Social News 19/9 South Vietnam has most dengue fever infections The development of dengue fever in the South East region and in all corners of the country is complicated. In August, the health sector in the southern provinces of Dong Nai and Binh Duong reported 6 deaths; accordingly, the sector must speed up to prevent infections. Thu Dau Mot Town of Binh Duong Province becomes a “hot spot” of the infections meanwhile Trang Dai Ward of Bien Hoa Town of Dong Nai Province have most infection cases. As per the Department of Health in Dong Nai Province’s figure, by middle of September, the province has around 4,000 infection cases, an increase of 137 percent compared to the same period last year, and it had 2 deaths. Meantime, 9 over 9 districts of Binh Duong province have reported thousand infection cases of dengue fever with 4 deaths. The General Hospital in Binh Duong Province said that the number of hospitalized people has spiraled lately causing the overloading in the treatment. Medical workers of the hospital’s Pediatric Department also treat around 250-300 kids a day. Understanding that the disease has developed complicatedly, the health sector of Binh Duong Province has sprayed chemicals to kill mosquitoes in residential blocks. The province leaders also increased information of the disease to residents. The health sector in Dong Nai Province also urged its medical clinics in localities to keep a close eye on the development of the disease to early detect infections and plan to spray chemicals. Medical facilities must prepare enough medication and equipment for treating patients. The Ministry of Health convened a convention in Ho Chi Minh City in August to discuss the disease prevention. The meeting reported that there are nearly 23,000 infections in the South, an increase of 54 percent compared to the same period last year with 16 deaths. Three cities with most cases of infection are Binh Duong, Dong Nai and Ho Chi Minh City. Trans-Asia Railway project needs $3.46mil for two stretches The Public Private Partnership (PPP) Commission under the Ministry of Transport yesterday proposed to get official development assistance (ODA) loans to build two stretches of the Trans-Asia Railway project, which are expected to cost VND77,820 billion (US$3.46 billion). The two sections include Saigon-Loc Ninh and Bien Hoa-Vung Tau, it said at a talk between the ministry and the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) about Dau Giay-Lien Khuong expressway and the Trans-Asia Railway projects. Long Thanh Golf Investment and Trading Company has paid attention to the Bien Hoa-Vung Tau stretch. The company is studying the project’s size and measures to connect it to large railway stations in some provinces and cities to get higher effectiveness and faster payback. The ministry said it planned to divide Dau Giay-Lien Khuong project into three investment phases to call for investors, who will be permitted to collect toll fee from 2020. The expressway’s stretch Tan Phu-Bao Loc might be built with ODA fund at a total capital of VND13,821 billion (US$614.4 million). Bao Loc-Lien Khuong section will be constructed under BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) form. JICA affirmed its consideration for these projects, and proposed the Transport Ministry to present more about the Dau Giay-Lien Khuong expressway project because it might become the first large scale pilot project invested under PPP model. Mid-autumn festivals held in Ha Noi and HCM City The full-moon festival in Ha Noi's Old Quarter will be open until next Saturday. Apart from many traditional entertainment programmes, a market selling traditional and modern toys for children will be open near the Dong Xuan Market. Traditional games and competitions will be held on the streets of Hang Ma, Dong Xuan, Hang Dao and Hang Giay. A compe-tition on laying a traditional full-moon table will also be organised. In HCM City, markets selling traditional mid-autumn toys have been set up throughout the city, including one on Luong Nhu Hoc Street in District 5. The market has attracted many visitors. Customs sector calls for joint efforts against wildlife trafficking   The customs sector called for joint efforts from other bodies and international and domestic experts to combat wildlife trafficking in Vietnam during a conference in Ho Chi Minh City on September 17. The event was co-organised by the General Department of Vietnam Customs and the Project of “State management for a comprehensive development” of the United States Agency for International Development Governance for Inclusive Growth Programme (USAID GIG). The trafficking of w ildlife in to Vietnam has recently become more complicated than before, occurring concurrently on road and by sea and air , according to the Department , which cited the detection of four cases with seized items including 3,797 kg of ivory in August, 2015, alone. Deputy Director of the Vietnam CITES Management Authority under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Vuong Tien Manh said Vietnam is used as one of the wildlife trading and transporting routes from Africa and other Southeast Asian nations to consumption markets. Manh highlighted difficulties facing the law enforcement force in the combat, naming expertise, language skills, lack of information, and specimen management. Nguyen Ngoc Tuan – Deputy Director of the anti-smuggling D epartment of the General Department of Vietnam Customs said USAID GIG