, with a length of around eight kilometres.

Hail ravages central localities

At around 7 pm, hail hit Tam Ky City in Quang Nam for roughly 5-10 minutes, bringing along with strong wind. It caused many stalls at an exhibition held at Tam Ky Square to collapse.

Hailstones with a diameter of 1-3 cm damaged crops in Tra Vinh Commune. 

On the same day, hail hit in Quang Nam’s Nam Tra My District.

Vice chairman of the Tam Ky People’s Committee Tran Trung Hau said that the hail at this time of this year when it is the early summer is a rare incident in Quang Nam.

Meanwhile, some localities in Quang Tri, including Lao Bao Town in Huong Hoa District, also faced hail at 4:30 pm on Friday. The phenomenon lasted for 30 minutes.

According to Le Ba Hung, chairman of Lao Bao Town, more than 20 trees were uprooted. Many billboards, signs, and awnings were also blown down.

Over the recent days, Quang Tri and Quang Nam have experienced scorching hot weather with highest temperatures of 37-40 degrees centigrade.

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