Vietnam on January 3 spanked Myanmar 3-0 to set up a semifinal showdown with Indonesia at the ongoing AFF Cup 2022. 

The team got ahead early with an own goal of Myanmar defender Kyaw Zin Lwin in the 8th minute. Myanmar sped up the attack after that but it was not effective. 

The second goal came to Vietnam in the 27th minute when goalkeeper Tun Nanda Oo couldn’t catch the ball cleanly from a cross and the ball found Nguyen Tien Linh, who easily tapped it in.

Statistics show that Vietnamese players kept the ball for 61% in the first half, and the number of shots of the two teams was the same with six times.

In the second half, coach Park Hang-seo decided to put several key players out. Tien Linh and Hung Dung left the field to make way for Van Duc and Chau Ngoc Quang. 

Vietnam got the third goal in the 73rd minute with a long-range beauty by young striker Chau Ngoc Quang to secure the 3-0 win.

With three points in the match, Vietnam had 10 points, topping Group B, and will face Indonesia in the AFF Cup semifinal in Jakarta on January 6.

NA’s second extraordinary meeting to open on Jan. 5

The 15th National Assembly’s second extraordinary meeting will open on January 5 and close on January 9, NA Deputy Secretary General Nguyen Truong Giang told a press conference in Hanoi on January 3.

During the sitting, legislators will consider and approve the revised Law on Medical Examination and Treatment and three Resolutions, including a Resolution on the National Master Plan for the 2021-2030 period with a vision to 2050, a Resolution on policies related to COVID-19 prevention and control and the continued use of certificates of circulation of medicines and medicinal ingredients which expired on January 1.

There is also a Resolution on supplementing the State budget estimate of foreign non-refundable aid in 2021, adjusting the budget estimate to ensure unused funds for regular operations of the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs by the end of 2021, and adjusting refinancing plans of localities in 2022.

They will also consider personnel related to NA deputies and other personnel affairs within the authority of the legislature.

Head of the NA Standing Committee’s Board for Deputy Affairs Nguyen Thi Thanh said the NA Standing Committee is collecting opinions on personnel affairs from relevant agencies in line with the Law on Organisation of the NA and the meeting’s rules.

On January 4 afternoon, the NA Standing Committee will convene a plenary meeting to discuss and decide on personnel work to submit to the NA. The legislature will also convene a preparatory meeting to ratify the agenda of the extraordinary meeting.

Three scheduled items within the personnel affairs include the dismissal of NA deputies, approval of resignations and approval of the proposal to appoint new personnel to replace those who were dismissed.

Central and Central Highlands regions to face heavy rains

Heavy rains are forecasted to continue in the Central and Central Highlands regions today, and flash floods and landslides may occur in mountainous areas.

According to the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, downpours started from Tuesday in multiple central provinces from Ha Tinh to Phu Yen, with rainfall recorded from 7am on January 3 to 3am on January 4 between 40–45mm.

It is forecasted that heavy rains will continue in the region until January 7 with rainfall between 100–400mm from Thua Thien Hue to Khanh Hoa provinces.

Some areas in the Central Highlands region may also see heavy rains in the next two days.

The centre has warned that flash floods and landslides may occur in lowland and mountainous areas following the rains.

Enhancing supervision at border gates needed to control COVID-19: official

Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Lien Huong has emphasised the necessity to strengthen supervision and take more samples for COVID-19 testing at border gates besides maintaining the current pandemic prevention and control measures as usual.

Addressing a meeting on disease surveillance and response of the Public Health Emergency Operations Centres (PHEOC) under the Ministry of Health on January 2,  the official said Vietnam needs to make careful preparations to effectively control the pandemic, in the context of some countries changing their COVID-19 control policy.

Localities with border gates need to pay attention to taking samples in the community, and reviewing the capacity of treatment and accommodation facilities in order to serve visitors, Huong stated.

After China decided to open the border and lift COVID-19 quarantine measures from January 8, health experts said the border opening can lead to an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases, but Vietnam is unlikely to be at risk of an outbreak because of its community immunity.

According to Dr. Phan Trong Lan, Director of the General Department of Preventive Medicine under the Ministry of Health, local departments of health must continue strictly implementing medical quarantine activities specified in Decree 89/ND-CP by the Government, which details a number of articles of the Law on Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases on border health quarantine.

