Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam welcomed nearly 6.6 million international visitors in the first seven months of this year, accounting for 83% of the yearly target, according to Vietnam National Authority of Tourism (VNAT).

During the period, the industry also served 76.5 million domestic tourists. Total revenues from tourism reached 416.6 trillion VND (17.58 billion USD).

July alone saw over 1 million foreign arrivals, 6.5% higher than that of the previous month. 

According to VNAT, the tourism sector expects to soon reach its yearly target as the second half of the year is usually the peak time for international visitors.

The RoK remained the largest source market of Vietnam tourism in the first seven months of this year with 1.9 million arrivals, accounting for one-third of total international visitors to Vietnam. It was followed by China and the US.

Among the top ten source markets of Vietnam tourism, four are in Northeast Asia - the RoK, China, Taiwan (China), and Japan, and three in Southeast Asia - Thailand, Malaysia, and Cambodia. Australia and India ranked ninth and tenth. In Europe, the UK, France, and Germany were the three biggest source markets.

Many main source markets for tourists in Vietnam saw growth in July, such as Taiwan (31.3%), Japan (15%), China (14%), the US (7%) and the RoK (6%).

According to the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), global tourist arrivals will recover to pre-COVID-19 levels by 2024 at the earliest. The increasing number of tourists, together with changes in consumption trends, tourism markets and digital technology, poses significant challenges to tourism human resources in the new situation.

According to VNAT, with the current growth rate, the country’s tourism industry needs 40,000 new employees each year while 25,000 employees need to be retrained. Meanwhile, local schools only train 20,000 students yearly. The number of professionally trained tourism workers accounts for only 43% of the total workforce in the industry and nearly half of them do not know foreign languages.

In addition, the quality and productivity of Vietnamese workers in the tourism and hotel industries remain low. Vietnamese tourism workers now have to compete with guest workers from the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, and Singapore, thus improving the quality of human resources is a must for Vietnam in the coming time.

Good news: Blackpink concerts in Hà Nội to proceed as planned

IME Vietnam and the Việt Nam Centre for Protection of Music Copyright (VCPMC) have successfully reached an agreement over Blackpink’s concert royalties.

According to VCPMC, IME Vietnam, the organiser of Blackpink’s concert in Hà Nội, has committed to making the royalty payments before noon on July 29.

The agreement was finalised after a meeting between the two parties held this morning, July 28.

The negotiations centred around the alleged music royalties issue that emerged on July 27, when VCPMC accused IME Vietnam of "serious piracy" and demanded the cancellation of the concert licenses due to unpaid royalties as of July 27.

Following the involvement of authorities, including inspectors from the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, inspectors from the Hà Nội Department of Culture and Sports, and VCPMC representatives, the two parties finally found common ground on the amount of copyright fees for the two Blackpink shows.

Though the exact amount of royalties to be paid was not disclosed by either party, Phạm Đình Tâm, the representative of IME Vietnam, revealed that the agreed-upon figure is “significantly lower” than VCPMC's initial demand, which exceeded (US$464,000) VNĐ11 billion, including taxes.

IME Vietnam had previously contested this figure, arguing that it was much higher than the royalty rates applied in other countries where Blackpink's concerts had taken place, such as Thailand and Malaysia. In those countries, music royalties typically ranged from $200,000 to $250,000 (approximately VNĐ4.7 billion to VNĐ5.9 billion).

Tâm emphasised that while the songs performed during the Hà Nội concerts are copyrighted by YG Entertainment, Blackpink's management company, YG remains respectful of copyright laws.

Before this agreement, there were concerns that the Korean group's highly anticipated performances might face cancellation due to the failure to reach a consensus with VCPMC regarding royalty payments.

Now, with the agreement in place, fans can breathe a sigh of relief as the shows are scheduled to take place as planned at Mỹ Đình National Stadium on July 29 and 30. Fans are advised to come prepared with raincoats as the weather forecast predicts rain for both evenings. 

