Vietnam were held to a goalless draw against Indonesia in a tight match in the first leg of AFF Cup 2022’s semi-finals in Senayan city, Indonesia on January 6.

Statistics showed that in the first half, Vietnam possessed the ball up to 67% but only made two shots, including one on target.

After the first half ended in a stalemate, there were not many changes in the second half.

The tightness was maintained until the end of the stoppage time.

Following the draw, opportunities for both teams to enter the final remain.

They will go head to head again in the second leg in My Dinh stadium, Hanoi on January 9.

President meets exemplars of kindness

President Nguyen Xuan Phuc on January 6 held a meeting with 50 delegates representing nearly 2,000 characters featured in the Vietnam Television (VTV)’s programme “Viec Tu Te (Kindness)” last year.

Addressing the event, the State leader said with delight that he is moved by the good deeds of these people, who are at different ages and come from different backgrounds.

He said they are teachers dedicated to the education of disadvantaged and orphaned children in remote and isolated areas; those who have voluntarily supported and donated hundreds of billions of VND to charity programmes; and role models of self-sacrifice for the community during the outbreak of COVID-19, among many others.

Honouring them as a source of positive energy with valuable lessons for the younger generation, the leader praised the eight-year TV programme for helping spread nearly 2,000 stories of kindness and love.

He affirmed the Party and State always take care of people with meritorious services, the poor, the disabled and the disadvantaged in society, so that no one is left behind.

It is necessary to further replicate the models of supporting those around, he noted.

Thorough preparations help Vietnam’s field hospitals win high UN evaluation

Thorough preparations for Vietnam’s Level-2 field hospitals at the United Nations peacekeeping mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) have helped Vietnamese personnel fulfill duties and earn high evaluation from the UN and international partners.

Since June 2014, the Vietnam People’s Army has sent a total of 516 officers and professional soldiers to UN peacekeeping operations in South Sudan, the Central African Republic, the Abyei Area, and the UN headquarters.

In particular, four Level-2 field hospitals have been deployed to South Sudan since October 2018.

Upholding the achievements by the three previous hospitals, Level-2 Field Hospital Rotation 4, officially put into operation in early May 2022, has impressed international clinicians through medical examination and treatment for many patients in South Sudan. The facility helps to popularise Vietnam as a peace-loving nation in the eyes of international colleagues.

To prepare for the tasks in South Sudan, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the 63 members of Field Hospital Rotation 4 underwent extensive training in military medicine, foreign language, and pre-deployment preparation. They were equipped with not only specialised knowledge but also skills in responding to possible risks and challenges in reality.

Maj. Gen. Nguyen Xuan Kien, Director of the Hanoi-based Vietnam Military Medical University, which is in charge of Level-2 Field Hospitals Rotation 2 and 4, said the university coordinated closely with the Vietnam Department of Peacekeeping Operations for reporting and gaining experience in the field. The facility has been readied to handle unforseen difficulties, and carry out communications to perform well as a field hospital.

Before leaving for UNMISS, the hospital staff had been vaccinated against some diseases such as COVID-19, hepatitis B, pneumonia, and meningitis and taken malaria prevention medications at the request of the UN.

Ba Ria-Vung Tau: Traditional craft villages buzzing ahead of Tet

Traditional craft villages in southern Ba Ria-Vung Tau province are busy churning out products for Tet (Lunar New Year), which falls on January 22.

Rice paper workshops in Long Dien district Dien start working early in the morning and keep going all day.

The rice papers of the villages in Long Dien district are famous for being delicious and chewy, and said to taste better than all others.

The production involves making powder, rolling and drying.

Modern drying technologies are widely used in many craft villages, but Long Dien village still retains the traditional way of drying it under the sun in natural wind.

In this village, artisans make them without preservatives or additives to ensure safety and hygiene, and frown on modern technologies, preferring to dry it naturally, which they say is the secret to making it more crispy and fragrant.

Rice paper is bought all year round, but demand zooms during Tet. The COVID-19 pandemic affected many businesses, but not rice paper makers since it is an essential food item.

Luong Thi Hong Trang, 65, says making rice paper is a traditional craft in Long Dien village, handed down from generation to generation.

