Social News 16/12 Fire destroys ship off Binh Thuan   A blaze destroyed a ship yesterday off the southern Binh Thuan Province. A blaze destroyed a ship yesterday afternoon off the central Binh Thuan Province, the Voice of Viet Nam reported. The fire reportedly broke out in the ship's engine room. According to a report, the Hai Tin ship, which was used for purchasing and transporting seafood of a private company in Phu Quy District's Tam Thanh Commune, was on its way to the mainland for repairs when it suddenly caught fire. The ship's crew has earlier heard a strange sound coming from the ship's engine room, where the fire later broke out. A gas cylinder on the vessel exploded in the fire. Within 10 minutes, the whole ship was ablaze and there were several large explosions. The seven crew members on board jumped into the sea to escape and could not do anything to report the incident via the maritime information system. However, a passenger ship saw the fire and turned back to rescue the victims. They were all rescued an hour later, given medical aid on the vessel and were taken to safety. The Hai Tin ship was totally destroyed and sank later. Two persons rescued from apartment blaze A pregnant woman and her five-year-old child were taken to hospital after their apartment caught fire early this morning in Ha Dong District. The fire broke out at the Hồ Gươm Plaza condo complex, located at 110 Tran Phu Street, Ha Dong District, Ha Noi, at 0:30am. Fire crews that reached the site found flames coming out from apartment number 1805 of the building, which was occupied by the pregnant woman and her child at the time. The woman opened the door to cry for help and asked the people below to call her husband, but it was difficult to hear anything as her apartment was located on one of the higher floors, Tuan, an eyewitness, told Viet Nam News. The residents informed the firefighters and quickly evacuated the building. Four specialised fire-fighting vehicles arrived at the scene. As the apartment was located on one of the higher floors, the firefighters had to bring the two persons down the stairs. The woman and the child were rescued after nearly one hour and were taken to the emergency ward of a hospital. The building's residents said the alarm system of the complex did not go off and even the elevators functioned normally during the blaze. Hoa, who lives on the 12th floor of the building, said she woke up after her neighbours started banging on the door at about 1am. She then held her grandson and escaped on the elevator. Other residents expressed concern as they had repeatedly asked the investor, Ho Guom Garment JSC, to test the fire safety system and had received a firm commitment from the company. Ho Guom Plaza, which became operational two years ago, has 29 floors and three basements. The complex, comprising a business centre, offices for rent and luxury apartments, was built with a total investment of VNĐ1.5 trillion (US$66.9 million). The apartment buyers have paid at least VND1.7 billion to VND3.5 billion ($76,000 to $156,000) each. The case is under further investigation. Pork fat seized in Da Nang The central city's environmental police department, in collaboration with the veterinary sub-department, has seized 170kg of packaged pork fat at an illegal processing house in Lien Chieu District. The police also found 170kg of unprocessed pork fat lying on the ground in poor condition and 60 bags of processed pork fat, weighing 2.4 tonnes. Head of the processing centre Mai Thi Kim Anh, 37, confessed that the processed pork fat, which was fried and packed into bags, was due to be delivered to many locations, while the bags of unprocessed pork fat were to be delivered to HCM City for sale. The police said the centre did not present any business license or food safety certificate or any registration documents related to hygienic conditions. The police temporarily banned the production of pork fat at the site and confiscated the product. In September, the police also seized five tonnes of rotten chili sauce from a household in Lien Chieu District. Last year, the city's market watch discovered 7,300 bottles of fake alcohol in a shop in Dien Bien Phu Street during an inspection. The district, which is 20km away from the city centre, is seen as a hot spot for many fake commodities and food production centres and for the storage of smuggled goods arriving on North-South transport lines. Large weapons hold at Quang Ngai The Public Security Force of Nghia Hanh District in the central province has seized several weapons and ammunition from a bus traveling to HCM City. Among the seized items were electroshock weapons and air guns, eight rifles, 10 guns, 22 cartridges and various bullets. The district's Public Security office said the bus driver declared he had received a box from an unknown person in the province and had been tasked with taking it to HCM City. The police said the seized weapons were made in China and Taiwan. The case is under investigation. National Highway No 37 to be upgraded Joint investors T&T Group and Phu My Infrastructure Construction Ltd Co have filed a proposal with the Ministry of Transport to upgrade National Highway No 37 under a BOT (build-operate-transfer) scheme. The highway links Ha Noi-Lang Son to the Ha Noi-Thai Nguyen highway. The 34.3km-long Highway No 37 will pass through the Viet Yen and Hiep Hoa districts in the Bac Giang northern province en route to Thai Nguyen Province's Pho Yen District. According to the investors, the upgraded two-lane road will have a designated maximum speed of 80km per hour. The project also includes the building of six bridges across rivers and canals, a flyover and a road. Some 38.4ha will need to be cleared for the project, including 20.3ha in Bac Giang Province and 18ha in Thai Nguyen Province. The project, once officially approved, is expected to start work next August and will be put into operation in 2018. The total investment for the project is expected to reach VND1,230 billion (US$58.5 million). The project will meet the demand for a link between the northern provinces to boost socio-economic development. Da Nang lacks doctors at district, commune levels Central Da Nang City is still facing a shortage of doctors at the district, commune and ward levels despite policies issued by the city authority to attract medical personnel. It is estimated that the