has assisted the customs sector in establishing effective coordination with other forces in wildlife control. He stressed the importance of collaborating local and foreign organisations in fighting wildlife trade in the country, and promoting c ommunication campaigns to raise people’s awareness of not using wildlife- sourced products. Import of e lephant tusks and rhino horns is banned in Vietnam as elephant and rhino are subjected to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) . On the black market, rhino horn is priced at 133 USD per gramme while African elephant tusk costs up to 2,100 USD per kg. In the first six months this year, customs officers uncovered four cases of illegal transport of rhino horns. Since 2008, Vietnamese customs officers have detected 23 cases of rhino horns smuggling, confiscating nearly 140 kilogrammes of rhino horns. The CITES is an international agreement between 181 governments that aims to monitor the international trade of specimens to ensure the survival of animals and plants in the wild.- American Centre in HCM City welcomes 80,000 visitors The American Centre (AC) under the US Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City has welcomed more than 80,000 visitors since it was set up four years ago. Speaking at a September 16 ceremony to celebrate the centre’s 4th establishment anniversary, US Consul General to HCM City Rena Bitter said that the centre has played an important role in fostering educational collaboration between Vietnam and the US . The AC is considered as a “colloid” in the two countries’ people-to-people relationship as US President Barack Obama stated, she added. The center has organised numerous activities including English courses and programmes offering business start-up skills. It also serves as an abundant referential source for researching as well as a place for cultural and scientific exchanges. The diplomat also said the centre will increase scientific, technological, industrial and mathematic programmes in the time to come. Can Tho: Over 380 million USD spent on urban core area’s upgrade An amount of over 380 million USD will be splashed out on a project to upgrade facilities in the core area of Can Tho in a bid to enhance the Mekong Delta city’s adaptation capacity to climate change. Of the total investment, 70 percent comes from official development assistance sources and the remaining 30 percent is contributed by the locality, heard a meeting between the municipal authority and the Can Tho project management board on September 16. The project, set to be completed by the end of 2017, includes solutions on inundation control in Ninh Kieu and Binh Thuy districts, as well as measures to improve the transport link and enhance urban management capacity, helping ensure the city’s sustainable development. The project management board will make upgrades to some parts of Can Tho River embankment and Rach Cai Son embankment, build 13 sluices to regulate tidal flows and two reservoirs while dredging up 14 canals in the targeted area. In addition, 7.75 million USD out of the total investment is set aside to ameliorate the drainage system and a sludge treatment plant and upgrade 12 kilometres of the drainage system. At the meeting, the project management board also gave out a line-up of recommendations to constrain inundation and improve transport link such as the construction of Quang Trung 2 bridge and a road linking Cach Mang Thang Tam Road to provincial highway 918 and expansion of Tran Hoang Na street. Thanh Hoa seeks ways to connect heritage sites Officials of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) and central Thanh Hoa province alongside heritage experts and travel agencies have gathered in a workshop to propose ways to connect heritage sites in Thanh Hoa and nationwide into attractive tours and tourism routes. A workshop titled “Connect World Heritages in Vietnam” was held on September 16 within the framework of the National Tourism Year 2015. Participants urged districts in Thanh Hoa to be more active in promoting their own images nationwide and enhancing linkages between relic and heritage sites of the province and to improve local community-tourist connections. They said Thanh Hoa province, the host of the National Tourism Year this year, has a lot of potential for tourism development and has put a considerable effort to improve its image among travellers. However, many works are still needed to be done, especially in terms of service quality, they said. In addition, two cultural legacies, Duong Lam ancient village on the outskirts of Hanoi and Citadel of the Ho Dynasty in Vinh Loc district of Thanh Hoa, were selected for a pilot project that will make them be more attractive destinations with higher service quality. VNAT deputy head Ha Van Sieu suggested authorities at local levels to develop tourism by more preferential policies, particularly for tourism infrastructure investors, improved management capability and expanded promotional campaigns. Meanwhile, travel operators should build more tours linking relic and heritage spots across the country, following the main theme of this year’s National Tourism Year “Connecting World Heritages”, he added. The VNAT organised a series of field trips and workshops on the theme from September 11-16 in response to the National Tourism Action Plan for 2015. The field trips took tourism officials and businesses to dozens of relic sites and landscapes throughout the country, including the Citadel of the Ho Dynasty in Thanh Hoa, Xo Viet – Nghe Tinh Museum in Nghe An, Chay River – Toi Cave and General Vo Nguyen Giap’s Grave in Quang Binh, Bach Ma National Park and King Gia Long Tomb Complex in Thue Thien-Hue, Ba Na Hills Resort in Da Nang, Hoi An Ancient Town in Quang Nam, with the hope of providing an insight into these tourist hotpots and hereby, effective solutions will be put forward to boost the tourism sector in localities. USAID helps Vietnam prevent pandemic threats The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is sponsoring a programme to support Vietnam’s efforts to prevent, detect and respond to infectious disease threats. