Phase 1 clinical trials healthy volunteers

>>> Human trials of made-in-Vietnam COVID-19 vaccine to be deployed in three stages

>>> Vietnam to start human trials of Covid-19 vaccine on December 10

On Dec 9, the unit having the first COVID-19 vaccine tests on human in Vietnam reported their preclinical study results to the Ethics Council under the Ministry of Health to get approval for the start of phase 1.

Nhan Dan Online interviewed Dr. Nguyen Ngo Quang, Deputy Director of the Agency of Science, Technology and Training under the Ministry of Health about the roadmap for testing the made-in-Vietnam COVID-19 vaccine on humans.

Q: Could you tell us about the pre-clinical research results of the first COVID-19 vaccine in Vietnam involved in the upcoming clinical trial?

A: Pre-clinical studies, including virus strain development, production procedures, quality control and pre-clinical testing are rigorous processes and require all aspects to be ensured. On that basis, the Ethics Council will assess and decide whether to approve it or not.

In order to be able to deploy a product in general and vaccines in particular for humans, it is imperative that we have preclinical research.

For vaccines, there are five processes: building a cell bank; developing virus strains; developing technology and production processes; quality control; and reporting on the trial records and preclinical evaluation results.

Particularly with regard to the 5th element – the results of preclinical assessment, the management agency requires there are three main elements that need documentary proof: one is an assessment of immunogenicity; the second is an assessment of safety and toxicity; and the third is an evaluation of challenge test and of validity.

Up until now, the COVID-19 vaccine produced by Nanogen Pharmaceutical Biotechnology JSC has completed its pre-clinical research results regarding immunogenicity and has been confirmed by the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, with written results sent to the Ethics Council.

Q: How will clinical trial participants be selected?

A: In phase 1, the project will select volunteers. They volunteer to join according to their personal wish, without any pressure. The research team will provide them with the information about the study, including research objectives, the number of studies, research evaluation requests and other requests regarding the participation of volunteers.

After the volunteer has read all details carefully and had discussions with the research team members, they will have to sign a consent form to participate in the trial and fully voluntarily comply with all requirements.

In addition to participating in the volunteer trial, applicants must meet medical criteria with their indicators related to biology through the evaluation results of haematology and biochemistry being completely normal. There must have no chronic illnesses and be fully confirmed by a medical authority to be healthy. In addition, a number of criteria related to specificity will be adopted by the Ethics Council.

Q: In terms of expertise and technique, the vaccine testing process will not be shortened, but in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Health has also allowed research units to shorten other administrative procedures. How do we shorten these steps?

A : In principle, a vaccine clinical trial is a time-and-effort study that takes an average of 7-12 years. However, in an emergency, during pandemic prevalence, or serving medical security, procedures can be reduced.

I would like to emphasise that we only reduce these in terms of administrative procedures, not others related to expertise and technology. The requirement is that manufacturers still have to answer three questions on how long the tested vaccine guarantees safety, how it ensures immunogenicity and how long its protective effect is.

Regulatory agencies and the Ethics Council require manufacturers ensure the above criteria, as well as the safety of subjects participating in research before assessing the vaccine’s immunogenicity and its protective effect.

Based on the current pandemic situation, vaccine development studies in the world, and the special capabilities of Vietnam with its vaccine research and development system, being among only a few countries recognised by WHO under their set regulations for the National Regulatory Authorities (NRA), the vaccine developed by Nanogen (Nano Covax vaccine) is expected to be tested via a clinical trial over the next 12-14 months.

Under the direction of the Ministry of Health, there is a collaboration between the manufacturer Nanogen and the Vietnam Military Medical University to develop a clinical trial research protocol for the Nano Covax vaccine with phase 1 starting from January 1 to April next year.

The Ethics Council will meet today and the project is scheduled to kick off tomorrow at the Hanoi-based Vietnam Military Medical University.

Q: Could you tell us about the procedure for the vaccine testing in Vietnam in the coming time?

A: After reviewing pre-clinical research records and similar studies around the world, it is expected we will test two main dosage ranges of 50 micrograms and 75 micrograms.

If approved by the Council, in phase 1, we will have about 40 participants. This is a very sensitive and important period, when moving from animal to human trials.

It is expected that from January – April next year, when the first phase 1 results are available, specifically assessing the safety of the two doses, the Ethics Council will switch to phase 2.

It is expected that phase 2 will be conducted from March – April 2021 on about 400 participants. Phase 2 requires the design of a control experiment group, which means we will use subjects who are at risk or related to epidemiological areas in a group to compare with the other group using the control drug.

On the basis of the phase 1 results, the governing body and the Ethics Council will allow the implementation of phase 2, followed by phase 3, which is scheduled to be tested on a minimum of 10,000 people sometime in August 2021.

In particular, phase 3 requires the implementation and evaluation of vaccines on high-risk subjects or the projection for SARS-CoV-2 in order to assess immunogenicity.

Q: To meet the research requirements in phase 3, what is Vietnam’s plan?

A: Currently, Vietnam has had a very good epidemic response, so we have concerns regarding seeking research subjects who are at high-risk or positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus for phase 3.

At a recent cabinet meeting to report to the Prime Minister on COVID-19 prevention, the Minister of Health announced that Vietnam would officially coordinate with three countries namely Indonesia, India and Bangladesh to do multi-centre research, so that we can have a guaranteed minimum sample size of 10,000. According to an epidemiological report, these are the three countries in Asia with the highest epidemiological rates.

Currently, the Ministry of Health has assigned Nanogen to contact these three countries so that initial connections can be made. The ministry will send official documents to the health authorities of these countries to coordinate with Nanogen.

The goal is to coordinate with countries to increase the sample size and especially the number of subjects with high epidemiology or living in the epidemiological areas, so that we can compare with a team that do not use the vaccine at all to evaluate the vaccine’s effectiveness.

Thus, the study period is expected to start from January 1, 2021 and we hope that by December next year we have preliminary data on the safety of immunogenicity.

However, to assess the ability or effectiveness of the vaccine, we have to add a follow-up period because over 12 months, even 16 months we still do not have enough time to evaluate the vaccine’s effectiveness.

Q: Could you tell us more about the funding sources to support the research units?

A: Regarding the research funding, the units participating in the COVID-19 vaccine research will be invested in by the Government of Vietnam. After Nanogen, we will also have two other potential vaccines with which we can continue with clinical trials. Thus, in Vietnam, we have at least three vaccines that are in the research and development process and are expected to be subjected to clinical trials in 2021.

We hope that these clinical trials have positive initial results. It is expected that in January 2022, Vietnam can get vaccines produced in Vietnam to serve the community.

>>> Vietnam to start human trials of Covid-19 vaccine on December 10

The initial phase will be carried out on about 20 volunteers from December 10, as announced by the Ministry of Health.

On December 5, the ministry confirmed that Vietnam will conduct human trials of the vaccine developed by Nanogen Pharmaceutical Biotechnology JSC, using recombinant protein technology. The Vietnam Military Medical University will recruit volunteers from December 10, after which injections will be conducted.

Dr. Do Minh Si, Nanogen Director of Research and Development, said the most important test is the preclinical testing step to demonstrate immune response in animals, which is just one of several criteria for the human trial to be allowed to take place. Nanogen’s vaccine has been successfully tested in mice and monkeys.

Nguyen Ngo Quang, Deputy Director of Agency of Science, Technology and Training under the Ministry of Health, said that the experimental vaccine must be assessed for toxicity, safety, immunogenicity and especially its protective effect on animals and primates to convince the evaluation board before licensing human trials, with the aim of ensuring safety and effectiveness and determining the effect of the vaccine against COVID-19.

On the basis of the complete pre-clinical results, the Ethical Council in Biomedical Research of the Ministry of Health will consider all aspects, including issues related to the outline design, protecting the integrity of research participants, the conditions of the research facilities as well as the strategies that can be implemented in the evaluation process on the volunteers.

“These are very strict requirements that must be reviewed, evaluated and approved by the Ethical Council,” Quang said.

Regarding the roadmap for human testing, the Vietnam Military Medical University will conduct injections from December 10. It is expected that about 20 healthy volunteers will receive the first injections of the vaccine.

A small group of about 1-2 people will be vaccinated first and monitored for responses within 24-72 hours before starting the next injection of about 18-19 people.

After three months of testing in a small group, the vaccine will be tested on about 400 people.

According to the military-run facility, it is now ready with all equipment and personnel for the trial as well as monitoring the health of the volunteers and treating any undesirable reactions immediately during the vaccination.

The Ministry of Health affirmed that its ethics council will carefully consider and allowing the next important steps in human trials of COVID-19 vaccine.

According to experts, those joining the vaccine trial are selected very carefully. They are healthy volunteers with no background illnesses nor medical history. These individuals are carefully surveyed about their health history and allergy status (to drugs, food …).

VIETNAM NEWS HEADLINES APRIL 16

The Department of Education and Training in Ho Chi Minh City has asked school leaders to increase students’ knowledge about cybercrimes to ensure digital learning is conducted in a safe and responsible manner.

According to the Department’s document, heads of education divisions in Thu Duc City and 21 districts, principals of high schools and vocational training institutions must support students to engage with digital technology in a safe and responsible way.

Students should be instructed to exploit data stores, digital data, digital platforms and video clips to support psychology, study skills, and use social networks safely.

School managers should increase supervision to instruct students against cyberbullying, cybercrime and child sexual abuse so that children can learn to successfully avoid these risks and to take advantage of the Internet’s many opportunities.

Additionally, schools should report violations in online teaching and learning activities.

Teachers, high schoolers and university students are encouraged to make videos to share their experience in teaching and learning in internet and rules of internet etiquette.

Beforehand, the Ministry of Education and Training had issued guidelines about safe use of digital technology for preschoolers, high schoolers and university students.

Currently, the education authority allowed schools to use online teaching because of unexpected incidents.

Petrolimex Long An head arrested for involvement in substandard fuel ring

Dong Nai Province police arrested Luong Dinh Tien, director of Petrolimex Long An, this morning, April 15, for his alleged involvement in producing and trading in 2.7 million liters of substandard fuel.

The Dong Nai Province police also collaborated with the Long An Province police and Criminal Police Department to raid the headquarters of Petrolimex Long An at No. 10, Tra Quy Binh Street, Ward 2, Tan An City, Long An Province.

Tien was appointed as director of Petrolimex Long An on October 1, 2020.

The substandard-fuel ring was co-led by Phan Thanh Huu, residing in HCMC, and Nguyen Huu Tu, residing in the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long, both aged 64.

Up to now, the Dong Nai Police Department has filed charges against more than 40 people involved in the ring and seized 10 vessels, six tank trucks, 2.7 million liters of substandard fuel, VND120 billion in cash and many other valuable assets.

On February 6, the department cooperated with the Criminal Police Department under the Ministry of Public Security to dispatch more than 500 police officers to inspect the storehouses, gas stations, workplaces and houses of those allegedly involved in the ring in Dong Nai, Can Tho, Vinh Long, Long An, Ba Ria-Vung Tau and HCMC.

According to the initial results of the investigation, the ring provided an average of over one million liters of substandard fuel a day to the market. Since August 2020, more than 200 million liters of substandard fuel had been sold.

Former director of VEAM auto plant arrested

The Ministry of Public Security’s investigators have detained Pham Vu Hai, former director of Vietnam Engine and Agricultural Machinery (VEAM) Corporation’s VEAM Motor Factory, to probe into his alleged violations over regulations in the management and use of State assets that caused losses for the State.

The investigators today, April 15, issued a decision to prosecute and arrest Hai after collecting an adequate amount of evidence and documents.

Early last year, the investigators had pressed charges in an embezzlement case linked to the VEAM auto plant. In the case, they decided to prosecute and detain Nguyen Duc Toan, deputy director of the factory, and Tran Thi Thanh Tam, an executive at the factory, for their alleged embezzlement.

The investigators recently also released their conclusions over the investigation into the mismanagement and misuse of State assets that caused losses for the State at VEAM, Vetranco and a number of related businesses.

Specifically, the conclusions indicated that the violations of Tran Ngoc Ha, former chairman and former general director of VEAM, caused losses of over VND135 billion for the State.

Also, from its own capital and bank loans as well as VEAM’s borrowed funds, Vetranco had falsified contracts for trading goods and transferring money to other companies illegally, causing losses of nearly VND183 billion to the State.

Man jailed for abusing freedom, democracy rights

The People’s Court of Tan Phu district in Ho Chi Minh City on April 15 handed down a jail term of four and a half years to a former city official for “abusing the rights to freedom and democracy to violate the interests of the State, and the rights and legitimate interests of organisations and individuals” under Article 331 of the 2015 Penal Code.

According to the indictment, Quach Duy, a former official at the municipal People’s Committee, posted many articles and photos on his Facebook account, of which three had content defaming the honour and prestige of former Party and State leaders and city leaders. He was placed into temporary detention on September 18, 2020.

During search, the Tan Phu police investigation agency found many documents, including some deemed “secret”, and passed them on to relevant forces for further investigation.

