Vietnamese nationality registration rescinded

Amendments to the Law on Vietnamese Nationality approved on June 24 abolished the requirement that expatriates residing abroad register to retain their Vietnamese nationality.

The amendment comes into effect immediately, however, is not retroactive.

All expatriates who have not previously lost their nationality in accordance with prior law are now exempt from the registration requirement and legally are entitled to retain their Vietnamese nationality.

The law also contains provisions for overseas Vietnamese to obtain documents to certify their Vietnamese nationality for passport and other legal purposes.

These new changes demonstrate the Party and State’s policy that considers OVs as an indispensable part of the nation and creates the best possible conditions for OVs to keep close attachment with the homeland.

Vietnam to have Bus Rapid Transit routes in 2015

Vietnam will build Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) routes in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Danang from 2015 to 2018 to improve the capacity of public transport in big cities.

The Hanoi-based pilot project will have a total length of 14.7km, stretching from Yen Nghia bus station to Kim Ma bus station.

It has an investment capitalization of US$55 million sourced from World Bank loans, and is due to be completed in the second quarter of 2015.

Four similar routes will be built in Danang city at a total cost of US$50.2 million from the World Bank. They will be put into operation in late 2017.

Meanwhile, the first BRT lines in HCM City are expected to be ready for use in 2018 with a total investment of nearly US$156 million. They include BRT line 1 and another line on the Vo Van Kiet-Mai Chi Tho Expressway.

The BRT system has specialized designs, services and infrastructure to improve system quality, and help cut down energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

24-storey apartment building catches fire

Hundreds of residents at Copac Square Apartment in HCM City's District 4 fled to the street when a fire broke out in a 24-storey apartment building yesterday.

No injuries or deaths were reported.

At 10 am, the fire began to spread from the 22nd storey of the building on Ton Dan Street. Residents escaped by the stairwell.

Although the fire was extinguished at 10:30 am, many people were afraid to return home, and offices in the building were temporarily closed.

Police are investigating the cause of fire.

MERS-Cov likely to enter Vietnam

The deadly Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) may be on its way to Vietnam, spreading via tourists and immigrants from the Middle East, according to health officials.

Head of the Preventive Health Department under the Ministry of Health (MoH) Tran Dac Phu issued the warning at an online meeting on prevention work in Hanoi on June 23.

Phu said although no MERS-CoV cases have been detected in Vietnam yet, prevention work should be strengthened at international border gates.

The MoH announced on June 20 that all passengers flying from the Middle East will be required to fill in the medical declaration form as of July 1.

MoH Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien asked three international airports – Hanoi, Danang and Tan Son Nhat – to implement medical declaration procedures for all passengers coming from 9 Middle East countries.

At the online meeting, Phu also announced Vietnam has not recorded any cases of avian flu types A/H7N9, but two people have died of the deadly avian flu strain A/H5N1 in Binh Phuoc and Dong Thap province since the beginning of the year after coming into contact with infected poultry.

He said the number of cases infected with other contagious diseases declined compared to last year’s figure, and no big outbreaks have been recorded so far this year.

MoH statistics show since early this year, around 31,139 cases of hand-foot-mouth disease (HFM) have been detected in 63 provinces and cities (down 7.6%), including two deaths in Long An and Ba Ria-Vung Tau provinces.

Vietnam has also confirmed 11,148 cases of dengue fever in 42 provinces and cities (down 45.2%), including 7 fatalities in Ho Chi Minh City (3), Binh Duong (1), Ca Mau (1), Binh Phuoc (1) and Phu Yen (1).

There have also been 319 cases of viral encephalitis, including four fatalities.

Phu said the healthcare sector will coordinate with relevant agencies to complete guidelines on dengue fever and Streptococcus suis prevention and carry out Rubella vaccination campaign for children aged 1-14.

It will also apply innovative software to monitor contagious diseases in 63 provinces and cities.

The sector will focus on disseminating information to raise public awareness of prevention measures against the diseases via mass of media or workshops.

