Social News 26/8 Compulsory drug detox facilities to be replaced by voluntary treatment   Drug addicted people at a rehabilitation centre in Hanoi Compulsory drug detoxification facilities will be gradually closed, to be replaced by voluntary treatment under a plan freshly approved by the Prime Minister. According to the plan, the number of compulsory detox centres will be reduced to 71 as of 2020 with a total capacity of 20,000 patients. Meanwhile, 52 facilities will be converted to offer voluntary detox treatment. At least 30 more detox centres will be set up using private funding, with the aim of raising the combined treatment capacity of all detox centres to 200,000, or 80 percent of the drug addicts on record. The plan also sets the goal of providing 100 percent of staff at detox centres with professional training. In the long term, the plan hopes to reduce by half the capacity of compulsory detox centre by 2030. Committee to help victims of environmental incident in central region The Prime Minister has signed a decision on the establishment of a steering committee on measures to stabilise lives and production in four central provinces affected by the serious environment incident. The committee, led by Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh, will have 19 members representing ministries, the Government Office, the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, and Chairpersons of the People’s Committees of Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MoNRE) is assigned to serve as the committee’s standing office. The MoNRE is to establish a working group to assess the damages, calculate compensation and offer support to victims in restoring production or switching to other livelihoods. Headed by a MoNRE senior official, the group will comprise representatives from ministries, agencies and authorities from the four provinces. The incident occurred in April when a large number of dead fish along the coast were first discovered in Ky Anh township, Ha Tinh province on April 6, then spread to Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue provinces. It is estimated that some 15 tonnes of natural fish and 2 tonnes of farmed fish died in Ha Tinh province. Meanwhile in Thua Thien-Hue, some 30 tonnes of natural fish died and were washed up on beaches. In late June, Formosa Ha Tinh accepted responsibility for the mass fish deaths. The pollution damaged about 400 hectares of coral and affected over 260,000 people who earn their living by working in sea-related activities. The company pledged to compensate over 11.5 trillion VND (500 million USD), which will be used to support local fishermen in changing their jobs and recover the polluted maritime environment. It also vowed to deal with shortcomings and limitations in waste and wastewater treatment. Former revolutionary base region showcases tourism potential The Viet Bac region, the seat of the revolutionary government during the anti-French war, will showcase its tourism potential through a programme named “Travelling through heritage areas of Viet Bac” and the 2016 Tuyen Quang City festival from September 9-12. The region, which spreads over Ha Giang, Tuyen Quang, Cao Bang, Bac Kan, Thai Nguyen and Lang Song provinces, boasts great tourism potential with well known destinations like Ba Be Lake, one of the world’s largest fresh water lakes, in Bac Kan province, Dong Van Karst Plateau in Ha Giang province, Ban Gioc Waterfall in Cao Bang province, and Na Hang hydropower reservoir, dubbed a Ha Long Bay in the forest, in Tuyen Quang province. A festival on folklore culture and art will be organized with unique performances performed by artists and mass actors from the six provinces in the region. Tourists will have the chance to enjoy the Then singing, an ancient music form of Tay ethnic group which is looking for UNESCO recognition as part of the world intangible cultural heritage. As part of tourism promotion activities on the occasion, a food fair featuring traditional dishes of ethnic groups in the region will be held alongside a photo exhibition on the northern mountainous region. One highlight will be the Tuyen Quang City Festival Night with a parade of characters in folklore tales, historic characters and animals associated with Vietnamese culture such as mice and buffalo.- Kon Tum: Illegal gold mining rampant in Đắk Long Commune Illegal gold mining has become rampant in Đắk Glei District’s Đắk Long Commune over recent years, causing serious environmental pollution and damage to local residents’ life, online newspaper zing reported. A resident of Đắk Long Commune in the Central Highlands province of Kon Tum told a zing reporter that illegal gold miners have publicly operated for many years in various places in Đắk Ôn hamlet. “Because the main gold reserve of the commune exists here. Local authorities have come and seized miners’ machinery many times, but then the activity recurs,” the resident said. This person also said hazardous chemicals used in gold mining had polluted the environment. Water in Đắk Plok stream, which local residents use for watering crops and daily life’s activities, was so polluted that it can no longer be used.  