Abstract exhibition presents philosophy about human personality

An interest in the human personality has led artist Nguyễn Ngọc Phương to create a series of abstract paintings that are on display at the Việt Nam Museum of Fine Arts in Hà Nội.

Heafod, which is his 4th solo exhibition, showcases his 19 latest paintings – all with his signature style featuring bold and strong strokes, and the contrast of colours.

Commenting on the emerging artist, Tongla Art – the exhibition’s organiser, wrote: “For Nguyễn Ngọc Phương, art and life are one, extreme and fanatic in his art, he is equally extreme and fanatic in his life, committed as he is, like a man who rather prides himself on knowing what he is about. Like all people of real merit, he knows too well the medium and the milieu that suit his own nature and talent.”

To satisfy his creativity, the artist has “played” with all kinds of mediums, such as lacquer, synthetic adhesives, gilding materials, gold and silver leaves, hard-medium-soft rock deposits, soapstone, and soft soil, to create the paintings.

Attending the exhibition’s opening ceremony on Tuesday, noted painter Lý Trực Sơn said: “In the works by Phương, viewers often encounter something different from the usual artistic structure. The works are the place where he plunges into the explosions and chaos of visual elements and then tries to define a kinetic order for them. I see in his paintings that the energy of the hidden is so intense that it distorts the form of what it hides. This is his own visual art.”

Agreeing with the veteran artist, Most Venerable Thích Tuệ Quang, who is among the guests attending the opening ceremony, said that he feels there is a connection between him and those artworks.

“I don’t have much knowledge of art and painting, but when I stand in front of them, I can feel an energetic vibe through those strokes,” he said.

Aiming to offer art lovers a deeper understanding of his works, Phương has shared with his fans about the exhibition's philosophy, spirit, and techniques during a special talk on Wednesday.

Before the Heafod, Phương had presented his artworks in three other solo exhibitions, Ngày Thứ 49 (The 49th Day) Part 1 and 2 in 2018, and Niệm (Opinion) in 2021 – all of which took place at the Museum of Fine Arts. His works also were presented in group exhibitions in South Korea, China, France, Hong Kong, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

Born in 1975 in Hà Nội, Phương received the Bachelor of Arts degree majoring in Traditional Fine Arts at the Hà Nội University of Industrial Fine Arts. He then gained the Master of Arts degree at the Việt Nam University of Fine Arts.

His Heafod exhibition opens to the public until July 31. The Việt Nam Museum of Fine Arts is at 66 Nguyễn Thái Học Street, Ba Đình District, Hà Nội. 

World top marathoners to race Đà Nẵng’s beach track

Victor Kipkemei Chepkwony from Kenya and 9,000 runners from 50 countries around the world will race the 10th Manulife Danang International Marathon 2023 on August 6, taking on a new beach track through the landscapes and iconic bridges in the central city.

The marathon, hosted by Yamaha, will offer a new marathon course from the East Sea Park and along the coastline on Võ Nguyên Giáp and Nguyễn Tất Thành Streets, the Rồng (Dragon) Bridge, Hàn River, Sơn Trà Peninsula, Ngũ Hành Sơn (Marble) Mountains in the 10-year anniversary celebration of the race.

The race’s organisers said it welcomes the participation of the world's top marathoners, including 1,500 foreigners and 10 running clubs representing countries in the region such as Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Hong Kong, and Malaysia. They will compete in the men’s and women’s 42km, 21km, 10km, 5km, and the Ronny Dash 1.5km for kids aged 3-10.

It said Kenya’s Victor Kipkemei Chepkwony, the most valuable candidate in the full-marathon category with his current personal record of 2:22:15, will aim to break the course record of 2:32:16.

Lèo Thị Tình of the national track and field team with a personal best time of 3:08:28 will eye to win the women's title in the race.

According to the organising committee, this year's race will give out slots to participate in the Kuala Lumpur Marathon, while the fastest male and female Vietnamese athletes in the full marathon category will win slots to the Sydney Marathon. 