Sharing Lan’s viewpoint, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tran Nhu Duong, Deputy Director of the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, suggested that attention should also be paid to communication activities so that passengers can proactively declare their health situation and implement infection prevention measures.

Previously, heads of units under the Ministry of Health, and directors of the departments of health of localities nationwide have been required to shore up vigilance against the pandemic.

The Ministry of Health has asked localities, especially those with border gates, to speed up the vaccination scheme, trying to complete their goals in the first two weeks of January.

The same day, the Ministry of Public Security held an online conference to popularise Decree 93/2022/ND-CP dated November 7, 022 on ensuring security and order at air border gates.

The decree is an important document, creating the legal foundation for public security forces to roll out measures to ensure security and order at air border gates, contributing to safeguarding aviation security in any circumstances.

Foreign visitors to Vietnam surge over New Year holiday

Vietnam saw a sharp rise in international tourists over the New Year holiday 2023 as the COVID-19 pandemic has been brought under control.

During the three-day New Year holiday, HCM City welcomed around 35,000 foreign visitors. The city’s tourism sector earned revenues of VND5.9 trillion (USD249.71 million) on this occasion.

The central city of Danang served as many as 395 flights from December 30 to January 2 with a total of 58,000 passengers, including 21,000 foreign travellers.

Meanwhile, around 120,000 visitors came to the central province of Quang Nam between December 31 to January 2, including 89,000 foreigners.

According to Nguyen Thanh Hong, director of Quang Nam’s Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Hoi An City attracted the most travellers over the New Year occasion, with different activities such as the Vietnamese Tea Essence Festival and Hoi an Food Festival.

Hong added that foreign visitors to Hoi An over the New Year 2023 tripled on-year. However, due to bad weather, some destinations in Quang Nam, including Cu Lao Cham Biosphere and the Ho Phu Ninh ecotourism site, lured only a modest number of visitors.

HCMC kicks off tree-loving festival

The first tree- loving festival is set to take place at Gia Dinh Park in Phu Nhuan District, Ho Chi Minh City on January 7.

The event will bring an opportunity for people to discover and learn about plants, spread love of trees and nature, thereby encouraging everyone to jointly protect and plant more trees.

Miss Universe Vietnam 2017 H'Hen Nie will be one of the special guests joining in the opening ceremony along with the participation of Ms. Do Thi Thanh Huyen, who is founder and Director of Gaia Nature Conservation Center.

The event will open for free from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. on January 7.

HCMC establishes working team to review, support vehicle registration centers

The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport established a working team comprising ten members to review the operations and support the vehicle registration centers under its management.

The vehicle registration centers consist of centers No. 50-201S, No. 50-02S and No. 50-03S.

Accordingly, the working team’s main responsibilities are to review the operation of the accreditation chain; to standardize internal quality control procedures in vehicle inspection activities.

Besides, the working team is set to collaborate, guide, and support advanced information technology usage in registration activities. In addition, the team will support and create convenient transport in the areas of vehicle registration centers to meet the demand of people.

On the other hand, it is important to grasp the working spirit of the staff, officials and employees at the centers to make them work with peace of mind to serve people. Besides, it is essential to promptly overcome arising difficulties and obstacles of the centers during the review and evaluation process.

Preparation for Nguyen Hue Flower Street 2023 nearly finished

The preparation for the annual Nguyen Hue Flower Street 2023 has completed nearly 80 percent and gets ready for the opening day to mark the event's 20th anniversary.

On the morning of December 29, workers of Van Tong Fine Arts Production Company located in District 12’s Thanh Loc Ward are hardly working to finish sacred animals and decorations for the upcoming event.

The next year will mark the 20th anniversary of Nguyen Hue Flower Street since the event took place in 2004. Therefore, 20 mascots that were presented in the flower show in previous years will gather at the event to bring a special festival to visitors, said Mr. Le Hoang, an artisan of Van Tong Company said.

This year’s event is a harmonious combination of materials, colors and lights presenting the changes, achievements and development of the city in the past, present and future as well as the unique traditional culture.

