Social News 14/8 Ben Tre Province culture, tourism week opens Aug. 29   The Ministry of Culture, Sport and Tourism has announced that the second annual Mekong Delta province of Ben Tre Culture and Tourism Week will open August 29 and run through September 4. Planned events for this year include a photo exhibition showcasing the province’s socio-economic achievements, tourism seminars and workshops, along with a bevy of food, music, dance, arts, craft, sports and cultural events. In short, there’s a little bit of something for everyone in a fun filled family oriented weeklong extravaganza that is sure to delight, said the Ministry. Danang pulls out all the stops for APEC Summit 2017 City of Danang officials are leaving no stone unturned as they enter the final stretch in the preparations for the upcoming APEC Summit 2017 set to transpire November 6-11, says Party Committee Secretary Nguyen Xuan Anh. Workers are now scurrying to put the finishing touches to the International Press Centre, which will be the venue for an estimated 2,000 journalists and other members of the media from all over the globe. Upgrades and improvements to the Tien Son Sports Palace are also nearing completion while the Danang Airport and underground tunnel to the west of Han River have essentially been completed. However, the Dien Bien Phu-Nguyen Tri Phuong underground traffic tunnel is still far from complete and a considerable amount of work on Nguyen Van Linh and Vo Van Kiet streets remain unfinished. Arrests shutdown major Lao-Vietnam drug pipeline At a press conference on Friday, August 11, police in the central province of Nghe An announced what they called the closure of a major heroin and ecstasy pipeline from Laos to Vietnam. In total, the police have arrested four people relating to the operation, which also resulted in the seizure of thousands of pills of ecstasy, heroin, a motorbike and two mobiles, among other items. The alleged ring leaders – Nguyen Dinh Minh and Tran Van Luong – face numerous charges including delivery of a controlled substance, corrupt organizations, and dealing in the proceeds of unlawful activity. Major rivers endangered by hydropower dams, sand mining in central Vietnam Vu Gia- Thu Bon, one of central Vietnam’s largest river systems, is being devastated by hydropower and sand exploitation operations A major river system in the central Vietnamese province of Quang Nam is being devastated by hydropower and sand exploitation operations, putting the welfare of local residents in serious jeopardy. Vu Gia- Thu Bon, one of central Vietnam’s largest river systems, is being overwhelmed by the 40 hydro-electric dams in its upstream areas.  The situation is equally grave downstream, where aggressive sand mining activities are ravaging the river’s ecosystem. The sand mines dotting the two rivers are surrounded by dozens of barges working endlessly at full capacity. One of these mines, located near the Ha Nha Bridge in Dai Dong Commune, Dai Loc District, has caused its fair share of devastation to the area. According to Ho Binh, a local resident, the mine area was established five years ago. “A large section of the riverbank collapsed during last year’s flood season. Authorities only shut down the activity after local citizens complained about the issue,” Binh recalled. After the incident the burden of preventing future accidents fell on local residents, who now regularly fortify the riverbank with sandbags to prevent future collapses in case an upstream hydropower plant releases water and floods the downstream area. Fifteen kilometers away, more than 20 barges wait for their turn to load the exploited sand and carry their haul to waiting trucks. Hundreds of vehicles enter and exit the area each day to pick up sand and transport it towards the central city of Da Nang, Le Binh, a local resident, stated. In Dai Loc District, each kilometer of embankment along the Vu Gia- Thu Bon river system costs VND25 billion ($1.09 million) to maintain.  Meanwhile, the income generated from the 18 sand mines located within the district is a meager VND6 billion ($262,719). The severity of the situation is so far reaching that it not only affects the nearby environment, but has also spread to Hoi An, a famous tourist city whose famous beach, Cua Dai, is facing serious subsidence issues. Nguyen The Hung, vice-chairman of the Hoi An People’s Committee, said that some VND140 billion (US$6.1 million) had been spent on mitigating riverbank subsidence in the locality. During a recent meeting held to discuss the issue, Vu Thanh Ca, a member of the Scientific Research Institute of Sea and Islands, asserted that the subsidence that has been occurring at Cua Dai Beach since 2014 is due to human activity, rather than climate change. The Vu Gia- Thu Bon river system is the main source of sand for the coastal area around Hoi An, Ca stated, adding that hydro-electric plants and sand exploitation directly impact the area. According to Bui Van Ba, an official from the Quang Nam Department of Natural Resources and Environment, about 35 legal sand mines currently operate along the Vu Gia- Thu Bon. The rampant subsidence along the river banks is most likely being caused by illegal exploitation, Ba added. In an attempt to manage the issue, local authorities have ceased granting permits to new mining units and have put a pause on extending current licenses. A careful evaluation of the current situation will be conducted to determine the number of sand mines that can operate in Quang Nam without posing a danger to the people or environment, said Dinh Van Thu, chairman the provincial administration. The environment department will also be tasked with inspecting existing mines and the Department of Police will be responsible for dealing with illicit exploitation, Thu stated. Vietnam ranks 74th in global internet speed: report With download speed of 5.46 megabytes per second, Vietnam's internet speed has been ranked 74th out of 189 countries and territories in a recent global survey of broadband speeds compiled by Cable.co.uk, a U.K. broadband, TV, phone and mobile provider. Singapore topped the world with average download speed of 55.13Mbps, followed by Sweden and Taiwan who achieved 40.16Mbps and 34.4Mbps speeds respectively. War-torn Yemen came in last at an average speed of just 0.34Mbps. Vietnam's average broadband speed was recorded 10 times lower than Southeast Asian neighbor Singapore, according to the survey. However, the country still managed to trump six other countries in the region. The data was collected over 12 months from May last year, analyzing 63 million broadband speed tests worldwide. The top 20 fastest-performing countries were located in Europe and Asia. While the slowest internet suppliers were mostly in Africa.  