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Social
News 26/8
American
ordained nun at Vietnamese pagoda
A 17-year old
American girl Kayala Jaramillo has cut her hair, taken vows of chastity
and been ordained a nun at Thien Vien Chan Nguyen (Buddhist Meditation
Centre) in California, the US.
Her parents, Keray
Jaramillo and Armida Jaramillo, both 62, have also been recognized as
Buddhist followers at the Buddhist Meditation Centre in the presence of
Venerable Thich Dang Phap, monks, nuns and nearly 100 Buddhist believers.
Mr Keray Jaramillo
has taken the Dharma name Nguyen dat, and his wife, Chan thanh. Their
daughter Kayala Jaramillo is now nun Thich nu chan giac.
Earlier, Kayala
Jaramillo was a student at an
She confided that
Buddha’s teachings have helped her find a path of liberation for herself and
for other people.
Hanoi gives
aids to guest workers returning from Libya
Accordingly, each
returnee will receive 1 million VND in cash sourced from the city’s budget.
The Vietnam Bank
for Social Policies will reschedule loans borrowed by workers for trips to
Meanwhile, the
municipal Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs has proposed
loans worth a maximum of 20 million VND to those who want to be
self-employed.
It will also
support vocational training fees for the former guest workers who wish to
learn a new occupation and advise them to seek new jobs at employment service
centres and job fairs in the city.
The country’s
evacuation of its 1,750 guest workers from war-torn Libya has almost
completed with 1,379 already back home by August 17 and all those working in
strife-hit Tripoli and Bengazhi cities moved to safer areas.-
Pig farmers
targeted in chemical probe
Agencies in
Tran Van Quang,
head of the Veterinary Department of Dong Nai Province, said that six of more
than 20 pig-breeding farms that were inspected in the province had been using
the banned lean-meat additive Sulbutamol.
The price hike of
pork had prompted breeders to use the chemical in animal feed, he told the
meeting organised by the Department of Livestock Production and the HCM City
Department of Agriculture and Rural Development in
Pig breeders use
the chemical to feed animals to ensure that meat is leaner and the animal
grows faster. The chemical also dissolves fat and builds muscle.
However, eating
pork with the chemical will increase the heart rate and blood pressure.
Nguyen Xuan Duong,
deputy director of the Department of Livestock Production, said the use of
banned substances in pig breeding had occurred for many years.
The Government had
made efforts to control the problem, but the current sanctions were not
strong enough to deter violators from repeating the offence, he said.
Duong said
localities should conduct education campaigns to raise awareness among pig
breeders about the adverse impact of banned substances.
If pig farms were
discovered using banned substance, their herd of pigs should be destroyed, he
said.
Nguyen Tri Cong,
chairman of the Dong Nai Animal Breeding Association, suggested authorities
that they should impose strict penalties and publicise the names of
violators.
Fishermen
worried by anchor lock shortage
A shortage of locks
used to anchor fishing vessels in the coastal areas of central
According to a
report from the local Department of Seafood Resources Protection and
Exploitation, the province has 2,000 vessels, consisting of offshore ships
and small fishing boats. During storms, these vessels need concrete locks in
which to nestle, away from the strong waves of the sea and lagoon.
The province has
only 30 locks scattered among 26 areas along the 120-km coast, and these
could only meet half of the vessels' demand, the report said.
Many of the locks
are 10 years old and were either risky to use or could not meet the high
demand for docking. On the other hand, newly-built locks have shortcomings,
including unwittingly blocking ships attempting to dock.
For example, the
Ngu My Thanh lock at the Quang Loi Commune of Quang Dien District could
accommodate only 60 of the commune's more than 200 vessels. During storms,
the vessels have to move to inland rivers to dock.
Meanwhile,
fishermen in Thuan An, Phu Hai and Phu Dien communes are reluctant to use the
Phu Hai lock, where shallow water levels leave vessels stuck in the sandy bed
inside the lock. Built in September 2011 at a cost of VND42 billion (US$1.9
million), the Phu Hai lock was reportedly the best in the province, with a
500-ship capacity.
"The thick
layer of sand on the bed inside the lock has made it difficult for vessels to
move in and out, so I don't really want to use it," said Nguyen Trong
Tuan, a local fisherman who owns a 90CV ship.