It said the Sydney Marathon, which is the seventh best of the world's major marathons, will offer an opportunity of joining the top six prestigious marathons in the world.

All runners will be given a 5km warm-up and exchange with each other at the prelude event of the race on the evening of August 4.

In a track check in May, international experts certified all distances to meet the standards of the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS) and the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF).

The race also collaborates with the sponsor, Yamaha Motor Vietnam, to lead the athletes with eco-friendly electric vehicles as a green promotion for the city. 

Fundraising activities will call for donations from runners to support children at the Hoa Mai Orphanage, a charity organisation that provides education and vocational training for children with disabilities in Đà Nẵng.

The Manulife Đà Nẵng International Marathon is one of the top in Southeast Asia. Last year it raised VNĐ200 million (US$8,700) from donors for the support of orphans, victims of Agent Orange, the disabled, the Village of Hope and poor people in Đà Nẵng.

Last year, Vietnamese marathoners Bùi Văn Đà and Trần Thị Hoa won the men's and women's 42km. 

Cần Thơ Heritage Marathon to start on December 3

The Cần Thơ Heritage Marathon 2023 will officially start on December 3, the event’s organising board has announced.

This is one of the official events of Cần Thơ City towards the 20th anniversary of its establishment.

Currently, the event has received registrations of nearly 5,000 athletes and is expected to attract 2,000 more to compete in four distances: 42km, 21km, 10km and 5km.

The tournament is expected to be a season of innovation worthy of the city's iconic run.

Nguyễn Thị Hồng Hạnh, CEO of DHA Việt Nam, the organiser said: “Through collecting the direct opinions of athletes and carefully surveying the running routes, at this time DHA Việt Nam has a plan to adjust the running track for the 2023 season.

"The organising board will strengthen solutions to ensure safety and health and provide the best experience for participating athletes,” she said. 

According to Hạnh, the organising board will continue to consult international experts in the field of marathon organisation to get the most useful advice for the organisation, communication and promotion to attract more and more athletes to run and experience the beauty of and enjoy the cultural specialities of Cần Thơ, the largest city in the Mekong Delta, Việt Nam. 

HCM City promotes cooperation with Portugal’s Porto city

Ho Chi Minh City and Portugal’s Porto city on July 27 signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on cooperation between the two cities in the 2023-2025 period.

Under the deal, inked by Porto Mayor Rui Moreira and Vice Chairman of the HCM City People’s Committee Duong Anh Duc, the two sides will promote collaboration in culture, tourism, economy, trade, urban upgrading and heritage conservation.

They will create favourable conditions for football teams and clubs of the two cities to exchange and share experience, while encouraging local departments and agencies to increase cooperation.

Addressing the signing ceremony in Porto, Duc said he hopes the MoU will help bolster the partnership between the two cities, the two economic hubs of Vietnam and Portugal, especially in economy, culture, tourism and innovation, thus contributing to promoting the ties between the two countries.

For his part, Moreira said he believes the deal will help form an effective economic partnership between the two sides and beef up bilateral cooperation on other fields, especially tourism and urban upgrading.

Speaking to the Vietnam News Agency (VNA), Moreira highlighted the traditional relations between Vietnam and Portugal as well as the growing bilateral partnership in recent years thanks to the strong economic ties between the EU and Vietnam.

Both Moreira and Duc pointed to similarities between Porto and HCM City and their cooperation potential, particularly in tourism, cultural heritage preservation, tertiary education, science and technology for the development of both cities.

While in Porto, the HCM City delegation visited Bolhão, an ancient market that opened in 1839, one of the important historical and architectural sites of Portugal that has been restored and expected to become a cultural and cuisine centre of the European country. They also visited the projects to restore Matadouro ancient street of Porto to learn experience of the city in the work.

On the occasion, they also worked with the University of Porto, one of the 100 best universities of Europe, which ranks among the top 350 universities in the world.