Downloading an HD movie of 7.5GB in size would take 18 minutes and 34 seconds in league-topper Singapore, while it would take over three hours in Vietnam, according to the survey. Last year, Vietnam’s average internet connection speed clocked at only 5.1 megabits per second, ranking 64th globally and near the bottom in the Asia Pacific region, according to an internet connectivity report from the content delivery network Akamai. Nearly 49 million people in Vietnam, or more than half of the country’s population, are online. The country is notorious for its unstable internet connection, with undersea cables making headlines whenever they break (again).  Tornado rips apart 40 buildings in central highlands of Vietnam A tornado in the central highlands district of Bao Lam in Lam Dong Province damaged an estimated 40 homes and commercial buildings, but caused no injuries on Friday, August 11. The tornado formed midday, lasted about 20 minutes and was accompanied by hail, said residents.  The wind was strong enough to tear the sheet metal off the roof of homes, storage sheds and other structures and scatter pieces of wood around the landscape, the residents noted. Local officials also reported substantial crop damage in addition to severe damage to an electrical power station and local kindergarten. Thai Binh: Poor children get free heart checkups in two-day event Free heart disease screenings were given to poor children under 16 years old in northern Thai Binh province on August 12 as part of a charity project “Trai tim cho em” (Operation Healthy Heart). Over 1,000 children were provided check-ups at the Thai Binh Paediatrics Hospital in the morning. According to the hospital’s Director Doctor Nguyen Thi Minh Chinh, Thai Binh is among provinces with high prevalence of children suffering from congenital heart defects.  The Operation Healthy Heart gave an opportunity for those from difficult backgrounds to receive counselling and treatment for the diseases. The programme has provided free life-saving surgeries for more than 100 impoverished children in the province to date. It was initiated by the Viettel Group and Vietnam Television in 2008 with an aim to support surgery need of disadvantaged children under 16 born with heart deformities and help improve local capacity to offer heart screenings to children. Since then, the Operation Healthy Heart has organised 35 screening events across the country with over 47,000 children diagnosed with congenital heart diseases and 3,500 of them given surgeries. It has also raised 120 billion VND in funding for such surgeries. This was the first time a free heart check-up event held in Thai Binh and it will run until August 13. Hanoi to ban taxis on multiple streets during rush hours The Hanoi transport department has published a list of streets and thoroughfares which taxis will be prohibited from entering during rush hours starting this month. Workers are currently busy placing no-entry signage on the chosen streets, done as part of the municipal authorities’ bid to reduce traffic congestion in the Vietnamese capital. The no-taxi ban is applicable to Mai Xuan Thuong and Hoang Hoa Tham Streets, the section from Mai Xuan Thuong to Ngoc Ha, during 6:30 am - 8:30am and 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm from Monday to Friday, according to the transport department. Taxis are also prevented from going through Chuong Duong Bridge from Nguyen Van Cu Street to the city’s downtown area between six and nine in the morning on weekdays. From 6:00 am to 8:00 pm, cabs will be restricted from entering the intersection of Nguyen Co Trach and Ho Tung Mau Streets in Cau Giay District. Also during this timeframe, both taxis and conventional automobiles are not allowed to go on Xuan Thuy Street, the section from the Xuan Thuy – Pham Hung Intersection to the Xuan Thuy – Tran Thai Tong Intersection. From 6:00 am to 9:00 am every day, the no-taxi ban applies for the section from Nhon into the city’s downtown through Dien Bridge. Between 6:00 am and 9:00 am, and 4:30 pm and 7:30 pm from Monday to Friday, taxis are banned from entering De La Thanh and Kham Thien Streets. From December 25, taxis will not be allowed to drive through Giang Vo, Lang Ha, Le Van Luong Streets during the above timeframes. This restriction aims to serve the new bus rapid transit (BRT) route going on these roads. The Hanoi transport department has previously suggested that the no-taxi ban be applied to ride-hailing services such as GrabCar and Uber. Another 100 trees will fall in Saigon as city wants to clear traffic near airport Ho Chi Minh City’s transport department has announced a plan to chop down more trees, this time to give way to heavy traffic near Tan Son Nhat Airport. The plan is to fell 102 trees on Hoang Minh Giam and Hoang Hoa Tham streets stretching two to three kilometers from the international airport, local media reported. Saws will be brought out onto the streets between October and December. Another 21 trees there will be moved to a garden in the city. Authorities said the move will increase road capacity near the airport, where traffic jams currently last for hours every day, despite recent opening of several overpasses. Trees are frequent "victims" of urban development in Vietnam. In Ho Chi Minh City, the tree chopping spree has been going on non-stop for the past three years since it started work on its first metro line. Hundreds have been felled so far. The city is set to move and cut down 300 trees along Ton Duc Thang, which has one of the most beautiful canopies in the city, to make way for a metro station and a new bridge. Hanoi in June also announced to cut down 1,000 decades-old trees for road expansion, after having cleared many for other road projects. Dak Nong offers free books for poor ethnic students More than 30,200 poor ethnic minority students in the Central Highland province of Dak Nong have been given free textbooks for the 2017-2018 school year. The provincial School Equipment & Book Co. Ltd coordinated with the Departments of Education and Training and school administrations carried out the programme with a total cost of about 14.4 billion VND (633,600 USD) sourced from the local budget.  Director of the company Ngo Xuan Ha said the programme is to implement a resolution issued by the provincial People’s Council on supporting ethnic minority students from poor and near-poor households from the 2016-2017 to 2020-2021 school years. Dak Nong is now home to 40 ethnic groups. In the 2017-2018 school year, the province has over 125,000 students, including 42,000 from ethnic minority groups. Indian Cultural Festival in full swing in Thanh Hoa Myriads of art troupes and thousands of visitors attended the Indian Cultural Festival which took place at the FLC Sam Son Resort Complex in the central province of Thanh Hoa on August 12. Stellar performances featuring Indian culture were brought to the festival-goers, including drama on Sita- a character in Ramayana epic, Indian songs like Aggheni Janee natu, Kuch Na kaho, Dam mara Dam as well as virtuoso concerts.  