Government News 25/11 Vietnam, Italy strengthen relations Vietnam and Italy should boost their cooperation on energy, especially on alternative energies, such as wind and solar power, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh said. He made the suggestion at the reception for Benedetto della Vedora, the Italian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, in Hanoi on November 24. The Deputy Prime Minister expressed congratulated Italy on the success of the 10th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Summit that took place in the European country in October. Ninh spoke highly the relationship between Vietnam and Italy and the effective implementation of the action plan to realise the strategic partnership. He also called for better and more long-term links between the two countries’ business circles. On his part, the Italian Deputy Minister hailed the remarkable achievements Vietnam made during the Doi Moi reforms and in socio-economic development, while affirming that Italy continuously treasures its multi-faceted cooperation with Vietnam , and is keen to strengthen it further. He added that the 70 firms accompanying the delegation highly value Vietnam’s market potential and wish to foster ties with Vietnamese enterprises to enhance the competitiveness on both sides.- Greetings on UN solidarity day with Palestinians President Truong Tan Sang has sent his greetings to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and his Palestinian counterpart Mahmoud Abbas on the occasion of the UN Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian people (November 29). He also cabled a message to Fode Seck, Chairman of the UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. Brazilian, Vietnamese legislatures enhance cooperation The friendship parliamentarians’ groups of Vietnam and Brazil are expected to act as a bridge between the two countries’ national assemblies and parliamentarians, according to Tran Van Hang, Chairman of the National Assembly’s Committee for External Relations. The statement was made during a meeting with a delegation from the Brazil-Vietnam Friendship Parliamentarians’ Group in Hanoi on November 24, led by Chairwoman Jo Moraes. He said he is pleased with the continuous development of the two countries’ legislative bodies’ friendship and cooperation. Vietnam continuously treasures and wishes to expand its friendship and comprehensive cooperation with Brazil, he affirmed, adding that the country is keen to help Brazilian businesses invest and operate in the Southeast Asian nation. Hang proposed the group’s members support Vietnamese firms in expanding their operations in Brazil. He said he wishes that the two sides increase delegation exchanges at all levels and that the group supports the acceleration of the Brazilian government’s recognition of Vietnam as a market economy. On her part, Jo Moraes highly valued Vietnam’s achievements in national development and informed her host on the outcomes of talks between the two friendship parliamentarians’ groups. She expressed her wish that the two sides will strengthen delegation exchange with a view to increasing mutual understanding and sharing experience in law making, supervision and voters’ meeting. Earlier, a delegation of the Vietnam-Brazil Friendship Parliamentarians’ Group, headed by its Chairman by Nguyen Duc Hien, and the Brazil delegation held talks, focussing on boosting friendship and cooperation via the two countries’ parliamentary channels. Dong Nai keen to foster ties with Cambodia Dong Nai province will do its utmost to contribute to strengthening and developing the neighbourly friendship between Vietnam and Cambodia , Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Phu Cuong said. At the reception for a delegation of the Cambodian People’s Party, headed by Chae Cheth, Chairman of the Cambodian Senate’s Committee on Finance, Banking and Audits in the southern province on November 24, Cuong briefed his guests on local development. He affirmed that the provincial authorities continuously treasure the friendship and comprehensive cooperation between the two countries’ governments and peoples, and highlighted the relations and fruitful cooperation between the province and neighbouring Cambodian localities. On his part, Chea Cheth spoke highly of Vietnam ’s support for the Cambodian people in the past and during their process of nation-building and national development. He expressed his hope that Vietnam in general and Dong Nai in particular will continue to extend support to the country’s socio-economic development. Since 2009, Dong Nai has signed a number of memoranda of understanding on cooperation with Cambodian localities. It helped build a 10-hectare seedling development centre and provided cashew plant seedlings to Kampong and Kampong Cham provinces.- Dak Lak province’s economy at the heart of PM working session Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung held a working session with officials from the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak in Hanoi on November 24, requesting them to undertake maximum efforts to tap into their potential in agriculture and forestry. The Cabinet leader highlighted that the province had not yet succeeded in maximising the benefits of its land, forestry and agricultural production resources. For example, the province’s coffee products have failed to gain a foothold in international markets, while its forests are not providing a stable source of income for local residents. He urged the province to work harder to attract domestic and foreign investments to coffee cultivation and processing, and build a strong trademark for its coffee products on the global market. Meanwhile, the locality also needed to mobilise resources to develop forest-based economic activities in ethnic minority communities; upgrade its socio-economic infrastructure, particularly traffic and irrigation systems; ensure social welfare; and accelerate the building of new-style rural areas, the PM said. During the session, Secretary of the provincial Party Committee Nie Thuat reported that local socio-economic conditions had been improved in recent years, fostered by the development of Buon Ma Thuot City, which was designated a key city of the Central Highlands region. Buon Ma Thuot maintained a growth rate of 13.84 percent between 2010 and 2013, and its per capita GDP is expected to top 47 million VND (nearly 2,240 USD) in 2014. The household poverty rate also decreased by 1.55 percent a year in the 2010-2013 period, he added. Dak Lak officials suggested the Government provide 100 percent of the corresponding capital for ODA-funded projects and invite major State-run enterprises to open agricultural processing factories in the locality. Covering more than 13,000km2 of land in the heart of the Central Highlands, Dak Lak is home to approximately 1.8 million residents, with more than 1.3 million people living in rural areas and more than 30 percent of the population being ethnic minorities. The province boasts more than 202,500ha of coffee plantations, accounting for 40 percent of coffee cultivation areas in the Central Highlands and 30 percent of coffee plantations in all of Vietnam, with an annual yield of more than 412,000 tonnes. Dak Lak’s coffee beans are exported to 80 countries and territories worldwide. President meets with handicraft artisans President Truong Tan Sang yesterday hailed the role of trade villages in national socio-economic development during a reception for 40 artisans from traditional villages producing goods like embroidery, pottery and bamboo. At the reception, he was briefed on activities of the Viet Nam Trade Villages Association (VTVA) in protecting and promoting traditional craft trades and providing vocational training for rural workers, contributing to the nation's new-style rural building programme. The President asked the association to help its members develop their business and focus on improving product quality in a bid to introduce Vietnamese culture to the region and the world, while proposing solutions to preserve traditional trade villages. Since its establishment in 2005, the association has run hundreds of training courses on start-up and business management in trade villages, making things easier for handicraft businesses, VTVA Chairman Luu Duy Dan told the President.  VNA/VOV/VNS