A festival to honour UNESCO - recognised intangible cultural heritage of humanity will take place from April 21-22 in the northern province of Phu Tho, the department of cultural affairs under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on April 4.

Spectators will have a change to enjoy 15 cultural heritage genres, performed by nearly 1,000 artisans, artists from13 provinces and cities nationwide which possess the heritages, including the Hue court music, Quan ho Bac Ninh folk songs, space of gong culture, Xoan singing, art of Don ca tai tu music and song in southern Vietnam, among others, 

Besides art performances, a space to display heritage images, artifacts, and tourism products will also be held.

The event is a part of a series of activities to commemorate the legendary founders of the Vietnamese nation, the Hung Kings, in 2023.

Vietnam commits to joint actions in addressing bomb, mine consequences

Vietnam commits to joining actions in addressing consequences of bombs and mines left over from the war, according to Maj. Gen. Tran Trung Hoa, Director General of the Vietnam National Mine Action Centre (VNMAC).

Addressing a New York debate session within the framework of the Mine Action Week held by the United Nations on the occasion of the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action on April 4, Hoa said that Vietnam is among the countries most affected by unexploded ordnance (UXO).

Today, unexploded bombs and mines are hidden underground in almost all provinces and cities, with around 5.6 million hectares of  land contaminated, equivalent to 17.71% of the country’s natural land area.

Since 1975, more than 40,000 Vietnamese have been killed and 60,000 injured due to landmines left over from the war, he stressed.

With joint efforts of the Vietnamese government and people, and the support of the international community, over the past 50 years, since the Paris Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam was signed on January 27, 1973, Vietnam has cleared nearly 2.5 million hectares of contaminated land to serve resettlement, ensure safety for people, and build economic works.

Many projects on the settlement of UXO consequences funded by foreign countries like the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the UK, Norway, Germany and Australia, as well as UN bodies and foreign non-governmental organisations have been carried out successfully in Vietnam, Hoa stated.

In the coming time, Vietnam pledges to continue improving the system of legal documents in overcoming the consequences of bombs and mines, especially in building an ordinance on overcoming UXO consequences, participating in the development of international standards and perfecting national standards and regulations in line with international standards, and perfecting a national database system to speed up the settlement of UXO consequences.

Vietnam continues to carry out surveys and demining activities, step up disseminations to raise people's awareness of accident prevention and provide support for UXO victims, he added.

While in New York, the VNMAC Director General is scheduled to meet UN Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Izumi Nakamitsu and Director of the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) Ilene Cohn to discuss cooperation activities to overcome UXO consequences in Vietnam in the coming time.

Full-time deputies discuss bills to be debated at NA’s fifth session

National Assembly (NA) Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue chaired a NA full-time deputies’ meeting to discuss a number of issues to be debated at the NA’s upcoming fifth session.

The Chairman said that since the beginning of the tenure, the 15th NA has adopted 16 laws and 21 resolutions with high consensus.

He said that law-building will be a focal point of the upcoming fifth session, during which a large number of large-scale and important bills will be debated and approved.

He asked the deputies to focus on seven bills, six of which will be discussed at the fifth session – the Cooperative Law (revised), Bidding Law (revised), Law on Protection of Consumer Rights (revised), Price Law (revised), Law on Electronic Transactions (revised), and Law on Civil Defence (revised). The draft Land Law (revised) will be left for the sixth session.

During its 20th and 21st sessions, the NA Standing Committee gave opinions on the six bills, he said, adding that the drafting and verification agencies have so far agreed on the majority of key contents of the bills.

For the draft revised Land Law, about 11.5 million ideas have been to date gathered from people from all walks of life, he noted, asking the deputies to continue to discuss major issues of the bill, including the viewpoints on the rights and responsibilities of the State and citizens on land, and the rights and obligations of land users, among others.

Children infected with respiratory syncytial virus on the rise in Hanoi

The pediatric department of Thanh Nhan Hospital in Hanoi has witnessed a sharp rise in the number of patients infected with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

At the hospital conditions are crowded, with two or three patients having to share a single bed due to a considerable rise in hospitalisations.