Rural workers get easier access to vocational training

More than 5,000 rural workers have been provided employment and vocational training under a government project targeting poor and ethnic minority households in the 2009-2020 period.

The announcement was made on June 23 at a conference jointly held in Hanoi by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids, and Social Affairs (MoLISA) and the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union.

Under the project, known as Project 1956, thousands of rural workers in poor districts have been employed in overseas markets, MoLISA Deputy Minister Nguyen Trong Dam said.

Dam emphasised the need to increase capacity for employment service centres by running training courses for their staff and officers.

Dam called for joint efforts by both MoLISA and the Youth Union to compile specific contents for training courses, with a focus on soft skills and skills for career options.

Many participants at the conference suggested offering more incentive policies for young people and students to help them borrow preferential credit loans and seize career opportunities.

They also proposed making zoning plans to build a network of employment service centres for youth.

Proliferation of restaurants around West Lake causes pollution

Parts of West Lake in Hanoi City have seriously deteriorated due to the waste of an increasing number of restaurants and shops.

Currently, dozens of floating restaurants are on West Lake, mostly around Thuy Khue Street and along Thanh Nien Street.

The management of these businesses, however, has been lax, and the floating restaurants and yachts often discharge waste and fuel directly into the lake. There are a number of floating restaurants that have no waste water treatment systems. While the pollution accrues around the area of these restaurants, it also shows up on shore and effects the entire lake.

The Hanoi Department of Transport has repeatedly requested that the floating restaurants causing the most environmental harm to cease operations, however the situation remains the same.

Kids to get free heart surgeries

Poor children suffering from congenital heart disease will receive free examinations and operations from cardiologists and surgeons from HCM City, Ha Noi and Da Nang under the FedEx Delivers Heartbeats programme.

The programme, which kicked off in Tay Ninh Province in mid-June, will extend its reach to 10 provinces in the southern region and the Central Highlands.

Under the programme, mobile medical outreach clinics will provide free cardiac care to 100-500 children in each remote rural area.

Q-health reaches out to central Vietnam

Doctors and health care management experts from Chung Ang University demonstrated techniques for goiter and knee surgeries at the Quang Nam Central General Hospital through health care programme, Q-Health.

The programme, starting next month, will provide health care for 2,500 people in Quang Ngai province and take three children suffering from congenital heart disease to Korea for surgery.

Launched in 2012, the five-year programme has received support from the Doosan Group, Doosan Vina, Chung Ang University, the Medical Centre of Seoul, and the Korea International Co-operation Agency.

Vietnam third in urban green contest

A Vietnam Energy Bank team comprising Dang Huynh, Mai Anh and Nguyen Thi Thuy Duong from Ho Chi Minh City-based Foreign Trade University, has won third prize in the Go Green in the City contest in Paris.

The event was hosted by Schneider Electric, a group working in energy management.

The 12 finalist teams were from Egypt, Brazil, China, Vietnam, India, New Zealand, the US, Russia, Turkey, Japan, Canada and France. They presented their ideas for efficient energy management in smart cities.

EMG replaces Cambridge for language study in HCM City

Ho Chi Minh City educational authorities have decided to choose EMG as their new partner for international education programmes after ending cooperation with Cambridge.

Recently, the municipal Department of Education and Training announced that they would stop enrollment under the Cambridge programmes for primary and secondary schools beginning this school year. They will instead develop a new international education programme between the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training and the British Department of Education.

This news came as a bit of a shock for parents, as the original deal was ended because EMG, a Cambridge's partner in the programmes, failed to meet education quality requirements. However, now EMG has become the department's new partner.

Le Hong Son, Director of the municipal Department of Education and Training, said that due attention should be paid on improving the quality of education, and not so much on the partner.

“EGM is a prestigious international education group. We always take into account quality when choosing partners,” Son commented.

Nguyen Phuong Lan, EMG’s Vice Chairwoman, said, “During the time of with Cambridge International Examinations (CIE), we were authorised to provide accreditations, as well as distribute and implement the Cambridge programmes in Hanoi, HCM City and many other localities across Vietnam. However, this was a short-term contract and it would not be fair to say that CIE ended cooperation because of education quality issues.”