city has 56 health centres but only 25 doctors. Doctors were offered double the salary typically paid by the State budget along with other allowances if they worked in communal or ward health centres, Ngo Thi Kim Yen, director of the city's Health Department, said. However, the policy still failed to garner interest, Yen said. The lack of an adequate working environment and opportunities for doctors to improve their professional skills were blamed for the failure. Le Ngoc Quy, a surgeon at Da Nang City's hospital, who was transferred to Hoa Vang District's Health Centre to provide support in September, said he cared a great deal about the working environment. "When I work in a city hospital, I can learn a lot from the senior doctors who have plenty of experience in treating serious diseases," he said. Quy added he was offered chances to study further to improve his professional skills while working at the city hospital. But upon being sent to work at the health centre, he typically only gets to treat common ailments, such as the flu and headaches, he said. "And there was no senior doctor there to teach me either," he said. Nguyen Van Sy, deputy director of the health centre, said it currently needed 12 doctors working at the district, commune and ward levels. Doctors specialised in eye treatments, anaesthesia and resuscitation were urgently required. For the short term, the centre has had to request support from city-level hospitals to alternatively send doctors to help at the centre, providing examinations and treatment for the locals. Yen, a director from the health department, said it intended to submit a plan to the city administration to rotate doctors working in city-level hospitals to health centres at the commune and ward levels. Developers withhold maintenance fees Developers will have their bank accounts or property frozen if they delay transferring maintenance fees to residents' committees of apartment buildings from last Thursday. According to the Law on Housing passed last year, the owner of an apartment has to pay an extra two per cent of the total apartment sale price for maintenance inside the building. These fees collected by developers must be passed on to the residents' committees no later than seven days after they are set up. However, according to Ministry of Construction statistics, less than 20 per cent of developers in 200 apartment buildings around Ha Noi had transferred the fees to residents' committees, Tin tuc newspaper reported yesterday. Head of the residents' committee at Sky City in Dong Da District, Dang Trong Hieu, said although the building opened five years ago, they had not received maintenance funds of VND30 billion (roughly US$1.4 million ) from the developer. Residents were worried because they did not have money to fix the building, he said. The building N05 Trung Hoa-Nhan Chinh faces the same problem as the developer has delayed transferring almost VND70 billion ($3.1 million) in maintenance funds. BIC Vietnam Joint Stock Company – developer of the Rainbow Van Quan Building in Ha Dong District – has refused to hand over the maintenance fund to the building's residents' committee, saying they were not qualified to maintain the building. Instead the developer wanted to refund the maintenance fees to apartment owners. The revised Housing Law, which took effect in July, called for a residents' committee voted for by the residents to manage, operate and maintain buildings. Economist Vu Dinh Anh said that stronger measures were needed when housing developers were unable to return the fubds. However, it became impossible in cases where the developer went missing or bankrupt. Anh said the Government should seek ways to stop developers from delaying maintenance fee transfers. Head of the Viet Nam Building Management and Maintenance Association, Nguyen Quoc Hiep, said that bank accounts that held the fees should include one person representing the developers and two members of residents' committees to prevent risks in case committee members sold their apartments or no longer lived there. The move would also help ensure the effective use of the maintenance fund, he said. Green Innovation Awards launched in Hanoi The Vietnam Environment Administration (VEA) and the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union launched the first Green Innovation Awards in Hanoi on December 14. The awards designed for three groups - primary and secondary students; high school students; and college, university students and those aged between 19 and 30 years - look to seek, introduce, and popularise outstanding initiatives and models on environmental protection and sustainable development. The entries will focus on energy saving, environmentally-friendly products, biodiversity preservation, waste recycling and treatment, policy solutions, environment education, and application of information-technology in environmental protection and management. Thirty excellent entries at the qualifying round will be picked out for the finale. Each group will be presented with one first prize, two second prizes, three third prizes, and four consolation prizes, worth a total of VND134 million (US$5,896). The submission will be open from December 15, 2015 to June 30, 2016. The prize-presenting ceremony is scheduled to take place in September at a locality to be selected to host the campaign ‘Making the world cleaner’ 2016. Detailed information is posted on www.vea.gov.vn, www.cetac.gov.vn, www.doanthanhnien.vn, or fanpage www.facebook.com/giaithuongsangtaoxanh. Contestants can submit their entries to the VEA’s Center for Environmental Training and Communication at No.556, Nguyen Van Cu street, Long Bien, Hanoi, or the HCM Youth Union’s Rural Youth Department at No.62, Ba Trieu, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi. FrieslandCampina Vietnam, which is well known for such brands as Dutch Lady, Friso, Yomost and Fristi, will be the main sponsor of the programme. The youth in Vietnam make up around 40% of the country’s population, who are expected to make significant contributions to the local socio-economic development, especially in environmental protection and sustainable development. Con Son islet develops home stays Con Son islet in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho has recently started offering community tourism. Situated in the Hau river, a tributary of the