The second largest city of Portugal, Porto is one of the oldest cities in Europe. The city downtown area has been recognised by the UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage Site.

Activities honour 100 voluntary blood donors nationwide

A series of activities are underway in Hanoi and the northern mid-land province of Phu Tho from July 27-29 to honour 100 exemplary voluntary blood donors nationwide this year.

The event, the 15th of its kind since the establishment of the National Steering Committee for Voluntary Blood Donation in 2008, was introduced by the steering committee, the Central Committee of the Vietnam Red Cross Society, the Ministry of Health, and the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion in Hanoi on July 27.

It aims to convey the message of calling on eligible people to join the voluntary blood donation.

Activities will include a journey to pay tribute to the Hung Kings, a ceremony to pay respect to President Ho Chi Minh, an incense-offering ceremony at at the Monument to Heroic Martyrs on Hanoi's Bac Son street, and a ceremony honouring 100 exemplary voluntary blood donors across the nation for 2023 who will meet the Prime Minister on the afternoon of July 29.

Over the past 15 years, as many as 1,500 voluntary blood donors nationwide have been honoured.

Last year, over 1.43 million units of blood were donated nationwide, 99% of which came from voluntary blood donors, or about 1.5% of the total.

Since early this year, about 900,000 units of blood have been raised through various campaigns.

Vietnamese officer to take on UN peacekeeping mission in Abyei

The Ministry of National Defence on July 27 held a ceremony to hand over the President’s decision to an officer who will take on United Nations (UN) peacekeeping mission in the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) Mission in Abyei on the border of South Sudan and Sudan.

Under the decision, Lieutenant Colonel Dang Quoc Tuan, deputy head of the Department of Foreign Languages and Vietnamese Language, Faculty of Culture and Foreign Languages under the Political Officers College, will be sent to the UNISFA Mission (Abyei area) to take the duty of combat staff officer.

Speaking at the ceremony, Deputy Defence Minister Senior Lieutenant General Hoang Xuan Chien said that the average rate of excellent completion of tasks by Vietnamese forces participating in peacekeeping operations is 31%. The United Nations, its missions, and local people highly appreciated the Vietnamese forces’ performance.

The deputy minister expected Lt Col Tuan will continue upholding the tradition of Vietnamese soldiers and “blue-beret” soldiers to complete assigned tasks, while promoting the image of Vietnam and the Vietnam People's Army in the multilateral external environment.

Up to now, Vietnam has sent 600 officials and employees including 596 military officers and four public security officers to UN peacekeeping missions in Abyei, Central African Republic and South Sudan, UN Headquarters, and a EU training mission.

According to the evaluation of UN missions and agencies, Vietnamese officers have made great efforts to fulfil their assignments, demonstrating their professionalism, discipline, creativity, and determination. Through practical contributions, Vietnamese peacekeepers have left many very good impressions on mission leaders, commanding officers of military forces, and international colleagues.

PM inspects construction of Ninh Binh’s key transport

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh inspected the construction progress of the East-West road project in the northern province of Ninh Binh on July 27.

The road links the westernmost point with the easternmost point of the province, from Nho Quan mountainous district to Kim Son coastal district. It also connects the nation’s important traffic axes, including the eastern North - South Expressway, Ho Chi Minh Road, National Highway 1A, the coastal road from Quang Ninh to Thanh Hoa and the North - South railway.

The project has been identified by Ninh Binh as a key work that needs to be completed as soon as possible to create a driving force and a breakthrough in the province's socio-economic development in the immediate future.

Currently, construction is underway on the project’s first 23km section and is expected to be complete by the end of 2024.

PM Chinh said that once complete, the road will help open up a new development space for the province, and contribute to reducing the traffic overload for Ninh Binh city and other localities of the province.

He asked Ninh Binh to focus on performing its key tasks, especially building and submitting the provincial master plan for approval in accordance with the Planning Law in the third quarter of 2023.