According to Lan, CIE’s criteria were too strict in formula and did not suit Vietnamese students.

She added that EMG also intended to stop cooperation CIE in order to focus finding new partners for cooperation.

Cambridge international education programmes have been conducted in HCM City since 2010. To date, over 20 primary and secondary schools citywide teach their curriculum. The number of students has been sharply increasing despite worries about quality.

Poor households to have flood-resilient housing

The Ministry of Construction has submitted to the Government a proposal of building storm and flood-resilient houses for 86,260 poor households in northern and central coastal regions with State financial aid.

The three-year proposal is scheduled to start this year, benefiting the first 20 percent of the households.

According to the ministry, the plan will cost over 2,315 billion VND (110.2 million USD), including 621.6 billion VND coming from the State budget, close to 900 billion VND from the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies (VBSP) and the remaining to be contributed by the community.

According to reports from localities, 37,447 households in 20 provinces and cities from Quang Ninh to Ba Ria-Vung Tau are unable to afford houses or living in dilapidated houses, while 48,813 others have their home vulnerable to storms.

The ministry has proposed the State support one third of an average cost of a house, equivalent to 16 million VND for each household or 19 million VND for those living in remote, inaccessible areas.

They can also borrow up to 16 million VND from the VBSP with a preferential interest of 3 percent per year in a 10-year period and a five-year extension.

Meanwhile, those who are living in old houses vulnerable to storms can borrow 8 million VND from the bank to repair and reinforce their houses with the same interest rate, according to the proposal.

According to the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, about 10-12 storms and tropical depressions may appear in the East Sea this year, 4-5 of which will directly affect mainland Vietnam .

The northern and central coastal regions are frequently visited by storms and floods.

Former ACB officials appeal against court verdict

The Hanoi People’s Court on June 23 said it has received an appeal lodged by Nguyen Duc Kien, former vice chairman of the founding council of the Asia Commercial Bank (ACB), against the first instance verdict issued for him two weeks earlier.

Kien, who was born in 1964 and resides in Quang An ward, Tay Ho district, Hanoi , appealed against all the verdict and the punishment handed down on him.

On June 9, the court sentenced Kien to 30 years’ imprisonment for four offences – swindling for the appropriation of assets, intentional violations of the State’s economic management regulations causing serious consequences, tax evasion and illegal trading.

Three others: ACB former General Director Ly Xuan Hai, former ACB Vice Chairman Trinh Kim Quang and the bank’s former board member Huynh Quang Tuan, have filed appeals against their previous sentences in Kien’s case.

Hai was sentenced to eight years in prison, while Quang and Tuan received four years and two years behind bars, respectively, for the charge of intentionally violating the State’s economic management regulations causing serious consequences.

According to the law, June 24 is the deadline for appeals from four others in Kien’s case, namely former ACB Vice Chairpersons Le Vu Ky and Pham Trung Cang, and Tran Ngoc Thanh and Nguyen Thi Hai Yen, former Director and Chief Accountant of Hanoi ACB Investment JSC.-

Overall planning for Mekong Delta adjusted

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has approved adjustments to an overall development planning for the Mekong Delta through 2030, with a vision towards 2050.

The changes of the 2009 plan will be made across the whole region, which is constituted by Can Tho city and other 12 provinces, and covers a combined area of nearly 40,605 square kilometres. The region had a population around 17.3 million in 2013.

The adjusted planning is required to include analysis and assessment of the region’s natural conditions and resources, ecological areas, national parks and environmental preservation zones.

Impacts caused by climate change, rising sea level and floods, along with socio-economic development situation and infrastructure systems must be considered.

Forecasts for regional development, physical structure and growth models and new national and global developmental circumstances must be identified.

Meanwhile, environmental changes resulting from socio-economic development and climate change, and potential and momentums for regional development are to be counted.

Regional growth model should ensure the area is adapted to climate change and Mekong river floods.