Mekong, the 67ha islet is a magnet for tourists with its quiet setting, fresh air, fruit orchards, floating houses, and delicious traditional southern cakes made by locals. It has 80 households living on farming and tourists can stay with them, experiencing first hand the life of a farmer, catching fish in a pond and making cakes together with their hosts. There are around 50 floating houses that farm fish in cages, and tourists can feed the fish and spend a night in the houses. The islet is 600 metres from the river bank and it takes 5-10 minutes by boat from Co Bac Boat Station in Binh Thuy commune. Deputy PM receives Lao youth union official Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc hosted a reception for First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Youth Union Vilayvong Bouddakham in Hanoi on December 14. Bouddakham, who is also Vice President of the Laos-Vietnam Friendship Association, is in Vietnam from December 10-17 to join activities highlighting the footprints of Laos’ late President Kaysone Phomvihane. Deputy PM Phuc said the activities are to give Lao officials an insight into the late Lao President’s revolutionary career in Vietnam and the close-knit ties between Vietnam and Laos. He also agreed with his guest’s proposal to continue preserving Lao relic sites in Vietnam, making them venues of exchange to boost bilateral friendship and solidarity. Bouddakham informed his host that the Vietnam-Laos Friendship Association and the Laos-Vietnam Friendship Association launched activities highlighting the footprints of the late President Ho Chi Minh in Laos in May to commemorate his 125th birth anniversary. The guest briefed the Deputy PM about his trips to relic sites in the northern provinces of Son La, Hoa Binh and Tuyen Quang, where witnessed historic events of the Lao revolution. He said following the visit, the two friendship associations will hold more activities to strengthen people-to-people external relations. Farmers complete training for sustainable plant harvesting More than 50 local Forest Protection Department staff, forestry officers and village heads in districts in the northern province of Bac Kan have received training in Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD), which will lead to sustainable harvesting of medicinal and aromatic plants. The two four-day training sessions improved the implementation of community development projects in nine local communes in the districts of Ngan Son, Na Ri, Cho Don and Ba Be. The projects focus on the sustainable harvesting of wild medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs). Vietnamese conservation NGO GreenViet conducted the training sessions, which were attended by local officers and village heads. They now know how to apply ABCD, an innovative development strategy focusing on identifying and mobilising community assets at their local project sites. The ABCD strategy will allow community members to take advantage of new economic opportunities without being dependent on outside organisations. The beneficiary communities are part of a project that was begun in 2011 by TRAFFIC and the Bac Kan Forest Protection Department (FPD) to improve livelihoods and conserve biodiversity by using sustainable wild plant harvesting techniques. The project, initially funded by the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund (CEPF), and further by the Keidanren Nature Conservation Fund (KNCF), has provided training, tools and connections for local collectors. This has helped them harvest medicinal plants sustainably, ensuring a premium-paying market for their goods. One of the project's goals is for sustainably-sourced, wild-collected and semi-processed products to be the first in Vietnam to meet FairWild certification. This is an internationally-recognised standard for legal and sustainable sourcing and benefit sharing from wild plant resources. The two training sessions mark the start of a new phase of the TRAFFIC and Bac Kan FPD project, launched at the beginning of October this year and funded by the Darwin Initiative. Continuing to build on the work started in 2011, the first objective of this three-year project was to enhance the collecting cooperatives' capacity at the project sites. The interactive training provided opportunities for the participants to uncover and understand the strengths and assets already existing in their communities. Local assets, categorised as individuals, associations, institutions, and physical, financial and cultural assets and connections, were reviewed and analysed in relation to MAPs conservation and livelihood development efforts. "What's new and exciting about ABCD is that the participants begin to use what is already in the community. It's the combination of these assets, regional development trends and community expectations and goals that creates new development opportunities," Nguyen Thi Mai, Programme Officer for TRAFFIC in Vietnam, said. Using connections and opportunities created by the ABCD model, local collectors will be able to build collecting co-operatives, mobilise their own assets to practise sustainable harvesting techniques, and improve their processing skills. They will also be able to improve their market access by building stronger relationships with pharmaceutical and cosmetic companies. This month, the Bac Kan FPD and TRAFFIC will begin applying the ABCD methodology through on-the-ground activities in project sites, where it will allow more effective and efficient project implementation over the next two and a half years of the project. Counter-terrorism maneuver held in Vinh Phuc A counter-terrorism maneuver took place in Vinh Yen city, the northern province of Vinh Phuc on December 14. The maneuver was a joint effort between the Special Operation Force High Command, the High Command of the Signal Arms, Military Zone 2, and the provincial authorities and armed forces. It included precautionary actions, mock demonstrations, rescue of hostages, attack against terrorists, and post-attack recovery. The event aims to assess the training quality and efficiency of collaboration among units concerned. Joint tax, customs to make reforms easier Joint supervision in tax and customs between relevant ministries and bodies have paved the way for reforms in the Government's economic management, Chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Nguyen