Children infected with RSV now account for about a quarter of the pediatric patients in the department, said Dr. Nghiem Thi Mai Sang, deputy head of the pediatrics department of Thanh Nhan Hospital, adding, the department is currently treating a total of 80 children suffering respiratory problems, with 16 of them infected with RSV.

The number of children admitted to the hospital suffering from symptoms such as vomiting, fever, cough, and diarrhea has increased considerably over the past two weeks.

According to medical experts, this sudden increase can also be blamed on the current climate conditions, making it easier for the virus and bacteria to spread across the community.

Experts share that RSV can cause pneumonia for around half of patients. The incubation period for RSV is around three to six days, whilst the virus can be active in the host’s body for eight days.

If treated quickly, patients can recover within five to seven days without any lingering complications. However, those suffering from underlying medical problems may face fatal issues when struggling with respiratory failure.

Parents need to take their children to hospital early if they display symptoms such as high fever, convulsions, cyanosis, a poor appetite, or breathing difficulties.

Numerous outbound tours on huge discount at HCM City Tourism Fair 2023

A large number of outbound tours on offer at extremely competitive prices will be launched at the 19th Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Fair scheduled for April 6 to April 9 at September 23 Park in District 1 of Ho Chi Minh City.

The event is expected to attract 30 travel firms who will showcase a range of tourism products across 46 stalls, especially for the upcoming National Reunification Day on April 30 and May Day on May 1. 

Do Van Thuc, deputy director of Dat Viet Tour Company in Ho Chi Minh City, said the company encountered difficulties in selling inbound tours due to high airfares.

As a result, customers can choose to buy outbound tours due to cheaper and reasonable prices, with this situation leading to hotels across the country being fully booked for the special occasion.

Bui Thanh Tu, marketing director of BestPrice Travel Company, said that the unit will strive to stimulate the domestic tourism market through standard products and services by launching super cheap travel products in all regions, as well as offering the opportunity to relax on a luxury five-star cruise at the most attractive price during the course of the year.

Hotels in Phu Quoc, Nha Trang, Con Dao, Da Nang, Mui Ne, and Vung Tau also plans to launch huge discounts and hundreds of travel combos in a bid to meet customers’ diverse needs.

Other tour operators such as Saigontourist, Vietravel, and BenThanh Tourist are anticipated to offer discounts on outbound tours to Japan, China, and the Republic of Korea, as well as destinations in the United States and Europe.

New visa policy proposal sent to National Assembly

The Government has officially written to the National Assembly proposing a new policy for changing immigration procedures and e-visa issuance, and lengthening a visa-free stay for foreign visitors.

The proposed policy includes granting e-visas to citizens of all countries and territories, extending the validity of e-visa to up to three months, and increasing the duration of visa-free stay for international tourists to 45 days from the current 15.

If approved, this visa policy would help attract more international tourists to Vietnam and contribute to the recovery and development of tourism.

The proposal, signed by the Minister of Public Security To Lam under the authorization of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, will be considered in the National Assembly session, expected to be held in May 2023.

After Vietnam resumed international tourism in mid-March 2022, the number of foreign visitors to Vietnam in 2022 increased 6.6 times compared to 2021, which Covid-19 struck and led to travel restrictions. However, it was still low compared to pre-pandemic levels, only equal to 32.6% of the figure in 2019.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, foreign diplomatic representatives in Vietnam, trade associations, foreign businesses, and the Tourism Advisory Council previously suggested a more flexible visa policy to enhance competitiveness and attract international tourists in the future.

Breast cancer’s treatment levels in Viet Nam improve

The level of early diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer in Việt Nam is becoming more and more consistent with countries that have better developed medical services, such as France or South Korea.

According to Nguyễn Thu Hương, director of Breast Centre at Vinmec Times City International Hospital, and advisor for the Breast Cancer Network Việt Nam, these advancements have helped ensure better treatment and quality of life for patients.

Speaking at the conference "Updating knowledge in breast cancer diagnosis and treatment," that took place on Sunday in Hà Nội, Hương said that currently, Việt Nam detected breast lesions through X-rays, requiring biopsy of specimens to obtain the most accurate results.