In addition, the visitors had chance to enjoy various Indian cuisines made by five-star chefs at the food night market. With more than 1,000 rooms at the FLC Sam Son’s hotels and villas as well as a five-star golf course, indoor and outside swimming pools, spa, restaurants and bars, the complex has been a hot destination this summer. A line up of cultural events will be organised on every Sunday of August and September at FLC Sam Son complex such as cultural festivals of Russia, the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea and China. Vietnamese Embassy in Laos supports flood victims at home The Vietnamese Embassy in Laos and other agencies of Vietnam in the country have raised a fund worth 2,300 USD in support of flood victims in the homeland.  Minister-Counsellor of the Vietnamese Embassy in Laos Nguyen Thanh Tung handed over the donation to Tran Thanh Man, President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee, in Vientiane, Laos, on August 12. The fund aims to help people in northern mountainous provinces hit by the recent floods promptly overcome consequences of the natural disaster and stabilise their lives, Tung said.  VFF President Man said the flooding has caused great human and property losses in the localities.  The Vietnamese community in Laos is also implementing a range of activities to assist the flood victims at home.  According to the Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, by August 7, heavy rains and flash floods had claimed 26 lives and left 15 others missing and 27 injured. About 230 houses had been swept away or collapsed while 245 others had been damaged and 340 hectares of rice had been submerged by floodwater. Nearly 400 households had had to leave their homes to safer places. The intense floods had also eroded over 25,000 cubic metres of national highways, 117,706 cubic metres of provincial and district roads; damaged 145 irrigation works and 2,072 metres of river dike, causing about over 940 billion VND (41.36 million USD) in economic losses in the region. Cambodian People's Party delegation visits Bac Ninh A delegation of the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) led by Chairman of the CPP Central Committee’s Inspection Commission Nay Pena visited the northern province of Bac Ninh on August 11 as part of the delegation’s official visit to Vietnam. During talks with secretary of the provincial Party’s Committee Nguyen Nhan Chien and other local senior officials, Nay Pena, who is also First Vice President of the Cambodian Senate, said Cambodia always bears in mind the help and support Vietnam has given to Cambodia during the struggle for national liberation and escape from the Pol Pot genocidal regime, as well as during the cause of national reconciliation, construction and defence. The host pledged that Bac Ninh province will continue making practical contribution to fostering and traditional friendship and comprehensive cooperation between the two nations. On the occasion, the delegation visited the Den Do relic site and Dong Ky wood carving village in Tu Son district. Work starts on bridge at Lao Bao-Densavan border gate Construction of Xa Ot bridge at Lao Bao-Densavan international border gate between Vietnam’s central province of Quang Tri and Savannakhet province of Laos kicked off on August 11. The event forms part of activities marking the 55th founding anniversary of Vietnam-Laos diplomatic ties (Sept. 5) and 40 years of the signing of the Vietnam-Laos Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (July 18). The bridge has a total investment of 32.9 billion VND (around 1.45 million USD), funded by the Vietnamese Government. Quang Tri and Savannakhet provinces share a borderline of 126 kilometres, with the Lao Bao-Densavan border gate connecting with the East-West Economic Corridor. Once completed, the new bridge is expected to meet the growing trade and travel demand between the two provinces and Vietnam and Laos in general, thus completing the border gate traffic infrastructure and contributing to local socio-economic development and national defence-security. Addressing the groundbreaking ceremony, Vice Chairman of Quang Tri provincial  People’s Committee Nguyen Quan Chinh said the work not only serves trade and travel purposes but also fosters the solidarity between the Parties and people of the two nations. He urged the authorities of Sepon district (Savannakhet) and Huong Hoa district to accelerate land clearance to facilitate progress of the project. PM urges better healthcare and administrative services Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has urged the health sector to continue improving the quality of human resources and focusing on improving medical ethics, while enhancing the quality of the country’s population. The Prime Minister chaired a meeting of key cabinet members on August 9 to consider three development proposals from the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Planning and Investment, which will later be submitted to the Party Central Committee. Commenting on a proposal regarding the protection, care and improvement of people’s health and population, presented by the Ministry of Health, PM Phuc stressed the need to learn from the progress and achievements made in the region and the world so as to catch up with advanced technology and services. “The Government is responsible for taking care of people’s health and this is a consistent view,” PM Phuc said, adding that it was necessary to boost resources for the sector. "We, with current human resources, can attract foreign patients to Vietnam for healthcare. But on the contrary, we spend a lot of money going abroad for medical treatment,” he noted and emphasised the need for mechanisms to build modern medical centres that can meet international standards. The PM also noted issues such as health programmes for the poor and other vulnerable groups, the roadmap for market-based health services and the creation of a competitive business investment environment for the health sector. “Ensuring the satisfaction of patients is an important measure of service quality, and hospital rankings should take this into account,” he said.  With regard to population problems, the PM said that the project should provide solutions for issues such as increased life expectancy but poor health after retirement, the rapidly aging population and the quality and structure of the population. PM Phuc asked the health ministry to prioritise measures that improve the quality of the population, saying that the size of the population must be in line with the country’s sustainable development goals. For the Ministry of Home Affairs’s proposal regarding renewal of management mechanisms, financial mechanisms and the reorganisation of the system of public service delivery units, the Prime Minister stressed the fundamental spirit of financial self-reliance, staff reduction and self-management in accordance with the socialist orientation. Emphasising the spirit of rearranging nearly 60,000 public service units, PM Phuc asked the sector to thoroughly work on the remaining issues. He agreed with the proposal’s concept of autonomy based on the level of self-funding and suggested that solutions must be strong enough to revolutionise the current limitations. The Prime Minister emphasised maintaining only essential services for the Government. “It is necessary to expand autonomy, having the best mechanisms and policies in place to promote socialisation and minimise State budget spending,” he said, asking the Ministry of Home Affairs to take on specific tasks and actions, especially solutions regarding financial mechanisms and improving the quality of public servants. PM Phuc also reviewed the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s proposal about the establishment of a specialised agency to act as the State’s representative in State-owned and State-invested enterprises.  