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in Vietnam signed the Emerging Pandemic Threats 2 (EPT-2) Programme in Hanoi on September 16, according to Quan doi Nhan dan (People’s Army) daily. The 2.1 million USD project comprises four major components, including cooperation and coordination mechanisms to reduce disease threats in accordance with breeding value chain, pandemic prevention monitoring, trans-border cooperation in the Red River Delta and the Mekong River lower section to prevent outbreaks. Besides, the project also contributes to ensuring food safety and security and improving living conditions for farmers. The progamme is in line with the key objectives of the two Governments’ partnership on the Global Health Security Agenda and Vietnam’s implementation of the International Health Regulations. Since 2005, USAID has provided more than 60 million USD to support Vietnam's programmes to combat avian influenza and other pandemic threats. Vietnam advised to build strong TB research network Vietnam should strengthen capacity building for its tuberculosis (TB) research network towards eliminating the disease, heard a workshop in Hanoi on September 17. The establishment of a national research network in the field is needed since the proportion of TB cases in Vietnam remains high, Deputy Health Minister Nguyen Thi Xuyen said. She added that TB prevention receives special attention from the Vietnamese Party, Government and Ministry of Health with the national strategy on TB prevention and control through 2020 and with a vision towards 2030 approved by the Government in 2014. The strategy sets the target of reducing 30 percent of TB patients and 40 percent of fatalities between 2016 and 2020, while suggesting a number of inclusive measures, including the use of new technology for early detection and treatment, and support policy. She called on domestic and foreign scientists to put forth measures to eradicate TB in Vietnam. According to Director of the National Lung Hospital Dr. Nguyen Viet Nhung, Vietnam ranks 12 out of the 22 countries worldwide having the highest rate of TB patients. Statistics from the World Health Organisation (WHO) showed that 17,000 people died of TB in Vietnam in 2014 and 190,000 people are suffering from TB. About 4 percent of new TB patients are multidrug-resistant while the rate for those under treatment is 23 percent. On the occasion, the National Lung Hospital set up the lung and tuberculosis research cooperation centre (VICTORY), which is responsible for building and developing TB research network and supporting medical studies in Vietnam. TB is an infectious disease caused by a bacterium called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It most commonly affects the lungs and the disease is transmitted from person to person via bacteria from the throat and lungs of people with the active respiratory disease, according to the WHO. The symptoms of active TB of the lung are coughing, sometimes with sputum or blood, chest pains, weakness, weight loss, fever, and night sweats. Tuberculosis is treatable with a six-month course of antibiotics.- Minister calls for better health care Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien called for mobilising more investments in the healthcare sector to ensure that people receive better diagnosis and treatment in hospitals. "Promoting investment and developing a diagnosis and treatment system while reducing hospital congestion, would be the top priorities for the health sector in the coming years," Tien said at a conference on September 16. "With regard to limited sources from the state budget and increasing public debt, measures to mobilise more sources from the society to invest in medical infrastructure, facilities or cooperation in health management and improvement in the quality of healthcare are expected to send out positive signals," Tien stressed. The minister said that health infrastructure currently has not met the country's demand of diagnosis and treatment due to the low rate of beds, outdated medical facilities, and poor environmental and hygienic conditions, especially at the grass-root level. "The country currently has only 24 beds per 10,000 people, which is far below the World Health Organisation recommendation rate of 39/10,000 people," Tien said. The health ministry estimated that from 2016 to 2020, the country would need between 22,000 and 23,000 more public hospital beds and 9,000 private hospital beds to meet the target of 26 beds per 10,000 people by 2020. So, hospitals should focus on loans and investment cooperation and PPP projects to build new medical facilities. At the event, participants reviewed the actual situation of medical infrastructure and investment demand for the coming years. They said that development