The village’s rice papers are unique thanks to water from the local wells that most households in the village use to instil a special flavour.

But the wells are no longer enough to serve all households, and some use tap water.

Flower farmers in Ba Ria city are in the frenetic final stages before they take their products to the market.

Though demand was significantly lower during the COVID years, the farmers remain optimistic since sales have been gradually recovering, portending a more prosperous year.

According to a local farmer, Nguyen Trung Truong, ornamental flowers have blossomed well thanks to good weather and so sales have been good.

With the increasing prices of fertilisers and plants scaring away some farmers, output has decreased this year, driving prices up, he says.

Da Nang takes lead in environmental protection performance

Da Nang City has topped the list of 63 provinces and cities nationwide in set of Environmental Protection Performance Indicators (PEPI) in 2021 with 79.82 points, announced the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

It was followed by the southern provinces of Ba Ria-Vung Tau and Tra Vinh with 78.79 points and 77.52 points, respectively. 

The Central Highlands province of Dak Nong was at the bottom of the list with 51.3 points. 

The set of indicators includes 27 component indexes, which are structured into two groups, including: evaluation of the implementation of environmental protection objectives and tasks; and assessing people's satisfaction with the quality of the living environment.

Da Nang City was among the top 5 localities with best performance in the 2020 rankings.

Deputy PM Lê Minh Khái sets tasks for Government inspectorate this year

Deputy Prime Minister Lê Minh Khái on Friday requested the Government inspectorate to resolve all new complaints and denunciations from the grassroots level while attending the sector’s conference in Hà Nội.

The online national conference aimed at wrapping up the Government inspection sector’s work last year and setting plans for this year.

Emphasising that 2023 was an important year to meet the goals of the five-year plan for 2021-26, the Deputy PM suggested that the inspectorate, ministries and localities innovate working methods to ensure stronger, more positive and comprehensive progress.

Deputy PM Khái asked the inspectorate to effectively implement the amended Law on Inspection, which would be put into effect from the beginning of July.

Inspection should focus on sensitive industries, which had risks of corruption and had many complaints and denunciations, or were reported to cause trouble for people and enterprises, he said.

The Deputy PM asked the sector to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of inspection activities, especially progress and conclusions.

Another task set by Deputy PM Khái was that the inspection sector should effectively resolve difficulties and problems related to land use.

Along with that is to conduct inspections on heads of state agencies to detect and promptly handle acts of corruption.

Deputy PM Khái proposed strengthening the force of professional inspectors who were responsible, disciplined, brave and take the lead in the fight against corruption and wastefulness.

Last year, the inspectorate conducted more than 8,500 administrative inspections and about 222,600 specialised inspections.

They discovered more than VNĐ85.9 trillion (US$3.6 billion) in economic violations.

The inspectors proposed administrative punishments for more than 3,500 organisations and 8,619 individuals, and transferred dossiers to the investigation agency to handle 451 cases.

Regarding large-scale inspections of medical equipment, biological products, test kits, vaccines and drugs to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic, the Government inspectorate founded three inspection teams in the Ministry of Health, Hà Nội and HCM City, and guided the inspection at ministries and localities.

As many as 54 provinces and cities were detected to have made violations. The localities with a high number of violating package deals including Hà Tĩnh, Đà Nẵng, Hải Phòng and Quảng Trị.

Forty cases were transferred to the investigation agency as they caused great losses to the State budget.

2023 Devotion Awards launched

The Devotion Awards 2023, which recognise the best in music and sport, were launched by the Vietnam News Agency daily Thể Thao và Văn Hoá (Sport and Culture) on January 4.

This year's awards feature new categories for sports, along with the traditional categories for music, that include best athlete, best young athlete, and sports achievement of the year.

Three of the ten nominees for best athlete are swimmer Nguyễn Huy Hoàng, triathlete Vũ Phương Thanh, and football player Lê Công Vinh.

Fans can vote for the winner in two categories: best athlete and best young athlete, via the Bvote system, starting on January 4.

The music award will keep its tradition of being voted on by cultural journalists in four categories: program of the year, album of the year, producer of the year, and musician of the year.

