71st berlin international film festival

“Logistic costs accounts for 30 percent of product price, which is an unreasonably high proportion. In Thailand the figure is 12.5 percent, and the average global figure, 14 percent. This hinders Mekong Delta agriculture products from competing with equivalents from Thailand and China,” said Pham Tien Hoai, chairman of Hau Giang Business Association.

Ngo Tuong Vy, deputy director of Chanh Thu Import-Export Limited Company, specializing in agriculture products, said: “Air transport fees for fresh Vietnamese dragon fruit to Japan is $6 per kilogram.”

She said fresh fruit need to be well-preserved after harvest so it could be exported by sea to reduce costs.

Mekong Delta contributes 90 percent of the country’s rice exports, 65 percent of seafood exports, and 70 percent of fruit exports.

It has a total seven ports, of which the largest is Long An International Port in southern Long An Province. The latter can accommodate cargo ships with a capacity of 70,000 tons. The second largest is Cai Cui Port in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho, which can handle 20,000 ton cargo vessels. It also has 57 inland waterway ports.

Experts say the Mekong Delta waterway traffic system is of low quality, limiting the capacity of cargo ships operating in the area.

There are only two ways to reach Hau River ports via either Dinh An and Quan Chan Bo estuaries. However, the Dinh An estuary has not been dredged for years and can only handle cargo ships of 3,000 tons. The Quan Chanh Bo estuary can handle cargo ships from 7,000-10,000 tons, but does not have breakwaters, meaning vessels can only operate at low speed to prevent waves from affecting nearby aquaculture projects. Thus, ships normally take a day to pass through the 26-kilometer Quan Chanh Bo estuary.

Heads of export firms said Mekong Delta lacks deep-water ports for container ships serving export, besides logistic centers, warehouses and irradiation facilities.

Agriculture products from Mekong Delta have to be shipped to Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) and the southeast region of Vietnam to be exported. However, ports in HCMC and the southeast are usually overloaded, upping warehouse costs and export duration.

“The Government needs to upgrade the Quan Chanh Bo estuary to ensure it could handle high capacity cargo ships (up to 20,000 tons),” said Vo Thanh Phong, CEO of logistic firm Hau Giang Maritime Service Limited Liability Company.

He added the Cho Gao channel in Tien Giang Province needs to be dredged and upgraded for barges with capacities of over 3,000 tons to operate, which would reduce transportation duration and costs.

The Ministry of Transport has proposed the government build a deep-water port in the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang that can handle cargo ships with capacities of 100,000 tons to meet regional export and import demand.

COLOURED IMAGERY: Duy’s lightboxes showcase ancient Vietnamese royal costumes, landscapes, and traditional culture. VNA/VNS Photo Hoàng Đạt

By Minh Anh

Ancient Vietnamese royal costumes, landscapes and traditional culture have all provided inspiration for Nguyễn Duy Duy to create enchanting 3D lightboxes.

A native of Thạch Thất District on the outskirts of Hà Nội, Duy came up with the idea of combining LED lighting and the Japanese art of “kirigami”, inspired by shadow puppetry, to create magical lightboxes as his university graduation project in 2018.

With the help of a friend, he experimented making lightboxes for over three years and then established his own brand — Fox Design. He and his friend are now considered the innovators of such creations in Việt Nam.

KEY CREATIONS: Duy’s lightboxes are a source of pride for him because he understands the importance of culture for a country. VNA/VNS Photo Hoàng Đạt

The 25-year-old’s latest completed project, entitled Việt Nam — Đất Nước và Con Người (Việt Nam — Land and People), is a combination of three distinct parts, in which the “People” part aims to honour the beauty of Vietnamese women in traditional or ancient royal dresses.

Meanwhile, the “Land” part features beautiful landscapes in Việt Nam, from the north to the south.

When seeking ideas for the project, Duy happened to hear the song Nhớ Về Hà Nội (Remember Hà Nội) presented by singer Hồng Nhung, which brought back childhood memories of hanging out with his father and rekindled his affection for his hometown.

