VietNamNet Bridge – Nguyen Xuan Cuong, newly-appointed Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, speaks to the Lao Dong newspaper about his resolve to reorganise the farming sector so that farmers would earn higher incomes.

 Establishing marine conservation areas in accordance with the national master plan on biodiversity preservation is one of the most effective ways to protect the marine environment, which is at an alarming rate of pollution. 

 VietNamNet Bridge – Public hospital services and products in 16 provinces and cities have become 18 per cent more expensive since the middle of August, as patients pay for health staff’s basic salaries.

VietNamNet Bridge - Three years after being “rescued” and brought back to his home village, the so-called “wild man” Ho Van Lang in Quang Ngai still remembers his old life and has decided to build a tent in the jungle to live alone. 

The Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) has asked Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc to consider the participation of Viet Nam in the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI).

French photographer Rehahn has unveiled a “Giving Back” project designed to improve the lives of the characters in his photos who are in poor rural areas of Vietnam.

 VietNamNet Bridge – It’s the first time the Health Ministry has proposed a draft on management regulations of privatised services in both State-owned and individual hospitals.

The Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS) has proposed the Government and relevant ministries revise the master zoning plan for textile and garment industry development as it has become outdated.

 The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) will no longer grant licences for seafood shipments from exporters blocked by the European Union (EU) for using banned substances in their products.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The Ministry of Information and Communications is considering the impact of Pokemon Go to society and may ban the game in Vietnam. 

 VietNamNet Bridge – China's Supreme Court has sentenced to death a woman who is considered an important link in a network of child trafficking from Vietnam, reported Xinhua news on August 16.

Tran Bac Ha, chairman of the Vietnam Bank for Investment and Development (BIDV), one of the largest state-owned commercial banks in Vietnam, will retire from September after 35 years working at BIDV.

 VietNamNet Bridge - According to the latest announcement, the repair of the AAGcable route will be completed on August 24, three days behind the initial plan.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnam ranks 5th globally in volume of tea exports but its export prices are equivalent to 60 percent of the world’s average.

  Storm Dianmu, the third so far this year, has caused minimal losses thanks to proactive response, the standing board of the Central Steering Committee on Disaster Prevention and Control told a meeting in Hanoi on August 20. 

VietNamNet Bridge - According to forecasts by Oxford Economics, the mobile Internet will have a major contribution to the economy of Vietnam, only behind a number of key industries such as manufacturing, distribution and agriculture.

The Vietnam Association of Financial Investors has expressed disappointment over the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s explanation about the appointments of Vu Quang Hai, a son of former Minister Vu Huy Hoang, to senior positions at Sabeco and PVFI.

 Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has said the government always values ideas and suggestions contributed by overseas Vietnamese experts as the country is in the process of restructuring the economy and seeking deeper international integration.

 A group of Vietnamese students have helped build two new kindergarten classrooms and gave scholarships to pupils in a remote area of Dien Bien Province.

 The government has identified the roles and tasks of the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Ministers, with Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh to act as Permanent Deputy Prime Minister.