Deputy General Director of Saigontourist Group- the construction unit of Nguyen Hue Flower Street, Nguyen Dong Hoa said that the 2023 Lunar New Year is the year of the cat that is chosen as the sacred animal of Nguyen Hue Flower Street this year. Besides 20 mascots of the previous events, there will be 36 sacred animals of cats, including a couple of the biggest cats measuring over 4.5 meters high and 5.5 meters long will be made of more than 2,900 bags of flowers.

The flower show running on a 600-meter-long section on Nguyen Hue Street in District 1 reveals its theme of “Happy spring, prosperous spring”. The must-see site is scheduled to take place from January 19 – 26, 2023 (the 28th day of the last month – the 5th day of the first month of the lunar calendar).

The much-awaited annual flower show on Tet holidays is one of the events receiving the highest expectations from people during Tet holidays. The event is aimed to highlight Vietnamese Tet culture and has been held for 19 consecutive years, attracting more than one million visitors each year.

Vietnam sees sharp increase in air passenger numbers in 2022

According to statistics, the number of international visitors to Vietnam in 2022 reached 3.66 million. Of which, visitors arriving by air were 3.27 million, accounting for 89.5 percent of the total foreign tourists.

The number of visitors by land and sea accounted for 10.4 percent with 380,900 arrivals and 0.1 percent with 3,100 travelers, respectively.

International visitors to Vietnam in December are estimated at 707,100, up 18.5 percent over last month and 41.2 times compared to the same period last year.

Although the number of foreign tourists has not reached the target of 5 million, the country has seen a gradual recovery, especially domestic tourism.

The tourism centers are bustling with activities while provinces and cities have seen a sharp increase in visitor numbers and travel firms have resumed their operations.

The total number of domestic tourists was more than 101 million. The industry eyes revenue of VND495, 000 billion (US$21 billion) exceeded the target by 23 percent and was equal to 66 percent compared to 2019.

Revenue from accommodation and catering services in 2022 saw a strong increase compared to the previous year. Some localities got revenue growth, such as Ba Ria-Vung Tau increased 155.6 percent, Khanh Hoa up 151.1 percent, HCMC up 121.6 percent, Can Tho up 121.3 percent.

Some localities got travel revenue growth that was many times higher than the previous year, including Can Tho, Binh Dinh, Khanh Hoa, Thua Thien – Hue, Da Nang, Hanoi, Hai Phong and HCMC.

Hanoi will soon launch new travel routes to boost regional tourism

Hanoi authorities will soon initiate several traveling routes to connect with neighboring provinces and boost tourism in the Red River Delta region.

The first route will connect Huong Pagoda in Hanoi’s My Duc District with Tam Chuc Pagoda in Ha Nam Province, director of the Hanoi tourism department Dang Huong Giang said.

Speaking at the conference on tourism development in the Red River Delta, Giang said that although the region has its comparative advantages over others in the country, tourism activities have remained stagnant.

Products and services are not well defined and are of low quality, which leads to visitor dissatisfaction, she said.

Bui Van Manh, Director of the Ninh Binh Province’s Tourism Department, said that the administration of the places of interest has remained poor and unprofessional.

He said this is one of the main reasons why visitors do not stay overnight (in Ninh Binh) even though prices are not too high.

According to Nguyen Anh Tuan, Director of the Research Institute for Tourism Development, positive changes are taking place in tourism in the Red River Delta region as provinces and cities have cooperated to develop several branded products, such as Ha Long Bay, Trang An and Tam Chuc Pagoda.

However, overall performance remains well below expectations, as tourism products and activities are of low quality and management issues persist, he said.

In the future, regional provinces should improve the regulatory system to enhance their cooperation, reform the growth model, make better use of resources and renew the business conditions of tourism enterprises, he added.

Local authorities should also build transportation infrastructure to connect the various provinces, increase investment in healthcare, culture, information, and technology, and promote local tourist sites.

Tran Huy Duc, professor of tourism and hospitality at the National Economics University, also urged regional provinces to focus on brand development, especially on core values rooted in local cultures, to create their own value chains.

Provincial authorities should identify a number of segments and markets suitable for their products and services.