Authorities of the
Phu Hai Commune confirmed that there were numerous cases of vessels getting
stuck inside the lock, saying only small boats could anchor in there during
the rainy season, a waste of the expensive lock.
Hoang Phuoc,
Chairman of Thuan An Commune, said vessels in the commune needed the water to
be at least three meters deep to enter the lock, but the water there was only
half a meter deep. "This is not only a waste of the lock but also a big
hindrance to the trade of fish from offshore ships," he added.
The Department of
Agriculture and Rural Development, which built the Phu Hai lock in 2011, is
dredging the bed to deepen water levels inside the lock.
Another reason for
the shortage is the delay in projects for the construction of new locks. The
VND58 billion ($2.8 million) project for the construction of Cau Hai lock is
supposed to be completed next month, but only 33 per cent of the work has
been finished, leading to an indefinite delay.
This means that 420
ships and boats in the coastal Phu Loc District will be finding it difficult
to locate safe areas for harbouring in the coming rainy season.
The province is one
of the most vulnerable to heavy storms in the central region, but local
authorities are still struggling to find solutions to the shortage of locks
even as the rainy season approaches.
Agriculture
training must be more practical
Agriculture and
Rural Development Minister Cao Duc Phat has said the sector would speed up
efforts in vocational training, which is vital to enhancing the quality of
human resources in the sector and spur innovations in agriculture for the
years to come.
Speaking at a
meeting held on Thursday in Ha Noi, Minister Phat said in the 2015-16 period,
the sector would focus on integrating more businesses into vocational
training for rural areas and increase international co-operation to apply
more advanced technology in the sector.
The ministry is
currently overseeing about 40 institutions, including three universities, 12
colleges and 17 vocational training schools.
Phat said the
ministry would provide preferential policies to support schools to enhance
their curriculum that must be cater for the real need in the market and
production of the sector.
Participants at the
meeting agreed that in recent years, fewer students were choosing to major in
agriculture-related sectors with many institutions struggling to recruit
students.
Many students
strayed away from jobs in the aqua-culture or fisheries sectors because they
tended to be quite labour-intensive, they said.
Many institutions
which focused on training in agriculture in the past reportedly had to offer
more majors in finance and economics to attract more students.
Participants also
agreed that students also struggled to find jobs after graduation.
Huynh Huu Linh,
principal of a college that focuses on aquaculture training in
Minister Phat
called for institutions to upgrade their curricula and revise their training
methods to keep up with industry changes and add more value to local
products.
Farmers to
grow alternative crops
The Ministry of
Agriculture and Rural Development has decided to shift 770,000ha of fields
that exclusively grow rice to areas that combine aquaculture, rice and other
crops from now to 2020.
Under the
ministry's plan, 260,000ha of rice fields will be shifted in the 2014-15
period, and 510,000ha from 2016 to 2020.
The conversion is
expected to improve cultivation efficiency and increase farmers' incomes,
said the ministry.
Under the plan,
corn will account for the largest area on converted rice fields, as 236ha of
rice will be switched to grow corn by 2020.
Other crops to be
planted on converted rice fields include soybeans, sesame, peanuts,
vegetables and flowers. Aquaculture development will also be included.
The conversion will
be based on market demand and the crops will have higher profits than rice,
said the ministry.
The Cuu Long (
The delta's rice
fields typically plant three rice crops a year.
However, under the
plan, some converted fields will plant two rice crops and one cash crop a
year, and others will plant one rice crop and two cash crops a year.
Some fields will
combine one rice crop and aquaculture each year, and some will cultivate only
cash crops year-round.
The ministry's
Plant Cultivation Department will be responsible for giving instructions to
provinces and cities and will work with departments and agencies to set up
policies.
Youth speak
out over lack of sexual health education
Adolescents need
comprehensive sexuality education, which is currently provided by only 10
clubs in the whole country, said Duong Minh Ha, a young participant at a
reproductive health forum yesterday in Ha Noi.
Nguyen Duc Vinh
from the Ministry of Health's Department of Mother-Child Health agreed,
saying reproductive health education should be taught in schools.