He asked the ministry to follow resolutions of the Party Central Committee such as Resolution 05-NQ/TW on reforming the growth model, enhancing the competitiveness of the economy and separating the functions of asset owners, capital and State management functions. He requested the drafting board to urgently complete the proposal so it can be promptly submitted to the Party Central Committee for consideration. Thai Binh: Poor children get free heart checkups in two-day event Free heart disease screenings were given to poor children under 16 years old in northern Thai Binh province on August 12 as part of a charity project “Trai tim cho em” (Operation Healthy Heart). Over 1,000 children were provided check-ups at the Thai Binh Paediatrics Hospital in the morning. According to the hospital’s Director Doctor Nguyen Thi Minh Chinh, Thai Binh is among provinces with high prevalence of children suffering from congenital heart defects.  The Operation Healthy Heart gave an opportunity for those from difficult backgrounds to receive counselling and treatment for the diseases. The programme has provided free life-saving surgeries for more than 100 impoverished children in the province to date. It was initiated by the Viettel Group and Vietnam Television in 2008 with an aim to support surgery need of disadvantaged children under 16 born with heart deformities and help improve local capacity to offer heart screenings to children. Since then, the Operation Healthy Heart has organised 35 screening events across the country with over 47,000 children diagnosed with congenital heart diseases and 3,500 of them given surgeries. It has also raised 120 billion VND in funding for such surgeries. This was the first time a free heart check-up event held in Thai Binh and it will run until August 13. Cattle foot-and-mouth disease put under control The cattle foot-and-mouth disease type A has been put under control in the country with only one hotbed left in Ia Sal Commune, Ayum Pa Town in the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai as of August 11, according to the Department of Animal Health. Avian influenzas and blue ear in pigs have also been curbed with no new outbreak reported. The department advised localities at high risk of foot-and-mouth disease, especially those having cattle breeding facilities, to increase inspections for early detection of suspected outbreaks, set tighter control on livestock transportation and slaughtering, and get all cattle vaccinated. It urged cities and provinces nationwide to intensify inspections to prevent the smuggling of poultry into Vietnam and impose strict penalties on breaches. The risk of new outbreaks still remains as new types of avian influenzas like A/H7N9, A/H5N2 and A/H5N8 can enter the country through illegal trading of poultry with no clear origin at the border. The localities also need to keep a close watch on their herds of pigs and strictly conform to quarantine regulations for safe transporting of pigs and pork products.- Quang Ninh removes small industrial facilities from residential areas The People’s Committee of the northern province of Quang Ninh has issued an instruction on the relocation of small industrial and handicraft facilities causing environmental pollution from residential areas. The move is necessary to realise the local target of developing small industry and handicrafts in a sustainable manner and ensure social welfare and environmental protection. It also aims to improve the quality of life for local residents and workers. The list of relocated facilities will be reviewed and completed before August 30. The province is building policies to support the production facilities to be relocated, to help them quickly stabilise production after moving. The locality also seeks solutions to draw investment in developing industrial clusters. Dak Nong offers free books for poor ethnic students More than 30,200 poor ethnic minority students in the Central Highland province of Dak Nong have been given free textbooks for the 2017-2018 school year. The provincial School Equipment & Book Co. Ltd coordinated with the Departments of Education and Training and school administrations carried out the programme with a total cost of about 14.4 billion VND (633,600 USD) sourced from the local budget.  Director of the company Ngo Xuan Ha said the programme is to implement a resolution issued by the provincial People’s Council on supporting ethnic minority students from poor and near-poor households from the 2016-2017 to 2020-2021 school years. Dak Nong is now home to 40 ethnic groups. In the 2017-2018 school year, the province has over 125,000 students, including 42,000 from ethnic minority groups. Jetstar Pacific launches Dong Hoi-Chiang Mai service Low-cost airline Jetstar Pacific officially launched a direct service between Dong Hoi airport in Vietnam’s Quang Binh central province and Chiang Mai in northern Thailand on August 11.  The first flight from Dong Hoi airport to Chiang Mai carried nearly 180 passengers while the return flight had more than 150 travellers on board.  The service’s launch is part of the cooperation agreement between the airline and Quang Binh’s authorities aiming at serving increasing travelling demand and stimulating tourism growth in Vietnam’s central region and Thailand’s northern localities.  According to Jetstar Pacific, nearly 5,000 tickets on the route have been booked. In the initial period, the airline will operate two two-way flights on the route each week, on Monday and Friday.  The Quang Binh-Chiang Mai flight takes only 1 hour and 40 minutes, compared to two days if travelling by car.   Tickets are available at www.jetstar.com and all ticket agents from 620,000 VND (27.3 USD) one leg.  The low-cost airline is operating several services between Ho Chi Minh City and Bangkok. It plans to open a route connecting Da Nang in central Vietnam and Japan’s Osaka on September 1 and Hanoi-Osaka on September 2. Being the first low-cost airline in Vietnam, Jetstar Pacific is operating 36 domestic and international routes, which are linked with the network of Jetstar Group covering 80 destinations in 17 countries in Asia-Pacific. It has two main shareholders being the national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines and Qantas Airways.  