The judge said Duy’s actions were serious, harming security and social order and safety.

He confessed at the trial that he had compiled and published the articles on Facebook./.

Da Nang pushes ahead with serious reception of overseas Vietnamese

Chinh also told competent agencies to continue receiving and quarantining foreign experts and diplomatic and official passport holders in line with regulations.

Passengers from foreign destinations arriving at Da Nang International Airport must undergo quarantine at local military-managed facilities or quarantine sites in other provinces and cities.

After May 31, if there are more than two flights from foreign destinations per week, the Health Department will propose quarantine plans to the municipal People’s Committee, according to the city mayor.

As of April 15 morning, the COVID-19 infection tally in Vietnam stood at 2,737, including 2,445 recoveries and 35 deaths. A total 38,743 people who had close contact with COVID-19 patients or came from foreign pandemic-hit areas are being quarantined across the country, according to the Ministry of Health.

Danang suspends rapid transit bus plan

The central city of Danang has decided to suspend a plan to build a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system due to concerns about its ineffective operation.

The move was approved by local authorities on Monday.

The BRT system is part of the city’s World Bank-funded sustainable development project. To date, only 33% of the plan work has been carried out. Initially, the city wanted to pilot the system to link Hoi An City and the Ba Na Hill area. Approved in 2013, the pilot system was expected to enter operation in 2018.

However, following careful consideration by the municipal authorities, the trial run of the system would be wasteful due to the forecast of the low passenger numbers.

Therefore, the city has halted the BRT investment to turn into focusing on improving the quality of 12 subsidised bus routes. This has also received the agreement from the World Bank.

The decision was supported by some people in Danang who cited experience from localities in the country as examples about the ineffective BRT investment.

Danang’s sustainable development project involves some other areas, including water drainage and main urban roads. So far, roughly 84% of the project’s total work has been finished.

Ben Thanh – Suoi Tien metro route to receive disbursement soon

The value of ODA loans for the No. 1 metro route through Ben Thanh – Suoi Tien is soon to be determined by the HCMC People’s Committee at the request of The Government Office on behalf of Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh on April 14, 2021.

According to the Management Authority for Urban Railways (MAUR), the No. 1 Metro Route is over 82 percent completed. However, disbursement of the capital plan has not been approved since the issuing currency of ODA loans is not yet agreed upon.

Accordingly, Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh at a meeting on July 20, 2020 with government leaders on promoting public investment projects requested central agencies and the HCMC People’s Committee to work on related agreed plans.

At the meeting on July 20, 2020, the Prime Minister asked the HCMC People’s Committee to determine the value of ODA loans to be issued from the central budget. On that basis, the Ministry of Planning and Investment shall coordinate with the Ministry of Finance to consider if the amount is adequate.

The expected budget is equivalent to over 17, 8 billion Japanese yen granted in VND.

Previously in 2020, the project was allocated VND2,185 billion but the amount was not disbursed due to lack of basis.

Many packages of North-South Expressway project behind schedule

Nine of 11 packages of the Cam Lo-La Son subproject and another package of the My Thuan 2 Bridge subproject of the North-South Expressway project have fallen behind schedule, according to the Transport Engineering Construction and Quality Management Bureau under the Ministry of Transport.

Among the 11 subprojects of the North-South Expressway project in the 2017-2020 period, six subprojects are under construction, while work on two others will start in the coming periods. In addition, contracts for three subprojects executed under the public-private-partnership (PPP) model are being negotiated, the local media reported.

Specifically, work on the Cam Lo-La Son section began in September 2019 and 99.5% of the cleared site has been handed over for the subproject. Its workload has reached some 36.4%.

The slow execution of the nine packages of the subproject was attributed to storms in the central region last year.

If the investor fails to work out solutions, the subproject may not be completed this year. Therefore, the Ministry of Transport asked the Ho Chi Minh Road Project Management Board to come up with solutions to accelerate the execution of the subproject, a representative of the Transport Engineering Construction and Quality Management Bureau said.

As for the My Thuan 2 Bridge subproject which kicked off in February 2020 and was expected to be completed in 2023, the contractor has started work on four packages. The contractor for the CW3B package is being chosen.

Of the four packages under construction, three have met progress targets, but the XL3A package is only 6.9% complete and its progress may be delayed by three months.

The Ministry of Transport required the Project Management Board No. 7 to direct the contractors, especially of the XL3A package, to speed up the progress by sufficiently mobilizing machines, equipment, human resources and materials and maintaining the approved construction line and working on backup plans to promptly deal with incidents and complete the subproject by December 31 this year as committed earlier.

As for the Cao Bo-Mai Son subproject which kicked off in December 2019, the construction site has been handed over and the subproject is some 60% complete, so it can be completed this year.

The three subprojects whose work started on September 30 last year, comprising the Mai Son-National Highway 45, Vinh Hao-Phan Thiet and Phan Thiet-Dau Giay, are expected to be completed in 2022.

Regarding the two subprojects which were transferred from the PPP model to the public investment model, including National Highway 45-Nghi Son and Nghi Son-Dien Chau, the first packages of the two subprojects will be executed in June this year and completed in 2023.

Work on the three subprojects executed under the PPP model, comprising Dien Chau-Bai Vot, Nha Trang-Cam Lam and Cam Lam-Vinh Hao, are planned to start next quarter.

HCMC told to choose optimal solution to build An Phu Intersection

The Ministry of Transport has asked the HCMC government to study and choose the most optimal solution to develop the An Phu Intersection in Thu Duc City that costs over VND5.1 trillion.

On April 7, the ministry worked with the city and the consulting firm of the project to discuss the preliminary design solution and scale of the project.

As for the construction, the ministry asked the city to direct the investor and the consulting firm to ensure safety as there will be two railways passing through the intersection in the future.

The ministry also required the city to build a railway bridge under the projected flyover and plan branches of the flyover to ensure traffic safety.

During the construction process, the municipal government must come up with an optimal solution to ensure the economic and technical factors and organize traffic smoothly at the construction site.

The prime minister in late 2020 asked the HCMC government to complete investment procedures before May 31 this year and submit the project to the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

The HCMC government has assigned the municipal Department of Transport to prepare for the execution of the project and is completing procedures to submit the project to the municipal People’s Council for approval at its meeting on April 23.

In October last year, the city proposed the Ministry of Planning and Investment review and allocate VND3.3 trillion from the State budget in the 2021-2025 period for the project. The remainder will be sourced from the city’s budget.

The intersection, when completed, will be a three-level structure, accommodating overpasses and a tunnel. It is the starting point of the approach road to the HCMC-Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway and the end point of Luong Dinh Cua Street, and often sees heavy traffic jams.

Local residents to benefit from clean water project

Thousands of residents in the central provinces of Nghệ An, Hà Tĩnh, Quảng Bình, Quảng Trị and Thừa Thiên Huế will be able to get clean water from a project mitigating water shortages in the dry season that has started in the central region.

Local brand Huda company said in a statement that an expansion of the long-term Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme has been scheduled from April on the basis of positive achievements in the first two years in the five provinces.

Huda said it decided to fund five additional projects in the central provinces with the aim of significantly improving local water facilities, and the implementation schedule will start later in April.

It also said these projects are expected to help alleviate local water shortages which often peak during summer months and the flood season, contributing to a healthier, more stable way of life.

This year will mark the third consecutive year of the fresh water programme that the company has provided for local people in the five provinces.

Nathaniel Moxom, Managing Director of Carlsberg Việt Nam, said: “Giving back to society has always been a part of our DNA. It’s what motivates us to run our business with a sustainability mindset imprinted in every of our decisions.”

“This programme is no exception. It will contribute to a better community through a relentless drive towards sustainable development.”

Andrzej Bialasiewicz, VP Marketing Carlsberg Việt Nam, added: “The project has had proven social as well as economic impact and has become part of the long-term journey Huda endeavours to carry on, come what may. In 2021, we are headed for a new programme milestone, sharing the daily burden with significantly more local families.”

Over the past two years, the programme has included seven projects, providing reliable access to clean water for more than 20,000 people, and this despite the global pandemic, periods of extreme flooding and hot weather.

Apart from the campaign to improve local water access, Huda’s community-centric efforts have included support in the form of 6,000 care packages for residents of central Việt Nam during 2020’s extreme flooding and more recently, 9,000 care packages distributed directly to underprivileged families at Tết (Lunar New Year).

Pedestrian street to be piloted at Ninh Kieu Wharf

A pedestrian street will be piloted at Ninh Kieu Wharf in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho.

The plan was approved by Nguyen Ngoc Anh, vice chairman of Ninh Kieu District People’s Committee.

The pedestrian street in the Hai Ba Trung Street area, runs along the wharf, and is divided into three areas. The first will specialise in shopping and cuisine activities as well as the performance of Don Ca Tai Tu, a genre of chamber music from the southern region of Vietnam. The second area is for incense offering ceremonies for Late President Ho Chi Minh on special occasions and holidays. While the third is for music and folk games activities.

The street is scheduled to become operational on the coming occasion of Reunification Day (30/4) and May Day (1/5).

According to Anh, during the trial run period, the street will be open every Saturday, from 6 to 10 pm.

Tan An Ward authorities have been assigned to arrange a parking lot for people on the pedestrian street. Vehicles are kept free of charge during the operational time of the street.

The district then will review the pilot phase for further investment so that the pedestrian area would be put into use officially.

Quang Binh to launch a series of new tourism products

Visitors will have the opportunity to experience some new tourism products, in the second quarter of 2021, according to the Quang Binh provincial Department of Tourism.

Of which, the highlight is surely the tour “Son Doong – virtual space, real experience” by Mix Reality technology.

In the first quarter of 2021, the number of tourists to Quang Binh province was estimated at 202,970, a decrease of 59% compared to the same period in 2020.

In the second quarter of this year, the Quang Binh provincial Department of Tourism strives to welcome 470,000 visitors, up 13% over the same period in 2020, mostly focusing on the domestic market. In order to achieve this goal, the province is making great efforts to develop new tourism products, improve service quality and promote tourism.

A series of new tourism products, such as “Son Doong – virtual space, real experience” by Mix Reality technology, Dong Hoi city tour, adventure travel products, and hot spring ecotourism resort, will be launched in the second quarter.

Earlier, in the first quarter of 2021, Quang Binh province also launched some tourism products, such as “Exploring nature and learning about the Van Kieu ethnic people’s community culture in Quang Ninh and Le Thuy districts” or “Experiencing nature and learning about Ruc ethnic people’s community culture in Thuong Hoa Commune, Minh Hoa District”.

In addition, Quang Binh tourism is focusing on promoting on digital platforms; while at the same time upgrading the Quang Binh tourism website in both English and Vietnamese, and continuously updating information on social networking sites.

Some upcoming events, such as the Dong Hoi Culture and Tourism Week; the Culture, the Sports and Tourism Week; and the Quang Binh Discovery Marathon, are expected to become a good opportunity to promote and attract visitors to Quang Binh.

Especially, although the COVID-19 pandemic remains complicated, Quang Binh tourism always maintains its connection with the international tourism market. Recently, the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park topped the list of “Most Hospitable Destinations” in Vietnam via the annual Traveller Review Awards 2020 as announced by Booking.com. TripAdvisor readers also chose Phong Nha-Ke Bang in the central province of Quang Binh as one of the world’s 25 best national parks. Son Doong cave was chosen by CNN as one of the seven best Vietnam cave experiences.

70 percent of Vietnamese adults infected with H. Pylori: doctor

The rate of H.Pylori infection in Vietnamese adults accounts for more than 70 percent, said Dr. Bui Huu Hoang, head of the Ho Chi Minh City-based University Medical Center’s Department of Gastroenterology.

H. pylori is a common type of bacteria that grows in the digestive tract. It can cause inflammation and irritation of the stomach lining and ulcers. It has also been linked to duodenal ulcer and gastric ulcer.

Helicobacter pylori infection can be spread through kissing, oral sex, and contaminated food or drinking water or through gastrointestinal techniques such as gastrointestinal endoscopy and nasopharyngoscopy.

In fact, only a few people infected with H. pylori have clinical symptoms.

Some patients often worry about H. pylori much because of lack of full understanding of the disease. On the contrary, others show their apparent indifference to the disease and even ignore the treatment.

Poor body, food, and water sanitation in non-industrialized countries may be contributing to the increased rate of the bacteria.

Therefore, if a patient is aware of the bacterium avoiding the risk factors and taking certain preventative measures, he/ she may be able to lower their risk of contracting a H. Pylori bacterial infection.

Tra Vinh expands forest coverage

The Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh plans to grow new forests from now to 2025, increasing the province’s total forest area to 10,000ha and reaching a forest coverage rate of 4.2 per cent.

To meet the targets, the province is providing funds to individuals, households and organisations responsible for growing new mangrove forests and protecting existing forests.

Individuals, households and organisations who grow new forests on an area of more than 0.3ha will receive no more than VNĐ37 million (US$1,600) per hectare to buy seedlings.

This is 4.5 times more than the financial assistance given previously.

