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Social News 22/4
National vaccine safety surveillance programme meets WHO
requirements
After a one-week mission to
The team, including 14 experts from the WHO and two observers
from
During the checking process, the team made field trips to the
southern
Tien Giang improves public awareness of climate change
adaption
A conference revising the Child-centered Climate Change
Adaption project was held in the Mekong Delta
Funded by the Australian Agency for International Development
(AusAID), the 8.1 billion VND (385,000 USD) project has been implemented in
seven communes: Gia Thuan, Kieng Phuoc, Phuoc Trung, Tan Dien, Vam Lang, Binh
Xuan and Binh Dong from April 2013 to April 2015.
The project consist of two parts—developing adaption
competency with climate change among the community and vulnerable children as
well as implementing planting and breeding models suitable to climate change.
The project has introduced climate change and natural disaster
risk information to local schools to improve preparedness and resilience for
people and children in the affected areas.
The project has also supported paddy planting and organic
breeding models in five communes, helping to increase local income.
Vu Hong Khanh, Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee,
said
Besides the eight existing facilities, which will all be
ungraded, the city will build nine new waste treatment plants and five solid
waste transport centres, Khanh said.
The planned new facilities will be located in Dong Anh, Chuong
My, Thach That, My Duc and Ba Vi suburban districts.
A plant with a capacity of 500 tonnes per day in Chau Can
commune, Phu Xuyen district, will go into operation by early next year at the
latest.
The city encouraged enterprises and organisations to take part
in treating waste in rural areas, use advanced technologies to turn waste
into energy, protect the environment and reduce costs, Khanh added.
Only 20 percent of waste is currently treated, the rest is
buried.
Sunday flea market for workers
On the outskirts of HCMC, more and more weekend flea markets
have been held for workers. Opened every Sunday from early morning to noon,
those flea markets have attracted many buyers as Sunday morning is the freest
time of all workers.
At around 8 a.m. on a Sunday morning, a number of vendors
display their products on a plain area at the end of
The fixed factory schedule of workers is from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
daily but after that, most of them have to work overtime until 7 or 8 p.m.,
Nhan says.
Therefore, Sunday is not only the break day but also the time
for workers to go shopping, and that is why Sunday flea markets for workers
have sprung up, she explains.
“Although such flea markets have just been around for one
year, they have developed quite strongly. Products put on sale include
household appliances, clothes, footwear and low-cost cosmetics,” she adds.
A worker who identified herself as Hang and now works for a
leather-shoe factory at
Aside from Binh Chanh, weekend flea markets for workers can
also be found in Binh Tan, Hoc Mon and Thu Duc districts. These markets have
one thing in common: softer prices than market levels. It is because
they are set up at empty areas for just half a day per week and therefore,
vendors do not have to spend any sum hiring stalls. On the other hand, low
prices will help vendors lure workers who are low-income earners.
Thanks to cheap prices, these flea markets have attracted
other people as well.
Pham, a high-school teacher in Tan Phu District, says she
stays near a flea market for workers and usually comes there to pick several
products every Sunday owing to their reasonable prices.
Some workers say when they receive gifts from companies or
have any products that they do not need, they also bring them to these flea
markets to sell to other workers.
Journalists observe 65th anniversary of association
Five hundred representatives of the Vietnam Journalists
Association and press agencies nationwide attended a ceremony to mark the
65th anniversary of the association in
On April 21, 1950, a congress was held in Diem Mac commune,
Dinh Hoa district of northern Thai Nguyen province to establish the
Association of Vietnam Press Writers; the name was changed to the Vietnam
Journalists Association (VJA) during its second congress in 1959.
On July 7, 1976, more than a year since the nation was
reunified, the southern Association of Patriotic and Democratic Journalists
merged with the VJA.
The VJA now has 22,000 members nationwide, increasing substantially
from the initial 300 members. More than 400 journalists laid down their lives
working on battlefields during the fight for national independence and
reunification.
The 65th anniversary is an occasion for journalists to reflect
on their accomplishments and seek ways to improve quality and social
efficiency, said Dinh The Huynh, Politburo member and Chairman of the Party
Central Committee’s Commission for Communications and Education.
He asked the VJA to develop journalists’ professional skills
as well as their sense of responsibility towards society, actively give
opinions on State management and legal regulations regarding the press and
expand external relations.
VJA Vice Standing Chairman Ha Minh Hue said the association
has established journalists as vanguard soldiers on the frontlines of thought
and culture, adding that the VJA and its members should continue building on
their achievements.