Trees were also chopped down, resulting in floods and landslides in the rainy season which caused huge losses to local residents, this person said. According to the reporter’s observations, gold is exploited manually with three groups of miners working round the clock. A Hiêng, chairman of Đắk Long Commune People’s Committee said the local authority often co-operated with border soldiers to crack down on illegal miners, however their force was too small to maintain regular inspections. “People often do the mining on weekends while our force is too small to prevent it. The miners may have someone behind them, because whenever we seized their machines, they would have new machines right afterwards,” he said. Meanwhile, Nguyễn Văn Diệu, a spokesperson for Đắk Glei District People’s Committee told the reporter that an inter-section team of the district had recently carried out an inspection at Đắk Bloc Lake in Đắk Ôn hamlet and seized four batches of machines. He said people kept doing the job despite knowing it was illegal due to very high profits available from gold mining. “The district’s People’s Committee has asked Đắk Long Commune authority to carry out an inspection once every two days and impose punishments for any violations found,” he said. Tuition fee hike not coincide with medical fee soar: Ministry In its dispatch to departments and vocational training facilities upon tuition fee adjustment, the Ministry of Education and Training ordered not to raise tuition fee at the same time with medical fee soar. The Ministry asked to raise tuition fee in a set road map as per the Circular No.86, noting that schools should not increase tuition fee at the same time with medical hike in a bid to limit effects on consumer index. The Ministry proposed schools to base on ceiling tuition fee of the circular and on forms of schools to set a detailed tuition fee for each academic year and terms. School managers must publicize in bulletin in schools. Moreover, the Ministry ordered schools not to collect fee exceed the ceiling for each vocational training form as per regulation. Concert to mark Pop star Dam Vinh Hung's 20 year career A musical performance marking the 20-year career of Pop star Dam Vinh Hung will be held in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City in October. Pop star Dam Vinh Hung, also known as “Mr. Dam”, will perform major hits and popular love songs in the 80s and 90s. Hung is one of the famous pop singers in Viet Nam. His many popular songs have been ranked high on various music charts in the country. The concert titled “Diamond Show” will see the participation of director Tran Vi My; musicians, Viet Anh, Anh Khoa, Bao Lu, Hoang Anh and Tam Vinh; singers Ho Ngoc Ha, Duong Trieu Vu, Noo Phuoc Thinh, Thanh Thao, Hong Ngoc and Bao Anh. The event will take place at Hoa Binh Theater in Ho Chi Minh City on October 1-2; and at the National Convention Center in Hanoi on October 15. Local artist unveils women-themed paintings Feminine, a women-themed paintings exhibition by artist Phuong Binh, is on display until August 31 at ā Gallery in downtown HCMC. Binh, a 42-year-old artist based in Hanoi, has been known for her women-themed paintings made from traditional materials of do (rhamnoneuron) paper and Chinese ink. Viewers are familiar with the fancifulness and softness of her artworks. However, the ongoing show is expected to leave new impressions on viewers through 19 oil-on-canvas and acrylic artworks characterized by her new creative touches. Using the same free-style strokes, Binh can evoke people’s imagination of women’s sexiness and charm. Cafe owner highlights continued vendetta by officials Nguyen Van Tan, owner of the Xin Chao Cafe in Ho Chi Minh City, said he feared a continued vendetta by the local police after several officers were fired for filing wrongful criminal charges against him. On August 8, 2015, Tan opened a cafe in Binh Chanh District opposite of the district police building. His business licence was scheduled to be granted on August 19 and a food safety certificate on September 29. However, on August 18, he was fined over VND17m (USD772) for not having the licences. Then on March 11, Tan faced a criminal charge for illegally conducting business. After the case was exposed and brought to HCM City Party Secretary Dinh La Thang and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, the officers were punished. Nguyen Van Quy, head of the district police, Le Thanh Tong, former deputy head of the district people's procuracy and Huynh Van Son, an official at the people's procuracy were fired. While that should have resolved the problem, his tangles with officialdom have continued. In order to find a place to wash the dishes, Tan bought an old container, cut it into four parts and renovated it for the cafe. He even asked for permit from the local authorities and promised to remove it immediately if needed. However, the local authorities asked him to remove the containers, Tan removed three parts and asked to keep the last part next to his cafe to wash the dishes. On August 16, Chairman of Tan Tuc Town Nguyen Thanh Vu demanded him to stop using the container and went as far as cutting electricity and water at the cafe. According to Vu, any construction is banned from the land and they also blocked vehicles carrying construction materials from entering. Tan was told that he must remove everything within three days. Several lawyers have voiced their oppositions, saying that the violation was unfounded as Tan's container is not a construction 'tied to the land' like a building. The chairman is also wrong for ordering utilities companies to cut electricity and water at the cafe because this is a civil contract. "I didn't dare to build a permanent building because I was afraid this sort of thing would happen. I borrowed money to buy a really small container for VND15m (USD681) just so I could have a place to store dishes, pots and pans. Now