Individuals and households responsible for protecting forests will be given VNĐ500,000 ($21) per hectare a year. The money will be provided for up to 15ha to individuals and 30ha to households.

Phạm Minh Truyền, director of the province’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said the support policies aim to protect the environment and protect against the impact of high tides, rising sea levels, and erosion along the province’s 65km coastline.

These support activities have helped to create livelihoods for households, especially shrimp – forest farms, that have provided sustainable incomes in coastal areas.

The province has more than 9,160ha of forests, mostly mangrove forests, and a forest coverage rate of 3.63 per cent, according to the department.

Of the total forest area, more than 4,000ha are planted by households in the coastal districts of Duyên Hải, Cầu Ngang, Châu Thành, and Duyên Hải Town.

The households also breed black-tiger shrimp or other aquatic species in the 4,000ha of mangrove forests.

The shrimp – forest farming model requires low investment cost, has a low risk of disease, is environmentally friendly, and is sustainably efficient.

Households that breed shrimp or other aquatic species in mangrove forests earn an average income of VNĐ70 million ($3,000) per hectare a year, according to the department.

Last year, the province turned nearly 3,800ha of protective forests into commercial forests to improve incomes for households who protect and exploit forest resources.

The move was done to improve the management and protection of forests.

The province has sought donations at home and abroad to grow forests and train human resources for forest management and protection.

It has also encouraged the use of advanced techniques, including the use of digital forest data at all management levels.

In 2015 – 20, the province’s coastal districts of Duyên Hải, Cầu Ngang, Châu Thành, and Duyên Hải Town planted a total 625ha of new forests.

The province’s People’s Committee has zoned a total area of 23,984ha for forest development.

Quqng Nam Province praised for improved breastfeeding statistics

Half of all childbirths in Quảng Nam Province now take place in ‘Centers of Excellence for Breastfeeding’, ensuring thousands of newborns and their mothers have access to quality newborn care and breastfeeding support.

A survey from the Alive & Thrive initiative showed there were 23,600 newborns in Quảng Nam Province in 2020, of which 12,500 babies were delivered at Centers of Excellence for Breastfeeding.

The statistics were revealed at a workshop on Tuesday to discuss efforts in the province to build a network of universal family-friendly health services, which also provides more equitable access to newborn care and breastfeeding support for ethnic minorities and families with special needs.

Supported by Irish Aid through the Alive & Thrive initiative, the Centers of Excellence for Breastfeeding model in Việt Nam aims to improve quality of maternal and newborn care and promote the implementation of the ‘Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding’ in health facilities.

“We are delighted to know that up to one in four babies will be born in a Center of Excellence for Breastfeeding in Việt Nam by 2022 if all 58 enrolled hospitals from 12 provinces become accredited. Today, we are more confident about this vision after hearing Quảng Nam’s mission to have five out of seven hospitals designated as Centers of Excellence,” said Lisa Doherty, Deputy Head of Development, Embassy of Ireland in Việt Nam.

Quảng Nam has more Centers of Excellence for Breastfeeding than any other provinces in the country, with a percentage of early and exclusive breastfeeding of 95. Just two years after the initiative was launched in Quảng Nam, the rate of uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact immediately after birth has sharply increased from 53 per cent to 86 per cent for vaginal births and 46 per cent to 96 per cent for caesarian births.

“Quảng Nam, which was a pandemic hotbed and natural hit area, received nearly 350 pregnant women from COVID-19 high-risk countries. Two mothers confirmed with COVID-19 were supported to practise prolonged skin-to-skin contact and direct breastfeeding and were also enabled to bring a birth companion of choice despite strict COVID-19 infection control measures. I am impressed with the resilience of the health services and health workers in Quảng Nam, and you are an exemplar to follow to maintain service provision for mothers and newborns during pandemics and disasters,” said Roger Mathisen, Southeast Asia Director for Alive & Thrive.

“We are proud of the comprehensive support package to ensure equitable access to breast milk for all newborns, including at-risk infants,” said Dr Mai Văn Mười, Director of Quảng Nam Department of Health.

“Each year in the province, there are more than 2,000 pre-term, low-birth weight and sick infants who cannot directly breastfeed for a period of time. Therefore, a Human Milk Bank Service Network was set up at Quảng Nam General Hospital, a Center of Excellence for Breastfeeding, to provide pasteurised donor human milk for these babies,” added Mười.

The Human Milk Bank in Quảng Nam was launched in July 2020 in connection with the Đà Nẵng Human Milk Bank and has already provided 54 litres of pasteurised human milk from donating mothers to 80 at-risk infants.

On April 14, three more hospitals will be recognised as the Centers of Excellence designation, including Vĩnh Đức General Hospital and Quế Sơn General Hospital in Quảng Nam, and Hải Châu General Hospital in Đà Nẵng, increasing the total number of Centers of Excellence in Việt Nam to 21.

Candidates begin to apply for national high school graduation examination

The Ministry of Education and Training has issued a registration form for the high school graduation examination in 2021, candidates begin to register from April 27. The Department of Education and Training decides the test registration venues to facilitate candidates.

The Ministry of Education and Training April 12 held a training conference for the 2021 high school graduation examination at Vietnam Maritime University in the Northern City of Hai Phong. Deputy Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Huu Do chaired the conference.

The 2021 high school graduation examination will basically maintain as 2020. The main goal of the examination is to evaluate the student’s learning results according to the educational objectives of the high school education program.

Students’ academic results will be qualified for high school graduation as well as it will be basis for assessment of teaching and learning quality of high schools. Colleges, universities and vocational training institutions can use the high school graduation examination results for admission.

The examination is scheduled to take place on July 7 and 8. The examinations will be Math, Literature, Foreign Language and two combined tests comprising Natural Science (Physics, Chemistry, Biology) and Social Science (History, Geography, lessons for citizenship education; or History, Geography for candidates studying in continuing education centers).

The examination content is mostly taken from the high school program, mainly grade 12. In terms of form, except for Literature examination essay, other subjects are given in the form of objective tests. Time to do Literature lesson is 120 minutes; Math 90 minutes; Foreign language 60 minutes; 50 minutes for each component examination of the Natural Science and Social Science composite examination.

At the training conference, the Internal Political Security Department under the Ministry of Public Security carefully instructed security tasks and safety tasks in the examination meanwhile the Department of Higher Education announced some contents about enrollment activities in 2021. During the training course, teachers discussed issues relating to regulations, guidance and safety problems in the 2021 high school graduation examination.

Speaking at the conference, Deputy Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Huu Do affirmed the importance of the 2021 High School Graduation Examination which will be used for high school graduation and as a basis for university admission; therefore, to ensure safety, accuracy, and transparency during the significant examination, the Ministry of Education and Training and related ministries and local administrations in 63 cities and provinces must work carefully.

This is an annual high school graduation examination, with the participation of the entire machinery of state under the close supervision of the Ministry of Public Security, the Government Inspector, the whole education sector. This proves the high determination towards an important examination in accordance with regulations.

However, in order for the examination to take place well, the Ministry of Education and Training said that local authorities and those in charge of the examination must well prepare for facilities and hypothetical situations.

According to the instructions of the High School Graduation Examination, candidates start to register for the examination from April 27. The Ministry of Education and Training has issued a registration form for the high school graduation examination in 2021. The Department of Education and Training will decide the registration venues to facilitate candidates.

Noticeably, candidates who take the examination for high school graduation recognition are only allowed to take one combined test (Natural Science or Social Science). Candidates who have a high school diploma and an intermediate diploma take the examination to use the results as the basis to register for admission only to register to take the component test.

In regard to Foreign Language test, candidates are allowed to take part in one of the 7 languages: English, Russian, French, Chinese, German, Japanese and Korean. Candidates are eligible for sitting a test of a foreign language which is not the foreign language they are studying in high school. Candidates from continuous education institutions are allowed to register for the foreign language examination to get admission results into universities and colleges.

Hospital reports rising hand-foot-mouth cases

Vietnam National Children’s Hospital has reported a sharp rise in the number of children with hand-foot-mouth disease.

Since early 2021, the Hanoi-based hospital has received 125 hand-foot-mouth cases, six times higher than the same period last year.

Nguyen Van Lam, the hospital’s director, said, “We receive five to six patients a day with high fever and they need to stay at the hospital. Most of the children are under five years old. The symptoms show up after five or seven days.”

A 13-month-old child was admitted to the hospital on April 13 after vomiting and having a fever. When the child was admitted, the rash had already appeared on his limbs.

According to Lam, it’s best to bring the children to hospitals if there are a fever and rash. If a child’s fever does not go down with antipyretics, they should be monitored at medical facilities.

“Parents should clean their children’s toys and clothes frequently as hand-foot-mouth disease is spread by direct contact with saliva, mucus, and fluid from blisters,” the doctor said. “Children should have a healthy diet to boost their immune system.”

Severe complications of hand, foot and mouth disease include encephalitis, cardiovascular disease, and acute pulmonary edema.

“When the fever does not go down even though the children already use antipyretics, parents should not attempt to use a different brand or type of medicine or else it will lead to paracetamol poisoning,” he stressed.

Thu Duc City, four districts to have water supply cut for pipeline repair

Saigon Water Corporation (Sawaco) will cut the water supply in some areas of Thu Duc City and four districts in HCMC between Saturday evening and Sunday evening to repair the D1500 Binh Thai-Binh Loi water pipeline.

According to Sawaco general director Tran Quang Minh, the maintenance will take place on the section of Sawaco’s water supply network located some 200 meters from Nguyen Van Ba Street in Truong Tho Ward, Thu Duc City. The maintenance will force the Thu Duc 3 Water Plant to stop pumping water into the network.

From 9 p.m. on Saturday, April 17, until 9 p.m. the following day, Sawaco will cut the water supply in the wards of Hiep Binh Chanh, Hiep Binh Phuoc, Linh Dong, Linh Tay, Tam Binh, Tam Phu and Binh Chieu in Thu Duc City and the wards 11, 12, 13 and 28 in Binh Thanh District. Thanh Loc Ward in District 12, Ward 1 in Go Vap District and Ward 2 in Tan Binh District will also be affected by the water supply cut.

The water supply cut will affect dozens of thousands of households in these areas. Minh said households in some areas may experience low-pressure water shortly after the water supply is resumed.

Built at a cost of more than VND1.27 trillion, the Thu Duc 3 Water Plant is capable of treating 300,000 cubic meters of water from the Dong Nai River a day to provide clean water for the city.

This is the second time in one month that Sawaco has had to cut the water supply in some areas of HCMC to repair the D1500 Binh Thai-Binh Loi water pipeline.

Singer Dong Lan nominated at Berlin Music Video Awards

Singer Dong Lan is the first Vietnamese representative to receive the “Best Song” nomination at the Berlin Music Video Awards 2021.

The nomination chart also brings together many of the world’s top music names such as Selena Gomez, The Weeknd, Dua Lipa and Cardi B, among others.

The Berlin Music Video Awards recently announced a series of nominations for this year’s awards. Dong Lan’s song entitled “Dung Yeu Mot Minh” (Don’t love alone) is the first and only representative from Vietnam in the “Best Song” category.

Dong Lan said Director of the MV – La Zung silently submitted her MV to the awards, adding she only became known after the MV reached the top 40 and was very surprised when the song was nominated for “Best Song”.

Many precious books to be introduced at “book market”

Many precious books will be introduced at a “book market” programme themed “A cultural identity of Hanoi” that will take place in the capital city of Hanoi from April 16-18.

The event will be held at Van Mieu – Quoc Tu Giam (the Temple of Literature) as part of activities in response to Vietnam Book Day (April 21).

During the programme, various cultural and art activities will introduce readers and collectors to many precious books, including those made with traditional do paper.

The organising board will focus on beautiful scholar, heritage and children’s books that were translated from Russian.

The event will contribute to connecting publishers and book-makers with the community while featuring traditional cultural values of the thousand-year-old city.

Visitors to the event will also have the chance to join various activities such as making do paper and com as well as enjoy traditional art performances and join folk games.

More rain forecast to hit southern region

The southern region will see more rain, coupled with thunderstorms and strong winds, from now until April 23, according to the Southern Regional Hydrometeorological Center.

Convective clouds developed, leading to rain in many parts of the southern region, including Binh Duong, Dong Nai, Tay Ninh, Long An and HCMC from last night until early this morning, April 15.

They were unseasonal rains, said Le Dinh Quyet, deputy head of the center, adding that HCMC and the southern region have yet to experience the rainy season, the local media reported.

The rainy season will be in late April and early May, he said.

In the next few days, especially after April 19, many parts of the southern region, including HCMC, will continue seeing more downpours, thunderstorms and strong winds in the afternoons and at nights, Quyet said.

Book festival to open at Vietnam National Library

The Book Festival 2021 with the theme “Book – Mission to Develop Reading Culture ” will take place at the National Library of Vietnam in Hanoi from April 16 to 21, as part of the activities to mark Vietnam Book Day (April 21) and World Book and Copyright Day (April 23).