Thien Nhan has said at a conference on a programme on tax and customs supervision in 2015 held in Hanoi on December 12. According to Nhan, the programme showed that most businesses agreed many tax and customs procedures had been improved significantly. The report showed that the tax and customs sector intensified dialogue, information exchange and helped businesses propose amendments and supplements to existing regulations. In addition, the tax and customs administrative procedures are now publicly available on the website of relevant agencies. The programme was organised by the Vietnamese Fatherland Front, the Ministry of Finance, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), the Cooperative Union, the Association of Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises and the Vietnam Association of Youth Entrepreneurs. According to Dau Anh Tuan, Director of the VCCI's Legal Department, a survey of 180 business associations and co-operative unions nationwide showed that services of tax and customs had been improved significantly. According to the survey, 70-80 percent of surveyed units said that they were satisfied with procedures and services of tax declaration, registration and payment. The survey reported that the business community made positive assessments of the behaviour and attitude of tax department staff. However, they wanted tax staff to be more enthusiastic and attentive. As for customs, the survey showed that thanks to the joint programme, businesses expressed more satisfaction with customs information and administrative procedures. 66 percent of those surveyed said that information about administrative procedures in the field of customs is available and easy to find. However, only 39 percent of business associations and co-operative unions thought that customs authorities provided information rapidly and timely, and 47 percent said the information was simple and easy to understand. The most troublesome customs procedure problems firms faced were complaint settlement, administrative violation handling and customs clearance procedures. VCCI Chairman Vu Tien Loc said that the tax and customs sectors had to make greater reforms in these fields. VCCI Tuan also said that procedures and services of tax checking and inspection as well as tax refund remained complicated. To improve tax and customs in the future, Director of the Central Institute of Economic Management Nguyen Dinh Cung said that tax and customs should scrutinise regulations and documents to streamline procedures. Cung said that the existing regulations and documents were inconsistent, dubious, non-transparent and inefficient. Project helps better sanitation for poor households Almost 106,000 poor households in ten provinces and cities nationwide improved sanitation and built new latrines with aid from a project by East Meets West organisation over the last three years. The Community Hygiene Output-Based Aids (CHOBA) project was run from June 2012 in rural areas including Ninh Binh, Hai Duong, Thanh Hoa, Ha Tinh, Tra Vinh and Soc Trang. It was designed in line with the goals of the National target Programme for Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Phase III to support disadvantaged areas to achieve the plan. CHOBA project director Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai said at a preliminary summing-up conference on December 11 that the project mobilised nearly 300 billion VND (13.3 million USD) to offer loans for households to build latrines. The households then were rewarded for completing the latrines and the communes whose sanitation coverage rates reach 30 percent. The project used the output-based aid approach – a type of results-based financing well known for improving the delivery of basic services when users are not able to pay the full cost of service access and where performance-based rebates to complement or replace user fees are justified. Tran Thi Huong, Vice President of the Vietnam Women's Union said the project helped the poor improve sanitation, skills in project management and communication and change family hygiene habits for better health. Director of the Vietnam Health Environment management Agency, Nguyen Thi Lien Huong, said the output-based payment method strengthened the responsibilities of local authorities, promoted intersectoral co-ordination in implementation of hygiene and sanitation issues. Dong Nai arranges free Tet transport for workers Dong Nai's Federation of Labour will arrange free transport of 2,000 workers for the upcoming Tet holiday (Lunar New Year), Deputy Director of the confederation Tang Quoc Lap said. The confederation will hire 50 high-quality coaches to take the workers to their homes. Each coach ticket is estimated to cost about VND1 million (nearly US$45). The coaches will take the workers to their hometowns in the North, the Highlands, and Southwest and Central Việt Nam over three days from February 3 to 5. These 2,000 workers, from six industrial zones of the province, are poor and have not been able to afford a visit to their homes during the Tet holiday for two consecutive years. They have also performed well and have actively participated in the confederation's and their companies' activities. Last week, the confederation, in co-operation with MobiFone Telecommunications Corporation, held an event entitled Warm Tet Holiday for the workers in the province. The cost of the event and of the 2,000 free coach tickets would be a total VND3 billion (nearly $134,000), a representative of the confederation said. About 30 poor workers, who performed remarkably this year, were rewarded with gifts worth VND500,000 ($22) each at the event. Workers also participated in a lucky draw, involving valuable gifts. Trần Thanh Lan, a worker from Bắc Giang Province, told Nguoi Lao Dong (The Labourer) newspaper that the gift and the free coach ticket had warmed her heart. "These motivate me to contribute more and work harder," she said. Deputy Director of MobiFone Telecommunications Corporation Nguyen Manh Hung said the firm would co-operate with the federation to expand the programme so that more workers get free coach tickets and gifts on Tet Holiday. Golden Field title honours 100 individuals, units The Vietnam General Council of Agriculture and Rural Development presented the “Golden Fields” title to 100 groups and individuals nationwide at a recent ceremony