they are forcing me to remove it and I heard that I might be fined some twenty million of VND. I probably have to sell this cafe and leave. I just don't understand, this small container fits on the land that I rented. I'm really scared," Tan said. District Party Secretary Nguyen Van Phung said, "The town chairman said it was standard. I told him whatever standard it is, it must be reasonable. And demanding companies to cut electricity and water is not the chairman's job. Don't get involved in such petty things, it's not worth it." There's a folk story about a family living with dangerous tigers in the forest. They said they'd rather live with the dangerous tigers than under the control of cruel rulers. OVs children having no birth registration go to school The Binh Phuoc provincial Department of Education and Training (DoET) will offer free tuition fees, clothes, books and learning facilities to 78 Cambodia-born Vietnamese children who have no birth registration in the 2016-2017 academic year, said Nguyen Van Hung, director of DoET. This is the first time these children have a chance to get regular training at primary schools in the province. Currently, the OVs returning from Cambodia have no land to cultivate and make their living by fishing on Saigon and Be rivers or working for hire. Until now, their children have not been able to go to school as they have no identity papers. Early in July, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc asked localities to help Vietnamese people returning home from Tonlé Sap Lake in Cambodia stabilize their lives to enable their children to attend school. Most of these OVs are now living in Tay Ninh, Binh Phuoc and Long An provinces. Quang Nam hosts conference on urban development It was standing room only at a conference in Quang Nam as scholars, government officials and local residents gathered to discuss a broad set of topics during an urban development conference. The main goal of the conference was to share best strategies and practices as well as review some of the most ambitious ways to provide decent homes and communities for citizens.   In a keynote address, Professor Donyun Kim from Sung Kyun Kwan University in the Republic of Korea spoke about the current movement of Vietnam to a more industrialized society and the related migration of citizens from rural settings to urban centres. Now more than ever action is needed at the local level, Professor Kim emphasized, adding that it would take the creativity and actions of the local government working in concert with local residents to build the communities of the future. Programs and policies, he said, would need to incorporate an interrelated mix of issues, from place-based development to transportation, from climate change to arts and culture. Most importantly, he asserted, action plans must be individualized for each urban centre. He said Vietnam currently has nearly 800 urban areas and the figure will continue to grow in the time ahead. At the event, there was a panel discussion on securing housing options for all, and experts discussed the interplay between homelessness, public housing, the impact of manufacturing, regional planning and more. Nguyen Quang, director of the UN-Habitat program in turn spoke about the fast pace of urbanization noting that 40% of the nation’s population would live in urban areas by 2020 according to some projections. Therefore, said Mr Quang its critically important for the public, private and civil society sectors to join forces to share, develop and implement best practices in sustainable urban development and environmental planning. Vietnam steps up efforts to bring overseas experts home Around 300,000 overseas Vietnamese are active in the fields of science and technology. Vietnam plans to build an information database of Vietnamese scientists living overseas so that the country can tap into their potentials, according to Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Vu Hong Nam. Vietnam has compiled a list of thousands of Vietnamese scientists currently active in a variety of scientific, technological and economic fields, the government's online portal quoted Nam, who is also the chairman of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, as saying. Of the five million overseas Vietnamese, about 300,000 are directly involved in scientific and technological development, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, highlighting the fact that Vietnam needs their expertise back in the country. As part of the government’s efforts, the Ministry of Education and Training has offered overseas Vietnamese intellectuals employment at local universities so that they can provide training as lecturers and researchers. Vietnamese universities currently employ about 600 foreign experts on short-term contracts, of whom just 52 are overseas Vietnamese, according to a survey of 49 local universities and colleges. Local governments have also seen the potential of luring these individuals home. For instance, the Overseas Vietnamese Club for Science and Technology, set up by the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee around 10 years ago, has helped connect overseas Vietnamese scientists with local institutions and individuals who need their skills and abilities. Last year Ho Chi Minh City failed to hit its recruitment targets, hiring only half the number of foreign experts, including overseas Vietnamese that it needed, according to the city’s Department of Science and Technology, due mainly to a lack of financial incentives. Vietnam received US$12.3 