White house fellows

HONG KONG, CHINA - Media OutReach - 6 December 2019 - The Hong Kong Institute of Housing ("HKIH") is proud to become one of the Recognized Professional Bodies (RPBs) of the Property Management Services Authority ("PMSA"). Since the enactment of the Property Management Services Ordinance (Cap. 626) ("PMSO") by the Legislative Council on 26 May 2016, HKIH has been very involved in all consultations/discussions relating to PMSO subsidiary legislations formulation. Among which,  HKIH took the lead in gathering views and suggestions from its professional members and other closely related professional institutions/associations in order to attain comprehensive and feasible recommendations for PMSA's serious consideration. Recently, representatives from HKIH were also invited to attend and offer professional and pragmatic advice during a code of conduct (general and conclusive) focus group meeting in August 2019. HKIH is proud to become one of the first batch of RPBs … [Read more...] about The Hong Kong Institute of Housing becomes one of the Recognized Professional Bodies of the Property Management Services Authority

A garment-textile factory in Vietnam (Photo: VNA)   Hanoi (VNA) – The Vietnam Improvement Programme has helped 82 garment-textile and footwear factories in Vietnam invest 37 million USD in efficient use of resources, thus saving 30 million USD per year, according to the International Finance Corporation (IFC). Over the last three years, the programme, initiated by the IFC – a member of the World Bank Group, has also helped those factories save a total of 4 million cu.m. of water and reduce 303,000 tonnes of green house gas emission a year. Effective use of resources and performance improvement have enabled Vietnamese businesses to attract new customers who seek suppliers meeting global sustainable standards. Country manager for Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia of the IFC Kyle Kelhofer said the measures not only save production costs but also raise competitiveness of domestic firms in the global supply chain. Vietnam is currently among the 10 largest garment-textile … [Read more...] about Firms benefit from programme on efficient use of resources

A man and his children in Hanoi have donated VND1.8bn (USD77,800) to clean up a polluted lake in their village and built a small public park. The lake of Hanh Dan Village For the past two years, the locals in Hanh Dan Village, Tan Lap Commune, have often go to a 3,000-square-metre park to play. This park is built around a village lake constructed by 74-year-old Nguyen Tu Hung. Hung said he had wanted to build the park since 2000 but he didn't have the money then. When implementing the New Countryside Programme, he and the local authorities worked together to improve the village's environment. "The lake used to be very clean and clear. The villagers even washed the rice there. But because of rapid urbanisation it was polluted by household wastewater and everyone tried to avoid it," Hung said. "My house is near the lake so I suffered from the foul smell. We didn't dare to open the window." Hung cleaning the park In 2016, Hung's five children all become successful so he and … [Read more...] about Local man cleans up village polluted lake

Vietnam's emerging startup scene is proving to be a case of right place, right time for local and international venture capital funds. Eleven “rising star” startups in Southeast Asia in September converged at the “500 Startups Demo Day” in Ho Chi Minh City to spotlight the dynamic technology landscape in Vietnam and broader Southeast Asia. “There’s more hype about Vietnam’s tech scene now than ever before, as this is an exciting time for Vietnam overall,” said Mr. Eddie Thai, General Partner at 500 Startups Vietnam. “Vietnam is fast becoming an attractive destination for local and international venture capital funds, who are hoping to capture the growing consumer opportunities and leverage the Vietnamese entrepreneurial spirit.” Rising appetite Vietnam’s startup sector is growing at a rapid clip despite the global economic slump and is closing the gap with regional leaders. In only two years, it has made a big leap … [Read more...] about Startups catching the eye

The Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) has published 32 textbooks for eight subjects and experience activities, but these do not include textbooks for English. According to Tien Phong, at the workshop titled ‘Vietnam Education Publishing House and the task of renovating general education program and textbooks’, in the North, the publisher introduced four sets of sample textbooks which have been approved by the Appraisal Council. Article 5 of Circular No 33 on standards, process of compiling and editing textbooks, says that textbooks must properly and fully present the content of learning subject curricula or educational activities; and they must be basic, scientific, practical and consistent with the reality of Vietnam. Therefore, there must be specific regulations and standards on using foreign textbooks for Vietnam’s schools. If using foreign books, publishing houses only cooperate with foreign publishers to make a profit. Meanwhile, the textbook … [Read more...] about English textbooks not yet approved by Education Ministry, why?