The Government leader stressed the need to speed up disbursement of public investment, as well as implementation of national target programmes.

Former official sentenced for abuse of right to freedom

The People’s Court of Hanoi on July 26 sentenced Nguyen Son Lo, former director of the SENA Institute of Technology Research and Development, to a total of five years in prison for “abusing the rights to freedom and democracy to violate interests of the State, legitimate rights and interests of organisations and individuals”.

The institute is responsible for researching, developing and implementing programmes and projects in the fields of economics, science and technology, education and training, environment, research, and proposing management measures and development policies in the economic fields.

According to the indictment, as the director of the institute, Lo has compiled, edited and distributed documents to many other individuals and organisations.

The Judicial Assessment Council of the Ministry of Information and Communications determined that six documents hold contents that infringed upon the interests of the State; legitimate rights and interests of organisations and individuals.

The jury determined that this is a dangerous act for the society, causing adverse effects on security, order and social safety.

In addition, from November 2020 to July 2022, the defendant also illegally leased part of the institute headquarters at 35 Dien Bien Phu street in Hanoi, earning more than 2.3 billion VND (97,000 USD) illegally. This was contrary to the institute's operating charter and the Law on management and use of public property.

The jury assessed that the defendant's act of illegally leasing the office had violated the state administrative management order on housing and land, and caused loss of money of the State.

Australia’s Northern Territory prioritises all-round cooperation with Vietnam

Vietnamese Ambassador to Australia Nguyen Tat Thanh paid a visit to the Northern Territory on July 24-25 at the invitation of Chief Minister Natasha Fyles to discuss measures to implement the host government’s international engagement strategy 2022 to 2026.

In this strategy, Vietnam is identified as one of the six high priority markets that the Northern Territory government wants to promote trade, investment and engagement.

Thanh’s trip took place in concurrence with a working visit by a delegation from the central province of Khanh Hoa led by Nguyen Tan Tuan, Vice Secretary of the provincial Party Committee and Chairman of the provincial People's Committee.

On this occasion, Thanh and Administrator of the Northern Territory Hugh Heggie chaired an event to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Vietnam-Australia diplomatic ties.

Hugh Heggie spoke highly of the strong development of bilateral relations, emphasising that the relationship with Vietnam is one of Australia's most important, diverse and dynamic in the region.

Vietnam has been Australia's fastest growing trading partner in recent years, especially as the Southeast Asian country has become the Northern Territory's second largest export market for cattle, he said, adding that the partnership has become stronger through economic and trade connectivity, close supply chains, peacekeeping cooperation, and people-to-people exchanges.

The administrator highly valued mutual visits of leaders, ministers and high-ranking officials of the two sides, and welcomed the closer cooperation in many fields, including education and training. He also expressed his delight at important contributions by the Vietnamese community to the diversity and dynamism of the Northern Territory over the past 30 years.

Welcoming the Khanh Hoa delegation, he affirmed that the freshly-signed plan on the implementation of the economic cooperation document between the People's Committee of Khanh Hoa province and the Northern Territory government is of great significance, defining the framework for sustainable cooperation development in the next five years, and creating favourable conditions for the Northern Territory to expand opportunities for industrial diversification and business connectivity, and expand partnerships in agriculture, cotton farming, mining, in addition to defence and maritime cooperation.

Ambassador Thanh said that the two sides should actively exploit similarities in the fields of economic, trade, and tourism cooperation, and welcomed the possibility of expanding ties in culture, human resources development, energy transition, digital economy, and green development.

Within the framework of his visit, Thanh also attended meetings between the Khanh Hoa delegation and Chief Minister Natasha Fyles, Deputy Chief Minister Nicole Manison, Speaker of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly Mark Monaghan, Minister for Agribusiness and Fisheries Paul Kirby, and other officials.