Many activities and programmes to promote reading and towards the development of reading culture will be organisedwithin the framework of Book Festival 2021.

In particular, the highlight of the event will be an exhibition with the theme “Books – Mission to develop reading culture”,including four contents: Books – Path to knowledge; Books – Gifts nourishing the soul; Reading skills and methods; and Enjoying reading passion, with about 800 books on display and introduction.

In addition, a seminar titled “Youth with reading culture” will be organised with the participation of many experts and representatives of publishing units.

As in previous book festivals, this year’s festival will also provide the children with a drawing corner through a drawing contest by book, and a reading corner for children. Young readers can also explore reading through technology with the activity “Explore Digital Library – Let’s Read” includes over 2,000 titles in more than 20 languages.

In addition, within the framework of the book festival, there are indispensable bookstores introducing thousands of book titles with rich content, many attractive promotions and gifts.

The 5th IT Festival promotes smart education in Hanoi

The festival’s focus is the exhibition of products and activities for solutions that have been successfully applied in schools across Hanoi city.

The 5th Information Technology (IT) Festival opened on April 14 is expected to accelerate smart education in Hanoi schools.

With the theme “Digitalization in education sector – building smart education”, the IT Festival has profound implications for enhancing IT application in management, teaching and learning as it would raise awareness on the process and open up opportunities to access new technologies in education and training.

The festival’s focus is an exhibition of products and activities for IT application and IT solutions that have been successfully applied in schools across the city.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Deputy Director of the Hanoi Department of Education and Training Pham Van Dai emphasized that the 5th IT Festival will create a breakthrough for IT application in teaching and learning activities, the management of each educational unit, with a view to improving the quality of teaching and learning in the city, equipping students with knowledge and skills on digital transformation to become a global citizen.

The highlight of the festival are conferences and seminars on IT, which are a city-level conference on “orientation of digital transformation in Hanoi’s education and training sector – building smart education” and the symposium “Digital transformation in the capital city’s education and training sector”.

With expected participation of some 2,000 visitors, the festival will contribute to encouraging and education workers to make more efforts and fulfill their tasks.

Late American peace activist Rennie Davis commemorated

The Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations (VUFO) on April 15 held a ceremony to commemorate and posthumously present the “For peace and friendship among nations” insignia to Rennie Davis, an American peace activist and a loyal friend of Vietnam.

Born on March 23, 1940 in Michigan’s Langsing city, Rennie was one of the leaders of the anti-war movement in the US in the 1960s and 1970s.

In the 1960s, he was one of the founders and leaders of the Students for a Democratic Society and a coordinator and director of the National Mobilization Committee to End War in Vietnam.

He visited the north of Vietnam during the war. In particular, in 1969, as a representative of the peace and students’ movement of America, he arrived in Paris to meet Foreign Minister Nguyen Thi Binh, head of the negotiation delegation of the Provisional Revolutionary Government of Vietnam at the Paris Conference on Vietnam, to introduce an initiative from American students on a Peace Treaty between Vietnam and the American people, which was then signed in late 1970 and announced in January 1971.

He made significant contributions to the friendship and solidarity between the Vietnamese and American people. He passed away on February 2, 2021, at the age of 80.

Addressing the ceremony, Bui Van Nghi, head of the America Department of the VUFO and Secretary General of the Vietnam-US Society, highlighted the imprint that Rennie has left in the minds of people in Vietnam and around the world.

Through the Vietnam-US Society, former Vice President Binh, who could not attend the commemorative ceremony for health reasons, conveyed her sympathies to Rennie’s family. She described him as an excellent leader and organiser of American peace and anti-war movements and a great, loyal, and close friend of the Vietnamese people.

“The sentiments and heritage left by Rennie Davis will be an eternal flame enlightening the trust in the friendly relationship and mutual understanding and respect for peace, cooperation, and development between the people of Vietnam and the US in the present and future,” Binh wrote in a letter sent to the ceremony.

Workshop talks ways to promote participation of disabled persons in political life

A workshop on opportunities, challenges and solutions to promote the participation of people with disabilities in politics was held in Hanoi on April 15.

Co-organised by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Vietnam and the Centre for Education Promotion and Empowerment of Women (CEPEW), the event aimed at enhancing the right to political engagement of people with disabilities in Vietnam where is home to more than 6 million disabled persons.

Speaking at the workshop, Diana Torres, UNDP Assistant Resident Representative in Vietnam, said there will be a political gap between non-disabled and disabled people unless the community joins hands to promote equality and empower people with disabilities on political platforms.

Without their voices in agencies under the National Assembly and People’s Councils, the people with disabilities will find it difficult to really integrate into society, she added.

Le Ngoc Hoan, a member of the Blind Association of Lang Son province, who is a self-nominated candidate for the election of deputies to the 15th National Assembly, said people with disabilities need representative voices in the law-making body so that their legitimate aspirations and needs will be heard.

According to a quick assessment of the group’s readiness for political involvement as candidates in the elections of deputies to the National Assembly and all-level People’s Councils, 92 percent of people surveyed hoped to have disabled deputies and 63 percent said they are ready for self-nomination to the elections in the next five years.

The assessment, jointly conducted by the UNDP Vietnam and the Norwegian Embassy in Vietnam, was released as part of the workshop.

It showed three challenges facing the group in elections – feeling unconfident in the possibility of success, lacking knowledge on self-nomination and campaigning, and distrusting that the community will vote for people with disabilities.

Jan Wilhelm Grythe, Chargé d’affaires at the Norwegian Embassy, said the Norwegian Government is willing to share information on the political participation process of Tove Linnea Brandvik, a physically disabled Norwegian who served as deputy to the parliament for two terms from 2005 to 2013.

Norway is also willing to organise conversations to inspire Vietnamese people with disabilities, said the diplomat./.

State President hosts outgoing Russian Ambassador

State President Nguyen Xuan Phuc on April 15 received Russian Ambassador Konstantin Vnukov who came to bid his farewell at the end of his tenure in Vietnam.

At the reception, Phuc congratulated the diplomat on the successful completion of his mission in Vietnam and his being awarded the Vietnamese State’s Friendship Order for his contributions to the Vietnam – Russia comprehensive strategic partnership.

Expressing his delight at robust growth of the partnership between the two countries, the President stated that Vietnam always attaches importance to its traditional friendship with Russia. He said he welcomes the maintenance of regular bilateral exchanges at all levels, particularly at the high level.

He also praised the outcomes of the recent phone talk between Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying they have contributed significantly to boosting the countries’ comprehensive cooperation.

Affirming Russia’s important role to stability and security in the Asia-Pacific region as well as in the world, Phuc said Vietnam wants to increase its collaboration and mutual understanding with Russia at international forums and organisations, including the UN and ASEAN.

For his part, Vnukov underscored his gratitude toward the assistance he and the Russian embassy received from Vietnam’s Party, State, ministries and competent agencies during his tenure.

He pledged that in any position, he will make all-out efforts to promote the fruitful friendship and multifaceted cooperation between Vietnam and Russia.

Experts discuss post-COVID-19 global major trends, recommendations for Vietnam

The Foreign Ministry and the United Nations in Vietnam jointly held an international talk in Hanoi on April 15 to discuss major global trends in the post-COVID-19 era, international experience and policy implications for Vietnam.

Addressing the event, Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son noted that after 35 years of renewal, Vietnam now has a great ambition of becoming a developed country with high income in 2045.

The official asked participants to identify global trends that may generate opportunities for Vietnam to make development breakthroughs, while sharing international experience and lessons in optimising post-pandemic trends for economic recovery, and proposing suitable policies for Vietnam.

UN Resident Coordinator in Vietnam Kamal Malhotra mentioned rising concern about the three major crises to the globe which are climate change, loss of biodiversity, and pollution, which threaten the achievements and development prospects in the future.

The US-China geo-political tensions and the inequality in COVID-19 vaccine distribution may also harm multilateral cooperation, he said, expressing his impression at the fast movement in world to catch up with new and pioneering technologies, thus supporting the maintenance of essential services and economic activities.

According to Malhotra, the increasing inequality inside each country and among countries has become a big and worrying trend. Therefore, the reduction of inequality and the pursuing of green and resilient recovery policies are the highest targets of the UN.

He said he hopes the talk will help seek new ideas for the recovery process.

In the framework of the event, three discussion sessions were held on digital transformation, the transition of growth model towards inclusive, self-reliant and sustainable and green recovery orientations.

They also gave a number of policy recommendations to help Vietnam tap opportunities from major global trends, thus combining outside resources with internal strengths to make breakthroughs towards realising the goals set at the 13th National Party Congress./.

More congratulations come in from abroad

The Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres, has sent a congratulatory message Nguyen Xuan Phuc on his election as the State President of Vietnam.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh received a message of congratulations from his Mongolian counterpart Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene.

Meanwhile, National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue received congratulations from Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic Radek Vondrácek; Speaker of Dewan Rakyat (House of Representatives) of Malaysia Datuk Azhar Azizan Harun; Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore Tan Chuan-jin; Secretary General of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) Nguyen Tuong Van; Speaker of the Lok Sabh (lower house) of the Indian Parliament Om Birla; President of the Italian Senate Maria Elisabetta Casellati; Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Dmytro Razmkov; Speaker of the National Assembly of Azerbaijan Sahiba Gafarova; Speaker of the Mazhilis (House of Representatives) of the Parliament of Kazakhstan Nurlan Nigmatulin; Speaker of the Parliament of Mongolia Gombojav Zandanshatar; Speaker of the Palestine National Council Saleem Al – Za’anoon; Speaker of the House of Representatives of Morocco Habib El Malki; President of the Chamber of Deputies of Argentina Sergio T.Massa; and President of Germany’s Hessen State Parliament Boris Rhein./.

Workshop talks ways to promote participation of disabled persons in political life

A workshop on opportunities, challenges and solutions to promote the participation of people with disabilities in politics was held in Hanoi on April 15.

Co-organised by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Vietnam and the Centre for Education Promotion and Empowerment of Women (CEPEW), the event aimed at enhancing the right to political engagement of people with disabilities in Vietnam where is home to more than 6 million disabled persons.

Speaking at the workshop, Diana Torres, UNDP Assistant Resident Representative in Vietnam, said there will be a political gap between non-disabled and disabled people unless the community joins hands to promote equality and empower people with disabilities on political platforms.

Without their voices in agencies under the National Assembly and People’s Councils, the people with disabilities will find it difficult to really integrate into society, she added.

Le Ngoc Hoan, a member of the Blind Association of Lang Son province, who is a self-nominated candidate for the election of deputies to the 15th National Assembly, said people with disabilities need representative voices in the law-making body so that their legitimate aspirations and needs will be heard.

According to a quick assessment of the group’s readiness for political involvement as candidates in the elections of deputies to the National Assembly and all-level People’s Councils, 92 percent of people surveyed hoped to have disabled deputies and 63 percent said they are ready for self-nomination to the elections in the next five years.

The assessment, jointly conducted by the UNDP Vietnam and the Norwegian Embassy in Vietnam, was released as part of the workshop.

It showed three challenges facing the group in elections – feeling unconfident in the possibility of success, lacking knowledge on self-nomination and campaigning, and distrusting that the community will vote for people with disabilities.

Jan Wilhelm Grythe, Chargé d’affaires at the Norwegian Embassy, said the Norwegian Government is willing to share information on the political participation process of Tove Linnea Brandvik, a physically disabled Norwegian who served as deputy to the parliament for two terms from 2005 to 2013.

Norway is also willing to organise conversations to inspire Vietnamese people with disabilities, said the diplomat./.

Ensuring fairness among all candidates: VFF official

Besides meetings with voters, campaigning on the mass media is an important way to ensuring fairness among all candidates, said Vice President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee Ngo Sach Thuc.

Thuc said that after conducting inspections of election preparations in 16 cities and provinces, working groups of the VFF have identified certain problems and proposed solutions to address them.

The results of the first and second rounds of consultation conferences reflected the democracy in the introduction of candidates and self-nominated candidates, he said.

Regarding scenarios on organising the elections in the case of another outbreak of COVID-19, Thuc said that plans to respond to unexpected situations have been prepared to give guidance to localities, including the holding of elections in quarantine facilities and the use of mobile polling boxes, thus creating the best conditions for voters to cast their votes.

In the second phase of inspections, the VFF will focus on the publishing of lists of candidates and lists of voters in an open manner so that people from all walks of life can access them, ensuring the observation of citizens’ rights.

Thuc underlined the need to strict implement cybersecurity regulations to prevent the spread of wrongful information on candidates, while strengthening training for election workers to make sure election proceedings are implemented in line with the regulations.

Underlining that voting is the right and duty of each citizen, the VFF Vice President stressed the need for stronger communication campaigns so that voters are aware of their rights and duties and actively join the elections, thus turning the election day into a real festival of the whole nation.

NA Vice Chairman examines election preparations in Yen Bai

Vice Chairman of the National Assembly (NA) Nguyen Duc Hai held a working session on April 15 with authorities in the northern province of Yen Bai concerning local preparations for the upcoming elections of deputies to the 15th legislature and members of all-level People’s Councils for 2021-2026.