"Until now, we
have mostly focused on married couples," he said. "However,
unmarried young people suffer high risks of unexpected pregnancies and unsafe
abortions."
Vu Thanh Liem, director
of the National Youth Centre under the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union,
said that reproductive healthcare for young people and adolescents would play
an important role in the quality of the future population.
However, young
people and adolescents lacked the basic knowledge and skills to avoid
unexpected pregnancies, unsafe abortions and sexually transmitted diseases.
Liem also said
there should be more centres providing reproductive health services for youth
and the State should spend more on this area, in addition to creating
mechanisms to let young people participate in creating relevant policies.
"Such centres
would be a place for young people to get advice relating to reproductive
health in a friendly way," Ha said.
Young people and
adolescents account for nearly 30 per cent of the population.
Organised by the
Viet Nam Family Planning Association, the forum aimed to help young people
voice their concerns about reproductive health and assist policy-makers in
contributing ideas to the National Assembly and Government.
Ancient
city to build waste treatment plant
The ancient city of
Hoi An in the central province of Quang Nam will construct a waste water
treatment station to improve the channel running through the Japanese Bridge,
one of the most visited site in the tourism hub, this November.
Vice Chairman of
the city's People's Committee, Truong Van Bay, said the project, with an
investment of VND244 billion (US$11.6 million) from a non-refundable loan
from Japan and Viet Nam's government, will collect and clean 2,000 cubic
metres of waste water before pumping it into the Hoai River.
The city has also
planned a 1.6ha tourism information reception centre on Le Hong Phong Street
with a parking area and toilet stop for tourists, with investment of VND7 billion
($333,000).
He said the city
would also upgrade four public toilets in the old town for tourists and local
people.
Kindergarten
opens in remote hamlet
A kindergarten was
opened in the Central Highlands
The school was
built at a total cost of US$52,000 funded by the Viet Nam Education Society
of Canada.
The project will
benefit 60 children and their teachers and more than 600 members of the
community in Konkloc hamlet.
Timber
farmers out of the loop
Poor and ethnic
forest farmers have no say in negotiations to sell their timber because
prices are negotiated by dealers, leaving the growers at a disadvantage.
Dr Nguyen Duy
Luong, vice chairman of the Viet Nam Central Farmers Association, revealed
this at a conference held in Ha Noi yesterday.
A report at the
conference, which was organised to launch a project known as the Forest and
Farm Facility project in Viet Nam, revealed that during 2006-11, about 16.2
million hectares of forestry land was allotted to 1.25 million households,
supposedly creating jobs for 4.65 million workers.
One third of the
families involved in forest farming are poor, mostly from ethnic groups in
remote and disadvantaged areas.
Their incomes are
created mostly from their involvement in protecting forests and producing
forestry-related, farming and acquaculture products.
Luong said the
forest farmers' lack of knowledge about the market and business led to them
being overlooked in the price negotiation process.
He said they were
often taken advantage of by opportunistic dealers.
Jeffrey Campbell,
director of the
He said this could
be achieved through the establishment of organisations and associations, or
businesses that offered advice to farmers, helped them gain access to the
market and built up brands for their products.
Cao Chi Cong,
deputy general director of the Viet Nam Administration of Forestry (under the
agricultural ministry), said that farmers were not very interested in getting
involved in the planting and protection of forests because the benefits were
limited.
He said a hectare
of forest gave farmers an income of VND30-40 million (US$4,670-1,900) after
subtracting expenses, but it took six years for forests to become ready for
exploitation.
The financial
profits, therefore, were much lower than those collected by planting cassava
and sugar cane.
He added that to
save the time, farmers sometimes began exploiting the grown forests earlier
than usual, after three to four years rather than six to seven.
This meant timber
was often not of high quality and sold for low prices, making it difficult to
earn a living.
Experts at the
conference said they were concerned that the legal regulations on forest
management and forest allocation as well as wood exploitation for commercial
benefits remained unclear.
They said this also
helped make forestry-related activities unattractive to farmers.
Experts also voiced
concerns that farmers had limited awareness of the importance of complying
with the law about forest protection.
Problems also
included farmers accidentally creating fires while cutting down trees,
hunting animals illegally and destroying forests to grow other plants for
livelihood.