of a private hospital system would also be a good measure to better serve people's demand of health check-up and treatment. The ministry's statistics revealed that 610 of the 760 hospitals from district to central levels nation-wide received investment from state bonds from 2008 to date. At the central level, many projects were completed and put to effective use, such as the Tan Trieu Cancer, Paediatrics, Viet Duc hospitals, and the Hue Central Hospital, apart from the Cancer Centre of Cho Ray Hospital, and the Thong Nhat hospital. Women's Union helps the poor improve their lives Many women in HCM City, especially in its disadvantaged areas, have seen their lives improve thanks to a Women's Union programme that has been offering vocational training and helping them with livelihoods since 2010. A sewing machine provided for free to Dang Thi Bach Cuc of Go Vap District after the programme started has helped her and her family escape poverty. She and her teacher husband have two children, one of whom is epileptic. She used to work as an embroiderer, but life was very difficult for her family, which had been classified as one of Ward 10's poor. Two years after benefiting under the union's programme, Cuc bought five more sewing machines. Now her sewing facility employs 40 other women, each of whom earn VND4-5 million (US$170- 220) a month. Tran Ngoc Nga of Hung Long Commune in the outlying district of Binh Chanh also received help under the programme. She received training in sewing at a free class organised by the union, and afterwards sought financial assistance from it to buy sewing machines for herself and the other trainees. The union gave them 20 machines. She went to apparel companies and succeeded in getting orders. Now her tailoring facility employs 21 women, including eight who work from home since they have young children to take care of. Le Thi Tam, 62, also of Binh Chanh, got a loan from the union to buy three joss stick-making machines. She encouraged poor neighbours without jobs to come to her house for on-the-job training in incense making. Now she has 19 machines and 25 women working on them. Tran Thi Phuong Hoa, deputy head of the city Women's Union, said nearly 37,800 women have received vocational training under the programme, and around 30,000 got jobs, including 18,662 who are self-employed. "Vocational training and employment are the right of women." Nguyen Thi Kieu Oanh, deputy head of the union's committee for overseeing programmes in the southern region, said providing training and job assistance are the union's main activities. The union has performed these tasks well at all levels in the city, especially in outlying districts, she said. It is important to provide training and monetary assistance if women are to find self-employment, she said. Admitting that many women entrepreneurs have difficulty in finding businesses to buy their products, she added that the union should help link them with companies. Tran Anh Tuan, deputy head of the city Centre for Human Resource Forecast and Labour Information, said the programme should focus more on improving women trainees' skills to meet the demand for high-quality human resources when the ASEAN Economic Community comes into existence at the end of this year. The ASEAN Mutual Recognition Arrangements in fields like nursing, medical, dental practice, and accountancy would bring women job opportunities in other ASEAN countries, he said. Central provinces complete flood-resistant houses Nearly 4,500 poor households in the storm-prone areas of the central regions have completed their flood-resistant houses thanks to the funding supported by the Government. This was revealed after the Ministry of Construction submitted statistics to the prime minister who had asked for a report on the three-year (2014-2016) project to build flood-resistant homes for poor families in central regions, according to Decision No 48/2014/QD-TTg dated August 28, 2014 of the Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung. According to the project, the residents in the 14 central provinces of Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, and Ha Tinh, in addition to Quang Binh, Quang Tri, and Thua Thien-Hue, would be added. The other provinces that would benefit from the project would be Da Nang, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, and Binh Dinh, apart from Phu Yen, Khanh Hoa, Ninh Thuan, and Binh Thuan. The programme, established in 2014, has mobilised total funding of more than VND447 billion (US$19.8 million), of which VND233 billion ($10.3 million) came from the central budget, over VND12 billion ($530,000) came from the local budget, and VND132 billion ($5.8 million) came from a preferential loan from the Bank for Social Policy, while the other VND69 billion ($3 million) came from other sources. An inspection by the ministry has shown that all the qualified storm-resistant houses completed have their ground floor's height exceeding the highest level of floodwaters. The houses, which account for 17 per cent of the targeted number of homes planned, also have firm foundations, frames, walls and roofs, with a minimum area of 15-square metres. Most of them cost VND30-40 million ($1,300-1,760) to construct. Some households were even provided more money to build larger houses worth VND50-60 million ($2,200-2,640). Many localities have suggested to the government that they widen the project's list of beneficiaries so that more poor families