Hai, who is also Chairman of the NA’s Finance and Budget Committee and a member of the National Election Council (NEC), asked the province to continue its communications efforts, particularly in remote and ethnic minority-inhabited areas.

Priority should be given to increasing IT application and training personnel for the task, intensifying inspections, and encouraging people to vote, he added.

Vice Secretary of the provincial Party Committee and Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Tran Huy Tuan said that as of April 12, Yen Bai had organised a total of 1,306 conferences to collect feedback from constituents on candidates for the elections in their constituencies.

Also head of the provincial election committee, Tuan said Yen Bai has nearly 600,000 constituents.

The province has held its third political consultative conference, agreeing on a list of eight and 97 candidates for election as deputies to the 15th NA and members of all-level People’s Councils for 2021-2026, respectively./.

Five provinces, cities told to strictly follow anti-Covid-19 measures

The national steering committee for Covid-19 infection prevention and control has written to the governments of Quang Ninh, Hai Duong, Tay Ninh, Hanoi and HCMC asking them to enhance Covid-19 safety protocols.

Due to the ongoing global health crisis, the provinces and cities should continue to direct competent agencies to strictly adopt anti-Covid-19 measures and call on residents not to be negligent about the disease, according to the national steering committee.

The competent agencies were told to regularly assess anti-Covid-19 activities, while the leaders of the localities should proactively decide appropriate Covid-19 safety measures and assume responsibility for Covid-19 prevention and control.

Besides, the localities were told not to practice social distancing on a large scale and carefully consider safety measures to avoid affecting the socioeconomic development and residents’ daily activities.

Apart from this, the competent agencies were also asked to impose harsh sanctions on those who violate Covid-19 infection prevention and control regulations, VietnamPlus news site reported.

It is necessary to prepare well to reopen international air routes to promote trade with foreign partners and ensure safety amid the pandemic in line with the prime minister’s directive.

In addition, the localities were also told to improve their Covid-19 testing capacity at healthcare facilities, prepare sufficient medical equipment and offer training courses on quarantine, testing and monitoring work to medical workers.

The Ministry of Health also warned the localities to be on the lookout for illegal entry and asked them to adopt drastic measures to prevent the potential spread of Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

Vietnam enters tough race as Covid-19 vaccines outpacing world’s supplies

With demand for Covid-19 vaccines outpacing the world’s supplies, Vietnam has been entering a tough race against the clock to have Covid-19 vaccine soon.

The National Steering Committee on Covid-19 Prevention and Control on  April 14 convened a meeting about the purchase plan of Covid-19 vaccine and trial progress of home-made Covid-19 vaccines chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam.

A representative of the Ministry of Health affirmed vaccine AstraZeneca is still safe; therefore, the country will speed up immunization for priority groups according to the government’s decree 21/NQ-CP on the usage of the vaccine.

Noticeably, Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long announced that demand for Covid-19 vaccines in 2021 will far exceed supply; thus, Vietnam are racing against the clock to have the vaccine as soon as possible while there has been simultaneously new barriers in negotiations with vaccine manufacturers even risks.

In regard to clinical trial of locally-made Covid-19 vaccine, Lieutenant-General Do Quyet, Director of the Ministry of Defense’s Military Medical University, said the human trial’s second phase of Nano Covax vaccine developed by the Nanogen Pharmaceutical Biotechnology Company will end on April 15 at the Military Medical Academy and in a medical facility in the Mekong Delta province of Long An’s Ben Luc District with the participation of Pasteur Institute.

Mr. Quyet said that 554 volunteers exhibited symptoms such as pain at the injection point, light fever, muscle aches, joint pain, and fatigue, but did not require medical intervention. They are in stable condition.

Highly appreciating the vaccine’s clinical trial, the steering board announced to accelerate clinical trials of Covid-19 vaccine as well as create favorable conditions for domestic functional units during the process. Moreover, the country has planned to pour investment in manufacturing the vaccine once the test is successful.

The steering board requested all ministries, sectors and local administrations to direct medical facilities, schools, factories, supermarkets, traditional markets, and bus stations to raise their awareness of the disease and adopt preventative measures.

Source: VNA/VNS/VOV/VIR/SGT/Nhan Dan/Hanoitimes

Preparations for the elections, scheduled for May 23, are being sped up. (Photo: VNA)

As of April 18, a third consultative conference had been held at local and central levels to select eligible candidates for the elections of deputies to the 15th National Assembly and member of People’s Councils for 2021-2026.

The meeting held by the Presidium of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee adopted a list of 205 candidates for the upcoming election of deputies to the 15th legislature.

Making and announcing such lists are among the tasks for local agencies and organisations, as assigned by the National Election Council (NEC).

The lists must be sent to the National Election Committee and all-level election committees by April 23 (30 days ahead of the elections), so that the NEC and the all-level election committees will officially announce the candidates at constituencies.

The listing of candidates for NA deputies at constituencies nationwide and for members of People’s Councils at local constituencies should be completed no later than April 28.

Meanwhile, official lists of candidates running for NA deputy in constituencies in centrally-run cities and provinces, as well as their biographies, will be publicised by May 3.

Localities should step up communications work to raise public awareness about the elections and facilitate election campaigns, which are scheduled to be concluded 24 hours prior to the elections.

Between May 13 and 23, election groups will regularly inform local voters about polling stations and election time through leaflets and the mass media.

Local election committees will coordinate with relevant agencies and organisations to instruct the settlement of complaints, denunciations, and petitions regarding the lists of candidates and voters and election work.

Settlements should be completed before May 13./.

Workers’ average income up in first quarter

Vietnam saw a year-on-year fall in the number of workers joining the labour market in the first quarter but increases in average income, according to Pham Hoai Nam, Director of the Population and Labour Statistics Department at the General Statistics Office (GSO).

Nam said that workers’ average monthly income in the first quarter stood at 6.3 million VND (273 USD), up 339,000 VND compared to the fourth quarter of 2020 and 106,000 VND year-on-year.

On an annual basis, the agro-forestry-fisheries sector recorded the highest rise in average income, 5.2 percent, followed by the service sector with 1.5 percent and industry-construction 0.8 percent.

In particular, the income of those with employment contract increased 556,000 VND compared to the fourth quarter of last year and 132,000 VND over the same time in 2020 to 7.2 million VND per month.

According to Nam, the return of COVID-19 before the Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday changed normal growth trends in the first quarter, with a fall of nearly 200,000 workers in the workforce compared to the same time last year and about 600,000 over the same time of 2019.

The proportion of workers joining the labour market was 66.7 percent in urban areas and 69.9 percent in rural areas.

The GSO reported that among 49.9 million employees, 39.5 percent (or 19.7 million) were employed in the service sector, 32.3 percent (16.1 million) in the industry-construction sector, and 28.2 percent (14.1 million) in the agro-forestry-fisheries sector.

In the first quarter, 57.1 percent of the workforce, or 20.7 million workers, were employed in the informal sector, down 251,700 over the fourth quarter of 2020 but up 525,400 over the same period last year, it said./.

Central Highlands hit by string of minor earthquakes

Five consecutive small earthquakes measuring between 2.6 and 2.9 on the Richter scale have rocked the central highlands province of Kon Tum in less than a week, according to the data collected by the Earthquake and Tsunami Warning Centre under the Institute of Geophysics.

The Earthquake and Tsunami Warning Centre have stated that two consecutive small-intensity earthquakes measuring 2.6 and 2.8 on the Richter scale also hit the districts of Kon Plong and Dak Ha in the region on April 15, with the epicentre’s depth reaching 10km and 9.6km, respectively.

The succession of minor earthquakes began on April 13 and April 14 when two small quakes, also with a magnitude of 2.6 and 2.8, hit the Dak Ha region in Kon Tum province, with the epicentre’s depth recorded at 12km and 9.8km, respectively.

Furthermore, the centre also revealed that these quakes can be classified as small jolts due to their low risk of causing property damage and loss of human life, adding that these earthquakes are still being strict monitored.

According to experts, the Central Highlands makes up a region that has recorded relatively few earthquakes in comparison to other localities in the northwestern region.

Experts believe that the recent impact of the consecutive quakes in the region can be attributed to fault lines emerging along the rivers which pass through the area.

Australia, UNICEF join hands to aid COVID-19 vaccine delivery in Vietnam

The Australian Embassy in Hanoi and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) have announced a 13.5 million AUD package to support the introduction and delivery of COVID-19 vaccines doses in Vietnam.

The Australia-UNICEF partnership is expected to provide a unique and holistic package that will assist Vietnam across a range of areas vital to the successful delivery of a mass immunisation programme against COVID-19, according to a UNICEF press release published on April 19.

“Our support will help Vietnam purchase cold chain equipment to store and transport vaccine doses to where they are needed around the country, provide training courses and materials to ensure Vietnam’s health workers and officials are ready, and assist with the development of immunisation plans in Vietnam’s remote provinces to ensure equitable and uniform vaccine coverage”, said Australian Ambassador to Vietnam Robyn Mudie.

“Introducing a new vaccine especially for COVID-19 is a colossal task for any government with many important steps involved. Thanks to the partnership with the Government of Australia, UNICEF is committed to work with the Ministry of Health and other partners to support the introduction and rollout of COVID-19 vaccines in Vietnam,” said Rana Flowers, UNICEF Representative in Vietnam.

The programme will support Vietnam to reach the prioritised 20 percent of population by the end of 2022 and set the foundation necessary for immunising the remainder of the population as vaccines are rolled out nationwide.

Funding for the programme is drawn from Australia’s 523.2 million AUD Regional Vaccine Access and Health Security Initiative, as well as from the nation’s bilateral development cooperation programme with Vietnam.

In total, Australia has committed 40 million AUD over three years to support Vietnam’s vaccine procurement and delivery efforts./.

Health establishments capable of handling blood clotting from COVID vaccine: Expert

Lower-level healthcare establishments in Vietnam are capable of dealing with blood clotting caused by COVID-19 vaccine thanks to the telehealth system, an expert has said.

Associate Prof. Dr. Dao Xuan Co, Deputy Director of the Hanoi-based Bach Mai Hospital and Secretary-General of the Vietnam National Association of Emergency, Intensive Care Medicine and Clinical Toxicology, said the telehealth system has been deployed to 1,500 sites in all of Vietnam’s 63 cities and provincial nationwide and will help leading specialists instruct grassroots medical facilities on handling cases of blood clotting in a swift and effective manner.

He said people can rest assured about the safety of vaccines, as cases of blood clotting are “very rare”.

If medical establishments at any level encounter vaccinated patients with blood clots, the health sector will be able to mobilise leading experts to conduct consultations and provide treatment guidance via the telehealth system, Co emphasised.

Nearly 80,000 people in 22 cities and provinces in Vietnam have been vaccinated against COVID-19 to date, and there have been no cases of blood clots.

On April 15, the Minister of Health decided to set up a steering committee for COVID-19 vaccination safety, which gathers together ministry officials and leading experts in different specialities to help respond to any circumstance./.

Ho Chi Minh City’s preparations for elections examined

National Assembly Vice Chairman Do Ba Ty inspected preparations for the elections of deputies to the 15th legislature and People’s Councils for the 2021-2026 tenure in Ho Chi Minh City on April 19.

At the working session with the NA delegation, Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Council Pham Duc Hai reported working plans to ensure social safety and order for the elections.

Accordingly, the municipal Election Committee established sub-committees to serve the elections, held weekly meetings with election committees of 21 districts and Thu Duc city on the progress of the preparations.

A number of seminars were also held to popularise the Law on the Election of Deputies to the National Assembly and People’s Councils, the Law on the Organisation of the NA, the Law on the Organisation of Local Administrations, and documents guiding the elections.

So far, there have been 50 nominees for the election of NA lawmakers, 16 of them are women. All hold bachelor degrees and above. Meanwhile, there are 169 candidates running for seats of the municipal People’s Council, including 63 women. Up to 165 of them hold bachelor degrees and above.

Director of the municipal Department of Public Security Maj. Gen. Le Hong Nam said local security and order have been basically maintained. The city’s police are working with authorities and competent agencies to protect the elections.

Ty, who is also head of the subcommittee for security, order and health, asked the municipal departments and agencies to continue raising public awareness of the elections, ensuring that it will take place in a democratic and fair manner.

He also urged the municipal police to fight distortions, enhance inspection in major areas, and come up with firefighting plans at voting areas./.

Over 30,000 people flock to Hung Kings Temple

Over 30,000 people flocked to Hung Kings Temple in the northern province of Phu Tho during the weekend on April 17-18, on the occasion of the upcoming death anniversary of Hung Kings and Hung Kings Temple Festival 2021.

Director of the Hung Kings Temple relic site Le Truong Giang said the management board of the relic site has taken a number of measures to ensure safety for visitors amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Hung Kings are commemorated each year on the 10th day of the third lunar month, which falls on April 21 this year, as an occasion for the nation to express gratitude to the ancestors.