The agreement was reached following a meeting between Defence
Minister Nguyen Thanh Cung and Min Khin , Vice Chairman and General Secretary
of the Solidarity Front for Development of the Cambodian Motherland ( SFDCM
), in
Cung appreciated
Cung hoped that the Vietnamese Ministry of Defence and the
SFDCM would closely coordinate in relevant issues.
Min Khin, who is also Minister of Cults and Religious Affairs,
agreed with Cung on repairing, renovating and restoring Vietnam-Cambodia
friendship monuments that honour voluntary Vietnamese soldiers who assisted
Nghe
An focuses on upgrading irrigation
The central
The province is now home to 624 reservoirs, 559 pump stations,
400 dams and 4,700 kilometres of irrigation canals.
Currently, Nghe An is calling for investment in key projects
such as the Ban Mong reservoir, Nam Dan dyke, Vach Nam-Song Bung drainage
system, pump stations in Vinh city, the Lam river and Hoang Mai river dykes
and other flood drainage networks.
The projects will contribute to increasing agricultural
productivity volume as well as poverty reduction and livelihood improvement.
Power to hold out during dry season
Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) will use all its resources to
ensure sufficient supplies during the dry season, said National Load Dispatch
Centre Vice Director Vu Xuan Khu.
Power loads during the dry season's peak – from April to June
– were expected to reach 460-465 million kWh per day on average, about 9.2 to
10.5 per cent higher than the same period last year.
The country is expected to consume 13.42 billion kWh in April
and more than 41 billion kWh in the second quarter. The country used 35.8
billion kWh in the last three months.
Khu said EVN would have to mobilise at least 150 million kWh
of coal-fired power and gas turbine power each day to ensure supplies lasted.
Nineteen reservoirs at hydropower plants across the country
including Quang Tri, A Vuong, Song Bung 4 and Song Tranh in the central
region and those on the
The prolonged
Khu said EVN was taking drastic measures to complete key power
projects by the end of the month. They include a 500kV line connecting the
national grid with Vung Ang 1 Thermal Power Plant, 220kv line Thuong Tin –
Kim Dong and Mao Khe-Hai Duong 2 Thermal Plant.
In the first quarter, EVN got the Prime Minister's approval to
solve bottlenecks at other key power projects. EVN took over projects to expand
Duyen Hai 3 Thermal Plant and Vinh Tan 4 Power Plant. It was also assigned to
prepare funding and investment procedures to develop O Mon 3 Thermal Power
Plant.
Experts to discuss growth after war
Local and international experts will discuss
The international conference, titled "
Military conflicts between 1954 and 1975 and the country's
development during the past four decades will be the focus.
The conference's organisers have received more than 300
reports authored by local and international experts about
Half of the reports focus on
Of the 300 reports, 15 will be presented by scholars from
At the conference, they will share their views about the war
and the country's renovation process.
Among the speakers will be Professor Carlyle A. Thayer, from
the
90 percent of Ha
Up to 90 percent of rural households in northern Ha
All communal medical stations will also have hygienic water
and toilets within this year, rising from 95 percent last year, said Deputy
Director of the Ha Nam Department of Planning and Investment Phan Van Trinh.
The province has built and upgraded 22 rural water facilities
since 2011, 12 of which have been put into use, he added.
To achieve the targets, relevant provincial agencies have
coordinated to carry out the National Target Programme on Rural Clean Water
and Environmental Hygiene. The Department of Agriculture and Rural
Development steered the building of water supply facilities and hygienic
livestock cages and the Department of Health managed the construction of standard
toilets at private homes and medical stations.
Ha Nam has also successfully called for private investments in
building water supply systems, Trinh noted, elaborating that nearly 200
million VND (9,500 USD) were donated by businesses while some 40 million VND
(1,900 USD) were contributed by local people.
Between 2011 and 2015, the National Target Programme has been
implemented at a cost of more than 608 billion VND (28.95 million USD) in Ha
The apartments are part of the 490-unit Useful Apartment
project funded by Esaco Group, covering nearly 6,714 square metres on Lac
Long Quan Street in Tan Binh district.
Between 2011 and 2014 more than 6,000 apartments were
completed under 20 social housing projects, according to the municipal
Department of Construction.
Another 880 apartments were shifted from commercial projects
and six other social housing projects were approved.