Natasha Fyles emphasised that Northern Territory's signing of the implementation plan for the period 2023-2028 to carry out the document signed in 1998 with Khanh Hoa is a landmark between the two localities on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the two countries’ diplomatic relations. She said she expects the two sides will develop their strengths in accordance with each side's cooperation needs and promote the exploitation of new cooperation potential in clean energy, renewable energy, digital transformation and environmental protection.

Call for more southern flights from Thanh Hoa

Thanh Hoa Provincial Enterprise Association Chairman Nguyen Van Thanh has called for flights from Tho Xuan Airport to southern localities to be reopened.

According to Thanh, during meetings with the business community in southern cities and provinces, he has received complaints from enterprises about the inconvenience of flying to Thanh Hoa.  

Before the Covid-19 pandemic, there were eight daily flights from Tho Xuan Airport to Da Lat, Nha Trang, Quy Nhon, Buon Me Thuot, Danang, HCM City and Can Tho. But to date, only two daily flights are operated from the airport to HCM City and Phu Quoc compared with six flights per day from Vinh Airport in the neighbouring province of Nghe An.

People from Thanh Hoa often have to travel to Vinh Airport or Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi to take flights to southern localities.

Thanh Hoa has attracted a large influx of investors. Meanwhile, Cao Bo-Mai Son-QL45 Expressway has been put into use, so it is more convenient for people from the northern provinces of Ninh Binh and Nam Dinh to fly to southern localities from Tho Xuan Airport than from Noi Bai International Airport.

Tho Xuan Airport has a modern terminal which meets international standards. It is among airports recording the highest growth.

In the 2016-2020 period, passengers through Tho Xuan increased by 17 percent annually.

Northern region has rains as temperatures ease

The north is forecast to see rains from Friday, ending the severe heat wave that hit the region over the past week.

According to the National Centre for Hydro-meteorology Forecasting, rains will start in the northwest area with average rainfall of between 60-120mm per day.

The rainy weather will then expand to the northeast and northern central provinces in the afternoon and evening with average rainfall of between 30-70mm per day.

The rain will help ease the temperatures in the area to between 30-32 degrees Celsius on Friday and down further in the days to come.

The rainy weather is forecasted to continue to July 30.

The central highlands and southern regions will also continue to see heavy rains and thunderstorms until the weekend with estimated rainfall of between 50-100mm per day.

6,000 hectares of farmland abandoned due to rats

As many as 6,886 hectares of land in the central province of Quang Binh have been left idle because of rats.

Le Thuy District, the biggest rice hub in the province, has 700 hectares left abandoned in this year’s summer-autumn rice crop, including up to 200 hectares in Hoa Thuy Commune alone.

Vo Xuan Hoa, chairman of Hoa Thuy Commune, said that over the past years, local fields have been seriously damaged by rats. A field was even ruined by rats in just a few nights. 

Bo Trach District is among the localities attacked by rats, with Dai Trach Commune being hardest hit with 160 hectares of farmland left idle.

Dai Trach Commune Chairman Phan Van Ngo said that local farmers had mostly abandoned the summer-autumn crop in recent years because of rats.

The commune is located by the North-South railway route. The track offers ideal shelters for rats. The locality has launched many campaigns to fight against rats, but it has been impossible to kill all of them.

High prices of agricultural materials have also discouraged people from focusing on farming.

Locals have to spend more to hire harvesting machines at around VND180,000- 300,000 for every 360 square metres.

Fertilizer prices have also increased to VND1.8 million for every 100 kilos up from VND900,000 in 2021.

In the winter-spring crop this year, Quang Binh cultivated 29,386 hectares of rice, but the area fell to 22,500 during the summer-autumn crop.

Germany supports Vietnam in forest ecosystem development

The KfW Development Bank is collaborating with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to expedite two projects focused on developing forest ecosystems and preventing animal diseases from spreading to humans.