The winner of the five remaining categories - song, music video, new artist, female and male singers of the year - will be selected by votes from both journalists and music lovers nationwide.

The awards ceremony is scheduled to take place in March. 

Remains of 50 more Vietnamese martyrs unearthed in Cambodia

The K72 team of the southern province of Binh Phuoc’s Military Command on January 6 completed the first phase of the 22nd period of searching for the remains of Vietnamese volunteer soldiers who laid down their lives in Cambodia during the war.

During the first phase in the 2022-2023 dry season, the team has gathered 50 sets of martyr remains in the Cambodian provinces of Kratie and Kampong Thom since November 7, with one identified, said Col. Nguyen Ngoc Anh, political commissar of the team.

Before repatriating the remains, authorities of Kratie and Kampong Thom provinces held ceremonies to pray for martyrs and completed procedures to hand their remains over to Vietnam.

As scheduled, a memorial and reburial ceremony will be held at the Binh Phuoc provincial martyrs’ cemetery on January 9.

Over more than two decades, the team has repatriated over 2,700 sets of remains of volunteer Vietnamese soldiers fallen in Cambodia.

Yen Bai launches 20 ADB-funded projects

The northern mountainous province of Yen Bai has incorporated and prioritised resources for socio-economic development in ethnic minority and mountainous regions for the 2021-2025 period at a total cost of over 14 trillion VND (608 million USD).

It was revealed during a working session between the provincial authorities and working delegations from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the UN Development Programme and the Committee for Ethnic Affairs on a ADB-funded project improving institutional capacity to carry out the master plan on socio-economic development in ethnic minority and mountainous areas for the 2021-2030 period.

Since 1998, Yen Bai has launched 20 ADB-funded programmes and projects in the fields of rural agriculture, environment-disaster prevention, traffic infrastructure and education, training, health care and social affairs. Most of them have been put into use so far and proved effective, contributing to local socio-economic development.

At present, the committee and ADB are helping Yen Bai build and submit a project on green infrastructure in adaption with climate change for ethnic minority regions at a total estimated capital of 64.25 million USD.

Condolences to Vietnamese Catholic community over passing of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI

President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee Do Van Chien has cabled his condolences to the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Vietnam (CBCV), Catholic dignitaries, priests, and community on the recent passing of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.

In the message sent to the community on behalf of the VFF Presidium, Chien said the passing is a great loss to the universal Catholic Church in general and the CBCV in particular.

The VFF Presidium believes that the CBCV always guides Vietnamese Catholics to well implement the late pope’s teachings and ideas of charity, harmony, solidarity and commitment, in contribution to the construction and defence of the fatherland for the nation’s prosperity, democracy, justice, and civilisation.

Chien also presented the presidium to send a similar message of condolences to the Committee for Solidarity of Vietnamese Catholics.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI passed away on December 31, 2022 at the age of 95.

Water resources planning scheme for 2021-2030 announced

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) held a conference in Hanoi on January 6 to announce a water resources planning scheme for the 2021-2030 period with a vision to 2050, which was approved by the Prime Minister in December 2022.

The scheme offers a foundation for MoNRE and other ministries, agencies and localities to map out their own plans relating to water resources, Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Le Cong Thanh said in his opening remarks.

The official expressed his belief that the close coordination between the ministries, agencies and localities will help to ensure the quality of relevant planning schemes, creating a premise for the economical, effective and sustainable exploitation, use and protection of water resources.

Chau Tran Vinh, Director of MONRE’s Department of Water Resources Management, noted that this is the first national planning scheme in the water resources sector, which regulates water resources to achieve targets set in the 2021-2030 socio-economic development strategy.

The scheme concretises relevant guidelines and policies adopted by the Party, the National Assembly and the Government, he said, adding that it touches upon issues regarding the management, regulation, distribution, exploitation and use of water resources in agriculture, industry, fishery, irrigation, urban and rural water supply, and other production and business activities, along with those on national water resources security.

According to Vinh, MONRE has coordinated with the World Bank, Australia, France, and domestic and foreign organisations and individuals to organise meetings, where they exchanged experience in building the scheme.  

By 2025, the planning scheme targets increasing the rate of daily clean water use to 95% - 100% for the urban population and 65% for rural residents. As many as 90% of water exploitation activities will be put under control, while the rate of water loss in supply activities will be reduced to 10%.