in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho, in recognition of their active contributions to the development of agriculture. The awardees were selected for their rice farming models which are deemed to be the best among 533 agricultural production models with high productivity and quality submitted from over 50 cities and provinces. The programme is in response to the national movement on building large-scale fields and the Government’s policy of encouraging large-scale fields and connection of production and consumption of agricultural products. It also aims to stimulate the application of science and technology to develop agriculture in a sustainable manner and increase the competitiveness of agricultural products. President of the council Ho Xuan Hung said the large-scale rice field model was initiated in the Mekong Delta five years ago. Since then, the model has been expanded across the country, growing a variety of crops such as rice, vegetables, fruits, and industrial plants.- Don't push it Bui Van Thai, 18, and two of his friends snatched a phone from a young woman last week in a park in District 4, HCM City. As they went through the girl's most frequent contacts, they decided to push their luck by pretending to be the victim and asking to borrow a motorbike from one of her close friends. After setting up a rendezvous point, the three of them waited for their next victim. But to their surprise, the friend showed up with police after being notified by the initial victim that someone robbed her phone earlier. Thai and his two accomplices were taken into police custody for alleged robbery. They will have plenty of time to reflect on their actions. First lesson to be learned: when it comes to the law, don't push it. Fight poverty with skinny cows Dozens of poor households in Nhon Son Commune, central Ninh Thuan Province were frustrated to learn that they would not receive the VND20 million (US$875) support package to buy their own cows. The support package, which consisted of VND5 million ($220) aid with the rest being a five-year low-interest loan at 1.2 per cent annually, aimed to help local farmers acquire livestock for breeding. The local People's Committee purchased a number of cows for the farmers with the money they were supposed to receive. However, many households reported that the health of the cows was poor as most of them were old or showed symptoms of various diseases. When Mang Thi Xuc, a local farmer, complained that her cow was too skinny and requested another she was given one so old it didn't have any teeth. Head of the commune's farmer association Le Hong Ha said most of the farmers were unhappy with the cows, saying they were too old and weak. He added that the new cows may carry diseases and infect the rest of the local stock. Chairman of the district's People Committee Nguyen Long Bien said the committee sent a team to inspect the cows. Local authorities were ordered to come up with a solution to address the farmers' concerns. As the package was not entirely aid but partly a loan, the local committee must let the farmers, who will be responsible for them, pick their own cows. Joint effort launched to prevent infectious diseases The Ministry of Public Heath has launched a programme on rallying efforts of the entire political system and the community for fighting infectious diseases. Speaking at an interdisciplinary workshop held by the Ministry’s Department of Preventive Health in Hanoi on December 14, Deputy General Director of the department Truong Dinh Bac said Vietnam faces a high risk of new dangerous infectious diseases such as Ebola, MERS-CoV, plague and avian influenza A (H7N9) virus entering the country. In addition, the country has recorded increasing numbers of new cases of and deaths caused by dengue, hand-foot-mouth disease, malaria, rabies and encephalitis every year. According to Bac, Vietnam has not identified any cases of avian influenza H5N1 infections in human so far this year, but outbreaks of the bird flu have been spreading in poultry flocks in many localities nationwide. Malaria is also emerging in the central, the Central Highlands and southern regions, with drug - resistant malaria on the rise. D iseases that cross over from animals to humans, including Ebola and avian influenza, can have massive, rapid and far-reaching consequences on human health, livelihoods, food safety and economic development. The official said the country is meeting with difficulties in preventing infectious diseases as booming trade activities and travelling are facilitating spread of new diseases to Vietnam. Meanwhile, public awareness of importance of personal hygiene, environmental sanitation, food security and disease prevention remains limited. The programme is expected to encourage the community to actively participate in environmental sanitation activities, such as regular environmental cleaning campaigns, stopping the trade of sick animal and those of unknown origin . The Ministry of Education and Training said it will enhance coordination with the health sector to run communication campaigns to raise teachers and students of precautionary measures against infectious diseases. Disease prevention related-training courses and vaccination will be also promoted in education establishments in the coming time. Project minimises health risk in contaminated zones More than 900 tonnes of persistent organic pollutants (POP) in 12 contaminated sites have been destroyed over five years via a POP elimination project funded by the UNDP. The project "Building Capacity to Eliminate POP Pesticide Stockpiles in Viet Nam" was launched in 2010 by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) and the UNDP. Some 5,000 cubic meters of contaminated soil from safe landfills was destroyed, reducing the risk of POP exposure amongst the 2,000 people living in the 12 contaminated zones. Nguyen Van Tai, general director of Viet Nam Environment Administration, said at the closing workshop today that the project had developed a new international-standard information technology integrated database to manage the contaminated areas and measure the POP elimination results, using a risk assessment method. International experts have also written guidelines for managing these areas, with appropriate adaptations for conditions in Viet Nam. UNDP Deputy Country Director Bakhodir Burkhanov said the