This technique has advantages as there are breast lesions that are completely invisible through ultrasound and can only be detected through X-rays, according to the director.

The technique will help early and accurate diagnose in many difficult cases such as in patients with breast implants, thin breasts or cases with very small clusters of micro-calcifications measuring as little as 2 millimetres.

The doctor added that lymphoscintigraphy (sentinel lymph node mapping) in surgery is also a new, advanced technique and brings great benefits to patients.

A sentinel lymph node is the first node, or the first group of nodes, where cancer cells appear before spreading to other nodes.

By this technique, doctors will accurately determine the location of sentinel lymph nodes for surgical dissection, helping patients avoid unnecessary lymph node dissection, minimising complications such as sensory disturbances, hand oedema, loss of aesthetics for the patient.

Also at the conference, Đào Thu Hà, head of Breast Imaging Unit under the Henri Mondor Hospital in France, said the application of advanced techniques in breast cancer diagnosis and intervention would help patients get positive treatment results without having to go abroad.

Not only updating knowledge about new methods, doctors also used models to perform techniques for ultrasounds and X-rays.

In Việt Nam, the Ministry of Health issued decision No. 1639/QĐ-BYT on supplementing documents guiding prevention, screening, early detection and management of breast and cervical cancer in the community. It recommended that women should screen for breast cancer once a year to detect the disease in its early stage.

Hương said the cases of breast cancer in Việt Nam were increasing and the number of young women suffering from breast cancer was also on the rise. In the meantime, there were still many patients coming to the hospital when they were at the late stage of the disease.

They should be screened once a year even if there are no symptoms and no palpable tumour, she said.

According to experts, breast cancer is the cancer with the highest number of female cancer sufferers in the world, and also in Việt Nam.

It is estimated that about two million people are newly infected each year and about 600,000 people die worldwide.

In Việt Nam, statistics from the Global Cancer Observatory reveal that breast cancer accounts for 25 per cent of cancers in women with nearly 22,000 new cases and more than 9,000 deaths each year.

Breast cancer screening in high-risk groups helps detect the disease at early stages. If the five-year survival rate in the very early stage reaches 98 per cent, the rate is only about 10 per cent in the later stages.

Currently, thanks to advances in screening, diagnosis, as well as treatment, breast cancer can be detected earlier, increasing the cure rate as well as prolong the survival time and improve the quality of life for patients. 

Pilot national employment platform provides opportunities for recruiters, job seekers

The pilot programme for a national online platform connecting job centres from multiple localities has been seeing promising results, and is expected to be scaled up across the country.

The programme has brought job fairs to the virtual space, providing more opportunities for both job seekers and recruiters.

Đặng Văn Mạnh, a Hà Nội resident who attended a recent virtual job fair, said that the event helped him learn more about the position he’s interested in and how it fits him, which he eventually applied for.

Mạnh told Tin Tức (News) newspaper: “Virtual interviews help reduce transportation costs for job seekers.

The pilot programme is implemented by the Department of Employment under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA).

It gathers job centres in multiple localities, including Hà Nội and the provinces of Vĩnh Phúc, Phú Thọ, Bắc Giang, Hải Dương, Quảng Ninh in the north, Hà Tĩnh, Thừa Thiên - Huế provinces in the central region, and Bình Dương Province and Cần Thơ City in the south.

To date, a total of 79 businesses and numerous job seekers have signed up for the online system, of which 27 companies are connected via the Hà Nội Centre for Employment Services (HCES).

Trần Thị Khánh Huyền, deputy head of the administrative and organisation department at Red River Travel & Commercial Co Ltd had participated in several of these online career fairs.

Joining the hybrid events in person at job centres and online, other recruiters also hope that resume screening will be put in place to save time and travel costs, as well as increase the successful application rate.

According to Vũ Trọng Bình, director general of the MoLISA employment department, the pilot programme marks a crucial milestone in matching the supply and demand in the labour market across the country.

Vũ Quang Thành, HCES deputy director, said that Hà Nội had taken a step ahead by connecting 15 job centres in the city through the digital tool.

Depending on the pilot, the centre plans to make necessary adjustments so that the platform can be more user-friendly, providing maximum convenience for businesses and employees.

