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By Thuy Quyen – Translated by Tan Nghia

Nearly 10 years ago, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Ky, the incumbent Party Secretary of Quang Ninh, was the Chief of the Quang Ninh Provincial Party Committee’s Office, who directly assisted the then Party Secretary of Quang Ninh, Mr. Pham Minh Chinh.

When Mr. Chinh, who is now the Prime Minister, raised the policy to transform the growth model from “brown to green”, Mr. Ky was also the one who delivered the first invitations to experts and officials to come to Quang Ninh to help the province find a new development path for the area, which was called the kingdom of “black gold” (coal) in Vietnam.

Secretary of the Quang Ninh Provincial Party Committee Nguyen Xuan Ky: The Covid-19 pandemic has urged us to think of something else to keep Quang Ninh more stable before hardships. Photo: Pham Cong

“When we gave letters of invitations to the local former Party leaders, who grew up from the coal industry, they asked us ‘are you okay, why do you have to do this?’. For many generations, Quang Ninh developed based on coal mining and it is still the key industry,” Ky recalled.

In response to the concerns, Quang Ninh’s Party Chief at that time replied: “Yes, you are right. But if it is just that, Quang Ninh cannot develop.”

That is the story that paved the way for the development of tourism and services of Quang Ninh, which was set in the 2000s and has been implemented strongly since 2010.

In August 2011, Mr. Pham Minh Chinh was appointed as Secretary of Quang Ninh Provincial Party Committee. On May 24, 2013, he signed a resolution of the Provincial Party Committee on tourism development in the period 2013-2020, with a vision to 2030. This resolution emphasized renovating the growth model, restructuring the local economy, and changing the province’s mode of development from “brown to green” (from coal mining to tourism development).

However, changing from “brown” to “green” did not mean stopping coal mining to make Quang Ninh “cleaner”. Instead, the coal industry would be oriented to be cleaner, greener, and cause less conflict with other economic sectors.

It was not a task that was accomplished overnight. For example, Quang Ninh’s Cam Pha city covers a total area of 300,000 hectares, but one third of the land area in the city belongs to the coal mining industry. According to Ky, Cam Pha could not develop that way. “Coal mining area must be reduced. Coal mining on the ground must be minimized,” Ky said.

In Quang Ninh, coal was no longer transported by car or ferry. The provincial government developed a roadmap to gradually reduce open-pit coal mining and increase pit mining. In places where open-cast exploitation was still used, measures to prevent dust pollution and restore the environment had to be applied.

A senior official who visited Quang Ninh 10 years ago still remembers three things: In the rainy season in February, he went to Cua Ong – the land of coal mining – and had to wear plastic boots; otherwise his feet would have been wet; he could not see the green color of leaves as everything was covered by the coal dust; and he could not see anyone in a white shirt on the street.

Quang Ninh has been transformed into an ideal destination. Photo: Pham Cong

Ten year later, he returned to Quang Ninh, and realized that everything had changed. Most of Quang Ninh’s roads were cleaner, the trees green, and people were no longer afraid of wearing white shirts. However, for the transition from “brown to green” to be really thorough, more time is needed.

“Awakened” one more time

Over the past 10 years, Quang Ninh has persisted in strongly innovating the growth model, restructuring the economy, changing the development mode from “brown” to “green” based on the three pillars: nature, people, and culture. However, when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out, Quang Ninh was startled, and had to engage in self-examination.

Quang Ninh suddenly realized that over the past 5 years it was too passionate about developing tourism. At the same time, its neighbor – Hai Phong – had developed robustly, attracting tens of billions of US dollars in foreign investment, compared to only a few hundred million dollars in Quang Ninh.

Quang Ninh officials began to reconsider the strategic directions on developing the manufacturing and processing industry planned by Mr. Pham Minh Chinh when he was still the province’s Party Secretary. He had emphasized that in 2012 and the following years the province would call for investment in the development of a number of industries and industrial products in the fields of information technology, electronics, mechanical engineering, and biology…

It was also the period when Quang Ninh welcomed many big FDI projects, with the $300 million Texhong yarn factory project as an example. This project was granted an investment certificate only 24 hours after the investor had completed the relevant procedures.

“Mr. Pham Minh Chinh clearly pointed out the issues related to the development of processing and manufacturing industry in Quang Ninh,” Ky said. “In the past 5 years, Quang Ninh has not added any significant growth engine from the manufacturing and processing industry.”

That is understandable. When the transport infrastructure was developed fully, Quang Ninh’s tourism industry boomed. Along with this, local officials could be assured that the provincial economy could be firmly based on the tourism and service sector.