MONRE and UNDP would also initiate a new project collaboration on the proper management of harmful chemicals. Before the 1990s, Viet Nam had used various types of chemicals as pesticides for agricultural development. Limited awareness and the lack of waste treatment technologies had led to poor storage without the adoption of appropriate safety measures, resulting in a high risk of leaks. By 2010, Viet Nam had more than 1,000 contaminated sites, of which, 300 were obsolete POP pesticide stockpiles. It is reported that POPs can cause immediate fatal poisoning or cancer and can have a lasting effect on people's health. Vietnam, Laos host conference on military medicine The fourth scientific conference on Vietnam- Laos military medicine opened in Vientiane, Laos on December 14. The event saw the attendance of Major General Phuvong Vongphom, Standing Director General of the Lao Defence Ministry’s Department of Logistics; Major General Vu Quoc Binh, head of the Vietnam Military Medical Department under the Defence Ministry and 200 medical experts. Speaking at the event, Director of the Laos’ Military Hospital 103 Khampheng Phumakeo said the event aims to commemorate the 10th twining anniversary of Vietnam’s Military Hospital 108 and Laos’ Military Hospital 103. He said the event offers both sides opportunities share professional knowledge and technological advances. Mai Hong Bang, Director of Military Hospital 108, said the organising board selected the best 17 reports made by the two hospitals’ staff to present at the event, adding that the event will help strengthen ties between the two medicine sectors and the two countries at large.- Health workers receive performance-based reward Health workers in impoverished, mountainous provinces in northern Viet Nam have been earning higher salaries from an experimental pay-for-performance model that aims to enhance the performance of community health centres (CHCs) and well-being of area residents. The model, called performance-based financing (PBF), creates incentives for health workers in order to enhance the productivity, scope and quality of work at health facilities. According to project managers, on average, employees of participating CHCs in the two northern provinces of Cao Bang and Bac Kan have been earning individual performance rewards that equate to between 14 to 25 per cent of their regular Government salaries. Hong Thi Thuy, a midwife at Minh Tam CHC in Cao Bang, said it was difficult to make ends meet on her average income of VND15 million US$665) per quarter prior to the implementation of PBF. "Since April 2014, under the PBF program I have felt encouragement to perform my tasks well and to earn the appreciation of patients and colleagues," she said. "Over the last three quarters, I have received a PBF reward of 7 million dong on average, which increases my earnings by 46 per cent per quarter." The project in the two provinces has been supported by the Luxembourg Agency for Development Co-Operation (LuxDev) since April 2014. Similarly, the World Bank has been supporting a result-based financing (RBF) initiative in Nghe An Province since May 2013. Dr Hong Van Hao, deputy director of Nghe An's Department of Health, said during an international conference in Ha Noi in October that PBF has yielded "very substantive and practical results" by increasing patient visits and improving staff attitudes. Prior to the project, ethnic minority villagers from Cao Bang and Bac Kan often bypassed their CHCs and opted to receive treatment at larger district hospitals. In the process, they typically spent more time and money travelling the extra distance. PBF, which provides financial incentives to employees for meeting goals in target areas, has helped attract new patients and established community outreach efforts by improving staff motivation. Dr. Tatyana Makarova, a health financing expert of the LuxDev project in Cao Bang and Bac Kan, said PBF provides incentives not only to medical workers, but also to patients to motivate them to use a particular service. In the two provinces, a pregnant woman who chooses to give birth at a qualified health facility receives a reward – a mother and baby kit. Dr. Makarova said the project aims to build trust by giving both mothers and health workers rewards for safe deliveries. She said many pregnant women in the region forego early monitoring, even though international standards recommend that women start prenatal care no later than 13 weeks into their pregnancies. Health workers who start prenatal care early and continue pregnancy monitoring on a regular basis receive a cumulative bonus of VND250,000 for every pregnant woman served at the CHC. Ninh Vi Que, of the Minh Tam Commune in Cao Bang, said she was satisfied with the health services she received when she gave birth, adding, "I also received a kit with many useful items for my baby and myself." In addition to enhancing the safety of newborn deliveries in 36 CHCs, the project has also targeted three other performance areas including early and regular prenatal care, the effective management of hypertension and the overall increase in the utilisation of health services. Prior to PBF being implemented, health workers were paid based on their time and seniority – a "good system" to promote access to health care, but one that does not necessarily spur productivity or improve the quality of work, Dr Makarova said. "Basically, we can say that we see the change," she said. Under the current model, there is no limit to how much employees can earn in rewards, she said. While employees track their own work for each patient served in the four target areas, the CHC uses a threefold system to verify and crosscheck staff reports. Then, each employee's score is multiplied by his or her individual quality score, which is assessed independently on a quarterly basis. A higher score yields higher rewards. According to a feedback report from the Minh Tam CHC of Cao Bang, staff reported in May that the workload had increased due to the PBF measures. At the same time, they also reported feeling more organised and more motivated to work with patients, as well as more invested in promoting the health centre's services throughout the commune and villages. The work is expected to continue next year by both provinces with the remaining funds from LuxDev. However, the project ends this month, and future