Earlier, the Ministry of Planning and Investment announced a master plan for the Mekong Delta Economic Zone.

The zone, consisting of Can Tho and the three provinces of Ca Mau, An Giang and Kien Giang, will be developed into a large-scale tourism and service centre in Vietnam, focusing on expanding Nam Can national tourism area.

The Mekong delta is known as Vietnam’s largest granary and seafood depot with its rice and seafood outputs accounting for 53 percent and 60 percent of the country’s totals respectively.

National swimming tourney raises East Sea funds

The 41st national long-distance swimming tournament last weekend raised over 23 million VND (1,100 USD) in support of coast guards and fishermen working on and off the coasts of the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagoes.

The tournament, held in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue, attracted over 100 swimmers from 13 cities and provinces.

They competed for medals in four distances, ranging from 1km to 6km.

The Da Nang team was ranked first, followed by those from the Ministry of Defence and Thua Thien – Hue province.-

Rural workers get easier access to vocational training

More than 5,000 rural workers have been provided employment and vocational training under a government project targeting poor and ethnic minority households in the 2009-2020 period.

The announcement was made on June 23 at a conference jointly held in Hanoi by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids, and Social Affairs (MoLISA) and the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union.

Under the project, known as Project 1956, thousands of rural workers in poor districts have been employed in overseas markets, MoLISA Deputy Minister Nguyen Trong Dam said.

Dam emphasised the need to increase capacity for employment service centres by running training courses for their staff and officers.

Dam called for joint efforts by both MoLISA and the Youth Union to compile specific contents for training courses, with a focus on soft skills and skills for career options.

Many participants at the conference suggested offering more incentive policies for young people and students to help them borrow preferential credit loans and seize career opportunities.

They also proposed making zoning plans to build a network of employment service centres for youth.

Degrees of foreign education institutes must be certified by education authorities

The Ministry of Education and Training has issued a document on recognition of foreign education institutes’ qualifications in the country.

As per the Ministry’s document, foreign education institutes’ qualifications is recognized in Vietnam only if foreign education institutes are operational legally and its quality is tested by Vietnamese education organization or a foreign country.

Vietnam will also recognize diplomas issued by internationally accredited education institutes in the system Vietnam is one of members.

Certificates of degree of foreign education institutes that are certified by education authorities of its own country will be accepted to use in Vietnam.

HCMC remits tuition fee to poor students

The city's Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs has just sent its document to related agencies directing tuition fee exemption to students from families in poverty line and close to poverty line in the academic year 2014-2015.

Students enrolling in evening classes at a local continuing education center and a state-run school will be eligible for tuition fee exemptions.

Third child of poor families or children of families whose economic condition is close to poverty line will be exempted half of tuition fees.

In addition to being exempted half of tuition fee, third child of families in poverty line will receive financial support for studying expense of VND70,000 (US$ 3.28) per student per month.

This amount will be granted twice in nine months of an academic year.

More social housing in Hanoi

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung signed a directive to increase the number of social housing projects in Hanoi, while ending construction of commercial housing projects in the city centre.

Under his Decision signed last week as part of a programme on housing development in Hanoi for 2012-2020 and towards 2030, priorities will be given to construction of urban areas and residential areas in the city's suburban areas. Old and downgraded residential buildings and houses will be renovated and rebuilt to ensure residents' safety and protect the city's appearance.

Accordingly, the city will invest and build about 1.8 million sq.m of floor space by 2015, which is equivalent to 20,000 apartments, to meet the housing demand of retired civil servants, contributors to the country's revolutions and development, as well as low-income residents. Another 2 million sq.m of floor space will be built for workers and students to rent.

The number of apartments for these groups is expected to rise to 32,000 by 2020.

However, the Prime Minister's decision also puts a temporary end to new commercial housing projects in the city's four downtown districts of Dong Da, Hoan Kiem, Ba Dinh, Hai Ba Trung and part of the southern Tay Ho District.

It further sets a target that, by 2015, the average housing area in the city will be 23.1 sq.m per person, with a minimum area for one of 6.5 sq.m.

