And

At the regular government meeting on August 3 Today, while concluding the discussion on socio-economic issues at the regular government meeting in July, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh  praised the efforts and results of all ministries, sectors and localities over the past time. For example, the Ministry of Transport has well carried out public investment disbursement, drastically implemented non-stop toll collection and promoted railway development. The Prime Minister sent his deep condolences to relatives and families of three firefighting police officers who passed away while attempting to put out a conflagration at a six-story karaoke parlor in Cau Giay District in Hanoi and reminded localities to pay more attention to social order, security, safety and people's safety, including fire prevention and fighting. Recently, at the proposal of the Government's Party Personnel Committee, the Politburo issued a resolution to add 65,980 additional teacher payrolls in the period from … [Read more...] about PM asks ministry to solve new passport model-related problems

Illustrative photo. In a pattern that seems to have prevailed for years, a transport project is usually put into operation soon after its inauguration, but then within a short time there is a need for its expansion or upgrade. What is more surprising is that even projects that are still under construction are being reconsidered for expansion or an upgrade. Such as in the case of the Hanoi Highway which has been expanded four times and still not complete. It may be that this Highway may even be further expanded. The Ho Chi Minh City to Long Thanh to Dau Giay Expressway was started in 2009 with an original design plan of four lanes, then soon after increased to six lanes and now being considered for eight lanes. For all we know it may also be extended to twelve lanes soon. The 17 km long metro line 1 has not yet been put into a trial operation but is being considered for an extension to include the route to Binh Duong and Dong Nai provinces. More recently, the 51 km long Trung Luong … [Read more...] about Constant re-planning of transport projects in Vietnam

The long queue of vehicles on Noi Bai- Lao Cai expressway Of which, the Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh – Dau Giay expressway confirmed over 37,500 errors; Da Nang – Quang Ngai recorded nearly 1,800 errors; Noi Bai – Lao Cai had over 6,200 errors, Cau Gie – Ninh Binh confirmed over 33,600 ones. The rate of transactions having errors accounted for around 20 percent of the total ones. Statistics of the Directorate for Roads of Vietnam also showed that the most popular error was insufficient balance on accounts with a proportion of over 80 percent, followed by invalid accounts, inactivated cards, and so on. Although the errors are in the drill and plan, the units still got troubled and could not deal with actual situations causing traffic congestion. In order to ensure the smooth operation of the ETC system and create favorable conditions for vehicles traveling through toll gates, the Directorate for Roads of Vietnam required the service providers to strengthen experienced staff at … [Read more...] about ETC system: insufficient balance accounts occupy 80 percent of transaction error

The new form of the Vietnamese passport. (Photo: SGGP) At present, competent agencies in Spain is working with other member nations in the Schengen Area to analyze this issue at a technical level. Current regulations do not allow the issuance of a Schengen visa to Vietnam citizens possessing a passport in the new form as it lacks this critical birthplace information. Therefore, until a decision can be reached by the competent central agencies in the Schengen Area as to the approval of the new form of dark blue Vietnamese passports, the Spanish Embassy in Hanoi will not process any Schengen visa applications of owners of a Vietnamese passport under the new form until further notice. Schengen visa applications that are submitted with the previous passport form (with green cover) that has clear information on birthplace and is still valid are still processed as usual. Those who plan to enter member nations of the Schengen Area should contact the corresponding embassies for … [Read more...] about Spain refusing to issue visa to new passport form of Vietnam

The new form of Vietnamese passport issued on July 1 The Czech Republic is the third country that does not recognize Vietnam's new passports after Germany and Spain. A representative of the Vietnam Immigration Department said that the department will cooperate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to solve problems related to foreign countries that do not accept Vietnam’s new passport and soon launch official information in the coming time. Previously, the Spanish Embassy in Vietnam on August 1 announced that it would refuse visa issuance to Vietnamese people owning a passport in the new form (dark blue color) from July 1 due to a lack of information about their birthplace. On July 27, the German Embassy also released a similar notice on the refusal of processing visa applications for Vietnamese citizens owning new passport form . The embassy of the Czech Republic in Hanoi announces its decision on stopping recognizing the Vietnamese new passport on its website. … [Read more...] about Czech Republic suspends acceptance of Vietnam’s new passport

The travel demand of Vietnamese increased sharply after the tourism sector had been reopened. Besides, people also searched for overseas destinations in July with an increase of 780 percent over the same period last year. The countries in Southeast Asia were on the top priorities of Vietnamese tourists, comprising Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines showing that the nearby tourism points were on the top list of Vietnamese in the post-Covid-19 pandemic. From the beginning of the year, Vietnam is always in the group of destinations with the highest growth in the world with a growth rate from 50 to 75 percent. The United States, Australia, Singapore, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and so on are among the top ten countries searching Vietnam for traveling. By Mai An- Translated by Huyen Huong … [Read more...] about HCMC becomes top destination for domestic tourists