It also prioritises settling drought and water shortages in the dry season across river basins and areas with difficult access to sources, particularly the south-central region, Central Highlands, Mekong River Delta, and remote and island areas.

HCM City hosts Tet celebrations for overseas Vietnamese

The administration of Ho Chi Minh City held a get-together on January 6 to celebrate the Lunar New Year festival, known locally as Tet, for approximately 1,600 overseas Vietnamese returning home from all over the world.

Addressing the event, Nguyen Van Dung, vice chairman of the HCM City municipal People’s Council, noted the city respects and highly appreciates valuable contributions that Vietnamese expatriates have made to the city and Vietnam in general over the years.

He expressed hope that the expats would continue to promote the tradition of patriotism and unite with the locality to fulfil all socio-economic tasks ahead in the new year.

The municipal officials also listened to and answered questions related to the city’s development policies raised by overseas Vietnamese delegates. They also rewarded overseas Vietnamese collectives, individuals, and enterprises who have made excellent achievements in 2022 to Ho Chi Minh City’s socio-economic development.

Early in the morning the delegation paid a floral tribute to President Ho Chi Minh at the President Ho Chi Minh Monument and offered incense to the great leader at the Ho Chi Minh Museum’s branch in the city.

During the two-day event, delegates are scheduled to tour around various river tourism destinations, historical relic sites, and visit policy beneficiary families.

They will also attend a theatrical programme celebrating the 55th anniversary of the 1968 Spring General Offensive and Uprising – a rehearsal for the total victory of the Ho Chi Minh campaign liberating southern Vietnam and reunifying the nation in April 1974.

Runners to race through scenic Mộc Châu at Viet Nam Trail Marathon

On Saturday, Mộc Châu Town will host the Việt Nam Trail Marathon (VTM), a series of races through minority villages, orchards, and tea fields, with thousands of runners expected to participate. In addition to the excitement of the race, thousands of dollars will also be donated to charity.

Established in 2019, the VTM has grown to become one of the largest mountain runs in the nation. Since it began, the race has brought more than 13,000 runners to experience the warm hospitality and stunning scenery of Mộc Châu Town, Mộc Châu District, Sơn La Province.

This year, the race returns to its traditional pre-Tết time slot, giving 3,500 runners a chance to end their Lunar New Year with a challenge before focusing on their Tết build-up and celebrations.

The Việt Nam Trail Series has raised around US$390,000 (VNĐ9.2 billion) for good causes. The money raised at this year’s race will be used for development projects at Mộc Châu hospitals, alongside improving the houses of impoverished families in the area.

Key traffic projects poised to enhance HCM City’s infrastructure

Major transport projects are expected to create infrastructure breakthroughs for HCM City.

Ring Road No 3, identified as one of the city’s key and urgent traffic projects in the 2021-25 period, runs through HCM City and the southern provinces of Đồng Nai, Bình Dương and Long An.

With an investment of VNĐ75.4 trillion (US$3.2 billion), the Ministry of Transport is the investor of the project. The project has a total length of 76.34km, including 47.51km in HCM City’s Thủ Đức City and the districts of Củ Chi, Hóc Môn and Bình Chánh.

Construction on the project restarted on the Tân Vạn - Nhơn Trạch section in September last year after prolonged delays due to a lack of funds and difficulties in site clearance.

The Tân Vạn - Nhơn Trạch section consists of a 1.92km segment in HCM City, and a 6.3km segment spanning across Đồng Nai. The project is expected to be completed in 2025 and put in official operation in 2026.

The second key project is Metro Line No 1 between Bến Thành Market in District 1 and Suối Tiên Theme Park in Thủ Đức City.

The line has a total length of nearly 20km, including 2.6km underground, running through 14 stations, with three underground stations. It has a total investment of more than VNĐ43.7 trillion ($1.9 billion)

The project has received investment of over VNĐ43.7 trillion ($1.85 billion), VNĐ38.2 trillion ($1.62 billion) of which is from loans.

Construction on the first metro line began in August 2012 and is 93 per cent complete, according to the city Management Authority for Urban Railways.