DETAILED PROCESS: The first step is designing paper layers on a computer, then printing them and placing them in a certain order to complete the image. VNA/VNS Photo Hoàng Đạt

Much of the scenery inside his lightboxes is associated with outstanding Hà Nội landmarks like the Old Quarter, the Instagram-famous “train street”, and St Joseph’s Cathedral.

Stunning national landscapes also make an appearance, such as terraced rice fields, Hội An ancient town, and the former imperial city of Huế.

According to Duy, presenting Vietnamese culture and costumes in his lightboxes is both a joy and a source of pride, because he understands that “culture is an integral part of a nation”.

STUNNING DESIGN: A woman in a royal costume, dating back to the 18th century, is the subject of one of Duy’s lightboxes. VNA/VNS Photo Hoàng Đạt

“The ‘Việt Nam’ part was the hardest for me, as I had to select what I consider to be national symbols,” he recalled. “After talking to my friend, I decided to integrate four cultural and artistic forms into our creations, including tuồng (classical drama), water puppetry, Huế court music, and the Central Highlands gong space.”

Before making any product, Duy must conceptualise, design, set up the background scene, and arrange paper layers on a computer. He then meticulously cuts out designs, which must be printed by hand on art paper in order to ensure precision in the final product.

After the cutting, the paper layers are attached to each other to create a complete image. Each layer must be carefully chosen so that its original quality is maintained, with no shrinking, stretching, or wrinkling due to unfavourable temperature or humidity.

PUT TOGETHER: Each lightbox includes from five to seven or even as many as 15 layers of paper, depending on the desired image and colour. VNA/VNS Photo Hoàng Đạt

Each lightbox includes from five to seven or sometimes up to 15 layers of paper, depending on the complexity of the context and image. Duy and his friend must strike a balance between component parts, so that the light can pierce through the paper layers and create the intended effect.

The set-up for the LED lighting at the back of the box is also carefully calculated. The ratio of light determines the colours in the final product. Thanks to laser printing technology, each member of Duy’s team can make three for four lightboxes a day with an increasing level of precision and sophistication.

Prior to the “Việt Nam — Land and People” project, Duy made lightboxes featuring famous scenes from classic films like The Lion King or celebrations of traditional Vietnamese festivals, from which he gained a lot of experience.

Sometimes he and his friend decide to start over again if they feel the colour is unsuitable or if light can’t make it through the set-up the way they prefer.

But that doesn’t dampen their spirits, and Duy and his friend are fully invested in pursuing their artistic craft.

“We plan to experiment with other subjects, such as childhood memories, depicting memorable moments that most kids in rural areas would have had, or more sophisticated topics like ‘feng shui’ or Buddha,” Duy said. VNS

promote an environment conducive to dialogue and reconciliation while respecting the country’s principles of independence, national sovereignty, territorial integrity and unity.

Myanmar police tighten security in Yangon city (Photo: VNA)

During an Arria-formula online meeting of the UN Security Council member states which was co-chaired by the UK, the US, Estonia, France, Ireland and Norway on April 9, Ambassador Quy urged supporting the role of the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary General on Myanmar and creating favourable conditions for the envoy’s working trip to Myanmar.

He stressed the top priority to ensuring life, security and safety of all, and unobstructed humanitarian aid to those in need of help, especially vulnerable groups in society. He called on parties concerned in Myamar to refrain from violent acts, conduct dialogues and reconciliation according to will and aspirations of the people, for the sake of peace and stability in the region.

Quy affirmed that Myanmar is a member state of the ASEAN family and the bloc is ready to help the country in a constructive and peaceful manner via related mechanisms.

ASEAN member states, including Vietnam, has been working with parties concerned in Myanmar to promote dialogue and seek solutions to the issue, he said. He also called on the international community to support ASEAN’s efforts and stance, and wished that discussions at the UN and relevant important issues need consultations with ASEAN member countries and others in the region.

Rapporteurs at the event expressed concern over current situation in Myanmar and warned about the risks of economic, food and health crises as well as a civil war. Many opinions called for refraining from violence and preventing tension escalation, while asking to settle differences and disputes via dialogue and reconciliation that meet Myanmar people’ aspirations.

Arria-formula meeting is an informal meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss important and emerging issues with the participation of countries in and outside the UNSC as well as related organisations./. VNA