The Red River delta region spans 11 provinces and cities, including the cities of Hanoi and Hai Phong, and nine provinces of Hai Duong, Bac Ninh, Vinh Phuc, Hung Yen, Thai Binh, Nam Dinh, Ha Nam, Ninh Binh, and Quang Ninh.

The region covers a total area of more than 21,200km2 and has a population of nearly 23 million people (as of 2020). The Red River delta is one of Vietnam’s six key economic regions that connect Vietnam to the Northeast of Asia.

To further develop tourism in the region, officials of the 11 provinces and cities on December 28 signed a mutual agreement on tourism development.

Farming tourism model in Da Lat city attracts many visitors

In recent years, the model of farming tourism in Da Lat city of Lam Dong Province has attracted many tourists, contributing to the recovery of local tourism.

According to Director of Da Lat Hydroponic Vegetable Company Limited Nguyen Van Duong, this year, visitors can have chances to experience growing vegetables and flowers with farmers on a large area of nearly six hectares at the vegetable and flower farm instead of just seeing flowers or buying products in the previous years.

The tourism sites in Da Lat city also have space for pets such as Puppy Farm to increase the attraction for visitors. Puppy Farm receives hundreds of visitors every day on average, increasing many times on weekends and holidays.

In addition, other destinations such as Me Linh Coffee - Da Lat, Moc Tra Farm, the hi-tech strawberry garden of Berry Valley, Le Van Rose Garden also created an attraction for tourists with typical products.

After the pilot period of agricultural and farming tourism in the area, in April of 2021, the People's Committee of Lam Dong Province implemented a temporary regulation on the investment and management of agricultural tourism businesses in the locality.

The model of agricultural and farming tourism has brought many economic and social benefits, helping to improve the value of the tourism and agriculture industry.

The Central Highlands province will coordinate with cooperatives and businesses to support the construction of agricultural tourism destinations, and listen to and solve difficulties based on ensuring compliance with the regulations of the law.

Over seven years of pilot implementation, the model of agricultural and farming tourism has attracted about VND377 billion (US$16 million) of investment capital on an area of more than 302 hectares, including the 212- hectare agricultural land, 9- hectare construction land.

Agricultural and farming tourism products have been gradually welcomed by tourists and are considered as one of the highlights of Dalat - Lam Dong tourism.

Progress of North-South Expressway construction project strictly monitored

The Transport Ministry has just requested all project management boards of the North-South Expressway project to urgently devise a monitoring plan and a quality control plan for this critical work in the 2021-2025 period.

Accordingly, the management boards of sub-projects in the North-South Expressway construction project must immediately direct corresponding contractors to develop both overall and detailed building plans, an HR allocation plan, a device and lab use plan to submit to the supervisor and consultant of those sub-projects before asking for approval from the investors.

Those plans will be then handed in to the Transport Ministry by January 15.

Meanwhile, these management boards must actively collaborate with localities and related state agencies in land clearance and compensation, technical infrastructure relation so that the rest of the required surface area is available in the second quarter of 2023 as requested by the Government.

Based on the instruction of the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry, the management boards work with contractors and the local authorities to complete necessary procedures for the exploitation of construction material mines and the use of waste landfills to answer the needs of the project.

The Transport Ministry also asked that consultation and design units, supervision units, as well as building contractors allocate sufficient human resources and strictly obey the construction process, technical instructions in order to ensure the quality and progress of this vital project.

HCMC preparing for infrastructure breakthroughs in 2023

One of the key missions of Ho Chi Minh City in 2023 is to create breakthroughs in infrastructure via its following major construction projects.

1. Ring Road No.3 project:

_With a total length of 76.34km, passing HCMC and the provinces of Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Long An, the project receives an investment of VND75.4 trillion (US$3.19 billion). It is divided into 8 parts, and the two passing HCMC have an investment of VND48 trillion ($2billion), a half of which comes from the central budget and the rest from the municipal one.

_This is the largest-scale infrastructure project in the South, and the first assigned for localities to be the governing body to implement the project. HCMC is the focal point to carry out investment preparation procedures, and is trying to start the project in June 2023.

_The project is expected to basically finish in 2025 and be in full operation in 2026.

2. Metro Route No.1 from Ben Thanh to Suoi Tien:

_With 14 stations and a total length of 19.7km, including 2.6km underground, the project receives an investment of over VND43.7 trillion ($1.85 billion), VND38.2 trillion ($1.62 billion) of which is loaned.

