Vietnam da lat

The total support from GCF also includes a US$75 million guarantee. US$8.3 million from the grant will be used to build capacity in the private sector to identify, appraise and execute energy efficiency projects.

It will also provide technical assistance to the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the relevant authorities to further strengthen policy frameworks and regulations and create a helpful environment aimed at accelerating the energy efficiency market in Vietnam.

The remaining grant funds and guarantee will be used to establish a risk-share facility to provide partial credit guarantees to local banks who may risk potential default on loans for energy efficienct projects.

By reducing lending risks, the facility is expected to mobilize around US$250 million of commercial financing, to be provided to industrial enterprises and energy service companies at competitive terms and with low collateral requirements.

Scaling up energy efficiency is the single best and lowest cost option to achieve multiple goals at once: meeting energy demand, preventing pollution and reducing greenhouse gas emissions while also increasing industry competitiveness, Carolyn Turk, Country Director for Vietnam said.

In a context of limited public financing for energy, the risk-share facility is an innovative financial instrument in private sector investment financing for a greater uptake of industry-wide energy efficiency measures, she added.

The grant and guarantee are to be executed under the Vietnam Scaling up Energy Efficiency Project which aims to support Vietnam in achieving the energy efficiency targets set out in the Green Growth Strategy as well as emission reduction objectives pledged under the National Determined Contributions.

The World Bank’s Low Carbon Study estimates that Vietnam could save up to 11 GW of new generation capacity by 2030 if comprehensive demand-side energy efficiency investment takes place. The energy efficiency investment need for key industries in Vietnam has been estimated at around US$3.6 billion.

Vietnam’s Ministry of Health confirmed 12 COVID-19 cases on Monday, when the nation started mass inoculation with AstraZeneca shots.

One local infection was logged in Hai Duong Province, which is the country’s current coronavirus hotbed.

The patient had been exposed to an infection and been quarantined since February 14.

The health ministry also registered 11 imported cases the same day, including one in Binh Duong Province, three in Ho Chi Minh City, and seven in Ninh Thuan Province.

The 11 patients had been sent to centralized quarantine upon arrival in Vietnam by plane, the ministry noted.

Vietnam had spent almost two months detecting zero domestic COVID-19 cases before it found the first one on January 27 and confirmed it one day later, according to the Ministry of Health’s data.

A total of 893 local cases have been recorded in 13 provinces and cities since then, making it the most serious wave to have struck Vietnam after the first-ever COVID-19 patient was announced in the country on January 23, 2020.

Hai Duong alone accounts for 709 cases, while Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have registered 35 and 36 patients, respectively.

Vietnam has recorded 2,524 coronavirus cases as of Monday night, including 1,586 local infections and 35 virus-related deaths, according to the Ministry of Health’s data.

A total of 1,920 patients have recovered from the respiratory disease.

The dead had suffered from comorbid medical problems, including 31 in Da Nang, three in Quang Nam Province, and one in Quang Tri Province.

Vietnam started mass immunization on Monday, with 377 medical workers and contact tracing staff already vaccinated with AstraZeneca shots, according to the health ministry.

The government has said it will inoculate people in the said 13 provinces and cities as well as other priority groups , including frontline workers, diplomats, military and police officers, and teachers.

The country received its first-ever shipment of 117,600 AstraZeneca shots on February 24 .

Vietnam says it will obtain 150 million vaccine doses for the whole population this year, including 30 million through the COVAX scheme co-led by WHO, 30 million through AstraZeneca, and the rest through negotiations with U.S. and other producers.

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Hanoi-Exhibition: Those who do not move, do not notice their chains

Opening (online launching): Mar 5

Hanoi-Online exhibition featuring shared culture of Vietnam, Australia

HCMC-Exhibitions: ‘Within / Between / Beneath / Upon’ & ‘Home: Looking inwards to the outer world’

HCMC-Exhibition: Art and Peace

Opening: Mar 10, 6 pm

HCMC-Saigon Interplay Exhibition

Until Mar 21, 8 am – 5 pm

The exhibition offers 22 different ideas presenting through different mediums including conceptual models, videos, photographs that provide a unique experience for visitors. Come and explore with us!