This year’s incense and flower offering ceremonies took place on April 17 (the 6th day of the third lunar month) and will go ahead on April 21 at the relic site.

A series of cultural activities will also be planned, including a music show and firework display, a glutinous rice cake making competition, a swimming competition, and a national volleyball tournament, and others.

Legend has it that the eldest son of Lac Long Quan (son of Kinh Duong Vuong) and Au Co (the fairy daughter of De Lai) was made king. He named the country Van Lang and set up the capital in Phong Chau (modern-day Viet Tri city), beginning 18 dynasties of the Hung Kings.

The kings chose Nghia Linh Mountain, the highest in the region, to perform rituals devoted to the rice and sun deities to pray for healthy crops.

To honour their substantial contributions, a complex of temples dedicated to the kings was built on Nghia Linh Mountain, and the tenth day of the third lunar month serves as the national commemorative anniversary for the kings.

The worshipping rituals of the Hung Kings was recognised as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2012./.

Dien Bien: 12 arrested for organising illegal exit

The border guard and police forces in the northern border province of Dien Bien have captured 12 people for organising the illegal exit of 13 foreigners.

On April 18, they detected a suspicious truck stopping in front of a grocery store in Nam Po district’s Si Pa Phin commune, with its trunk opened to let five Chinese nationals get out and enter the store.

The driver, Nguyen Duc Giang, born in 1960 and residing in the commune’s Nam Chim 1 village, admitted that he was hired by a woman living in Laos to drive the five men to the Vietnam – Laos border area for 2 million VND (86.2 USD) in return. Giang took the Chinese to the store, owned by Sung A Chu, born in 1986 and residing in the commune’s Pu Dao village, and called the woman saying he would hire Chu to take the five to the border area.

All the seven men were arrested.

On April 19, the forces caught another 18 suspects, consisting of 10 Vietnamese and 8 foreigners.

The Vietnamese suspects admitted they were hired to drive the foreigners from Lai Chau province’s Phong Tho district to the Vietnam-Laos border area.

The cases are under further investigation./.

No new COVID-19 cases recorded on April 20 morning

Vietnam reported no new COVID-19 cases in the past 12 hours to 6am on April 20, according to the Ministry of Health.

The total number of infections in Vietnam was 2,791, including 2,475 recoveries and 25 deaths.

Among active patients undergoing treatment at medical establishments nationwide, 11 tested negative to the virus once, 16 twice and 18 thrice.

As many as 40,150 people who had close contact with COVID-19 patients or entered Vietnam from pandemic-hit regions are currently quarantined across the country, including 531 in hospitals, 24,361 in state-designated establishments and 15,258 at their homes or residences.

According to the ministry, on April 19, additional 3,812 people in 13 provinces and cities got COVID-19 vaccine shots, raising the total number of people vaccinated against the coronavirus in the country to 80,857.

The Health Ministry continued to urge all people to follow the 5K motto – Khau trang (wearing facemask) – Khu khuan (disinfecting) – Khoang cach (keeping distance) – Khong tu tap (no gathering) – Khai bao y te (making medical declaration), in order to live safely amid the pandemic./.

Fireworks show to be held at Hung King Festival

The northern province of Phu Tho has planned to organise a high-range fireworks display to celebrate the Hung Kings’ Temple Festival.

The 15-minute high-range firework show will take place at the Van Lang Park in Viet Tri City on the evening of April 20, or the 9th of the third lunar month. The fireworks will sparkle following a show on Vietnam’s legendary origins.

On April 18, a swimming competition will be held at a lake within Van Lang Park, meanwhile at the Hung King Temple, a competition to make Banh Chung and Banh Day – the two traditional dishes offered to the Hung Kings – will be organised.

On April 18-21, a volleyball tournament will take place at the provincial gymnasium. Other activities within the festival framework include xoan singing performances at local temples in Viet Tri, street music programmes like the Viet Tri Live Music event and an exhibition featuring ornamental plants.

The organisers have Covid-19 prevention measures prepared as regulated by the Ministry of Health for the event.

National squad to gather in Quy Nhon ahead of World Cup qualifiers

The Vietnamese national men’s football team are due to participate in a short training camp on May 10 in Quy Nhon city in the south-central province of Binh Dinh as they prepare for their remaining qualification games in the Asian region for the 2022 World Cup.

The decision to train in Quy Nhon is due to the climate in the south-central city being similar to that of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) where the World Cup qualifiers will be held, according to the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF).

Footballers called up to the national team will then travel to Hanoi for further training before flying to the UAE on May 28.

Le Hoai Anh, general secretary of the VFF, said local players will be vaccinated against the SARS-CoV-2 virus on April 19 and April 20 at the Military Hospital 108.

The Vietnamese squad must then have samples taken as part of COVID-19 testing 72 hours before departing for the UAE. Upon landing in the Middle Eastern country, the entire team will then have a second test.

Moving forward, Vietnam are scheduled to take on Indonesia on June 7, Malaysia on June 11, before playing hosts the UAE on June 15, as announced by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).

The national men’s football team are currently leading Group G with 11 points after five matches played. The target is to hold on to the top place and progress to the third qualifying round in the Asian region for the first time in history.

Outstanding archaeological achievements in past decade announced

The Institute of Imperial Citadel Studies announced outstanding achievements in archaeological studies, technology application, museum display and design and promotion of Vietnam’s cultural heritage on April 18 on the occasion of its 10th founding anniversary (April 28, 2011-2021).

Director of the institute Bui Minh Tri said that over the past decade, the institute have actively and creatively carried out and well fulfilled its missions assigned by the Prime Minister and the Chairperson of the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences.

The institute’s achievements in scientific research are demonstrated through the implementation of the project of revising, studying and assessing the value and making a scientific record of the Thang Long Imperial Citadel relic site and the task of excavating the Nen Chua relict site in the southern province of Kien Giang, which is part of the project on researching the Oc Eo-Ba The and Nen Chua archaeological relic sites.

In addition, the institute has also left impressions through the organisation of the project on showcasing vestiges and objects in the basement of the National Assembly House in Hanoi and another on promoting the cultures of Dinh-Tien Le dynasties at Hoa Lu relic site in the northern province of Ninh Binh./.

HCM City ceremony to commend outstanding overseas Vietnamese

Ho Chi Minh City will hold a ceremony on April 20 to honour 33 outstanding collectives and 17 individuals of the Vietnamese community abroad, according to the city’s Committee for Overseas Vietnamese.

The activity aims to recognise and encourage the expatriates with prominent achievements in assisting Vietnamese citizens in production and business activities, scientific researches, medicine, educational and training cooperation, and social and charitable activities between 2018 and 2020.

They include Assoc. Prof and Dr Vu Minh Khuong, a senior lecturer at the Singapore-based Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy; Dr Nguyen Duc Thai, a Vietnamese in the US now lecturing at the HCM City University of Medicine and Pharmacy; Dr Nguyen Huu Le, a Vietnamese in Australia and Chairman of the TMA Solutions company; and Bui Van Tuan, Chairman of the Delta E&C Japan.

More than 5.3 million Vietnamese people are living in 130 countries and territories worldwide. Overseas remittances into the country reached 15.7 billion USD in 2020.

In particular, the remittances into HCM City reached a record high of 6.1 billion USD last year, up over 15 percent from 2019. The figure stood at 1.45 billion USD in the first quarter of 2021, up 10 percent year on year./.

Goalkeeper Van Lam officially joins Cerezo Osaka after end of quarantine period

National team goalkeeper Dang Van Lam concluded two weeks of quarantine in Japan on April 17 and is set to be presented to fans of J-League 1 side Cerezo Osaka Club on April 18.

According to the Cerezo Osaka’s official website, Van Lam will officially debut to the club’s fans ahead of their match against Urawa Reds on April 18.

The premiere will take place at the Nagai Stadium at 13:00 p.m. on April 18, according to Vietnamese time, and will be broadcast live on the club’s official Facebook page.

Van Lam originally arrived in Japan on April 3 and has now completed two weeks of compulsory quarantine as part of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic prevention efforts.

After the presentation tomorrow, the 28-year-old goalkeeper will then officially begin training sessions with his new teammates, with his aim to feature in the “derby Osaka” between Cerezo and Gamba on May 2.

By joining Cerezo Osaka, Van Lam will also become the first Vietnamese player to play in the J-League 1, Japan’s highest professional league.

Before that, other popular Vietnamese players such as Cong Phuong, Tuan Anh, and Le Cong Vinh previously played in the J-League 2.

Throughout May, Van Lam will have the opportunity to play in five matches in the J-League 1 before flying to the UAE to join the Vietnamese national team as they participate in qualifying matches for the 2022 World Cup in early June.

Binh Thuan: Dead whale brought to shore

Fishermen in Phan Thiet city, the south central province of Binh Thuan brought a carcass of a whale (respectfully called Ca Ong by locals) to the shore for burial on April 17.

The fishermen found the gray whale, 15 metres in length and more than four tonnes in weight, dead at sea on April 16.

Vietnamese coastal residents believe whales are sacred animals that help fishermen at sea. Therefore, they often rescue the animals or bury the dead ones in solemn ceremonies.

According to local practice, fishermen exhume whales’ graves after three years, and bring the remains to the local temple for worshipping.

Phan Thiet city has many temples to worship Ca Ong, with Van Thuy Tu being the largest. It is keeping a whale skeleton, which is 22 metres long, the largest in Southeast Asia./.

Biodegradable bags gaining in popularity

With pollution only seeming to get worse, many people have decided to make the change to biodegradable paper bags, which can be reused multiple times and pose no health hazards whatsoever. The new sustainability trend is becoming more popular for everyone.

By using paper bags instead of nylon bags or plastic boxes, this outlet has won the hearts of environmentally-conscious customers, despite the relatively high cost.

Paper bags are considered a sustainable packaging option for their biodegradability. With eye-catching designs, they have found favour among shoppers.

There are now many options replacing plastic products that customers can choose from to help protect the environment and living a greener, healthier life./.

Con Dao island home to one of 25 most beautiful beaches worldwide

The Bai Dam Trau beach in Con Dao island in Vietnam’s southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau, has been listed among the 25 most beautiful beaches in the world, according to a recent article published by Travel Leisure magazine.

“Trying to select Vietnam’s most beautiful beach is tough, but Bai Dam Trau in the Con Dao islands is certainly a top contender,” the article says.

“With distinct golden sand, soft swells, and shady groves of bamboo and evergreen trees, it’s the kind of place to spend the day gently swinging in a hammock with a beach read and walking in the surf with a freshly hacked coconut,” the article adds.

Topping the list is Saud Beach on Luzon island in the Philippines, followed by Elafonissi Beach in Greece and Nungwi Beach in Tanzania.

Along with the Vietnamese beach, the list also sees two other representatives from the Asian region, including Railay West in Thailand and Radhanagar in India.

Last year, Travel Leisure magazine placed Vietnamese hotel The Reverie Saigon in the southern hub Ho Chi Minh City at 57th position among the 100 best hotels globally.

In 2019, the ancient city of Hoi An in the central province of Quang Nam made it into the magazine’s list of 15 most beautiful cities across the world./.

Operations of Vietnamese aircraft grind to a halt due to COVID-19

During the first quarter of the year the nation had a total of 39 planes which underwent maintenance, while their flight operations were suspended due to the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, according to data released by the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV).

The grounded jets are among 269 airplanes registered as Vietnamese currently, a rise of 13 from the same period from last year. These comprise 247 flat-winged jets of Boeing, Airbus, ATR and Embraer as well as 22 helicopters.

In an effort to minimise the risks caused by flight-stopping preservation, Dinh Viet Thang, director of the CAAV, has request that domestic airlines rotate operating aircraft as a means of ensuring that the maintenance of flight stops is no longer than one month.

In the event that an aircraft is serviced for over one month due to malfunction, breakdown, or insufficient configuration, the airline must then report this to the CAAV before getting their approval, with the exception of aircraft currently in their maintenance period.

Furthermore, Thang also urged all airlines to consistently perform regular maintenance, along with monitoring, updating, and thoroughly complying with regulations and instructions set out by manufacturers with regard to flight-stopping maintenance. In addition, the CAVV director went on to underline the need to intensify inspection and conservation methods as part of the maintenance and flight stoppage process, along with immediately dealing with abnormal phenomena as swiftly as possible.

This comes following a large number of flight stopping aircraft, aircraft manufacturers, and engine builders issuing technical instructions and alternate procedures in a bid to help aircraft operators as they conduct engine protection as set out in aircraft maintenance manuals.

Hung Kings Volleyball Cup 2021 gets underway in Phu Tho

Viet Tri city in the northern province of Phu Tho hosted the start of the Hung Kings Volleyball Cup 2021 on April 18 to mark the occasion of commemorating the death anniversary of the Hung Kings, the country’s legendary founders.

The tournament features the participation of 140 volleyball players from across the country who are set to compete in both the male and female categories.

Immediately following the conclusion of the opening ceremony, VTV Binh Dien Long An club won a ticket to progress to the final round in the women’s category after recording a convincing 3-0 win over Information-Communications Command–FLC club.