The investment for the construction of social housing projects in this period will come from city and State budgets at an estimated cost of more than VND6.7 trillion (US$321 million).

It also requires an increase in the coverage of concrete houses to 89.7%, along with a decrease of cranky houses to just 0.05%.

The targets for 2020 will be an average housing area for one to be increased to 26.3 sq.m. Concrete houses must make up 91.2% of the total and there will be no cranky houses in the city by 2020.

The investment for housing projects during this period is expected to reach VND6.9 trillion (US$331 million) and will come from the city's budget.

By 2030, the number of concrete houses in the city is set to reach 93.2%. The investment, coming from the city's budget, is estimated at VND9.5 trillion (US$452 million).

The Prime Minister asked Hanoi authorities to review and check on the progress of all housing projects in the city. Those projects which have taken longer than expected for construction, will have their licenses revoked, said officials.

 Vietnam, Mozambique renew education cooperation

Vietnam and Mozambique signed a new protocol in Hanoi on June 23 to expand education cooperation in scholarship and expertise exchanges.

The document, to replace a similar protocol signed in 2008, was penned after talks between Vietnamese Minister of Education and Training Pham Vu Luan and visiting Mozambique Minister of Education Angusto Jone Luis.

Under the 2008 protocol, Vietnam received five Mozambique students annually to study in its schools, and currently 16 Mozambique students are studying at the Vietnam Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

Every year Vietnam also sent five students to study Portuguese for 9 month courses in Mozambique. So far 25 Vietnamese students have been sent to the African nation for the language courses.

Since 2008 Vietnam has sent 8 education experts to Mozambique and received a Mozambique expert to teach Portuguese in the country.

With the new protocol, both sides will double the number of scholarships for their students to 10 each as of 2014.

During his stay from June 21-26, Minister Angusto Jone Luis visited several education institutions in Hanoi, including the Vietnam Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Electric Power University, Hanoi College of Textile Industry and Fashion, and Hanoi Medical University.

Construction starts on Vietnam-Korea vocational school

A groundbreaking ceremony for the Vietnam-Korea Vocational Training College was held at Hoanh Bo district in Quang Ninh province on June 23.

The facility will sit on 22,400 square metres with a total investment of over VND326 billion, sourced from the Republic of Korea’s official development assistance (ODA) and the provincial budget.

The project, to be completed in June 2015, will be divided into two phases, with phase 1 costing more than VND166 billion.

Once completed, the college will train about 700-1,600 students per annum in 12 skills including mechanics, electricity, food preservation, production of construction materials, and tourism.

This is one of five vocational colleges to be constructed under a cooperation project between the governments of the two countries.

Four other similar colleges are located in Hanoi, and Quang Ngai, Binh Duong, and Ca Mau provinces.

Residents struggle with sewage water

People in an old apartment block in Hanoi are complaining that their homes were flooded with sewage water because the nearby construction ruined the sewage system.

People living on the ground floor at the B5 apartment block on Giang Vo Street have to struggle with sewage water inside their home. Nguyen Thi Chung, a resident, said she and her son had to sleep in the stench of sewage for weeks. Each day, they used a pump to remove what they could, but their home would be flooded with filthy water the next day.

"I'm 70 years old. I'm getting weak and have arthritis so it's hard for me to move around. I already reported the problem to authorities of Giang Vo Ward, but nothing has been done so far," she said.

Chu Hoang Huy also uses pump to suck out water to no avail. Unable to deal with the stench, he has been forced to sleep at relative's homes. People from the second to the fourth floor complain about the constant bad smell of the drainage system.

According to residents, it all started on June 7, when the Delta Civil and Industrial Construction Corporation began construction on the Sao Phuong Dong Hotel Complex, just behind the apartment block. Neither the investors and construction company have dealt with the problem. A project manager said, "I heard about this. But it's still unclear whether the problem is caused by our construction or something else. We only work within the project boundary."

After receiving reports from residents, authorities of Giang Vo Ward sent vacuum trucks to clear the area on June 19. However, the sewer water quickly returned. Residents said that they were sure the sewage system had been damaged by hotel construction.