It is also aimed to become a tool to manage data of the labour market.

The goal for the future is to comprehensively implement the tool in managing the national virtual platform that connects all 63 cities and provinces.

If successful, it will be a transformative step that modernises the operations of job centres on digital platforms, while providing significant support to its staff.

The MoLISA employment department has been working to connect the job centre database with the national population database, with a proposal for investment underway.

It is expected to help connect job seekers with open positions.

Wild animals threatened by illegal Son Tra Peninsula traps

A rash of illegal traps to catch wild animals have been discovered on Son Tra Peninsula in the central city of Danang.

The information was given by Ngo Truong Chinh, head of the forest management board of Son Tra and Ngu Hanh Son districts.

On April 1, a group of photographers came to Son Tra Peninsula to take photos of a trapped weasel. They saved the animal and made a video. After being posted on social networks, the clip drew many people’s comments, saying that they often saw wild animals in Son Tra, including langurs in similar traps.

Chinh added that since the Lunar New Year 2023 or Tet, his agency has conducted nearly 100 patrols in forests in Son Tra and Ngu Hanh Son, finding 459 traps of different kinds and dismantling two illegally-pitched tents.

Despite regular patrols and checks, the forest rangers have not caught any of the perpetrators. Illegal hunters quickly abandon their tools and flee when encountering forest rangers. The rugged terrain of the mountainous forest makes it difficult to pursue them, Chinh said.

He admitted the trapping in Son Tra had become more common.

Son Tra Peninsula is a popular tourist destination in Danang. It can receive up to 1,000 tourists a day. The locality has eight forest rangers who are responsible for managing 3,791 hectares of forest.

Ho Chi Minh City bolsters collaboration with Hungary

Chairman of the People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City Phan Van Mai on April 5 had a meeting with Hungarian Ambassador to Vietnam Baloghdi Tibor.

Speaking at the meeting, the chairman affirmed the city’s role and wish to contribute to further strengthening relations between the two countries. He expressed his belief that the diplomat will act as a bridge to help Hungarian enterprises come and seek cooperation opportunities in potential areas such as trade, health, education as well as cultural exchange.

Mai said with existing potential and strength, the city is ready to connect Hungary to southern localities under the European country’s collaboration expansion plan.

HCM City continues to effectively work with the Consulate General of Hungary in southern metropolis in activities towards the celebration of the 75th anniversary of friendship between Vietnam and Hungary.

For his part, the ambassador said he will do his utmost during his tenure to support the two countries' businesses to seek for investment opportunities, while expressing his belief in the sound development of the two countries’ relations in all spheres.

Vietnam resolved to join effort in addressing challenges in Mekong River basin: official

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s participation at the fourth Mekong River Commission (MRC) Summit in Vientiane on April 5 demonstrates Vietnam’s attention and determination to carry forward its role in responding to challenges, while strengthening solidarity with other member countries in order to manage and use the river’s water resources sustainably, an official has said.

In an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency (VNA), Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Do Hung Viet said the PM delivered important, profound messages at the summit, affirming affirmed Vietnam’s strong commitment to the 1995 Mekong Agreement, and calling on countries to fully abide by the document as well as rules relating to the use of the water resources.

The Government leader also emphasised a comprehensive approach which takes people as the centre and the subject in the exploitation and use of the water resources, protects people’s legitimate rights and interests, and improves their adaptability to the river’s changes, along with extreme weather phenomena, floods, droughts and cross-border crimes.

Chinh proposed specific cooperation activities, such as enhancing data sharing, and joining hands in research, climate change response, sustainable waterway development, cross-border crime combat, the building of green economy and circular economy, electricity connectivity and energy development.

He also called on partner countries, especially upstream ones and development partners, to cooperate and step up their support in terms of knowledge, experience, finance and resources to the commission, helping it fulfill tasks and ensure sustainable development of the river and its basin.
 
The Lower Mekong countries of Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand have carried out various socio-economic activities which impact the exploitation and use, Viet said, citing forecast by experts that by 2040, the alluvium of the Mekong Delta will drop by more than nine times from the present, and nearly 30 times compared to 15 years ago.