A test run was conducted on an elevated section from Suối Tiên Station to Bình Thái Station in Thủ Đức City on December 21 last year. The line is expected to be put into operation at the end of this year.

Metro Line No 2 will connect Bến Thành Market in District 1 and Tham Lương Depot in District 12, with an investment of VNĐ47.9 trillion ($2 billion). With a total length of 48km, the second metro line will run across districts 1, 3, 10, 12, Tân Bình and Tân Bình.

Its first phase will be 11.3km, including a 2km elevated section and a 9.3km underground section, with 11 stations, including 10 underground and one elevated.

The city strives to start the project in 2023 and finish it in 2028. It will connect with the first metro line. Crossing the Soài Rạp River, Cần Giờ Bridge is expected to connect Nhà Bè and Cần Giờ districts, and replace the Bình Khánh ferry.

The Bình Khánh ferry is currently the only way to reach Cần Giờ from the city and is badly overloaded. The new bridge will have a total length of more than 3.6km, with four motor vehicle lanes and two mixed lanes. It will cost nearly VNĐ10 trillion ($424 million).

The city is carrying out investment preparation to start construction in the following year, and complete it in 2028.

The HCM City-Mộc Bài Expressway will connect HCM City with Mộc Bài, which is an international border gate between Việt Nam and Cambodia in Tây Ninh Province. Currently, the only road connecting HCM City and Tây Ninh Province is National Highway 22, which has become overcrowded.

The expressway will have a total length of 53.5km, including 23.7km in HCM City, with total investment of VNĐ16.7 trillion ($707.8 million). t is the beginning of the Ring Road No 3 project and connects with the Ring Road No 4 project.

The project’s first phase is expected to start next year and be completed at the same time as Ring Road No 3 in 2026. HCM City and Tây Ninh signed a cooperation agreement for the road in 2019.

The authorities of the two localities are also building shopping malls and service facilities along the project to raise revenue for construction of the expressway.

HCM City and Tây Ninh Province are among eight provinces and cities that make up the southern key economic zone. The new HCM City-Tây Ninh Expressway is expected to ease congestion and facilitate economic growth in the southern region, especially in industrial parks, export processing zones and the Mộc Bài Border Gate Economic Zone.

It will enhance transport connectivity and promote trade between Việt Nam and neighbouring countries.

A number of key transport projects began construction at the end of last year such as upgrading and expanding National Highway No 50 in Bình Chánh District, building the third passenger terminal at Tân Sơn Nhất International Airport in Tân Bình District and An Phú Intersection in Thủ Đức City.

Viet Nam-China border to open after three-year closure due to COVID-19

The Việt Nam-China border in the northern province of Lào Cai will open to visitors for the first time after three years of closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic on Sunday.

It is expected that about 200 Chinese nationals will enter Việt Nam via the border on the same day.

Việt Nam’s Lào Cai Province and China’s Hekou Yao have worked together and agreed to fully open the border without the need for COVID-19 tests.

According to Hà Đức Thuận, deputy head of the Economic Zone Administration of Lào Cai Province, the province has proposed to invest more in goods storage areas to make sure cars carrying goods for export to China would not be stuck in the border area.

The local police are also providing visas and other necessary documents for visitors wanting to enter China via Lào Cai border.

The total trade turnover via the border is estimated to reach more than US$1.5 billion, of which export turnover hit $870 million, and import turnover hit $642 million.

Drought-proofing Viet Nam: new plan aims to overcome water shortages by 2025

Water shortages have long plagued the south central, Central Highlands, Mekong Delta, remote areas and islands of Việt Nam, but this year, the country is determined to end this cycle of scarcity.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has just released a Master Plan on water resources planning for 2021-30, which aims to overcome drought and water shortages by 2025 effectively. 

Under the plan, by 2025, the rate of clean water use for the daily life of urban residents will rise to 95–100 per cent, while 65 per cent of the rural population will have access to clean water.

Under the plan, 90 per cent of water exploitation and use activities will be controlled; the efficiency and capacity of water exploitation and use will be improved, and water losses in the system of irrigation works will be minimised by 2025.