Laos sends sympathy over flood losses in northern Việt Nam Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith on Friday sent sympathies to his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyễn Xuân Phúc over the loss of lives and property in floods triggered by prolonged rains in the north of Việt Nam. “I am very sad and worried on learning about prolonged downpours and flash floods causing widespread flooding and landslides, resulting in human and property losses for the people and infrastructure damage in the northern provinces of Việt Nam, especially Điện Biên, Sơn La and Yên Bái,” the Lao PM wrote in the message. On behalf of the Lao Party, Government and people, he offered sympathies to PM Phúc and the Party, the Government and people of Việt Nam, particularly the administrations of flood-hit localities and affected families. Sisoulith said he believed that under the leadership of the Vietnamese Party and Government, people in the flood-hit areas will overcome difficulties and stabilise their lives soon. Chợ Rẫy urged to decongest by sending patients to local hospitals As a central hospital, Chợ Rẫy Hospital needs to boost co-operation with provincial- and district-level hospitals to reduce its constant overcrowding, Lương Ngọc Khuê, head of the Ministry of Health’s Department of Medical Examination and Treatment, said. The co-operation is part of a 2013–20 Government project to reduce overcrowding in oncology, surgery/trauma, cardiology, obstetrics and pediatric hospitals and wards, he said. It also helps improve the quality of treatment at district and provincial hospitals, he told a conference in HCM City on Friday. Chợ Rẫy Hospital has tied up with 12 public and private hospitals including Xuyên Á Hospital, 7A Hospital, International Neurosurgery Hospital, Tân Sơn Nhất Hospital, City International Hospital, Đức Khang Hospital, April 30 Hospital, and Orthopedics & Rehabilitation Hospital. Around 12,000 patients are transferred to them from Chợ Rẫy every year, Phạm Thanh Việt, head of its general planning department, said. As part of efforts to reduce overcrowding, the hospital has also set up a network of 20 satellite hospitals in the southern region under a ministry programme that began in 2013 and transferred various skills to them. Chợ Rẫy provides health check-up and treatment for an average of 10,000 inpatients and outpatients every day, Việt said. Official dismissed over plan for waste dumping into sea The Industrial Policy and Strategy Institute has fired Ha Quoc Quan for his involvement in a controversial plan to dump nearly one million cubic meters of dredged sediments into waters off the coast of Binh Thuan Province. The institute issued a decision yesterday dismissing Quan at the request of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, according to a Tuoi Tre newspaper report. Quan was director of the Center for Investment and Technology Transfer Consultancy but also general director of Vietnam Ports Construction Consultant JSC. This is in violation of the amended Anti-Corruption Law and the Law on Civil Servants which prohibit civil servants from running a private business. His company conducted a study and an environmental impact assessment report on the discharge of mud, sand, shells and other sediments dredged from a turning basin for the Vinh Tan 1 thermo-power plant. Among 14 scientists the company included in the study, three rejected their participation in the study. This amounts to an act of cheating, which is intolerable in scientific research. Besides, according to the ministry, he declared his assets and incomes in a dishonest and insufficient manner. Therefore, the Ministry of Industry and Trade requested the institute to discipline him for conflict of interests, and violations of regulations on what civil servants are banned from doing. Tien Giang spends big to reinforce Go Cong sea dike The Mekong Delta province of Tien Giang will allocate more than 32 billion VND (1.4 million USD) to reinforce the Go Cong sea dike to protect coastal agricultural land and residential areas in 2017. The 831 metre-long section in Tan Dien commune, Go Cong Dong district is vulnerable to erosion, said Nguyen Thien Phap, head of the water resource management and flood and storm prevention division under the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. Since 2006, sea water has invaded more than 500 hectares of land. Many sea dikes have been moved further inland. The province has undertaken numerous measures to protect the dike, including construction to reinforce it and planting protection forests, according to Phap. Since 1999, Tien Giang has invested more than 240 billion VND (10.56 million USD) in constructing and reinforcing more than 6,000 metres of dikes. From 2018 – 2020, Tien Giang needs to reinforce 3,340 more metres of dikes, including 1,460 metres in 2018 to protect the Go Cong sea dike from sea encroachment. The Go Cong sea dike is more than 21,000 metres long, protecting some 28,000 hectares of cultivation land in the coastal districts of Go Cong Dong, Go Cong Tay, Go Cong town and Cho Gao. Can Tho, Japan seek cooperation opportunities in agriculture Chairman of the People’s Committee of the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho Vo Thanh Thong on August 13 had a working session with a Japanese delegation to discuss cooperation opportunities in agriculture and personnel training in this sector. The Japanese delegation includes Hitoshi Kinouchi, a professor of Tokai University; Susumu Ishihara, an advisor of Japanese language training; and Masayuki Abe, Director of the Human Resource Research Institute and Director of the Vietnam Agricultural Information Centre (VAIO). According to Hitoshi, the Mekong Delta is like Japan in the past as it has small-scale agriculture with production mainly conducted by households, thus hindering product processing and distribution to companies. Japanese farming households have grouped into cooperatives to tackle the problem and also sell agricultural products with high prices, he said. Hitoshi suggested Japan and Can Tho partner with each other in the farming sector, saying the most important issue is how to improve agricultural quality and technology. For his part, Thong said Can Tho is interested in partners and investors from Japan and wishes to cooperate with the Japanese side in personnel training, especially the farming sector. He called on Japan to provide technical support for Can Tho and consider dispatching volunteers to Can Tho to take part in high-tech agriculture research programmes, while helping local farmers access the market and apply high and bio-technologies in the sector. The official also highlighted Can Tho’s call for investments into high-tech agriculture parks in Thoi Lai and Co Do districts. Thong suggested the Japanese side assist the city to build a website in Japanese language to facilitate the sharing of market information between the two sides. Can Tho is now home to 13 projects invested by Japanese firms with a total investment of 10.5 million USD. Đồng Tháp wants no white-leg shrimp farming in freshwater areas The People’s Committee of Đồng Tháp Province has directed relevant agencies and district authorities to ensure farming of white-leg shrimp in freshwater zones is not expanded since the saltwater discharged by these farms affect water bodies