The Hung Kings Volleyball Cup is organized by the Vietnam Volleyball Federation and has been held annually in Phu Tho province since 2004.

Furthermore, the competition is also an important part of the national volleyball system which aims to discover talents capable of representing the Vietnamese at future international tournaments, including the 31st Southeast Asian (SEA) Games which will be held in Vietnam later this year.

The tournament is scheduled to last until April 21.

FIFA helps digitalise soccer data system in Vietnam

As the international governing body of football, FIFA have agreed to assist the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) to deploy a programme aimed at digitising the soccer data system FIFA Connect, as agreed upon on April 14 during a virtual meeting.

The FIFA Connect Programme will therefore assist members as they register all of their stakeholders in a systematic way in order to keep track of players, coaches, and referees, wherever they are in the world.

The programme will provide a unique FIFA ID code for every individual who has a role within the football organization. The code is used like a digital football passport number which holds relevant information detailing the history of each stakeholder.

The deployment of the programme in Vietnam will get underway in May. The data system contains various pieces of information about footballers, their clubs, and referees during the V.League 1 and V.League 2 seasons. It is expected that the scheme will be enforced before July.

17 new bridges open to traffic in Long An Province

Seventeen bridges were inaugurated in the southern province of Long An on April 15 as part of the Rural Bridge Programme funded by enterprises following an appeal by former President Trương Tấn Sang and Nông Thôn Việt magazine.

Nine bridges in Tân Hưng District were built with funding worth VNĐ9 billion (US$389,930) provided by Đỗ Thị Kim Liên, chairwoman of the Green Vietnam Fund.

They facilitate transport of goods and ensure safety, especially of school-going children.

Saigon Thương Tín Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Sacombank) provided VNĐ5 billion ($216,292) to build six bridges in Vĩnh Hưng District.

Nutifood donated VNĐ1.6 billion ($69,213) to build two more bridges in the district.

These eight bridges along a road between Vĩnh Bình and Vĩnh Thuận communes will replace old ones that were severely degraded.

Over the last four years, the Rural Bridge Programme – Nông Thôn Việt magazine has carried out more than 300 bridge and sewer projects in Long An, Đồng Tháp and An Giang provinces at a cost of more than VNĐ300 billion ($12.9 million).

Deteriorated wastewater treatment systems cause pollution in Nghe An

Hundreds of households in Dien Van, Dien Ky and Dien Hong communes, Nghe An Province’s Dien Chau District, are complaining about the environment being polluted by wastewater from a local industrial zone.

Local people have complained their lives have been badly affected since the Dien Hong Commune Industrial Cluster discharged wastewater into the environment. Even though there are three wastewater sedimentation lakes, they seem to be abandoned. The wastewater is then discharged into the irrigation canal for the fields.

The industrial cluster has a lot of scrap collectors and a large amount of rubbish. The locals said they also had to suffer the smoke coming from iron and steel processing workshops.

Nguyen Hong Trung, chairman of Dien Hong Commune People’s Committee, said, “There are 41 facilities operating there. They mostly collect steel scrap and recycle plastic. We have reported the situation to higher authorities many times but the problem hasn’t been dealt with.”

Dien Hong Commune Industrial Cluster was approved by Nghe An People’s Committee in 2003. It covers 10ha with 11 firms and 30 household businesses. The wastewater treatment system has deteriorated and has been nearly abandoned.

The Department of Economy and Infrastructure in Dien Chau said the pollution was caused by the deteriorated wastewater treatment system in the cluster. When the cluster was opened, its infrastructure lacked synchronous investments. That’s why Dien Chau District People’s Committee are having plans to rebuild the clusters’ infrastructure.

“We’ll upgrade and rebuild all sewers and wastewater sedimentation tanks this year,” said Truong Van Duc, head of Dien Chau District Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

Kon Tum to host cultural festival for ethnic groups next month

Kon Tum Province will host the first Culture, Sports and Tourism Festival for Ethnic Groups in the Central Highlands from May 28 to 30.

The festival will be jointly organized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Kon Tum government, with the participation of the five Central Highlands provinces of Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Daklak, Dak Nong and Lam Dong, the central province of Quang Nam and the southern province of Binh Phuoc.

Under the theme “Preserving and Promoting Traditional Cultural Values of Ethnic Groups in the Central Highlands during the Nation’s Integration and Development Process”, the event enables participating localities to introduce their unique traditions, culture and tourist attractions.

The artists and artisans will have the opportunity to exchange experiences, learn about the culture of other provinces and raise public awareness about the preservation of traditional cultural values. The event is also a chance for businesses to seek partnerships and boost investment in the Central Highlands.

The three-day festival will feature a wide range of activities such as cuisine booths, traditional fashion shows, traditional music instruments’ shows, sporting events, traditional games, tourism promotion programs, an exhibition on the culture of different ethnic groups in the Central Highlands, tours to well-known attractions in Kon Tum Province and cooking competitions.

The first Culture, Sports and Tourism Festival for Ethnic Groups in the Central Highlands expects to attract some 1,200 participants, including artists, artisans and athletes from the seven participating provinces, officials from Government departments, security officers, health workers and volunteers.

People’s Procuracy asserts 137 million liters of fuel linked to Trinh Suong as fake

A representative of the People’s Procuracy of Dak Nong Province during a court hearing on April 16 put forward many arguments to uphold that 137 million liters of fuel in a substandard fuel production ring linked to fuel trader Trinh Suong, chairman and director of My Hung Co., Ltd, are fake.

The trial on April 16 continued after the provincial People’s Procuracy released an indictment recommending sentences against fuel tycoon Trinh Suong, with 12-13 years behind bars for producing and trading in fake goods.

During a trial session on April 14, a lawyer of Suong cited Point b, Article 8, Clause 3 of Decree No.185 dated in 2013 as stipulating that goods whose quality is below 70% are considered fake items and requested the Procuracy to re-determine whether the amount of fuel blended by Suong was fake or not.

However, the People’s Procuracy representative said that the lawyers of Suong had misunderstood Clause 3. Article 8, Clause 3, of the decree includes eight points regulating the definition of a fake product. Any item violating one of these eight points is considered fake. Meanwhile, the lawyer only mentioned Point b without taking into account the remaining points.

The People’s Procuracy representative added that the fuel blended by Suong had violated Point a, Article 8, Clause 3, stipulating regulations on goods without use value, function; goods with use value, functions not in line with the nature and name; goods with use value, functions not on par with their registered, announced use value, functions. Therefore, the local People’s Procuracy asserted that the fuels blended by Suong are fake.

HCMC meets requirement for loan disbursement extension for second metro line

The HCMC government has written to the Ministry of Finance, affirming that it met the German Development Bank’s (KfW) requirement to extend the deadline to disburse a loan of 240.75 million euros (US$288 million) for the city’s second metro line project and adjust the time to pay off the loan.

According to the city, it signed two agreements with KfW on the loan in 2011, the local media reported.

In 2019, when the project’s completion deadline was adjusted, the city proposed the bank extend the deadline to disburse the loan to 2026 and that it would start paying the loan from 2027.

However, KfW said it could extend the loan disbursement deadline to the end of December 2024. It would continue extending the deadline in accordance with the reality and the project’s progress.

As for the requirement for the deadline extension, the Management Authority for Urban Railways (MAUR) of HCMC must sign an appendix with the consulting firm of the project, Implementation Consultant (IC), or work out an alternative plan to ensure consultancy for the project.

MAUR has worked with IC on the appendix many times but IC asked the city to make payments for incomplete items and those ineligible for payment and the workload in signed appendices to continue its consultancy for the project.

According to the municipal government, it could not meet IC’s requirement as the requirement went against regulations on contract management. As a result, the two sides could not reach a consensus.

MAUR later held a meeting with other sponsors to replace IC.

The metro line project was designed to be 11.2 kilometers and pass through districts 1, 3, 10, 12, Tan Binh and Tan Phu. Its investment was estimated at VND47.8 trillion.

The project includes seven main packages from CP1 to CP7, of which the CP1 to build an office building and auxiliary items at the Tham Luong Depot has been completed, while tenders for the six others have yet to be held.

Work on the project was planned to start in 2022 and be completed in 2026.

Transport Ministry wants four localities to invest in Ring Road No. 3

The Ministry of Transport has asked HCMC, Dong Nai, Binh Duong and Long An to determine whether they can invest in sections of the Ring Road No. 3 project passing through their localities and propose execution plans if they agree to develop the sections.

According to the ministry, due to the necessity to develop the ring road early and the tight State budget, it called for the involvement of localities in the project.

The ministry has updated the required investment and construction and site clearance costs in each locality.

If localities agree to invest in the sections of Ring Road No. 3, they should work out plans to exploit the land fund along the road and propose State support if needed. If they propose the Ministry of Transport take charge of the construction of the project, they must state whether they can take responsibility for the entire site clearance cost.

Relating to the project, the Dong Nai government on April 12 held a meeting with the My Thuan Project Management Board under the Ministry of Transport to prepare for the road section in the province.

The section in Dong Nai has two segments–1A and 2A. The 1A segment will have a total length of over 8.7 kilometers and start at an intersection with provincial road 25B in Nhon Trach District and end at an intersection with the HCMC-Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway in HCMC’s Thu Duc City.

The Ministry of Transport has approved the prefeasibility for the segment with an estimated investment of VND5.3 trillion, sourced from official development assistance loans and the reciprocal capital. Work on the 1A segment will start next quarter.

The 2A segment was designed to be some five kilometers long, start at an intersection with Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway and end at an intersection with provincial road 25B.

According to the Ministry of Transport, the Ring Road No. 3 project has an important role in developing transport services between HCMC and the southern key economic zone.

Under a decision approved by the prime minister, the project would be completed before 2020. However, only 16.3 of 89 kilometers of the road have been put into service.

The required investment for the project was estimated at over VND60 trillion, including VND32.7 trillion for construction and VND27.3 trillion for site clearance.

Special policies and tours needed to promote educational tourism

During a workshop held on April 16, 2021, as part of the Famtrip organized by the Danang City Department of Tourism from April 14 to 17, 2021, participants said Danang’s tourism industry needs to offer specific policies and tours to attract guests to participate in educational tourism.

Educational tours should focus on research, culture, experiential and teambuilding activities. The pricing policy for such tours must synchronously include promotions from travel companies and accommodation to transportation and tourist sites.

The workshop saw the participation of representatives from schools nationwide.

Nguyen Cong Hoan, Head of the Faculty of Tourism, University of Finance and Marketing in HCMC, said the educational tour is mainly for students to learn about destinations rather than just focus on entertainment. Therefore, this type of tour must offer spiritual culture or ecotourism.

“Visiting the craft village will be attractive to students,” said Hoan, elaborating that students who join the tour in Danang can, for example, study the process of making fish sauce at the renowned Nam O fish sauce village.

Nguyen Ngoc Truc from the Faculty of Interdisciplinary Sciences, National University of Hanoi, had a similar opinion, saying that educational tours should be designed with more research experience, such as studying the history of the Marble Mount or the marble craft village.

Meanwhile, representatives of some other schools such as FPT University, Danang University or Hanoi National Economics University stressed on the pricing policy. According to them, a good policy will help woo students who are potential customers. Besides, schools need synchronous promotions from tour suppliers for travel and accommodation.

“We will seek ways to establish a working group whose members are enterprises offering promotional packages for educational tourism,” said Cao Tri Dung, Chairman of Danang Tourism Association, adding that the association will work with other parties, including airlines, to offer reasonable prices for this kind of tour.

Reportedly, educational tourism is part of a wide range of activities to implement the master plan to promote Danang tourism. Accordingly, the municipal tourism industry identifies the domestic market as the main tourism market in the current period.

“In order to diversify the tourist markets, we have found that the educational tourism trend is very popular among schools and businesses. This tour must combine practical experience, relaxation and entertainment activities,” said Tan Van Vuong, Deputy Director of Danang Tourism Department.

Top legislator mulls over deputies’ affairs for upcoming elections

National Assembly (NA) Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue chaired a meeting with the NA Standing Committee’s working commission for deputies’ affairs in Hanoi on April 19.

At the session, the commission suggested policies are needed to recruit a specific number of experts as full-time deputies when building personnel options and conducting the process of nominating candidates for the election of deputies to the NA.

The NA Chairman highlighted a large number of works to be done in preparation for the upcoming elections of deputies to the 15th legislature and all-level People’s Councils for the 2021 – 2026 tenure.

He asked the commission to work with the office of the National Election Council (NEC) to direct and provide guidance on the works.

Underscoring the preparation for the elections as the foremost task, Hue requested the commission collect results of provincial-level third consultative conferences to soon make a report to the NEC.

After the elections, the commission will have to conduct a series of works, including preparation for the summarisation of the elections and developing a training programme for elected deputies, among others.

Hue also asked the body to begin building a project on enhancing deputies’ working capacity right from now./.

NA Vice Chairman inspects election preparations in Cao Bang

A working delegation led by National Assembly Vice Chairman Nguyen Duc Hai on April 19 inspected preparations for the elections of deputies to the 15th National Assembly and People’s Councils at all levels for the 2021-2026 tenure in the northern mountainous province of Cao Bang.