The master plan also aims to protect, control, prevent and minimise water sources' degradation, depletion and pollution. By 2030, 30 per cent of the total wastewater volume in urban areas has been treated and met standards before releasing into the environment.

This will improve and restore important water sources that have been degraded, depleted, and polluted in the country.

It will give priority to river sections flowing through concentrated population areas and water sources that play an important role in domestic water supply and service activities of socio-economic development, especially on the main streams of Hồng (Red) River, Cả River, Vu Gia - Thu Bồn River and Ba River.

Châu Trần Vĩnh, director of the ministry’s Water Resources Management Department, said that the master plan is an important milestone, marking the first national planning on water resources.

It is the orientation for regulating and allocating water resources to serve the targets of the ten-year socio-economic development strategy during 2021-30, he said.

The master plan also concretes the guidelines and directions of the Party, National Assembly and Government, such as Resolution No. 24-NQ/TW of the 11th Party Central Committee on a proactive response to climate change and strengthening resource management and environmental protection under Conclusion No. 36-KL/TW, dated June 23, 2022 of the Politburo on ensuring water source security and safety of dams and reservoirs until 2030, he said.

The master plan is the overall orientation in the management, distribution, exploitation, protection and development of water resources, as well as the prevention and control of harmful effects caused by water.

He added that during the planning process, the ministry has closely coordinated with relevant agencies and localities to ensure synchronisation between the water resource master plan and other national master plans.

He said that the ministry also worked with many domestic and foreign organisations to exchange international experiences in the planning process.

At the event, Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Lê Công Thành asked relevant agencies and localities to closely coordinate with the environment ministry in the master plans’ implementation.

Thành emphasised the importance of collaboration between various government agencies in ensuring the efficient, sustainable use and protection of natural resources and water and in achieving the socio-economic development goals set by the Party and State.

The master plan on water resources for the period 2021-30, a vision towards 2050, was approved by the Prime Minister following Decision No. 1622/QD-TTg dated December 27, 2022. 

US mission to Vietnam builds primary school in Ben Tre

US Defense Attaché in Hanoi Colonel TJ Bouchillon and Acting Deputy Principal Officer in Ho Chi Minh City Graham Harlow has transferred the newly built Trinh Viet Bang Primary School in Dinh Trung commune to the Ben Tre Provincial People’s Committee.

The project was jointly identified by the US Office of Defense Cooperation Vietnam and Ben Tre province in January 2019. 

The new school includes eight fully furnished classrooms and two teacher’s rooms as well as a handicap accessible ramp. The project was constructed and supported by the Chuong Duong Company, the New Horizon Company, the US Army Corps of Engineers, and the Ben Tre Provincial People’s Committee. US Indo-Pacific Command under the Overseas Humanitarian Disaster Assistance and Civic Action Program funded the construction project. 

At the transfer ceremony, US Defense Attaché Colonel TJ Bouchillon stated this “project reflects our commitment to a strong, prosperous, resilient, and independent Vietnam, and a free and open Indo-Pacific region. It underscores the common belief that a successful future lies with preparing the next generation to successfully tackle challenges they will face – whether local, national, or global.”

Speaking at the ceremony, Vice Chairwoman of Ben Tre Provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Thi Be Muoi acknowledged the support of the US Mission in Vietnam and the US Indo-Pacific Command. “This valuable assistance improves primary education facilities in Binh Dai district’s Dinh Trung commune and helps send children to school which is a part of our local development strategy,” she said.

HCMC workers get Tet gifts

A working group of HCMC Communist Youth Union members joined local officials to visit and present gifts to workers living in the HCMC’s outlying district of Binh Chanh yesterday, January 6.

The initiative was part of the city’s Youth Union efforts to improve social welfare for local workers in preparation for the upcoming Lunar New Year, or Tet.

The group visited a residential area of workers in Vinh Loc B Commune, home to around 40 families, and handed Tet presents to the youngsters living there.

Given a shortage of new orders at HCMC-based manufacturers, most workers have faced challenges in finding work and saving money to travel home for family reunion.

According to Nguyen Van Lam, deputy director of the HCMC Department of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs, the number of workers receiving severance allowance increased by 27% between January and October of 2022 compared to the same period in 2021.

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