The threat is further compounded by the extremely negative impacts of climate change that are causing extreme weather events, floods, droughts and sea level rise, resulting in saltwater intrusion that adversely affects the Mekong Delta as well as water and food security in the region.

Viet said many other delegates shared the PM’s messages, adding the participating countries also shared the need to enhance cooperation and set forth common plans and projects to ensure sustainable development of the basin.

Hanoi: Man prosecuted for causing multi-vehicle accident

The Hanoi Department of Public Security announced on April 6 that the Investigation Police Agency of Tay Ho district have decided to detain and launch criminal proceedings against a local man for violating regulations on road traffic participation in accordance with Article 260 of the 2015 Criminal Code.

At about 1:30pm on April 5, Hoang Ngoc Vinh, 63, drove a Kia Forte car with plate number 29A-083.12 from his house on Nguyen Son street, Bo De ward, Long Bien district, to the Hanoi Heart Hospital on Vo Chi Cong street for a medical examination.

Later at 4pm, while driving his wife home, Vinh lost control of the vehicle's speed, causing it to collide with 17 motorcycles moving in Vo Chi Cong - Xuan La intersection. As a result, 18 people were injured, including two children.

After the accident occurred, the police and local residents took the victims to hospitals. No fatality has been reported so far.

The test results showed that there is no concentration of alcohol in the driver's breath and he was also negative to drugs.

The police are investigating the case in line with the law.

Vietnam win 5-1 over Nepal in Olympic Paris 2024 women's football qualifier

The Vietnam women’s football team won 5-1 over Nepal in the first match in Kathmandu of the first qualifying round for Women’s Olympic Football Tournament Paris 2024 , with striker Huynh Nhu scoring twice.

The first half saw Vietnamese women completely control the game and create more scoring chances.

In the 11th minute, Hai Yen jumped to head home, giving Vietnam the lead.

In the 36th minute, Nhu extended Vietnam’s lead with a penalty kick.

In the 38th minute, Bich Thuy earned another goal for Vietnam from a Nepalese defender’s own goal.

Nepalese women carved out several chances but failed to defeat Vietnamese goalkeeper Khong Thi Hang.

Three minutes into the second half, Nhu took advantage of Hoang Thi Loan’s precise cross from the left side and headed home, sending the ball into the far corner of the goal.

The Vietnamese side slowed down the pace, and coach Mai Duc Chung also made some substitutions to keep key players in good form for the coming game.

About 10 minutes before the last whistle, from a smart slit of her teammate, Bhandari crossed the penalty box and defeated goalkeeper Hang.

However, Thanh Nha had a very long shot with her left foot in the extra time, rocketing the ball into the top corner of the goal, clinching a 5-1 victory for Vietnam.

After Afghanistan and Palestine withdrew, there are only two teams – Vietnam and Nepal - in Group C. Besides the April 5 match, they will play again on April 8. The winners will advance to the second qualifier. The seven group winners from Round 1 will continue their quest in Round 2, which is expected to commence in October.

In the next round, they will be joined by the five highest-seeded teams – Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Japan, Australia, China, and Republic of Korea – and divided into three groups.

Four teams – the three group winners and the best-ranked runners-up – will then progress to Round 3 to play two pairs of home and away matches, slated for February 2024, with the eventual winners qualifying for the Women’s Olympic Football Tournament Paris 2024.

Vietnamese aim to defend SEA Games football championship: official

Vietnam will try its best to defend both men’s and women's football championship titles at the 32nd Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 32) in Cambodia, said General Secretary of the Vietnam Football Federation Duong Nghiep Khoi.

In response to the press on the results of draws for Vietnam U22 men and women’s football on April 5, he acknowledged the difficulties and challenges facing the teams.

“We anticipated that Vietnamese teams would fall into difficult groups,” he said.

The Vietnamese women's team will face strong rivals such as the Philippines and Myanmar, while the men's team will meet Thailand, a heavyweight opponent, together with Malaysia and Singapore, also their potential opponents, the official said.

The Vietnam U22 men’s football team is in Group B with Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Laos, according to the SEA  Games 32 football draw on April 5.