could benefit. As a result, 28,132 households have been on the list, an increase of 2,315 families compared with the initial plan. The families, during the constructing of their houses, all consulted the model designed by the Provinces' Department of Construction. Most of the newly-built houses are next to the old ones, while some are built apart but still ensure convenience to shift when floods occur. Population policies to focus on sustainable development It is time for Viet Nam to shift its population policy's focus from birth control to a more holistic integration of population variables in development planning. Experts agreed on the above-mentioned point at a policy dialogue on population and sustainable development, which was co-organised by the Central Committee of the Viet Nam Fatherland Front (VFF) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Viet Nam in Ha Noi today. During the policy dialogue, the participants discussed and shared experiences from their local practices on the development and implementation of population and development policies, and on raising awareness and changing behaviour of the society on integrating population variables in development. The participants also provided suggestions and recommendations on the development and implementation of population policies, in which population would go together with sustainable development. Deputy Chairman of the VFF Le Ba Trinh said Viet Nam was undergoing unique demographic changes. Data from national population surveys indicate that the fertility rate consistently declined and reached below the replacement level in the last decade. While Viet Nam is in a demographic dividend, the country officially entered the so-called "ageing phase" in 2011 as a result of declining fertility and mortality rates, and longer longevity and life expectancy. These demographic changes require Viet Nam to have a new policy approach to population issues that do not narrowly focus on family planning or the health aspects of population issues. Viet Nam was indeed at a crossroads that would decide which way would lead to sustainable development, Trinh said. A view of the policy dialogue on population and sustainable development, in which experts agreed that population variables should be inserted in development planning. — Photo daidoanket.vn UNFPA Representative Ritsu Nacken said the coming population policy and law should respect and protect reproductive rights and reproductive choice. It means that each individual and couple has rights to decide freely and responsibly the number of their children and that they should have adequate information and the means to do so. We were fully committed to supporting policy makers to make the right decision for the Vietnamese people, a decision which enabled all of them to enjoy their human rights, including sexual and reproductive rights and the right to reproductive choice, she said. Nha Nam hosts old book bazaar An old book bazaar will be organized from September 18 to 20 at Nha Nam Book Café in HCMC’s Phu Nhuan District. With the same format to its previous bazaar in April on Nguyen Van Binh Street in District 1, the new event features thousands of old books of different genres that can be hardly found, including pre-war books, books that were published while Vietnam was a centrally planned economy, Russian books, dictionaries and magazines. Organizer Nha Nam Media and Publishing House will also run an auction of rare books to raise funds for a foundation to provide Braille books for the blind in HCMC at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday. Some rare and precious book titles donated by local collectors are historic book Viet Nam van hoa su cuong by historian Dao Duy Anh published by Bon Phuong Publishing House in 1951; Vietnamese-French dictionary Kieu song ngu Viet Phap by Nguyen Van Vinh published by Vinh Bao Publishing House in 1951; and the popular short stories’ collection Vang bong mot thoi of Nguyen Tuan published by Cao Thom Publishing House in 1968. On the occasion, Nha Nam Book Café offers discounts of 25% to 50% on all kinds of books. Coloring books Chin thang muoi ngay and Cua hang ky ao will also be debuted at the event. Other publishing houses including Tre, Alpha, Dong A, and Thai Ha will bring their old books to join the event. Nha Nam Book Café is located at Unit 015, Lot B, Condo No. 43, Ho Van Hue Street in HCMC’s Phu Nhuan District. Chinese delegation studies “one-stop-shop” customs model A delegation of China’s Committee of Border Gate Management Cooperation on September 16 visited the Lao Bao (Vietnam)-Densavan (Laos) international border gates to scope out the one-stop-shop model. Huang Shengqiang, head of the China Port Management Office, who led the delegation, said the tour aims to study the model to apply it at China-Vietnam border gates, ensuring the mechanism be suitable for the legal corridor and convenient for trading. The “one-stop-shop” customs model’s objective is to simplify administrative procedures and facilitate trade and investment via border lines. Launched at the Lao Bao-Densavan international border gate last February, the model has proven preeminent in cooperation in inspecting land border gates. This is the first time the model has been applied at a pair of border gates along the East-West Economic Corridor as well as between the Greater Mekong Sub-region and ASEAN countries. VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/TT/TN/Dantri