_93 percent of the project has completed. On December 21, 2022, the HCMC Management Authority for Urban Railways successfully organized a trial run from Suoi Tien Station to Binh Thai Station.

_It is expected that at the end of this year, the Route will come into operation.

3. Metro Route No.2 from Ben Thanh to Tham Luong:

_With 10 stations and a total length of 11.042km, including 9.091km underground, the project receives an investment of VND47.89 trillion ($2.03 billion), VND37.49 trillion ($1.59 billion) of which is loaned.

_HCMC is planning to start the project in 2023-2024. The project should finish in 2028.

4. Can Gio Bridge:

_With a construction length of over 3.6km and a width to accommodate 6 lanes, the project to connect Can Gio District and Nha Be District receives an estimated investment of VND10 trillion ($423 million).

_In 2023, HCMC is preparing necessary investment procedures to start the project the following year. It is expected to finish in 2028 to replace Binh Khanh Ferry Route to link the South of the city with Can Gio District.

5. HCMC – Moc Bai Expressway:

_With a total length of 50km, including 23.7km passing HCMC, the project receives an investment of VND16.73 trillion ($707.8 million).

_In 2023, HCMC tries to complete the project formulation and investor selection so that the project can start next year and finish at the same time as Ring Road No.3 in 2026.

_This expressway has strategic significance since it is the beginning of Ring Road No.3 and connects to Ring Road No.4.

In addition, at the end of 2022, a series of key construction projects were started: National Highway No.50 expansion, connection road between Tran Quoc Hoan – Cong Hoa Road to T3 Station of Tan Son Nhat International Airport, An Phu Intersection.

Drug watchdog ensures supply of Albumin, Globulin infusions

The Drug Administration of Vietnam under the Ministry of Health asked to supply enough Albumin and Globulin infusions.

The Drug Administration of Vietnam has just sent a document to relevant units on ensuring the supply of Albumin and Globulin infusions. Specifically, the Administration proposed to health departments in provinces and cities, hospitals, and institutes under the Ministry of Health have specific plans to prepare and reserve the two medicines.

Moreover, health departments in provinces and cities, hospitals and institutes should proactively contact importers and supply agencies soon to sign procurement contracts and have measures to replace the two infusions in case there is a risk of supply shortage, to ensure timely enough infusion to serve people in the area for treatment of patients.

The National Institute for Control of Vaccines and Medical Biologicals was requested to check the batches of Albumin and Globulin infusions within the prescribed time limit, avoiding delays in the supply. Drug-importing establishments shall take measures to increase imports and ensure the maximum supply of Albumin and Globulin infusions.

To units with official dispatch requesting supply and units reporting a lack of Albumin, Globulin will be given priority over others. In addition, the National Institute for Control of Vaccines and Medical Biologicals is responsible for synthesizing all estimates of medical examination and treatment facilities to plan and sign contracts early with production facilities and suppliers to make sure that these facilities can be proactive in timely production and supply for the Vietnamese market, avoiding the shortage of Albumin and Globulin infusions due to late signing of contracts.

Previously, the Drug Administration of Vietnam received information that Ho Chi Minh City and many localities across the country had a sudden increase in demand for Albumin and Globulin infusions, leading to insufficient supply. This is a commonly used infusion solution for the treatment of shock due to blood loss, burns, decreased plasma protein levels due to surgery or liver failure, and as an adjunct to surgery. The drugs are used as maintenance therapy for people with the disease's inability to produce enough IgG antibodies.

Over 2,500 traffic violations handled during New Year holiday

Through patrols during the New Year holiday, the traffic police forces of Ho Chi Minh City handled 2,511 violations with a total fine of nearly VND4.5 billion (US$191,000) from December 30 of 2022 to January 2 of 2023.

The information was provided by the Ho Chi Minh City Road and Railway Traffic Police Department (PC08) under the municipal Public Security Department.

Accordingly, the violations include speeding, drivers who did not obey traffic lights and signals, vehicles that entered forbidden roads, overloaded vehicles, alcohol concentration violations and so on.

Of these, 468 cases were revoked driving licenses and 880 motorbikes were seized.

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