The ministry said in an announcement that the two projects involve the conservation and management of the coastal mangrove ecosystem in the Red River Delta and the fight against animal diseases that could transmit to humans by controlling and reducing wildlife trading and hunting. These two projects are expected to commence in the third or fourth quarter of this year.

The two sides are considering two more projects for year-end negotiations. These projects involve wood system control to meet the requirements outlined in the Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) on Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade (FLEGT) (“VPA-FLEGT”) and conservation and management of forest ecosystems with the participation of residents (KfW9), as stated by the KfW Development Bank.

Forestry is one of the three sectors chosen by Germany to be a focus and part of the country’s state-level commitments in its new cooperation strategy with Vietnam.

Over the past 25 years, KfW has provided support for over 10 projects in Vietnam with total funding of up to 100 million Euros. These projects have significantly contributed to the development and increase of Vietnam’s forestry coverage from 28% in 1995 to over 42% in the current condition.

Over 40,000 jobs offered at online bazaar

A recent online job bazaar has brought together nine northern provinces, offering 40,000 jobs across various industries.

The event, organized on July 25 by the Hanoi Employment Service Center and the northern provinces of Ninh Binh, Bac Giang, Bac Ninh, Bac Kan, Thai Nguyen, Thai Binh, Phu Tho, and Haiphong, was a success.

Data from the Hanoi Employment Service Center showed that the job-matching session attracted 161 employers, offering a total of 40,108 job vacancies.

Of the available positions, over 1,200 job vacancies were in Hanoi, primarily in the trade, transport, and education sectors. Meanwhile, other provinces, including Bac Giang, Thai Nguyen, Ninh Binh and Phu Tho, had significant job openings available, providing employment for 17,500 workers, 8,400 workers, and over 3,000 workers, respectively.

The job bazaar emphasized the need for manual workers, with over 18,200 positions seeking candidates with basic qualifications. Additionally, industries requiring intermediate and tertiary-level skills offered around 11,000 and 10,000 positions, respectively. The electronics and textiles industries hired more than 21,600 and 7,800 new employees.

Monthly salaries for these job opportunities varied, with about 16,000 positions offering VND7 million to VND10 million, and 9,600 positions providing VND10 million to VND15 million. More than 10,700 positions offered monthly salaries from VND5 million to VND7 million.

Among 32 employers in Hanoi, manufacturing companies provided the highest number of job openings, accounting for over 56% of the total.

Assignments for state agencies issued to pilot new mechanisms for HCMC growth

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has signed Decision 896/QD-TTg to assign missions for HCMC to implement Resolution No.98/2023/QH15 by the National Assembly about piloting specific mechanisms, policies for the growth of the city.

Accordingly, the Finance Ministry is asked to develop a decree on loan interest, reasonable profit, payment methods, finalization methods for projects using the Build – Transfer (BT) model. It is also necessary to prepare a legal document on corporate or individual income tax exemption for innovative startup activities in the key fields of HCMC.

It should become an advisor in the process to ask for approval from competent units about the content that the annual state budget allocation with purpose for HCMC’s budget does not exceed 70 percent of the increasing central budget revenue, taken from the one divided between the central budget and the city budget compared with the estimate assigned by the Prime Minister.

The Home Affairs Ministry is requested to develop a decree on the election, recruitment, management, designation of civil servants and public employees working at ward, town, and commune levels. It should develop a governmental document on expanding the decentralization and authorization for HCMC People’s Committee and HCMC People’s Council compared to applicable regulations.

The Construction Ministry is told to develop a decision to be signed by the Prime Minister about decentralization, procedures to locally adjust the master planning to construct functional zones, the master urban planning, the technical infrastructure planning.

In this August, the Government Office completes the development of a governmental document on directing relevant units to cooperate with HCMC in administrative reform and to reduce processing time of issues not yet within the power of HCMC.