billion in overseas remittances last year, slightly up from US$12 billion in 2014, according to the central bank. Remittances from overseas Vietnamese remain a key source of foreign currencies for the country's economy, in addition to foreign direct investment and official development assistance. There are currently 4.5 million Vietnamese people living overseas who send home foreign currencies equivalent to about 8 percent of the country’s gross domestic product. The Vietnamese government has tried to keep the link between those living outside the country and the homeland alive. Last month, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc approved a Vietnamese-language online teaching program which targets younger generations of overseas Vietnamese. Vietnamese province bans police from Pokemon Go amid security fears A district police station in the central province of Ha Tinh has banned all officers from playing Pokemon Go following concerns that they could accidentally reveal sensitive data while playing the game. The move took effect this week in Ha Tinh's Thanh Ha District. The district police force even suggested that their staff tell family members to refrain from playing the game or delete it. The idea that game players may trespass on military bases using GPS on their smart phones to detect Pokémon has caused concern because when a mobile phone’s camera is activated it can collect information about the location of these restricted areas. The virtual reality gane has taken the country by storm since its release just three weeks ago. Pokemon Go is an augmented reality game in which players walk around in the real-life world to catch virtual creatures on their smart phone screens. In doing so, the game engages the camera on mobile phones and activates GPS tracking. Vietnamese authorities are concerned that game players could be tricked into downloading a copycat application and then unintentionally revealing sensitive information that creates security risks. A senior police official in Thanh Ha District defended the decision to order all officers to stop playing the game and restrict game players from police property, saying: “For security concerns, some police stations throughout the country have banned the game.” Acting on the same concern, a military base in the coastal province of Binh Dinh has also prohibited Pokemon Go. Since last week, Vietnam has banned Pokemon Go players from the offices of its government, besides religious, historic and defense sites. HCM City party chief encourages labor unions to stage strikes The secretary of the Party Committee of Ho Chi Minh City wants labor unions of companies citywide to be more effective in staging legitimate strikes for workers, a request that sparked quite a debate on August 23. As Dinh La Thang met with the municipal Labor Confederation chairwoman Tran Kim Yen this morning during his visit to the Tan Thuan Export Processing Zone in District 7, he challenged her with a surprise question. “Have labor unions under your confederation ever organized any successful strike?” the municipal Party chief said. Yen could not respond anything other than “Never.” Thang went on saying that if there has yet to be any successful union-backed strike to take place, the Labor Confederation “should be brave in doing so.” “I have been briefed at all of the previous job actions were done totally of workers’ own accord,” the Party chief said. “What’s worth noticing is that most of the workers’ demands were met following the strikes, which indicates that their requests are legitimate.” This leads to a bigger question, he added, as to why employers only accepted those requests when workers have resorted to walkout, while negotiations initiated by the labor unions usually fail. “So why the unions do not stage lawful strikes for workers?” he questioned. Even though left surprised by the audacious question, some attendants of the meeting with Thang voiced their disagreement with his view. Tran Thanh Hong, deputy direct of the Tan Thuan Co. Ltd., made no secret of his view that it is better to have no strike than a successful walkout. “I think the labor union should try to develop a mechanism so that workers have their demands met without having to go on strike,” Hong told the Party chief. “Spontaneous strikes may be reasonable in some cases, but in other cases, it will bring in bad consequences, which is very dangerous,” he said. To avoid these consequences, Hong added, there must be a capable union leader and a proper striking procedure. “There are strikes that went on for seven days but in the end no one was found to be the leader,” he said. Thang said the problem is that workers never consider the union officials their leaders. “We have to think about this issue seriously,” he said. In the meantime, the city’s Labor Confederation chairwoman Yen said if workers can achieve what they want through illegitimate strikes, it will lead to bad precedent for more walkouts to come. “The Labor Confederation will continue working on this issue to ensure that unions at companies can well protect the rights of workers there,” Yen promised. Eye-training method to cure refractive error debunked in Vietnam Multiple eye-training centers in Vietnam have recently boasted of a method of curing refractive errors in the eye without surgery, but the method is yet to be tested by research. Many online sites and Facebook pages have advertised methods to cure refractive error without surgery. Ha Vy, a trainer at one of the eye centers making the claims, said that her eyes, previously