and crops. White leg shrimp was traditionally farmed in the sea, but in the last three years many inland farmers, seeing the crustacean offers good profits, have exploited groundwater and added salt to it to farm it. Some households earn a profit of VNĐ50,000-80,000 per kilogramme, persuading many others to follow suit. But the farms discharge their salinised water into the environment, causing authorities to worry about its effect on rice cultivation and farming of freshwater species. Besides, white-leg shrimps are vulnerable to diseases, and the larger the area in which they are farmed, the higher the risk of disease outbreaks. According to the Government’s master plan for the fisheries industry until 2020, Đồng Tháp is not in the list of localities zoned for white-leg shrimp breeding. Though authorities have urged farmers not to breed white-leg shrimp in freshwater areas, the creatures are being farmed on around 150ha in Tam Nông District. Châu Hồng Phúc, deputy chairman of the province People’s Committee, said his administration has instructed the Department of Natural Resources and Environment and other agencies to intensify checks and get tough on violations related to exploiting groundwater to farm the shrimp and instruct breeders to only discharge treated wastewater into the environment. It has also assigned them to analyse and assess production and profit, and the impacts on the environment and other agricultural production in Tam Nông District. The local Department of Science and Technology will study the breeding of white-leg shrimp in freshwater areas to assess the adaptability and short- and long-term impacts on agricultural production, the eco-system and bio-diversity. The administration has also ordered relevant agencies to step up inspection to prevent farmers from expanding the farming areas and urge them to stop farming the shrimp by educating them on the adverse effects. Italy’s newspaper: Vietnam makes leaps toward developed status Italy’s Frontera online newspaper has run a story highlighting Vietnam’s great economic achievements since it began the Doi Moi (renewal) process in 1986. Under the title “Vietnam’s place in the Asian Century”, the newspaper underlined that from a war-ravaged and impoverished country just a few decades ago, Vietnam is now associated with humming factories, a swelling middle-class, and its emergence as the new export wonder of Asia. Apart from a brief period of economic distress and financial volatility experienced from 2009 to 2012, the country has been a development role model with sustained gross domestic product (GDP) growth of approximately 6 percent a year, and is at the threshold of the middle-income club of economies. With a per capita GDP of around 2,200 USD, the Vietnamese are starting to experience a sustained consumption boom as disposable income is now large enough to kickstart a surge in discretionary spending on everything ranging from entertainment to cars and holidays. The newspaper wrote that with a highly strategic location, a young population of nearly 100 million, a highly literate and numerate workforce, a vibrant consumer class with a demonstrated taste for adoption of new technology, Vietnam is likely to continue its pole-vault towards developed country status. As the country’s economy starts to matter in the region, so will its geopolitical significance, it said. Girl killed in landslide in Bắc Kạn Province A five-year-old girl was killed and her parents were slightly injured yesterday when their house was buried by a landslide in Nà Vài Village, Lãng Ngâm Commune, Ngân Sơn District in the northern province of Bắc Kạn. The family’s neighbours said that they heard a loud noise in the early morning hours while they were sleeping. The victims’ house was destroyed as stones buried it. Doanh Thiêm Phương and his wife Đỗ Thị Nga were saved, but their daughter died. Chu Thị Huyền, chairwoman of the Ngân Sơn District People’s Committee, said the district had experienced heavy rains during the past two days. Stream and river water rose causing flooding and landslides. On August 4, a landslide destroys another house in the village, but no casualties were reported.                                             HCM City celebrates Volunteers Day Thousands of volunteers marched in HCM City yesterday to mark the 11th Volunteers Day, calling for more funding from the community to support poor students in the city. The event, which took place at the Phú Mỹ Hưng urban complex in District 7, was jointly organised by the city’s Hồ Chí Minh Communist Youth Union, the Students’ Union and the HCM City Youth Union. The organisers awarded 130 scholarships worth VNĐ480 million (US$21,300) to poor students living in HCM City. The event was also a wrap-up to volunteering activities across the city this summer, which helped fix 42km of roads and 17 bridges in the countryside, provided health checks to more than 43,000 poor residents and helped in building and repair of 119 charity houses. In Vietnam, cash-strapped youths donate platelets for money Many Vietnamese undergraduates who are short on money have resorted to regularly donating their platelets for a few extra pennies to put them through college. ​Some of them even ignore doctor’s recommendation and go for platelet donations as often as three times a month, risking adverse health problems. Platelets, also called thrombocytes, are a component of blood whose function is to stop bleeding by clumping and clotting blood vessel injuries, according to Phu Chi Dung, director of Ho Chi Minh City Blood Transfusion and Hematology. A donor can lose up to 20% of their platelet counts after each donation, Dung said. Donated platelets are used in transfusions for cancer patients who suffer from low platelet count as a side effect of their treatment, and to help patients survive major surgeries or serious injuries by replacing those lost during bleeding, according to the American Red Cross. It was 8:00 am at the six-story blood transfusion center of Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City, and 25 people, most of whom still in their 20s, were already lining up outside the platelet donation room. Another group of 15 people could be seen inside the room, with cords running from their arms to centrifuge machines that separate platelets from their blood. Cho Ray Hospital is among only three medical institutions in Ho Chi Minh City where platelet donations can be done, with the other two being the Blood Transfusion and Hematology Hospital and Military Hospital 175. According to experienced donors, platelets are favored over whole blood when it comes to making money off the donation, as they are collected by hospitals at a higher price and can be donated more regularly. V.H.H., an undergraduate at a university based in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 1 who was waiting for his turn to donate, told a Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper correspondent he could not recount how many times he had undergone the procedure, which had become his savior every time he runs out of