The Planning and Investment Ministry is asked to collaborate with other ministries and state agencies as well as HCMC People’s Committee to submit to the Government a report on other mechanisms and policies not stipulating in the law or existing in the NA’s Resolution but are essential in attracting strategic investors and mobilizing possible resources nationally and internationally. This report will then be sent to the National Assembly for approval at the nearest meeting. The issuance of a document to explain in detail the above policies is done in a shortened order and procedure.

In August, HCMC is assigned to introduce regulations on collecting and using the money for maintaining and renovating infrastructure (affected subjects, principles, collection levels, the management mechanism, the use mechanism) in order to ensure transparency, logic, and in compliance with the financial autonomy mechanism of the HCMC Management Board for Export Processing and Industrial Zones.

HCMC is requested to review, approve, and issue the land price adjustment coefficient suitable for the real situation in the city. This will be used to calculate land use fee, land lease fee for all lots (regardless of value in the land price list) in the case that the land price list has included market information for each land lot shown in Point a and b of Clause 4 in Article 6 of Resolution 98.

At the latest meeting, HCMC People’s Committee has presented to HCMC People’s Council for approval the content of salary and wage as well as fringe benefits for leading positions in public scientific-technological organizations; the wage to perform scientific-technological missions; the standards, conditions, and subject enjoying incentives; criteria, standards, and quantity limits for civil servants and public employees at ward, commune, and town levels.

Transport Ministry to expand 2-lane expressways according to actual needs

The Transport Ministry informed that it is going to invest in the expansion of some 2-lane expressways when the transport demand increases.

Certain expressways throughout the country have been built with only 2 lanes and no median strips or emergency lane for stopping. The speed limits on these routes are lower.

The Ministry of Transport shared that finding sufficient investments for traffic infrastructure construction is an extremely challenging task. Lately, the allocation of the state budget for this aspect accounts for only 2.18 percent of the national GDP, much lower than the target of 3.5 – 4.5 percent of GDP in the strategy for transport development.

In the upcoming time, the Transport Ministry is going to consider expanding the width of some 2-lane expressways according to the actual transport needs.

At present, those seeing an increase in traffic volume like the section from Phan Thiet – Dau Giay of the North – South Expressway and Bien Hoa – Vung Tau Expressway are reviewed for the enlargement to at least 4 lanes to suit the actual demands for socio-economic growth and to gradually form the national expressway network as planned. 

In related news, Can Tho City is accelerating the progress of land hand-over for the construction of key traffic routes, consisting of two expressway projects and the one for the West Ring Road.

Secretary of Can Tho City Party’s Committee Nguyen Van Hieu stressed that the West Ring Road is a critical project of the city. This is an 80-meter-wide boulevard to offer valuable development space for the city. It gives more convenience when moving around the city as well as to neighboring areas, which is expected to boost the socio-economic growth of Can Tho City.

The Can Tho City Department of Transport informed that the project has a total investment of over VND3.84 trillion (US$162.1 million) and is carried out from 2021-2026. Until now, necessary construction land for 5.2km over 18km has been handed over, accounting for 29 percent.

The construction designs and financial estimates of 7/7 construction packages have been completed. The contractors for 4/7 packages have been selected, and the rest have had their designs approved. After the adjustment of the total investment amounts, the results of their financial estimates will be announced as well.

The total capital allocated for the project from the beginning is VND1.96 trillion ($82.8 million). In 2023, the assigned amount is VND763 billion ($32.2 million), 42 percent of which has been successfully disbursed.

Secretary Hieu asked that by the end of this August, Can Tho City Transport Department provide a detailed report on the project so that the Party Unit of Can Tho City People's Committee can have understanding on the works that need doing, including solutions to find capital sources for the adjustment of the project’s total investment.

This Department is also asked to advise about urban planning along the West Ring Road to better exploit the land resources and give way for urban area development in the future.

As to the section of the North – South Expressway passing Can Tho City, Secretary Hieu directed that Cai Rang District have to hand over the construction land no later than the end of this August. The District is proposed to actively mobilize local residents to give land and wisely handle any arisen issues in compliance with the law.

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