The city has had 43 social housing projects to date, and 8
others shifted from commercial projects, offering a total of nearly 50,000
apartments.
In 2015, the city intends to complete five social housing
projects providing more than 3,500 apartments.
It plans to build an additional 40 million square metres of
social housing through 2020, offering 10,000 apartments and accommodating
hundreds of thousands of workers and students.
Workshop promotes employee rights
A workshop was held in
According to VASS Vice President Professor Dr Nguyen Quang
Thuan, the European Union supported Vietnam to implement the project
“Strengthening the rights of workers and representatives of trade unions”
since October 2012.
The project aims to enhance the capacity of Vietnamese trade
unions to supervise and understand worker circumstances as well as support
employees in legal issues and raise awareness of their legitimate rights.
Speaking at the workshop, Project Coordinator Dr Michela
Cerimele from
The scholar underlined the need to respect the basic rights of
labourers including ensuring appropriate incomes and social welfare.
Project partners conducted research studies and provided legal
consultancy services for labourers working at industrial parks in
Training courses were arranged for members of labour unions in
legal advice centres in the localities, offering insight into scientific
study methods, international labour standards as well as experience in the
legal consulting activities of other countries.
Phimmasone Loungkhamma, member of the Central Committee of the
Lao People’s Revolutionary Party and Secretary of Luang Namtha province Party
Committee, was bestowed with the
Speaking at the event, Vietnamese Ambassador to Laos Nguyen
Manh Hung affirmed that the title aims to show
Hung expressed his hope that the Lao official would do his
utmost to enhance the traditional relationship between the two countries.
For his part, Phimmasone Loungkhamma voiced his delight at the
title, pledging to nurture the friendship and bolster comprehensive
cooperation between the two Parties and peoples.
In October 2014, the Hanoi People’s Committee decided to
present the honourable resident title to 12 individuals with significant
contributions to the city’s development towards peace, social advancement and
international cooperation.
Construction begins on Vietnamese deer breeding centre
The Ha Tinh Minerals and Trading Corporation (Mitraco) began
construction work on its new Vietnam Deer Breeding Centre in the central
Speaking at the ground breaking ceremony, Vice Chairman of the
provincial People’s Committee Le Dinh Son claimed that the centre will play
an important role in the province’s economic and social security development.
When finished, the site will cover an area of nearly 50
hectares in the Son Quang and Son Linh communes of Huong Son district. The
first phase will see 16 hectares completed by 2016.
This initial phase has a total investment capital of 40
billion VND (1.9 million USD) and will see the centre purchase 1,000 breeding
deers. The deer stocks will be increased to at least 5,000 in the second
phase (2016-2017).
Once completed, the centre is expected to breed the animals
for preservation and research purpose and to meet demand for deer, which is
raised in farms, mainly in Ha Tinh provinces, for velvet antlers and meat.
Deer velvet antlers have long been used in Asian traditional
medicine as a health booster.
Ethnic and religious groups thanked for support in national
development
Government officials from
The event was held ahead of the 40th anniversary of
Reviewing the city’s achievements over the last four decades,
Politburo member and Secretary of the municipal Party Committee, Le Thanh
Hai, hailed the work of ethnic minority people and religious followers,
especially their local social and humanitarian activities.
They have raised billions of dollars each year for scholarship
funds, house building programmes and free medical check-ups and treatment for
the underprivileged, he said. Many of them have been rewarded as part of the
national drive to “Study and follow late President Ho Chi Minh’s moral
example”.
Hai expressed his belief that now these outstanding
individuals will step up their social, cultural and economic activities yet
further in order to turn HCM City into the economic, financial, commercial
and hi-tech hub of Vietnam and the Southeast Asian region.
Phu Van Han, who is an ethnic Cham, said the city has assisted
his people in eliminating poverty and seeking education, while facilitating
their cultural and religious activities. Many current members of the Vietnam
Fatherland Front’s committees at different levels are Cham people.
Monk Danh Lung from the Khmer group also thanked the municipal
authorities for supporting their cultural and religious activities over the
past decades.
Conference looks back on protection work for heritage trees
A joint conference reviewing the accreditation of some of
Co-managed by the Vietnam Association for Conservation of
Nature and Environment (VACNE) and the Vietnam Union of Scientific and
Technological Associations, the work to recognise and protect
In the last half decade, VACNE has recognised over 970 trees
as ‘Vietnamese heritage trees’. Phu Tho is home to 33 of these, including the
2,200 year old “tau bac” tree (vatica odorata) which grows in the Thien Co
temple, Viet Tri city.