money. “They will run your blood through a centrifuge machine to separate platelets and some plasma before returning the blood to your body, so you won’t feel as dizzy as during a blood donation,” H. advised the ‘newcomer’. Handing over a cup of warm ginger tea, H. said a single-unit donation, equivalent to 250ml of platelets, would be collected at VND400,000 ($17.62), while a double-unit donation, which is double that amount, would be paid VND700,000 ($30.84). Whether one is allowed to make single-unit or double-unit donations entirely depends on their physical fitness and doctor’s prescription, H. said. “A lot of undergraduates come here regularly to sell platelets,” a nurse at Cho Ray Hospital revealed. “I’ve even memorized some of the frequent faces.” After waiting outside for about two hours, H. and the Tuoi Tre correspondent were both called inside the air-conditioned room furnished with 15 beds and 15 centrifuge machines. Around 300ml of blood is pulled from the donor’s veins at a time into the machine, where it is spun around to separate platelets and blood plasma before being returned to the donor. Each separation cycle takes 10-20 minutes to complete, which each donor undergoing between six and 20 repeated cycles of draw and return depending on the amount of platelets they are up for donation. After finishing the donation, each donor goes home with their allowance and a takeaway meal consisting of a banh mi, three cartons of milk and some iron supplements. “I had to think of other things to distract myself from the thought of having a needle inserted into my vein,” said Minh, an undergraduate from the Central Highland province of Gia Lai, after leaving the donation room. Having donated platelets multiple times, Minh said he had never got over the nervousness of seeing blooding flowing out of his body, though he had no other options to earn quick money to cover the expenses of living in the city. “My parents back in our hometown can only afford to pay for a part for my tuition fees, so I have to find my own ways to get by,” Minh said. P.T.T.H., a female undergraduate from a university in Ho Chi Minh City’s Thu Duc District, boasted about her ‘achievement’ of undergoing no less than 20 platelet donations since starting college. Having learnt of the ‘service’ while being a member of a volunteering club at her university, H. said she had since taken up platelet donating as a ‘part-time job’. There were months when she would pay visits to hospitals for up to three times just to sell platelets. “I only take about two weeks for recovery after each donation before returning for another,” H. said. To avoid being rejected by doctors for donating too frequently, H. said she would visit one hospital at the start of the month, then come to another hospital 10-12 days later, and return to the first hospital at the end of the month. “It’s okay as long as I can hide the needle scars on my arms,” H. said. Continuous rains pose challenges to roadworks in Ho Chi Minh City Continuous rainfall has brought about myriad difficulties for road constructions across Ho Chi Minh City. Upon completion of the works, the surface of several streets has been improperly reconstructed, causing hardship for commuters and local residents. Along Go Dua Street in Thu Duc District, a project on improving the drainage system has been carried out for over a month. Vehicles are banned from the road between 9:00 pm and 5:00 am every day for the implementation. As several sections of the streets have been finished, the developer has had the surface of these parts restored, not in a thorough manner. Residents complained that countless bumps and potholes had been formed on the new surface, which can be extra dangerous whenever it rains. Such flaws were not present on Go Dau Street prior to the project, Truong Thanh Tung, a local resident, asserted. Heavy downpours have seriously affected the execution of the project, a worker said, adding that the newly established street layer had been soaked, resulting in its uneven surface. A similar situation can be noticed on Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, Cong Quynh, and Do Quang Dau Streets in District 1, and Nguyen Van Dau Street in Binh Thanh District, where construction is being conducted for the burial of electric and telecom wires. Despite the rain, these projects have to be completed in accordance with the original schedule, some workers said. According to Nguyen Bat Han, deputy chief inspector of the municipal Department of Transport, many developers have been fine for their careless implementation. “About 353 violations have been recorded with fine totaling VND2.6 billion [US$ 113,850] in the first six months of this year,” Han elaborated. Statistics of the city’s transport department about 518 projects were initiated on the city’s streets since the beginning of the year. Nguyen Thanh Phuong, director of the Ben Thanh Water Supply JSC, developer of several drainage projects, said that it is hard to avoid carrying out these works during the rainy season. It takes nearly four months for competent authorities to approve the detail plan of each project, Phuong explained. According to Huynh Hao Tai, an official from the Saigon Water Corporation, it is most ideal to start a roadwork in December. However, if a project is proposed in that time of the year, an official permission will be granted in round March of the following year, while the rainy season often starts in April. There has been concern over the lack of coordination between developers, resulting in repeated constriction on the same street. A transport official considered the issue an inevitability as different projects cannot be conducted at the same time on the same road. There are certain differences between drainage system, electricity, and telecom projects, thus coordination is not possible, he stated. Warehouse in Saigon’s backpacker precinct burns to the ground A warehouse in Saigon's backpacker area burnt to the ground in the early hours of August 13 morning. No casualties were reported but the warehouse was consumed by the fire. Locals tried to use fire extinguishers to douse the flames when they broke out at 1 a.m., and customers were forced to flee eateries along the popular Bui Vien Street. It eventually took firefighters with five fire trucks half an hour to extinguish the blaze, but they were unable to save the warehouse. No one was inside when the fire broke out. The backpacker area also includes Pham Ngu Lao, De Tham, Do Quang Dau streets, and the neighboring Pham Ngu Lao Ward in District 1. The area is home to many bars, hotels, hostels, restaurants and travel agents. Exhibition highlights Vietnam's imperial examinations An exhibition on Van Mieu-Quoc Tu Giam (the Temple of Literature) and the Vietnamese imperial examinations was opened at the An Giang Province Museum on August 11. The event, which is being jointly held by the An Giang Province Museum and the Centre for Scientific and Cultural activities of Van Mieu-Quoc Tu Giam, will run until September 11. With 80 photos, documents and items on