Ha Long – Van Don expressway seen from above. Photo: Pham Cong

“The Covid-19 pandemic screwed our neck down and Quang Ninh fell,” Ky said. “It forced us to think of something else to make Quang Ninh more stable in front of hardship.”

The “something else” for Quang Ninh is the manufacturing and processing industry, which is considered the “heart” of industry. “If there was $10-20 billion of foreign investment capital in the manufacturing and processing industry, when the Covid-19 pandemic occurred, these factories were still there, the growth would have been maintained, even though FDI does not add much added value in Vietnam,” Ky said.

Therefore, Quang Ninh had to determine to “walk with both feet”: developing services besides agriculture and fisheries, especially on the processing and manufacturing industries.

It is not a coincidence the first resolution issued in November 2020 by the Provincial Party Committee of the new term was Resolution 01/NQ-TU on the rapid and sustainable development of the manufacturing industry in the period 2020-2025, with a vision to 2030.

But learning from the lessons of coal mining, Ky said that Quang Ninh does not want to attract projects that pollute the environment, or affect security and order, but those that use land efficiently, use high technology, and create great added value and high budget revenue. If Quang Ninh lured foreign investment at all costs, it would have to pay a high price.

Luong Bang

Hundreds of thousands of Hindu devotees flocked on Monday to take a holy bath in India’s Ganges river, even as the nation racked up the world’s highest tally of new daily coronavirus infections.

With 168,912 new cases, India accounts for one in six of all new infections globally, although the figure is still well below the U.S. peak of nearly 300,000 new cases on Jan. 8.

In the northern city of Haridwar, nearly a million devotees thronged the banks of the Ganges, a river many Hindus consider holy, to participate in the months-long ‘Kumbh Mela’ or pitcher festival.

“The crowd here is surging…the police are continuously appealing to people to maintain social distancing,” police official Sanjay Gunjyal told Reuters at the site.

By mid-morning a million people had taken a dip in the river, believed to wash away one’s sins.

As India’s second wave of infections builds, with fewer than 4% estimated to have been vaccinated among a population of 1.4 billion, experts say the situation could have a long way to go before it starts getting better.

“After cases declined in January-February, we were very comfortable,” said a panel of high court judges in the western state of Gujarat, calling on authorities to take urgent steps to rein in the outbreak.

“Almost everyone forgot that there was ever corona,” added the panel, headed by Chief Justice Vikram Nath.

A full opening of the economy from last year’s crippling lockdown, coupled with the mass religious festivals and political rallies in states heading to elections have fuelled the crisis.

Monday’s new infections carried India past Brazil for a tally of 13.53 million, data compiled by Reuters shows, ranking it the second-most infected country after the United States, with 31.2 million.

Tally feared to double in two months

India’s tally is on course to double in two months, according to estimates based on data from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering.

Yet authorities appeared unwilling or unable to stop events that could lead to a calamitous spread of the disease.

People are seen at a fish market, amidst the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Mumbai, India, April 12, 2021. Photo: Reuters

Thousands of people are attending political rallies in four big states set for elections this month, including two events on Monday in the eastern state of West Bengal, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is due to speak.

“With 1.2 million active cases, and the daily number reaching 200,000, it’s bizarre to have poll rallies and a full Kumbh Mela,” political commentator Shekhar Gupta said on Twitter.

Officials and experts said authorities had underestimated the resilience of the virus, believing they had beaten it after daily cases fell below 10,000 in early February.

Officials in the worst-hit state of Maharashtra, home to the financial capital of Mumbai, said they were considering a broader lockdown this week after large closures at the weekend.

“It is necessary to break the cycle (of infections),” said a senior state official who sought anonymity. “We are working on identifying industries and services that need to be exempted.”

The rupee fell to its lowest in nearly eight months and Mumbai’s benchmark index tanked as much as 3.7% in the worst session in more than six weeks.

India’s economy has been limping back to recovery after last year’s hard lockdown caused the deepest contraction in decades.

A student seeks a doctors’ consultation at the National Children’s Hospital after exposure to harmful content on the internet. Photo baotintuc.vn

HÀ NỘI – Doctors and parents are concerned about the impact videos with harmful content are having on children.

H, a Hanoian, recently noticed a change in the mental health of her 15-year-old daughter. She became quiet and preferred using her phone to communicating with anyone. Her studies were also negatively impacted.

H brought her 15-year-old daughter to the National Children’s Hospital for an examination, where doctors said her child was depressed as a result of playing games and watching YouTube channels with negative content.

H’s daughter is just one of many children who have been affected by online content, with some children risking their lives after watching harmful videos.

Last October, a nine-year-old boy in Phú Thọ Province swallowed a nail clipper after watching a video on YouTube. Luckily, he received medical help in good time and escaped any long-term harm.