nearsighted, are now better than the average pair of healthy eyes thanks to the method. Vy said that her method is a combination of meditation, yoga, and qigong, consisting of breathing and eye-strengthening exercises. According to Vy, the center offers courses ranging from 12 sessions to 200 sessions, with a 50-session- course priced at VND15 million (US$672). Pham Nguyen Huan, vice director of the general planning department at Ho Chi Minh City Eye Hospital, revealed that there had been no scientific research accepting eye-muscle training as a method of correcting refractive error. According to Huan, the exercises in the method sould constrict the pupils due to rapid eye adjustments, allowing the eyes to see further over a short period of time. This short-term effect is the “cure” boasted on by the eye-training centers. Huan advised those with refractive error to seek treatment at professional eye care facilities and observe progress every six months. Furthermore, resting one’s eyes is recommended during periods of work or study. Parents should also allow their children to participate in outdoor activities to prevent the aggravation of refractive error. Lâm Đồng garbage dump reopens after a year The Cam Ly garbage dump in Lâm Đồng Province has been reopened after more than a year, to reduce the load on a waste treatment plant in Đà Lạt City. The amount of garbage currently accumulating in the Solid Waste Treatment Plant, the only one of its kind in Đà Lạt City in the Central Highlands province, is more than 20,000 tonnes. “Garbage overflows onto the hill sides at the waste collection site in the plant and pollutes the water. The neighbourhood faces a great risk of environment pollution,” Lương Văn Ngự, deputy director of the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment, said. To resolve the problem, Lâm Đồng People’s Committee has decided to reopen the Cam Ly garbage dump, which was closed more than a year ago for not meeting environment standards. Till September 30, 80 out of 180 tonnes of garbage collected daily from Đà Lạt City and Lạc Dương District will be transported to Cam Ly garbage dump for treatment, while the rest will go to the Solid Waste Treatment Plant, according to the order of the People’s Committee. The plant, built at a cost of VNĐ400 billion (US$ 17.9 million) by Đà Lạt-based Green Energy Environment Company, became operational in July 2015 to replace the Cam Ly garbage dump. It is designed to handle 200 tonnes of garbage per day. But it soon showed many shortcomings as some facilities were yet to be built, causing chronic overloading, and forcing local people to repeatedly complain about the pollution the plant caused in their living environment. Project teaches swimming to thousands of kids in Thua Thien – Hue Over 4,300 children in t he central province of Thua Thien – Hue were taught swimming skills during this year’s summer under a project funded by the Nordic Assistance to Vietnam/ Norwegian Church Aids (NAV/NCA). The children are students of 43 primary schools in the coastal and rural districts of Nam Dong, A Luoi, Phu Loc, Phu Vang, Quang Dien, and the towns of Huong Tra and Huong Thuy. Over the past three years, the project has been carried out across 110 primary schools in the province, benefiting 11,000 students. Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Dung said the project has helped reduce drowning accidents in thelocality. He pledged that the province will continue teaching swimming skills for local primary pupils while enhancing communication work to raise the public awareness of preventing drowning accidents among children. The provincial official urged the educational sector to mobilise resources for expanding the activity. Besides the project, the NAV/NCA has provided assistance for the province in social issues, such as poverty reduction, gender equality, HIV/AIDS prevention and control, and climate change adaptation and natural calamity mitigation, according to Dung. A UNICEF survey showed about 7,000 children die from drowning each year in Vietnam. Debate rages over Sabeco nepotism accusations The head of Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM) Nguyen Dinh Cung has called the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) "shameless" after it claimed the promotion of former minister Vu Huy Hoang's son had followed all procedures. The Vietnam Association of Financial Investors (VAFI) previously sent a letter to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, urging the ministry to inspect the appointment of Hoang’s son, Vu Quang Hai, as deputy CEO of Sabeco in early 2015. Before the promotion Hai was the general director of PetroVietnam Finance Investment JSC. Between 2011 and 2012, under Hai’s management, the company racked-up losses of VND220 billion (USD10 million) compared to registered capital of USD13.5 million. Nguyen Hoang Hai, deputy head of VAFI said they decided to file complaints with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Government Inspectorate. Cung said he had seen the written response from MoIT to VAFI on newspaper which said that even though there might have been mistakes during the process, the promotions at Sabeco and PetroVietnam had followed all procedures and there were no legal grounds to hold Hai responsible for causing losses at PetroVietnam. Cung said the ministry was trying to cover up evident problems in the process. "When I read the response, I can only say that it's shameless. I have nothing to say," he said. According to Cung, Sabeco have been equitised so