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CINEMA

Screening of seven French movies

Mar 1-Dec 31

Featuring seven classic and modern French movies.

The films will be screened in 10 cities and provinces nationwide, including Hanoi, Hai Phong, Thai Nguyen, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Lao Cai, Thua Thien-Hue, Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Lat, and Can Tho.

Dtinews/Hanoigrapevines

By staff writers – Translated by Uyen Phuong

Apitong tree dates back to Hung Kings

Vietnam’s oldest tree has been carefully taken care of by authorities.

Topping the list of longevity is the apitong tree, which holds the record for the oldest tree in Vietnam and is related to the sacred tale of Thien Co temple (Trung Vuong commune, Viet Tri city, Phu Tho province).

According to scientists, the tree is more than 2,100 years old. Legend has it that the temple is located on the capital land of the ancient Van Lang country. This apitong tree, over the two millennia, has been a witness to the natural and social history of the locality with invaluable cultural and spiritual values.

It was recognized as a Heritage Tree by Vietnam Association for Conservation of Nature and Environment (VACNE) on May 28, 2012.

Thien Co temple worships the wedded couple, teacher Vu The Lang and Nguyen Thi Thuc, who raised Princesses Tien Dung and Ngoc Hoa, the offspring of 18th Hung Vuong King, as noted in ancient book entitled “Ngoc Pha Hung Vuong”. The pair was buried by the locals in the village, the temple was later built, and the tree was planted alongside at from that time.

This is the oldest tree in Vietnam.

The largest Cinnamomum camphora nationwide

This tree was named a Vietnamese Heritage Tree on November 26, 2013.

Giua villagers (Tien Luc commune, Lang Giang district, Bac Giang province) take great pride in the 1000-year-old Camphor tree which has a diameter of 2.59 meters, and is almost 30 meters high.

Essential oils are present in all parts of the plant, making it an exceedingly rare breed. In addition, the tree roots contains safrol which is a valuable ingredient in food processing and cosmetic technology. This massive tree is recognized as one of the two largest Cinnamomum camphoras on the globe.

According to historians, the tree was considered by King Le Canh Hung as the nationwide largest camphorwood. It was named in the French Larausse encyclopedia, and ranked as a rare and precious tree in Vietnam by the French school of the Far East (now the National Museum of Vietnamese History). Photos of this tree were displayed at the fair in Marseille (France) in 1932.

Thousand-year-old Diospyros decandra tree

Situated at the shrine worshipping Duc Thanh Tan Vien, the thousand-year-old tree has been known as the guardian of the people in Di Nau commune, Tam Nong district, Phu Tho province.

The tree has a diameter of about 2.45 meters, a total height of virtually 18.45 meters. Time has left its 7.96 meter circumference stump markedly rough. It could fit in an embrace of 5 humans. On May 22, 2012, this Diospyros decandra tree was recognized as a Vietnam Heritage Tree.

Rumor has it that ‘the guardian’ was from the reign of King Dinh Bo Linh (970 – 979). When the temple was built to worship Duc Thanh Tan Vien (258 BC) and the great generals of the 18th Hung King, villagers planted the tree not only for shade, but for guarding the shrine, as a spiritual belief.

The guardian majestically stands in front of the shrine

The ancient ‘Buddha’s hand’

The Streblus asper over a thousand years of age is located in Thung Nham bird garden tourist area (Hoa Lu district, Ninh Binh province). The tree shaped like “Buddha’s hand” carries has historical values associated with King Dinh Tien Hoang.

It is said that King Dinh Tien Hoang, whilst patrolling Hoa Lu capital, sent soldiers to plant this tree on a rock in Thung Nham. The tree has a quirky shape. The main trunk and three branches grow vertically alongside one another and one other branch is oblique and tilted in a different direction, quite similar to Buddhist Mudras.

Experts assess that this Streblus asper tree is 1,000 years old, yet magically remains verdant…on a rock.

Trees in folklore are believed to bring luck and fortune

The lonely tree

It looks like a forlorn figure standing in the fields of Binh Minh commune (Thanh Oai district, Hanoi). The old tree belonging to Cashew family is shady, playfully dubbed as a “lonely tree”. It is shaped like an umbrella spreading out from afar.