The five teams in Group A are hosts Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Philippines and Timor Leste.

The matches of Group A will take place from April 29 at Morodok Techo National Stadium while Group B matches from April 30 at Prince Stadium.

For women’s football, Vietnam will play in Group A alongside the Philippines, Myanmar, Malaysia and Indonesia. Group B includes hosts Cambodia, Thailand, Singapore and Laos.

The women's football matches will take place at Army Stadium and Smart RSN Stadium from May 2-15.

HCM City expects stronger cooperation with Australian localities: Official

Ho Chi Minh City wants to strengthen cooperation with Australian localities in areas where it has demand and Australia has strength such as high-quality human resource development, digital economy, and innovation, finance, energy transition, climate change response, and logistics, Secretary of the municipal Party Committee Nguyen Van Nen said in a meeting with Australian Governor-General David Hurley in the city on April 5.

Nen said over the past five decades, Vietnam-Australia relations have been developing strongly in many fields, not only bringing positive results to their people but also making an important contributions to peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region.

He noted that HCM City has worked closely with a number of Australian localities, signed memoranda of understanding on friendly cooperation with four Australian states, and carried out many programmes based on the pacts.

HCM City is willing to coordinate with Australian partners who come to the city to study trade-investment opportunities and share experience to helping the southern largest economic hub in its development process, Nen affirmed.

Hurley, who is in Vietnam for a State visit from April 3-6, highly valued the city’s potential, saying its development process presents a good opportunity to further promote its cooperation relationship with Australia.

He stressed that Australia is willing to cooperate, support, and share experience with the city to solve challenges in the development process, contributing to further enhancing the development of the cooperative ties between the two nations.

On the same day, the Governor-General and his spouse visited RMIT Vietnam University, a branch of the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), and the Australian Consulate General in the city.

Labour, vocational training contributes to Vietnam-Cambodia cooperation: Deputy PM

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha highlighted the importance of cooperation in labour and vocational training between Vietnam and Cambodia, during his reception for Cambodian Minister of Labour and Vocational Training Ith Samheng in Hanoi on April 5.

The Vietnamese Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and the Cambodian Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training have coordinated effectively to realise their memorandum of understanding on labour cooperation during the 2017-2022 period, Ha said.

Such cooperation activities have contributed to improving the efficiency of the management of Cambodian labourers in Vietnam and vice versa, according to the official.

He described collaboration in personnel development and vocational training as an effective method to further preserve and promote good values of the close friendship between the two States and peoples.
Ha expressed his belief that the cooperation between the two ministries will be advanced, meeting wishes of both countries and matching their cooperation potential, especially in raising skills for labourers.

The Deputy PM suggested some cooperation methods between educational institutions of the two countries in the fields of vocational training and personnel development, and urged them to step up exchanges and mutual understanding in culture, contributing to deepening the Vietnam-Cambodia relationship effectively and substantively, and lifting it to a new level.

For his part, Samheng briefed the Deputy PM on outcomes of the Vietnam-Cambodia Labour Ministers' Meeting, saying the two sides inked another MoU for 2022-2027, and an action plan.

The two ministers also agreed to strengthen experience sharing in personnel development and the fight against human trafficking and forced labour, he said.

Samheng said during his visit in Vietnam, he will visit some vocational training facilities that are offering training to Cambodians.

According to the minister, many of the Cambodian students in Vietnam have contributed to socio-economic development in their homeland as well as the traditional friendship and comprehensive cooperation between the two countries.

Vietnam, Cambodia boost cooperation in labour, job training

Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung and Cambodian Minister of Labour and Vocational Training Ith Samheng on April 5 co-chaired the Vietnam-Cambodia Labour Ministers' Meeting in Hanoi.

Speaking at the event, Minister Dung affirmed that cooperation between his ministry and Cambodia's Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training has been developing and achieved many good results. Specifically, through the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding on labour cooperation between the two ministries signed in March 2017, the ministries have strengthened the management of Cambodian labourers in Vietnam as well as Vietnamese labourers in Cambodia, helping ensure their legitimate rights and interests, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The two countries have also promoted cooperative activities and supported each other bilaterally and multilaterally through joint projects within the frameworks of ASEAN, the Mekong sub-region, Cambodia-Laos-Myanmar-Vietnam and Thailand (CLMVT) cooperation on labour and on international forums to which both countries are members.