Standing Deputy Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee
Nguyen Dinh Cuc said the province will coordinate with environmental
associations to find, evaluate and accredit more heritage trees in a bid to
improve the community’s awareness about protecting ancient and rare trees and
looking after the environment.
The joint conference also honored individuals and
organisations who have performed particularly impressively in the work of
preserving heritage trees.
Tree planting project takes root in Bac Kan
A special “Tree Planting Day 2015” was held in the
HVN’s General Director Minoru Kato said the event is part of
an eight- year project (from 2013 to 2020) developed by the local government
alongside the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and
As the sole sponsor of the project, HVN has provided 4.9
billion VND (233,000 USD) for planting trees over 490 hectares of protective
forest land in two communes of
He noted that trees will be planted from 2013-2016, while the
next four years will see the trees thinned out but protected. Harvesting will
start from 2020.
The project is expected to yield 73,500 cubic metres of wood,
which will bring a profit of about 50 billion VND (2.3 million USD).
Households taking part in the project will receive all of the proceeds of
selling timber after harvesting. The project is not only contributing to
environmental protection, but is also directly helping raise the living
standards of local people by eradicating hunger and poverty.
The April 19 event attracted more than 200 HVN associates and
Honda partners in
After almost two years of implementing the project, so far
there have been nearly 360 hectares of trees planted and cared for. The
average height of project trees is between 60-90 cm, and the average diameter
is 1cm.
Hot weather hits northern, central, and southern region
Because of the influence of hot low pressure from westwards
accompanied with operation of hot and dry wind from
However, because of effect of an outgoing cold front in the
northern region, the temperature in the northwestern and north central
provinces is decreasing, measured at 35- 37 degrees Celsius.
The temperature in the area of
Meanwhile,
HCMC accelerates poverty alleviation
Within half a month recently, three more districts in Ho Chi
Minh City were recognized as districts without under poor households whose
income reaches only VND16 million (US$741) a person per year, taking the
total to eight districts.
It is expected that six more districts will be deleted from
the list of poor households districts by the end of this year and accomplish
the poverty alleviation program for the phase 2014-2015.
The program’s purpose is to better residents’ life and raise
the number of well-to-do families, said deputy chairwoman of District 6
People’s Committee Le Thi Thanh Thao.
Besides District 6, Districts 1, 3, 5, 10, 11, Binh Tan and
Tan Binh have got their targets to have no households with the above income
level.
Notably, the city has five wards including Thao Dien in
District 2 and four others in District 5, where a person earns more than 21
million (US$973) a year.
Deputy Director of the city Department of Labor, Invalids and
Social Affairs Nguyen Van Xe said that the city’s poverty mitigation program
had entered its sprint phase.
In the first phase of the program, HCMC had 83,000 poor
households accounting for 4.2 percent of its total households.
Of these, over 53,300 have overcome poverty line so far.
Twenty four percent of them were loaned to do business, 19 percent were
employed and nearly 42 percent managed themselves to improve their earnings.
According to Mr. Xe, HCMC has focused all possible resources
and diversified measures to assist the poor and create conditions for them to
access social welfare policies.
Total preferential loans for the poor and those near the
poverty line have hit VND2,835 billion (US$131.32 million) since the
beginning of the phase. Local authorities have provided 2,600 poor laborers
with short term vocational training and nearly 11,200 people with jobs.
VND11.5 billion (US$532,680) was also spent from the city
budget to reduce or exempt tuition for over 18,800 students from poor
families.
As of April, the number of poor households in HCMC has dropped
to 30,000 occupying 1.4 percent. The program is expected to conclude this
yearend when an addition of 15,000 will exceed the poverty line and the ratio
of poor households will fall below one percent.
Student from Le Hong Phong High school wins first prize at
“Yola Toefl Cup 2015” contest
The final round of “Yola Toefl Cup 2015” contest was held
yesterday at Youth Cultural House in
After passing three rounds, eight best students among 1, 600
contestants from Le Hong Phong, Tran Dai Nghia, Nguyen Thuong Hien, Gia Dinh,
Bui Thi Xuan and Vo Thi Sau were selected to enter the final round.
Accordingly, the first and second prize went to Nguyen Thi
Thanh Thanh and Tran Anh Kiet from Le Hong Phong High school; the third prize
belonged to Nguyen Cuong Quoc from
In the final round, contestants had to pass general knowledge,
face to face competition and presentation performance.