Hoang Xuan Anh, Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, deputy head of the Steering Committee for the Elections and Chairman of the provincial Election Committee, said as of April 18, the preparations for the elections in the province had met requirements.

In the second consultation conference on March 17, the Standing Board of the provincial Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee agreed with the list of 12 candidates for the election of deputies to the 15th legislature, with 100 percent approval votes.

During the third consultation conference on April 15, a list of eight people eligible for the election of NA deputies and a list of 83 candidates for deputies of the provincial People’s Councils, and 526 running for seats in the district and municipal-level People’s Councils were approved.

As of April 18, as many as 161 communes in the province had publicised a list of constituents in 1,004 voting areas.

The delegation asked the province to enhance the election inspection, as well as devise COVID-19 prevention and control plans during the process.

NA Vice Chairman Nguyen Duc Hai also required the province to thoroughly deal with issues related to complaints and denunciations during the work, ensuring openness and transparency in line with the law./.

Seventh National External Information Service Awards launched

The seventh National External Information Service Awards were launched during a press conference in Hanoi on April 19.

The awards aims to honour outstanding writers and works in the field of external information.

Speaking at the launch, Vice Chairman of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Information and Education and deputy head of the standing board of the steering committee on external information work, Bui Truong Giang, said that with important achievements over recent years, Vietnam has been widely hailed in international media.

The country’s current prestige and stature has provided a source of inspiration for staff involved in the external work at home and abroad, thus creating more meaningful and valuable external information works, he said.

Through six editions, the awards have secured a reputation for quality and prestige and become a forum for Vietnamese and foreign writers to exchange professional expertise and open up a creative space for those working in the field.

Submissions can be in any language and must be published as an article in a print newspaper, online newspaper, or website (licensed by competent agencies), radio broadcast, TV broadcast, press photo, landscape photo, or book, from July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021. They must be sent to the Radio the Voice of Vietnam – the standing agency of this year’s awards, before July 15.

Prizes will be presented to winners in late August.

Entries must reflect the Party and State leaders’ external and internal activities, the Party and State’s policies and stances on international issues, the settlement of issues related to national sovereignty, and international issues of public concern, in a correct and timely manner.

At the same time, they must affirm Vietnam’s role, stature and prestige in the international community, helping to popularise its people, history, and culture.

Last year, the organising board received about 1,300 entries in nine categories and 17 languages. The number and quality of entries improved significantly compared to previous years./.

NA Judicial Committee asked to promote core role in NA operations

National Assembly (NA) Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue has requested that the NA Committee for Judicial Affairs continue promoting its core role in the legislature’s activities, while chairing a working session with standing members of the committee on April 19.

This was the first working session between the top legislator and the committee after Hue was elected as chairman of the 14th legislature at the 11th sitting.

Participants pinpointed problems in the committee’s operation and made proposals relating to the organisation and structure of the committee, judicial reform, and the mobilization of experts in participating in the committee’s activities.

NA Chairman Hue stressed that the quality and efficiency of the NA’s activities rely on many factors and are measured by the quality and effectiveness of its committees’ operations.

He therefore asked the judicial committee to make plans for continuing to reform and increase the quality and efficiency of its operations.

The committee must remain ready to work with the Party Delegation to the NA in building a draft resolution on continuing to perfect the law-ruled socialist State for submission to the Party Central Committee, and to raise the efficiency of coordination between the NA, its Standing Committee and the Party Delegation to the NA with judicial agencies./.

Hanoi ceremony marks 60th anniversary of Cuba’s Giron victory

The 60th anniversary of Cuba’s Giron victory was celebrated with a ceremony in Hanoi on April 19 held by the Ministry of National Defence, the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations (VUFO), and the Vietnam-Cuba Friendship Association.

Addressing the ceremony, Deputy Minister of National Defence Sen. Lt. Gen. Nguyen Tan Cuong emphasised that the Giron victory on April 19, 1961 was a great source of support for national liberation and the struggle against imperialism in Latin America and Third World countries as a whole, helping to firmly safeguard the revolutionary administration and marking a decisive turning point in the Cuban revolution on the path towards socialism.

It was also a triumph of justice that has been increasingly affirmed via the achievements of the Cuban people over the last six decades of national construction and development, he said.

On this occasion, on behalf of the leaders of the Ministry of National Defence, Cuong offered his congratulations on the success of the eighth National Congress of the Communist Party of Cuba, held from April 16 to 19, and voiced his belief that under the leadership of its new Party Central Committee, Cuba will reap more achievements on the path towards socialism.

With regard to bilateral relations, the deputy minister noted that the fraternal solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the Vietnamese and Cuban Parties, States, armies, and people have long been treasured and nurtured by generations of the two countries’ leaders, becoming a role model in relations in the era.

He thanked Cuba for standing side-by-side with Vietnam during its fight for national liberation as well as its ongoing national development and defence efforts, adding that the timely mutual assistance in fighting COVID-19 is also demonstration of their sentiment for and consistent trust in each other.

Apart from people-to-people diplomacy, defence cooperation has also gradually become an important pillar in bilateral ties, helping strengthen the countries’ defence capacity to protect their respective Parties, regimes, and people as well as independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, Cuong said.

Appreciating the sincere sentiments the Vietnamese Party, State, army, and people have had towards his country over the last 60 years, Col. Juan Miguel Garcia Montano, Military Attaché of Cuba to Vietnam, affirmed that the two countries’ relations have overcome the test of war and numerous ups and downs in history, and promoting these ties is the first and foremost task in both sides’ foreign policies.

He also pledged to make further contributions to cooperation and friendship, including in defence, between the two countries./.

Seminar discusses promoting gender equality in NA election

A seminar was held in Hanoi on April 19 to discuss promoting gender equality in the election of female deputies to the National Assembly and People’s Councils.

Chairwoman of the NA Committee for Social Affairs Nguyen Thuy Anh told the seminar that the rate of female deputies in the 14th legislature (26.72 percent) and People’s Councils for the 2016-2021 tenure was higher than those in previous tenures but yet to meet expectations.

According to the Law on the Election of Deputies to the NA and People’s Councils, the rate of female candidates for the elections of deputies to the NA and People’s Councils must reach at least 35 percent, she said.

Permanent NA Vice Chairman Tran Thanh Man said that among 888 candidates nominated by localities, female candidates for lawmakers accounted for 48.65 percent, deputies of provincial-level People’s Councils 41.76 percent, and those in district-level and communal-level People’s Councils 42.36 percent and 39.05 percent, respectively.

He hoped that the rate of elected female deputies will meet the requirements of the Politburo’s Resolution No 11 on women’s affairs during the country’s industrialisation and modernisation.

Man suggested that female candidates be aware of their strengths to present action plans succinctly and persuasively.

Female candidates at the seminar also learned about communications and personal branding skills and had their questions answered relating to difficulties in the election.

The event will last till April 20./.

Environmental protection – Foundation for development in Da Nang

Environmental protection will be placed at the centre of decisions and policies in central Da Nang city under a project aiming to build the locality into an environmentally-friendly metropolis during the 2021-2030 period.

The municipal Department of Natural Resources and Environment hosted a press conference on April 19 regarding the project, which will mark a breakthrough in the cause of environmental protection and sustainable development in Da Nang.

In the project, environmental solutions have been integrated with socio-economic development strategies, planning schemes, and plans. The project also focuses on administrative reform and the application of achievements from the fourth Industrial Revolution.

Da Nang will mobilise resources from different economic sectors and increase budget spending on environmental protection, while calling for the involvement of businesses, socio-political organisations, and the public in the task.

The enhancement of State management will be in tandem with improvements to public awareness about environmental protection.

Director of the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment To Van Hung said that with total investment capital of over 15 trillion VND (652.28 million USD), the project’s objective is to maintain and upgrade the existing environmental criteria.

Da Nang expects to become an ecological urban area by 2030 that is environmentally safe for people, investors, and tourists.

As part of communications activities for the project, the department announced the organisation of the first-ever water festival, to promote the precious nature of water and raise public awareness about water resources protection./.

HCM City starts second phase of COVID-19 vaccination

Ho Chi Minh City’s health sector began the second phase of the COVID-19 vaccination for medical workers and those who have contacts with people entering Vietnam via Tan Son Nhat International Airport on April 19.

Director of the municipal Health Department Nguyen Tan Binh said that until April 30, 45,190 doses will be given to medical personnel working at public and private health establishments and hospitals of the Health Ministry, while additional 2,000 doses will be injected into those working at the airport.

A total of 9,050 medical workers who get the first shot during the first phase will get the second shot this time.

To ensure safety, the department has requested all inoculation places to make thorough preparations and make plans to cooperate with the closest hospitals to deal with any possible post-vaccination incidents.

According to the department, the municipal health sector has more than 60,000 medical workers./.

108 Military Central Hospital marks 70th anniversary

The Hanoi-based 108 Military Central Hospital held a ceremony on April 19 to mark its 70th founding anniversary (April 1) and receive the “Labour Hero in the Renewal Period” title.

Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, Secretary of the Central Military Commission, was among the distinguished guests at the event.

On behalf of the Party and State leaders, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam presented the hospital with the “Labour Hero in the Renewal Period”, a noble title of the State bestowed upon those with particularly excellent achievements in their duty performance.

Applauding the hospital’s proud attainments, he said its medical workers and scientists have made breakthrough development in both quantity and quality, and that they have mastered the most cutting-edge medical equipment and complicated techniques to save patients with fatal illnesses and conduct historic organ transplant surgeries.

The hospital has done a good job of providing in-depth training for lower-level hospitals to help with developing the national healthcare network, Dam said, noting that it is also a bright example of reforming the management model.

Though the 108 Military Central Hospital is a military establishment, it has not limited its activities to giving medical examination and treatment to those serving in the army or conducting studies and training in military medicine, but it has brought into play its advantages to contribute to public health care, which has in turn helped enhance the hospital’s military medical capacity, according to the Deputy PM.

The official told the hospital to push ahead with developing personnel with political firmness, good morality, and high professional capacity; step up scientific research and intensive training; boost cooperation with domestic and international healthcare, research, and training establishments; work to equip itself with the most up-to-date technologies and techniques; and stay ready to respond to any disaster or war condition.

He also requested continued efforts in COVID-19 prevention and control while asking ministries and sectors, especially the Ministry of National Defence and the Ministry of Health, to create the best possible conditions for the hospital to fulfill its glorious but also heavy duties.

In his remarks, Hospital Director Lt. Gen. Mai Hong Bang recalled that the Yen Trach Central Hospital, the predecessor of the 108 Military Central Hospital, was set up in the Viet Bac revolutionary base 70 years ago, with a military medical team of only 30 members.

Throughout the wartime and the Renewal period, the hospital has weathered every difficulty and challenge and is now one of the five special national hospitals and among the leading scientific research and medical training centres in Vietnam./.

HCM City coach slams Nam Dinh time-wasting

HCM City FC coach Alexandre Polking slammed Nam Định for time-wasting at the end of his side’s 3-2 defeat on Sunday, but Nam Định coach Nguyễn Văn Sỹ insisted what his side did was within the limits of fair play.

At Thiên Trường stadium in Nam Định, the home team won thanks to two goals by Ossou Konan and one from Rodrigo Dias while Lâm Ti Phông’s brace wasn’t enough for HCM City to take anything.

The turning point came after a beautiful free-kick from Rodrigo Dias in the 67th minute to make the score 3-2. Tempers flared in the dying minutes and Phan Văn Hiếu of Nam Định and City star Lee Nguyễn received red cards in extra time.

After the match, Polking said he wasn’t happy to see the home team wasting time by committing fouls to preserve their lead.

“What I saw here today in the last 12 minutes is not good for the league at all. It’s a shame for me to see that. I would never do that for a team to win a game. Never,” he said, referring to time-wasting from Nam Định.

Polking congratulated Nam Định’s players and said the referee did the right thing in adding on a lot of extra time but lambasted the home team’s efforts to slow the game by throwing the ball away when it went out of play and players staying down.

“It’s not good for the league he said,” adding, “this is (from) 20 years ago.”

Nam Định’s coach Nguyễn Văn Sỹ disagreed with Polking’s statement and said his opponents would have done the same thing if roles were reversed.

“HCM City would have done that too if they had been in the same situation,” Sỹ said.

“The dedication of the players in this match was amazing. I hope they keep their determination in the next matches. This is a worthy result for the club and the fans of Nam Định.

“They said my team bought time, but they also have to look in the mirror. HCM City also injured my players. What we did to preserve the score is completely within the limits of football,” said the 49-year-old.

Nam Định currently sit sixth in the table with 15 points after 10 games, while HCM City are in 12th place with only 10 points – only one point away from bottom.

In the next match, Nam Định will meet Than Quảng Ninh, while HCM City will face defending champions Viettel.

Source: VNA/VNS/VOV/VIR/SGT/Nhan Dan/Hanoitimes