Through the Vietnam - Cambodia Joint Committee on Economic, Cultural, and Scientific-Technical Cooperation, about 35 Cambodian students received scholarships to study at Thai Nguyen College of Vietnam every year.

Minister Ith Samheng highly appreciated the cooperation relationship between the two ministries and emphasised the significance of the Action Plan to implement the MoU on labour cooperation for the period 2022-2027.

He also noted the importance of skills sharing between the two countries to benefit the people.

The two ministers reviewed and approved the meeting's documents with strong commitments for further cooperation including an action plan to implement the MoU on Labour Cooperation between the two ministries for 2022-2027 and the Joint Statement of the meeting.

Vietnam commits to joint actions in addressing bomb, mine consequences

Vietnam commits to joining actions in addressing consequences of bombs and mines left over from the war, according to Maj. Gen. Tran Trung Hoa, Director General of the Vietnam National Mine Action Centre (VNMAC).

Addressing a New York debate session within the framework of the Mine Action Week held by the United Nations on the occasion of the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action on April 4, Hoa said that Vietnam is among the countries most affected by unexploded ordnance (UXO).

Today, unexploded bombs and mines are hidden underground in almost all provinces and cities, with around 5.6 million hectares of  land contaminated, equivalent to 17.71% of the country’s natural land area.

Since 1975, more than 40,000 Vietnamese have been killed and 60,000 injured due to landmines left over from the war, he stressed.

With joint efforts of the Vietnamese government and people, and the support of the international community, over the past 50 years, since the Paris Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam was signed on January 27, 1973, Vietnam has cleared nearly 2.5 million hectares of contaminated land to serve resettlement, ensure safety for people, and build economic works.

Many projects on the settlement of UXO consequences funded by foreign countries like the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the UK, Norway, Germany and Australia, as well as UN bodies and foreign non-governmental organisations have been carried out successfully in Vietnam, Hoa stated.

In the coming time, Vietnam pledges to continue improving the system of legal documents in overcoming the consequences of bombs and mines, especially in building an ordinance on overcoming UXO consequences, participating in the development of international standards and perfecting national standards and regulations in line with international standards, and perfecting a national database system to speed up the settlement of UXO consequences.

Vietnam continues to carry out surveys and demining activities, step up disseminations to raise people's awareness of accident prevention and provide support for UXO victims, he added.

While in New York, the VNMAC Director General is scheduled to meet UN Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Izumi Nakamitsu and Director of the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) Ilene Cohn to discuss cooperation activities to overcome UXO consequences in Vietnam in the coming time.

Vietnam Day held in celebration of Vietnam-Italy bilateral ties

The Vietnam Day was held in Rome on April 4 within the framework of the 20th Asian Film Festival in celebration of the 50th founding anniversary of Vietnam-Italy diplomatic relations.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Vietnamese Ambassador to Italy Duong Hai Hung said that the event was part of the activities organised within the framework of Vietnam - Italy Year 2023.

Cinema-related exchange in particular and cultural exchange in general will contribute to expanding and deepening the strategic partnership between the two countries, he added.

Four Vietnamese films were screened at the festival, including “Hoa Nhai" (Jasmine) by director Dang Nhat Minh, “Dem toi Ruc ro" (The Brilliant Darkness) by Aaron Toronto, “Tro tan ruc ro” (Bright Ashes) by Bui Thac Chuyen and "Memento Mori: Dat" (Memento: Water) by Marcus Manh Cuong Vu. These are outstanding works that have represented Vietnamese movies to take part in other major international film festivals.

Many viewers expressed their excitement for the culture, life and scenery of Vietnam after watching the films.

They were also impressed by a photo collection about the country and its people, along with traditional Vietnamese dishes such as nem (spring rolls) and banh ran (deep-fried sticky rice dessert).

According to Antonio Terminini, Director of the 20th Asian Film Festival, the theme of films revolves around human relationships in the family and in society as well as social issues related to teenagers and women.

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