The National Traffic Safety Committee has recently issued hotlines for people to lodge complaints about transport issues during the four-day holidays, which start from April 30.

UNDP Vietnam launched its Asia Pacific Human Development Report entitled “Shaping the Future: How Changing Demographics can power human development,” in Hanoi on April 27.

 The settlement of serious and complicated corruption cases of public concern should focus on quality more than quantity, said Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc has suggested the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China encourage the import of agro-forestry-fishery products from Vietnam, particularly rice, for a more balanced trade between the two countries.

VietNamNet Bridge - Despite being backed by powerful financial resources, many food chains cannot achieve satisfactory business in Vietnam. 

Experts have repeatedly warned about the overabundance of hydropower plants in the central region and Central Highlands which have devastated forests and badly affected people’s lives. However, more hydropower projects are still queuing for licenses.

 Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has underlined the need to identify the responsibilities of agencies concerned with food safety management, especially the role played by their chiefs.

 Party General Secretary and President of Laos Bounnhang Volachith sent a letter to Vietnamese leaders at the end of his Vietnam visit on April 27 to thank them for their warm reception during his visit from April 25-27.

 Vietnam has always created best possible conditions for foreign investors, including those from Japan, to invest in the country.

VietNamNet Bridge - The Ministry of Science and Technology (MST) said it would propose to not continue investments in national key laboratories if the current management policy does not change.

VietNamNet Bridge - It is estimated that Vietnam will need 7,770 more teachers of English by 2020 to implement the national program on teaching English, under which third, fourth and fifth graders would have four English sessions a week.

 The implementation of the second phase in the mammoth Thai Nguyen Iron and Steel expansion project is hanging in the balance after the Ministry of Finance disagreed with most of the incentive proposals necessary to the project’s resumption.

Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan, who took office as the new Chair of the National Assembly, has admitted the failure of the plan on developing Vietnam into an industrialized country which marches towards modernization.

 The Department for Economic Zones Management reported that during Q1, the country opened 305 industrial parks covering over 84,000 hectares and 16 economic zones covering 814,792 hectares of water and land.

 VietNamNet Bridge - Danish music band ‘Cancer’ will have two performances at the Hue Festival 2016, at the Tay Thai Hoa Stage on May 2 and An Dinh Palace on May 3.

  Saigon Classical Music Group will come back with a free-entrance Springtime Melodies concert at 7 p.m. on April 30 at Edenstar Hotel in HCMC’s District 1.

Viet Nam still faces long-term threats including A/H7N9 bird flu and new infectious diseases such as Ebola, Zika, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome and other problems such as high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer and unsafe food.

Bui Duc Thu, a member of the National Assembly’s Committee for Financial and Budgetary Affairs, said that in 2016, Vietnam would try to keep the inflation rate under 5 percent and reach a GDP growth rate of 6.7 percent.

 VietNamNet Bridge - Rocket Internet has sold its business rights of Zalora Vietnam and Zalora Thailand to Thailand’s Central Group for $20 million or $10 million each, Techcrunch has reported.

 Vietnamese players had a good start at the Dong Feng Citroen Badminton Asia Championships which began yesterday in Wuhan, China.