According to Trần Thành Nam, a psychological expert from Hà Nội National University, children do not know always know right from wrong and can be easily swayed by others.

“Many things are repeated over and over, making them think they are correct and should be imitated. It is easy for them to become addicted and make them move away from real life,” he told Tin Tức (News) newspaper.

Adults can have similar problems distinguishing right from wrong when flooded with information which spreads doubt and a lack of trust, Nam said.

Ngô Anh Vinh, Deputy Head of Adolescent Health Department at the same hospital, said his department has treated a number of children for excessive use of social media, such as watching videos that are not age-appropriate and spending too long online.

“When admitted to the hospital, some children showed signs of agitation, anxiety disorders, depression. Due to late detection and the family being unable to control the child’s internet use in the first place, there are many difficulties in the treatment,” he said.

There are a lot of harmful videos online featuring violence or sex that can affect the development of a child and can lead to psychological disorders, he said.

If a child is exposed to such content for a long time, it can affect their social interactions, Vinh added.

It also has an impact on learning because once children are addicted to watching harmful videos, they will feel bored at school, he said.

Mental illnesses such as depression, agitation and behavioural disturbances might occur, he said, adding that the consequences would be very regrettable without timely intervention.

According to experts, the producers of the videos are only focused on increasing views and think little of the consequences of the methods they use to attract viewers.

To be eligible to apply to the YouTube Partner Programme and monetise videos, a channel must have 1,000 subscribers and have earned 4,000 watch hours in the previous 12 months.

YouTuber Thơ Nguyễn recently uploaded a clip on her TikTok page in which she asked a Kuman Thong doll to give luck to students in their studies. She was later fined for posting superstitious content.

Other YouTubers have also been criticised for misguiding children.

Late last year, Hưng Vlog has uploaded on his channel a clip depicting him stealing money from the piggy bank of his brother and sister.

Despite receiving sanctions from local authorities, Hưng Vlog continues to produce videos with questionable content.

The Hưng Vlog channel with 3 million followers can earn at least VNĐ350 million (US$15,150) per month, according to SocialBlade, an American website that tracks social media statistics and analytics.

A report from the Ministry of Information and Communications (MoIC) shows that there are currently 15,000 Vietnamese YouTube channels with advertising revenue and 350 channels with millions of followers.

The country has more than 60 million internet users and is one of the 10 countries with the highest number of Facebook and YouTube users in the world.

Besides the positive aspects of social networks, there are also many risks of exposure to harmful and violent content and children are the most vulnerable.

According to the Department of Child Affairs under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, the national hotline for child protection at 111 received hundreds of calls from parents expressing concerns about their children’s use of the internet while at home during the social distancing period.

Solutions

Psychologist Trần Thanh Nam said Việt Nam needs a more synchronous strategy to handle toxic content.

In addition to the improvement of the legal framework and imposing strict punishment for those who spread harmful content, it is necessary for authorities and agencies to teach children how to use the internet safely, he said.

Students are provided with digital security skills at schools in Hà Nội. Photo baotintuc.vn

According to Hoàng Minh Tiến, Deputy Director of the Authority of Information Security under the MoIC, some cross-border platforms such as YouTube, Facebook and TikTok have implemented solutions to detect and handle harmful information for children and work with Vietnamese authorities when asked to remove negative information.

To tackle content that is inappropriate for children or content depicting abuse of children, the authority is establishing a Child Protection Network in the digital environment with the core the Vietnam Cyber ​​Emergency Response Center – VNCERT, an agency under Tiến’s leadership.

The network involves relevant agencies including the Ministry of Information and Communications, Ministry of Education and Training (MoET), and the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, Ministry of Public Security and telecommunications and internet service providers (ISPs).

One of the main tasks is to receive and categorise complaints about inappropriate online content for children.

The complaints can be received via the website of the network, by phone or via email, Tien said.

The MoIC will collaborate with the MoET to introduce a set of standards for identifying harmful content in the teaching of informatics to each age group.

Director of the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Department of Child Affairs Đặng Hoa Nam said the most effective way to deal with toxic online content is to report it.  — VNS

These days, inside the two-meter-high, 100-meter-long barrier of the construction site for the Metro Line No. 1 underground station at the intersection of Le Loi and Pasteur streets, more than 20 workers are toiling to install drainage systems and upgrade road surfaces.

Excavators and rollers have been working non-stop as the HCMC Management Authority for Urban Railways (MAUR), investor of Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien metro line, prepares to remove the site barrier following project completion.

A part of the dismantled barrier area will be covered with green trees while the rest on both sides is used as asphalt roads.

Sitting at her painting shop at the start of the deserted Le Loi Street, largely occupied by the construction barrier, Le Thi Kieu feels happy as the space in front of her shop is about to be returned after seven years.