Australia funds Ben Tre water supply project

Australia’s East Meets West Foundation has provided Ben Tre province with nearly AUD700,000 to implement a water supply and sanitation project from 2013 to 2016.

The sum will be used to build nine clean water supply systems to benefit 4,600 households in 20 communes in the province.

So far, three such plants have been completed, supplying clean water to 46 households in the locality. Another six plants are in the preliminary phases of construction.

Part of the sum will be used to build latrines with septic tanks in 15 communes.

However, the continuous wet weather has hampered the progress of the work since June, but is expected to get back on track as the weather is improving.

Tran Anh Tuan, vice chairman of Ben Tre provincial People’s Committee, pledged to speed up the project to ensure it will be completed on schedule.

An estimated 1,000 Overseas Vietnamese (OVs) joined hands with German friends on June 22 in a peaceful march in Frankfurt, vociferously decrying China’s escalating violations in the East Sea.

Marchers came from cities throughout Germany including Frankfurt, Offenbach, Mainz, Wiesbaden, Erfurt, Nuernberg, Muenchen, Hamburg and Bremen to join in the rally, demonstrating support for Vietnam’s persistent stance of resolving the dispute through peaceful measures.

The march provided an opportune occasion for OVs in Germany to raise their voices in denunciation of China’s unilateral acts in the East Sea and show their patriotic love of their homeland.

They called on peace lovers from around the globe to stand shoulder to shoulder in opposition to Chinese aggression, including the inhumane acts towards Vietnamese fishermen.

A German friend Rocco Fritzchka said his conscience beckoned him to support Vietnam’s struggle against China’s illegal acts in the East Sea.

The organising board distributed thousands of posters and placards condemning China’s violations and sent an open note of protest to the Chinese Government through the consulate general in Frankfurt.

This is the second demonstration staged by OVs and international friends in Frankfurt in opposition to China since it deployed the Haiyang Shiyou-981 rig deep inside Vietnam’s Exclusive Economic Zone early May.

Reservoir control to benefit millions

More than 1.7 million people and thousands of hectares of rice in the central province of Quang Nam and Da Nang City will soon be protected from heavy flood damage and drought.

This follows a Government decision to more efficiently operate existing reservoirs in the Vu Gia-Thu Bon River basin.

The decision was announced by the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment in Da Nang yesterday.

Under the decision, operations of the A Vuong, Dak Mi 4 and Song Tranh 2 reservoirs wil be strictly controlled during the flood season between September and December.

This would require co-operation between the ministries of Natural Resources and Environment, Agriculture and Rural Development, and Industry and Trade.

Search and rescue committees in Da Nang and Quang Nam Provinces will also be involved.

The decision also calls for strong safety measures to be taken by the three hydropower plants in the Vu Gia-Thu Bon river system to minimise losses caused by the discharge of water from their reservoirs

Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, Nguyen Thai Lai, said it was a timely decision on balancing electricity production and ensuring the safety of lowland populations and crops.

Deputy director of the Da Nang department of agriculture and rural development, Huynh Van Thang, said the decision would helpboth localitiesin dealing with salinity during drought and prevent heavy damage in flood season.

However, Ngo Viet Hai, general director of Power Plant Corporation No 2 said investors who build and operate hydro-electricity plants could make losses if the water in reservoirs was kept or released based on schedules made by ministries and provinces instead of by plant operators.

"We would lose VND645 billion (US$30.7 million) if we reduced the capacity of three hydropower plants – Song Tranh 2, Dak Mi 4 and A Vuong in flood season," Hai said.

He requested ministries and authorities in Quang Nam and Da Nang to carefully supervise the operation of hydropower plants in the Vu Gia-Thu Bon river system.

During the rainy season, which occurs from September, the reservoirs release water for the dam's safety, but this can cause unexpected floods in downstream areas.

Last year, the central region experienced losses of VND28 trillion (US$1.3 billion) due to flood and storms.

VNN/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/ND