display, the exhibition introduces to the public an overview of the formation and development of the Temple of Literature in Hanoi and 82 stone steles recognised as a Global Memory of the World Programme, as well as introducing the history of the Vietnamese imperial examinations. The Vietnamese imperial examinations had a long tradition going back to 1075 and continuing for some 1,000 years later. Van Mieu-Quoc Tu Giam is the place where the names and birthplaces of the laureates of imperial examinations were preserved. At the exhibition, the public also has access to images and documentation on the architecture of Van Mieu-Quoc Tu Giam and architectural artefacts excavated at the old foundations of Quoc Tu Giam in 1998. The exhibition is an opportunity for An Giang Province Museum to promote the unique cultural heritage of Hanoi and to raise public awareness on preserving their national cultural identity. Vietnam, Laos hold friendship exchange in Japan The embassies of Vietnam and Laos in Japan held a people-to-people exchange programme in Tokyo, on August 10, to mark the 55th anniversary since the establishment of the two countries’ diplomatic ties and 40 years since the singing of the Treaty on Amity and Cooperation. Vietnamese Ambassador Nguyen Quoc Cuong highlighted the close friendship and solidarity that exists between Vietnam and Laos. In Japan, the bilateral ties were illustrated through close coordination between the two embassies, he said, hoping that the relations will continue to grow stronger through effective cooperation between their representative offices. Lao Ambassador Viroth Sundara said that the exchange helped to strengthen the two nations’ friendship. Various activities were held during the event, including traditional artistic and cultural performances and a table tennis competitions. Work starts on bridge at Lao Bao-Densavan border gate Construction of Xa Ot bridge at Lao Bao-Densavan international border gate between Vietnam’s central province of Quang Tri and Savannakhet province of Laos kicked off on August 11. The event forms part of activities marking the 55th founding anniversary of Vietnam-Laos diplomatic ties (Sept. 5) and 40 years of the signing of the Vietnam-Laos Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (July 18). The bridge has a total investment of 32.9 billion VND (around 1.45 million USD), funded by the Vietnamese Government. Quang Tri and Savannakhet provinces share a borderline of 126 kilometres, with the Lao Bao-Densavan border gate connecting with the East-West Economic Corridor. Once completed, the new bridge is expected to meet the growing trade and travel demand between the two provinces and Vietnam and Laos in general, thus completing the border gate traffic infrastructure and contributing to local socio-economic development and national defence-security. Addressing the groundbreaking ceremony, Vice Chairman of Quang Tri provincial  People’s Committee Nguyen Quan Chinh said the work not only serves trade and travel purposes but also fosters the solidarity between the Parties and people of the two nations. He urged the authorities of Sepon district (Savannakhet) and Huong Hoa district to accelerate land clearance to facilitate progress of the project. HCMC to pilot navigation fee collection, use in Soai Rap passage Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue has assigned the Ministry of Transport to work with relevant agencies to determine Soai Rap passage area where HCMC will pilot navigation fee collection and use from 2018-2020. According to Mr. Hue, HCMC is responsible for dredging and maintaining the passage and using the navigation fee revenue in the area determined by the ministry. Before June 30, 2020, the ministry should work with the Ministry of Finance and the city People’s Committee to review and estimate the pilot fee collection and use, propose implementation measures in following years and report to the Prime Minister. HCMC encourages using alternative materials in construction People’s Committee in Ho Chi Minh City asked its related agencies and local administrations in districts to direct investors using government spending to use ash, slag, plaster or construction materials with ashm slag and plaster. Because governments tighten control on exploitation of construction sand, it becomes scarce. Accordingly, investors of construction work in the city are encouraged to use alternative materials. Additionally, the Department of Industry and Trade was assigned to manage ash, slag, and plaster discharged from thermal power plants, chemical and fertilizer factories. The Department should also increase information of the project to use these waste as alternative material in construction to help clear away scrapyard. High-rise building investors asked to control flooding People’s Committee in Ho Chi Minh City sent its request in writing to condo investors to minimize flood or damages caused by flood in high-rise buildings. As per the request, investors must usually carry out drainage repair and maintenance as well as have contingency plans such as pumping or preventive measures when rainwater overflows the buildings. The Steering Center for the Urban Flood Control Program was asked to enhance supervise and increase information of drainage system map to locals so that people can take initiative to manage flooding. Meantime, the departments of Construction, Transport and people’s committees in districts were urged to strengthen inspection to construction site and check, take over the buildings’ infrastructure when it finishes. Local administrations must provide people with proactive measures in response to natural disasters and encourage residents to protect canal, drainage system. People’s committees in districts must clear away households which encroach canals or rivers. Children’s painting contest honoring late President Ton Duc Thang ends The award ceremony of the 12th annual painting contest entitled “Children and President Ton Duc Thang” was held at the Ton Duc Thang Museum in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 1 on August 12. Begun in July, the competition attracted more than 279 artworks of over 308 individuals aged between 5 and 14, including disadvantaged children from Open houses, Hy Vong School for the Deaf, Agent Orange (AO) children victims of Hoa Binh village. The organization board of this year’s event presented 90 awards, including 14 special prizes. The contest was organized by the Ton Duc Thang Museum, the Ho Chi Minh City Fine Art Association, HCMC Children’s Cultural House and HCMC Fine Ar tUniversity to celebrate the 129th anniversary of the late president birth on August 20 . President Ton Duc Thang was a patriot and a Communist who served as vice president for President Ho Chi Minh. He was president from 1969 until his death in 1980. The Ton Duc Thang Museum was established on the occasion of the late President Thang’s centenary in 1988. The museum has more than 600 items, documents and photos relating to the life of Mr. Thang, who is remembered as a great patriot and a model fighter VNN