Having traded on the street for more than 25 years, with the first metro line still to take shape, Kieu’s business had prospered thanks to its convenient location near popular tourist hotspots like Ben Thanh Market, Saigon Tax Trade Center and five-star Rex Hotel.

Her customers were mainly foreign tourists.

Le Loi Street, considered the “golden land” of the southern economic hub, was often busy with business, trade and tourism activities.

However, in 2014, the barrier erected for the construction of the Opera House underground station, severely affected the lives and businesses of local residents.

The long barrier obscured the entire view of business households along both sides of the street, leaving narrow and bumpy aisles. The street filled with the hustle and bustle of business activities has been replaced by the sound of machines, smoke and dust, with customers gradually growing sparse.

Business households had to put up notice boards, stating “business is still normal, please drop by.” They even hired someone outside to guide customers, but due to the inconvenience, lack of parking space and narrow paths, the business situation had not improved.

Lack of customers has caused the revenue of many households to decrease by more than half, while they still had to pay rent and loan interests of hundreds of millions of dong per month (VND1 million equals $43).

The shop of Kieu and many surrounding households then had to shrink their businesses and cut down on staff.

“For the past year, since the Covid-19 pandemic broke out, many tenants have been forced to end their lease contracts to cut costs,” said Kieu, adding many high-end fashion shops had to close down.

The government has closed national borders and canceled all international flights since March last year with only Vietnamese repatriates, foreign experts and highly-skilled workers allowed in with stringent conditions.

Nieng Diem, 30, employed at a fashion store on Le Loi Street, said she has worked there for more than two years and that the shop received only a few customers each day.

From Nguyen Hue pedestrian street, wanting to enter her shop, customers have to walk through a narrow half-meter wide passage. Her shop is hidden behind the barrier, making it difficult to see from the outside, so her customers are mostly acquaintances or book online.

The front of a fashion store on Le Loi Street is blocked by the metro line No.1 construction barrier, on April 8, 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Gia Minh.

When the pandemic broke out, resulting in a ban on foreign tourists, European visitors, usually considered big spenders, have been nearly absent, resulting in a business slump, Diem said.

“Despite sluggish business, my company has other branches to compensate for its loss, so this venue (on Le Loi Street) has remained in operation for more than a decade,” a staff member said.

Hearing the barrier of the metro construction site was to be dismantled, the whole company grew very happy, hoping the pandemic would quickly come to an end so travel and business could soon revive, she added.

According to MAUR, the barrier along a part of Le Loi Street from Nguyen Hue to Pasteur, will be cleared and its road surface upgraded by April 30 while other barriers on the underground metro station construction site would be removed by the end of this year.

In April last year, a part of Le Loi Street from Dong Khoi to Nguyen Hue, previously used as the construction site for the underground metro station, was also cleared.

The 19.7-kilometer metro route No. 1 from Ben Thanh Market in District 1 to the Suoi Tien theme park in District 9 is scheduled to enter operation in 2022. Built at a cost of VND43.7 trillion ($1.89 billion), it will have 14 stations, three underground and 11 on the surface, some elevated.

Work on the underground sections of the Opera House and Ba Son stations, which started in 2014, is now 95 percent complete while nearby Ben Thanh underground station is 86 percent finished.

The long-delayed Cat Linh–Ha Dong Metro Section, the first to operate in the country, is expected to begin commercial operations at the end of this month starting from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m every day.

Officials have said that if demand is low in the beginning, the frequency of trains will be 10-15 minutes. When demand increases, the frequency will be increased to 6-7 minutes during regular hours and 2-3 minutes during rush hours. A train will stop for 30-45 seconds at each station.

The minimum fare will be VND7,000 per trip and VND15,000 for a full trip. A 30-day pass will cost VND200,000 ($8.69). The metro will use card tickets.

A full trip from Cat Linh to the south-western district of Ha Dong, going through 12 stations, will take 25 minutes.

Each train can carry up to 960 passengers and will be equipped with a two-way radio system that allows passengers to communicate directly with staff in case of emergency.

The trains will run at an average 35 kilometers per hour, compared to buses that have an average speed of 16 kilometers per hour.

Signs, directions and public announcements will be made in both Vietnamese and English.

People with disabilities can use elevators at all stations.

More ATMs, vending machines, food and souvenir stalls are expected to open in the near future.

Hanoi has employed 681 locals to run the metro, 201 of them trained in China.

Authorities are working to increase and relocate 26 bus stops alongside the metro section to increase connectivity. Eventually there will be 65 stops with a 400-meter average walking distance between two stops.

There are currently 51 bus routes running alongside the metro route, and this is set to rise to 59.