The tree is estimated to be over 1000 years old and is about 15 meters in diameter with a stump of about 8 meters in circumference taking a 5-7 humans to embrace.

It is also called the yin-yang by the locals since it possesses feng-shui characteristics. The lonely tree biennially fruits in December in the lunar calendar.

The year, the Eastern half of the tree sprouts beautifully young buds and verdant leaves, while the western half will in contrast produce fewer buds and thin pale-yellow leaves, and vice versa the next year.

Legend has it that the tree was planted by Ambassador Do Canh Thac, Dinh Bo Linh’s time as a landmark boundary between Binh Da village and Sinh Qua village, Binh Minh commune. Over a millennium has passed and the old tree is still as leafy and a witness to the history of the people in the village.

The ancient bosky tree was recognized as a Vietnamese Heritage Tree in 2016

Nguyen Son

A new resort project right in the open sea of Dragon Hill complex has been submitted for permission to become an attractive island, with the potential to attract tourists for longer stay and to discover more about the beautiful landscapes of the northern city of Hai Phong.

Hai Phong is the largest port city in the north of Vietnam and is also the country’s third largest commercial and economic center. The city is just behind Hanoi on scale and rate of development in the north and is one of the five municipalities, one of the national first-grade centers, alongside the central city of Da Nang and the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho.

Hai Phong is also known as the “Land of Port,” or “Port City,” as it has plenty of tourism potentials associated with the sea. The city possesses a long coastline of over 125 kilometers, which is low and quite flat. Especially, Do Son in Hai Phong is always one of the most crowded beaches in the north of Vietnam.

Only 22 kilometers to the southeast from the center of Hai Phong, Do Son has long been known as an ideal holiday destination, maintaining an important position in the economic and social development of Hai Phong in particular, and the northern coast in general.

Despite having many advantages such as convenient transport network spanning across different topographies of sea and mountains, Do Son has yet to utilize its advantages to cover the huge shortage of Vietnamese tourism at the present time.

The lack of ideas, models and operational methods has prevented the resorts of standards and quality in the city from running properly promotion and investment to help foster its tourism.

Fairly speaking, the geographic location, the people and scenery of Hai Phong and Do Son are highly recognized for the potential tourism development in the country, thanks to the advantage of a trading gateway for customs clearance and shipping. With all necessary and sufficient factors, Hai Phong is always the first choice for investors.

Many people even compare Do Son as a ‘forgotten paradise’ of the northern region, like Singapore’s Sentosa Island – which is hot all year round due to its tropical climate, but thanks to an appropriate development model, has attracted enormous visitors for shopping, leisure, entertainment and recreation.

A new resort project right in the open sea of Dragon Hill complex has been submitted for permission to become an attractive island, with the potential to attract tourists for longer stay and to discover more about the beautiful landscapes of the northern city of Hai Phong.

It takes only one hour and a half to travel the 76.1 kilometer distance between Dragon Hill and Ha Long Bay, the World natural wonder in the neighboring province of Quang Ninh, thanks to the Ha Long – Hai Phong expressway. This is an advantage for visitors who want to discover more about the natural beauty of Vietnam.

Currently, the northern region is in a shortage of family resorts, or high-end resort models for leisure and recreation needs. The appearance of Dragon Hill (Doi Rong) is expected by the Do Son people, together with the economic status of this area, to make changes to the tourism and enhance Do Son to become the most beautiful and convenient beach in the north.

Dragon Hill resort is also the first necessary push to wake up the ‘paradise resort’ that has been neglected for years.

All new things come from new thinking and ways. The Hanoi – Hai Phong expressway that was completed and put into full operation in 2015 has opened many favorable opportunities for such an economic potential that was left open. Visitors from Hanoi to Hai Phong, as well as neighboring areas such as Quang Ninh, Hai Duong, Hung Yen have been able to shorten the travel time to the center of Do Son to only one or two hours.

It takes only ten minutes from Hai Phong to Cat Ba biosphere reserve or Dragon Hill. Cat Bi International Airport, with many new international flights, is about to open. As tourists or local visitors no longer find it difficult to come and go during the day, it is safe to hope that the port city of Hai Phong will develop into a beautiful tourist destination, the focus point of the north region.