plans to sustain the pay-for-performance model with domestic resources have been discussed by officials in Cao Bang and Bac Kan. Dr. Be Thi Bach, deputy director of the Project Implementation Unit of Cao Bang, said the model is sustainable. "I am lucky to know and participate in the implementation of this model, so in my opinion, it is totally feasible in Viet Nam," Dr. Bach said. Automated testing saves patients time The HCM City University Medical Centre has reduced the waiting time from 90 to 60 minutes for testing results after putting in place an automated testing ward earlier this month to improve quality. All testing samples of patients have a bar code and are sent to a modular pre-analytics system. The testing results are now more and more exact, leading to higher effectiveness in treatment, while 30,000-35,000 tests are done at the centre every day. The system is used in co-operation with the cobas 8000 analyzer series which meets laboratory workload and manages peak demand by delivering up to 9,800 tests per hour. Moreover, the cobas infinity IT solutions help manage data and sample workflow and then automatically send them to the laboratory informatics system, directly connecting with the hospital informatics system. Testing results are automatically sent to counselling rooms where doctors use them to assist diagnosis and treatment. Patients also can receive the results via email or phone messages. Dr Nguyen Thi Bang Suong, head of the ward, said the automated testing systems would help minimize errors. They also would help raise satisfaction among patients and the reputation of the centre, she added. Speaking at a recent conference on testing quality held in HCM City, the deputy head of the city's Department of Health, Tang Chi Thuong, has instructed hospitals to closely monitor the quality of tests. "This is one of the activities which hospitals should give priority to their annual plan," Thuong said. He said that reducing the waiting time for test results was one of the indexes showing the quality of the testing ward. They should also periodically update the list of devices and equipment which ensure provision of test services that meet the hospital's treatment protocol, he said. Pension calculations to change from 2018 Pension calculations for male and female workers will change from 2018 as regulated in the revised social insurance law, heard a seminar on the laws on social and health insurance in HCMC last week. Those who retire between January 1, 2016 and end-2017 will get monthly pensions equivalent to 45% of their average wage in 15 years of socially insured employment. From the 16th year onwards, males can get a 2% rise in pension and females 3% until the maximum proportion reaches 75%. Female workers who retire from January 1, 2018 will enjoy a monthly pension equivalent to 45% of their average wage for 15 years of socially insured employment. From the 16th year onwards, their pensions will be revised up by 2% each year and the highest pension will not exceed 75%. Meanwhile, male retirees from 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022 will receive pensions based on their social insurance payments in 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20 years respectively. Their pensions will be adjusted up 2% for each year of work after the aforementioned periods but the maximum pension will be 75%. Explaining the different pension calculations, deputy head of the National Assembly’s (NA) Committee for Social Affairs Bui Sy Loi said there is a five-year gap between the retirement ages of male and female workers as the former retire five years later than the latter, and this is unfavorable for females. Therefore, the social insurance payment period of males should be higher to ensure gender equality. From next year, commune-level officers and workers working overseas under contracts will be required to pay social insurance. Workers with one- to three-month contracts and foreigners working in Vietnam will have to apply for the insurance in 2018. Mekong Delta infrastructure projects get big spend More than VND175.6 trillion (US$8 billion) has been invested in traffic infrastructure projects in the Mekong Delta in the 2010-2015 period, according to a report of the Ministry of Transport. A report delivered at a review conference on transport infrastructure development in Can Tho City last week said more than VND129 trillion of the total funding had gone to 58 road projects. Of them, 34 projects worth over VND52.47 trillion have been put into use while the remaining projects capitalized at VND76.53 trillion will be ready in 2016-2018. The waterway component of a major transport infrastructure development project with a total investment cost of VND6.1 trillion is scheduled for completion this year, according to the ministry. Regarding maritime transport, An Thoi Seaport on Phu Quoc Island off mainland Kien Giang Province has been built at a cost of VND198 billion financed by the proceeds from government bond sales. Meanwhile, a VND9.78-trillion project to develop a navigational passage to the Hau River got off the ground in 2013 and is progressing as scheduled. Nguyen Van The, Party chief of Soc Trang Province and former Deputy Minister of Transport, said once completed the passage could accommodate 20,000-DWT vessels, thereby fueling the region’s socioeconomic development as goods could be directly shipped to foreign countries. As for air transport, work on four major projects worth VND5.3 trillion has been complete in the 2010-2015 period. They include the upgrade of the runway, aircraft parking area and taxiways at Can Tho and Phu Quoc airports. Nearly VND24.38 trillion has been used to build and upgrade rural roads and bridges in the delta under the Government’s new rural area development program. At the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh told relevant ministries and agencies to pay more attention to traffic infrastructure development in the region to facilitate goods transportation. The Ministry of Transport needs to closely coordinate with localities to accelerate the implementation of half-done projects. According to a report of the Ministry of Transport presented at an investment and tourism promotion conference in July this year, the Mekong Delta will need VND87 trillion for transport infrastructure projects in 2016-2020, including VND64 trillion