In the presentation performance, Nguyen Thi Thanh Thanh from
Le Hong Phong High school won the first prize.
The annual contest was organized by the city’s Department of
Education and Training and Yola Institute, aiming to provide an opportunity
for students to enhance knowledge and develop English learning skill through
TOEFL iBT tests.
Concerns raised over sedated pigs in Dong Nai
Police and inspectors in
At a facility owned by Pham Van Vui in
Vui allegedly admitted the pigs were going to be sent to Nam
Phong Slaughter House in
In March, Duong Thi Hoa, a pig trader in
Officials said the pigs had been fed Prozil Fort, an animal
transquiliser.
Nguyen Huu Duc, from HCM City Medical University, said,
"Prozil is used on pigs to keep them calm before slaughter, but the drug
can accumulate in the meat and poses a health risk for those consuming
it."
Eating the drug-tainted meat over a long period can result
kidney problems and mental illnesses, and children are particularly
vulnerable due to their fast metabolism rates.
Veterinarian Nguyen Thi Luong warned consumers of meat tainted
with Prozil may suffer memory loss, sleeplessness and depression.
Volunteers join campaign to clean
More than 2,000 volunteers took part in a campaign on April 19
to collect rubbish around the areas of a number of lakes in
The activity followed a meeting to mark Earth Day co-organised
by the Centre for Environment and Community Research, the Ministry of Natural
Resources and Environment and the US Embassy in
The event aimed to raise public awareness of environmental
issues and the importance of water in socio-economic development.
It also sought to encourage people to participate in
environmental protection activities such as collecting rubbish, dredging
water channels, lakes, ponds and the drainage system.
In addition to cleaning the environment near the city’s lakes,
there were also other activities such as a photo exhibition on the theme of
environmental protection, leaflet distribution and exchanging rubbish for
environmentally friendly products.
Ministry stops fining trucks with axle overload
The Ministry of Transport has suspended imposing fines on
trucks violating the axle load regulations but those breaking the total load
limits are still sanctioned.
In Document 4685/BGTVT-VT, the ministry requests the Ministry
of Public Security, and the authorities of provinces and cities to instruct
law enforcement forces to execute the new decision.
Last July, Minister of Transport Dinh La Thang issued Document
8034/BGTVT-VT telling the Ministry of Public Security and local governments
to spare trucks with axle load violations from sanctions until the end of
last year.
Since early this year law enforcement forces have reinstated
the rules provided in Government Decree 171/2013/ND-CP which treats axle
overload as a violation. Transport enterprises have decried the regulations.
At the Government’s regular meeting in March, the Ministry of
Transport asked the Government to suspend the imposition of fines on axle
load violators to pave the way for drafting a new decree on sanctions against
traffic law infringements.
The Government approved that request and assigned the Ministry
of Transport to coordinate with relevant ministries and agencies to draft a
new decree to replace Decree 171/2013/ND-CP issued on November 13, 2013 and
Decree 107/2014/ND-CP issued on November 17, 2014.
Therefore, the Ministry of Transport has released Document
4685/BGTVT-VT informing local governments of the fine suspension decision.
In the past, transport enterprises have complained about the
inconsistent methods of determining whether a truck is overloaded or not.
Some localities apply the axle load regulation while others apply the total
load limit, throwing transportation firms into disarray.
At his meeting with the city government last week, Minister
Thang told HCMC and neighboring provinces to take punitive measures against
overloaded trucks, especially those protected by some corrupt traffic police.
Thang said many provinces had failed to inspect those trucks
carrying more goods than their permissible loads. Notably, some truck owners
spend VND3.5-4.5 million a month buying special stickers and putting them on
the windshield as priority passes.
The 20x17cm logos have yellow background and blue letters.
Thang said after being informed by residents, the Directorate
for Roads of Vietnam carried out inspections in HCMC and detected 331 trucks
of 2.5-14 tons transporting more goods than load limit.
The minister asked the city to take strict measures to ensure
that traffic regulations are strictly obeyed.
The Directorate for Roads of Vietnam proposed filing criminal
charges against cases in which trucks carry goods exceeding 150% of the load
limit.
However, lawyer Thai Van Chung at Nguyen Giap law firm
suggested the Road Law and the Penal Code should be revised to make clear the
liability of goods owners, porters and truck owners.
Source : VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri
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Thứ Ba, 21 tháng 4, 2015
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