Border
guards seize ship carrying dynamite, detonators
Thanh Lan Border
Post guards in Co To District in the
Four men, aged
between 21 and 39, from the province's Hai Ha District, were operating the
ship.
The men were
reportedly using dynamite illegally to catch fish, and used to throw the
evidence into the sea whenever they were discovered by the border guards.
Familiar with the
men's tricks, the border guards prepared a detailed plan to catch them in the
act.
Cement
company fined for noise pollution
The Natural
Resources and Environment Department of the central
The Van Ninh Cement
Company was found to be creating noise at levels 15 decibels higher than
allowed noise levels, causing surrounding residents to suffer from noise
pollution.
The company also
did not have an available environmental protection plan, as required.
Local authorities
ordered the company to take measures to reduce the noise pollution.
Remains of
109 fallen soldiers found
The Dong Nai
provincial Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs said that the
province’s Military Command and relevant agencies have excavated the remains
of 109 fallen soldiers’ and their relics.
The remains,
together with many sandals, hammocks and water cans, were found in a mass
grave in Hamlet 5, Long Tho commune, Nhon Trach district.
According to
relevant agencies, based on historical documents and related information, the
remains are of soldiers who were killed in 1967. The remains will be buried
in Nhon Trach district’s
Valedictorians
honoured in Hanoi
The Hanoi Municipal
Youth Union held a ceremony at Van Mieu – Quoc Tu Giam (
The valedictorians,
who are graduates from universities and institutes with impressive academic
results, are role-models for any student struggling to overcome difficulties
to persuse scientific studies, initiatives, practical and effective solutions
locally and internationally.
After offering
incense to commemorate their predecessors, the valedictorians wrote their
names in a golden book.
They offers incense
to commemorate their predecessors.
The outstanding
graduates then took part in an exchange themed ‘Lighting up dreams of Hanoi’s
valedictorians’, which encouraged them to continue studying, working and
practising their studies for their own success and to make further
contributions to building the capital and the country.
Among the 132
honoured valedictorians are 7 males and 95 females; 57 of them have
outstanding academic records while 75 earned excellent results, 56 of the
valedictorians are Vietnam Communist Party members.
This is the 12th
consecutive year
The capital city of
The municipal
Department of Planning and Investment is working with relevant agencies to
study specific measures towards this goal in line with Deputy Prime Minister
Hoang Trung Hai’s instruction, to be submitted to the municipal People’s
Committee.
Meanwhile, the
Department of Industry and Trade and management boards of industrial and
processing zones have directed the zones’ investors to promptly complete
concentrated sewage treatment systems and connect them with factories operating
in the zones.
Local authorities
around industrial zones have been urged to speed up the inspection of
environmental protection and hold more educational campaigns to raise
awareness of both businesses and locals of the protection work.
According to the
Department of Industry and Trade, the city is building 107 industrial
clusters, 48 of which have no plans for concentrated waste water treatment
systems.
Among 42
operational industrial zones and clusters, only 25 have the required systems.
The department has
plans to build the systems at seven industrial clusters in 2014, and at nine
others in the following year.-
The Hanoi Wild
Animal Rescue Centre has said it had so far rescued and conserved 323
individuals of wildlife species and 35kg of snakes.
It has promoted
disease prevention to ensure safety for animals rescued and conserved at the
centre such as vaccination and worming while providing treatment for ill
animals. As many as four tigers and 20 monkeys were born and nurtured at the
centre.
The centre is now
caring 28 tigers, 15 bears, four northern white-cheeked gibbons, eight
peacocks and two great hornbills before releasing them back into wild.
In August, the
Hanoi Ranger Department detected and punished 15 cases of violations to the
law on forest protection and development, seizing 44 individuals of
wildlife.-
WB studies
climate change adaptation in
Vice President of
the World Bank Rachel Kyte toured the Mekong Delta
According to the
Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Ben Tre is one of the most
vulnerable provinces in
Floods, damaged
dykes and sea level rise have posed a lot of difficulties to the local lives
and manufacturing activities, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s
Committee reported at a working session with the WB Vice President the same
day.
However, with the
assistance of the government and the WB, Ben Tre has undertaken counter
measures, including the building of a 31km long sea dyke in Ba Tri district
and a water supply plant which together with an available facility can supply
clean water for over 2,000 poor households.