for roads. The ministry will prioritize finances for major projects like My Thuan-Can Tho expressway, Dai Ngai bridge, Long Xuyen City bypass, phase two of a southern coastal road, the Duc Hue-Chau Doc section of Road N1, the Go Quao-Vinh Thuan section of Ho Chi Minh Road and upgrades of some national highways in the region. Vingroup seeks to build underground parking lot at Hoa Lu Stadium Vingroup has proposed building an underground complex consisting of an parking lot and commercial space at a cost of nearly VND3.42 trillion (US$152.3 million) at Hoa Lu Stadium in District 1, HCMC. The company wants to implement the project under the build- own-operate (BOO) format, according to a report sent by the HCMC Department of Transport to the city government last week. The report said Vingroup suggested building five basements with total floor space of nearly 24,000 square meters, with B1, B2 and B3 basements for commercial purposes and B4 and B5 basements for a semi-automatic parking lot able to accommodate 2,548 cars and 2,873 motorbikes. Vingroup plans to carry out the project from 2016 to 2018 and operate the complex within 50 years. The investor expects to recover the investment cost in 46 years from leasing of commercial facilities and operation of the parking lot. The department said a sport talent school project worth nearly VND170 billion (US$7.57 million) is being implemented at Hoa Lu Stadium at the corner of Nguyen Thi Minh Khai and Dinh Tien Hoang streets. The school covers nearly 3,200 square meters and is invested by the HCMC Department of Culture and Sports. So far, compensation and resettlement have been done for a company and 13 out of 31 households affected by the sport talent school project. However, the department said the development of the underground parking lot will not affect sport activities at Hoa Lu Stadium. The reason is that after completing the underground complex, the investor would build a new stadium as well as facilities for administration, training and sport competition at the existing location operated by Hoa Lu Sport Center. The BOO project is expected to meet increasing demand for vehicle parking and develop more commercial and public works in the city. It will help improve the efficiency of land use. According to HCMC’s zoning plan for transport development towards 2020 and in the following years, the city will have a total parking area of 1,145 hectares but the current area is just 70.36 hectares. Demand for vehicle parking in downtown HCMC has soared after the opening of the pedestrian square along Nguyen Hue Boulevard in District 1. HCM City to spend big on flood control The amount HCMC will need to invest to control floods in the coming years is estimated at more than VND156 trillion (US$7 billion), outgoing city vice chairman Nguyen Huu Tin said last week. Speaking at a question-and-answer session of the HCMC People’s Council session, Tin said it is a must to spend such a huge sum in the next five years to reduce flooding caused by rain and tides. Floods affect the city’s population and economic growth. Tin said the city government has added flood control to its action plans over the past many years but the result has been much lower than expected due to funding shortages. The city is surrounded by the Saigon, Dong Nai and Vam Co rivers, with much of the city’s area 1.2 meters lower than sea level, Tin said. Climate change has made rain more unpredictable and on top of that, the highest tide in the city has exceeded 1.5 meters in the past seven years and briefly to 1.68 meters, according to Tin. Rapid population growth has resulted in an overload in the drainage system. The city’s population has quadrupled over the past 40 years while drainage facilities have been haphazardly upgraded. In addition to financial constraints, Tin attributed ineffective flood control, lax management and low awareness of residents. He said the Government has agreed to provide VND10 trillion for the city and lend another VND10 trillion to build dykes, sluices for tide control and drainage works. Another major issue faced by the city and the country as a whole is a lack of food safety and hygiene. Deputies of the council called for the city government to take drastic measures to deal with this chronic problem. Explaining the rampant use of banned substances including growth stimulants at pig farms, Nguyen Phuoc Trung, director of the HCMC Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said one of the reasons was that Chinese firms sought to buy pigs weighing up to 100-120 kilograms each via border trade in the past time. The HCMC Department of Health vowed to test and inspect more food samples at production facilities and stores as well as monitor wholesale markets. Meanwhile, the Department of Industry and Trade said the agency would seek safe food supplies and tightly monitor food quality. Family Fun Day brings deaf children closer On December 13, the Intergenerational Deaf Education Outreach (IDEO) Project supported by the World Bank (WB) co-hosted an event titled “Family Fun Day – Beautiful Hands” for deaf children and their families in Hanoi. World Bank (WB) Country Director for Vietnam Victoria Kwakwa and goodwill ambassador artist Hoang Bach and his family were among the guests. Speaking at the event, Victoria Kwakwa said, “Today is the Family Fun Day. So let’s make it fun and share our happiness with deaf and non-deaf people. Let’s experience the world of sign language of the deaf people. I believe that you will realize that it is also as beautiful as our speaking language world.” The Family Fun Day aims to help draw more public attention to this issue and gain more support from various sources in the society for the development of the deaf community, especially young children. In Vietnam, some 15,500 children under six are deaf or have a hearing impair. Most of them do not have access to early childhood education and their parents lack professional support. The IDEO project has provided home-based sign language education for 255 Deaf children under six years old in four Vietnamese cities and provinces to prepare them for formal schooling. Within the framework of the event, a flashmob using sign language took place for the first time in Vietnam with 300 participants, including deaf children and their families. VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/TT/TN/Dantri