The province has
also conducted regular educational campaigns to raise public awareness of the
issue while developing farming models that are adaptive to climate change.
The official asked
for more assistance from the bank to carry out several major projects,
particularly a 100-km sea dyke to protect residents in Binh Dai and Thanh Phu
districts, a water plant to serve four districts of Cho Lach, Mo Cay Nam, Mo
Cay Bac and Thanh Phu, and the planting of 831 hectares of protective forests
in the coastal areas.
Recognising the
necessity of climate change resilience projects, the WB Vice President said
she will discuss with the government measures to continue helping the
province and other localities in the delta to cope with the issue.
During her trip to
Ben Tre, the WB leader also visited a model farm combining rice cultivation
and shrimp raising in Ba Tri district and several islets where land erosion
is occurring as a consequence of climate change.
Ministry
asks to report about electronic textbook project
Concerning to a
project of using electronic textbooks and Ipad tablet in schools in
It must admit that
the city has the advantage of carrying out the project of electronic
textbooks and Ipad tablet; however, the pilot project must have agreement of
parents and the Ministry’s approval, according to Pham Ngoc Dinh, the
ministry's Head of Primary Education Department.
Mr. Dinh said that
the city has asked scientists, educationists and parents. If the project
receives positive response from the public and it is feasible, the Department
of Education and Training has to ask for permission.
Otherwise, it must
stop.
Health
authority fines substandard-imported drug importers
The Drug
Administration of Vietnam August 22 said that it has fined five
pharmaceutical companies which imported several substandard medications.
The drug
administration also asked five importers to recall and re-export these
medicines which fail to meet the standard or destroy these drugs as per
regulation.
Truong Quoc Cuong,
head of the Drug Administration of Vietnam, signed the decision to fine VND
100 million (US$ 4,723) each to five companies including the branch of the
Central Pharmaceutical Company No. 1 and No. 3 in Ho Chi Minh City and the
central city of Da Nang’s Hai Chau District; the National Phytopharma
Joint-Stock Company in HCMC's District 1; Sohaco Trading and Pharmaceutical
Group JSC in Hanoi's Ba Dinh District and the Danang Pharmaceutical Medical
Equipment Joint Stock Company in Da Nang City’s Hai Chau District.
In addition to
fine, the health watchdog will stop receiving registration document of these
companies in one month or six months.
Most of these
companies have imported Indian-made substandard drugs. For instance the
Central Pharmaceutical Company No. 1 imported six low quality drugs such as
Korean Dea Han New Pharm Co.’s Proexen tablet, Indian-made Norash -20 skin
cream manufactured by Raptakos, Brett&Co and
Despite their
important role in forest protection, Vietnamese those designated to protect
and grow forests find it difficult to make a living.
During the
2006-2011 period, a total of 10 hectares of forestland was allocated to 1.25
million households, with nearly five million workers, including 485,000 poor
households from ethnic minority groups.
Their incomes come
from different sources, including sales of wood products from their planted
forests and environmental service fees for forest protection, cultivation and
husbandry. However, their incomes remain very modest.
“It takes around
five to six years to grow trees and harvest them. Growers earn an average of
less than VND10 million per year, much lower than families who grow to other
crops,” said the deputy director of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural
Development (MARD)’s Department of Forestry.
Many growers opt to
chop down their trees early, which results lower prices and low-quality wood.
Also, growers have had difficulty finding stable markets for their products
and depend on traders who take advantage of them. .
“They do not have
the ability to bargain and are often taken advantage of due to the lack of
information and business skills,” said Nguyen Duy Luong, vice permanent
chairman of Vietnam Farmers' Union (VNFU).
In order to
increase their incomes and protect the environment, the VNFU proposed an initiative
to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)’s
Jeffrey Y Campbell,
director of FFF said, this is multi-financed programme that is funded by the
governments of
“In order to
provide these growers with chances to protect their interests and contribute
to the process of policy making, it’s necessary to encourage them to set up
groups of producers and family-based enterprises so they can participate in
the market and develop their business,” Jeffrey commented.
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Thứ Hai, 25 tháng 8, 2014
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