the ministry could only nominate people onto the board of directors, the board would then have to vote on other positions such as directors or vice directors. It was a violation if Sabeco 'begged' the ministry to promote someone as deputy CEO. Secondly, he said that even though the private-sector investors only had a 20% stake, it's was still their money and they should have a voice in the company. "This is not a government office, the employees don’t have to be state officials," he said. "It's wrong to use the excuse that Sabeco wanted Hai to be their deputy CEO. You must choose the best candidates with clear criteria and do it transparently." Cung had previously also vocally criticised Sabeco when it claimed the promotion followed all procedures. "Stop talking about following procedures. Procedures are a tool, not a goal. Procedures are only used to find the best leaders or employees, but if we can't find the best ones then we must re-check the procedures. Hai should resign from Sabeco. It's simply a matter of self-respect," he said. Most advanced hospital operates in central Vietnam Thien Nhan Infirmary opened yesterday is considered one of  the most advanced in the central Vietnam. It provides health consultation, examination, treatment for maternity, pediatric, mental health, ophthalmology, oral and Maxillo Facial Surgery. It is the most advanced equipped hospital in the central Vietnam. It has Voluson E10 OB/GYN Ultrasound with World's First Curved Matrix Electronic 4D Probe; German’s 4D SIEMEN  ultrasound system visualizes entire blood flow during valve procedures; the U.S. LOGIC S7 EXPERT ultrasound scanner. The infirmary can admit 200 - 300 patients a day. It works seven days a week The hospital director Dr. Ngo Duc Hai said that the clinic aims to meet demand of high quality treatment and examination of residents in the central city of Da Nang and and the central-highlands provinces. The hospital will provide the best services and proper price to patients. The infirmary is located in 276-278 Dong Da Street in Hai Chau District in the central city of Da Nang on August 20. New polyclinic in Can Tho to open in 2018 Residents living in Can Tho Province can look forward to a new polyclinic in their area in 2018, following approval of the project by the Can Tho City People’s Committee. The US$90 million Vinmec Centre, proposed by Vingroup, will pilot a new model that will be equipped with state-of-the-art modern high-tech equipment. The new 8-storey facility is looking into the concept of having patients cared for by a specific healthcare team comprising family physicians, care managers, care coordinators and allied health professionals. The aim is to foster strong relationships between patients and their healthcare teams. New rural building programme for 2016-2020 approved The national target programme for building new-style rural areas has been approved by the Prime Minister in Decision No. 1600/QD-TTg. The overall goal of the programme is building new-style rural areas with a view to lifting the material and spiritual living standards of people, developing proper social-economic infrastructure, and achieving proper economic restructure and production modes. It also aims to combine agricultural development with that of urban areas, create a democratic, equal and stable rural society imbued with traditional cultural identities. The programme’s specific goal is to have at least 50 percent of the number of communes throughout the country meeting the criteria of a new-style rural commune, and encourage each province and centrally-managed city to have at least one district completing the criteria of a new-style rural district. The number of criteria completed by communes in the whole country on average must increase to 15 out of 19 and no commune should have completed less than five criteria. Under the programme, necessary facilities like roads, electricity, clean water, schools and medical stations will be developed in order to meet the needs in the production and life of local people. The quality of life of rural people will be improved with many production models providing stable jobs for people, and income will increase at least by 1.8-fold against 2015. In order to achieve these goals, the first solution recommended is to continue wide communication campaigns on building new-style areas and organise emulation movements in building new-style areas from central to grassroots levels. The next task is to continue perfecting the system of mechanisms and policies, review and perfect the set of criteria on building new-style areas, taking in all contents of the programme as well as reflecting the specific characteristics of each locality. Policies for special areas will be built with priority given to indispensable infrastructure, directly serving production in the “Restructuring agricultural sector” project. Delegating authority to communes will be promoted, as will creating favourable conditions for people and communities to be the real decision maker in the cause of building new-style areas, and transparency and accountability must be ensured during the implementation of the programme. For the programme to be implemented successfully, it is necessary to diversify capital resources such as by combining the capital resources of the national target programme for sustainable poverty reduction and other projects in the locality. Besides that, it is necessary to mobilise all available resources in localities for the implementation of the programme. Mobilising capital from enterprises for works with immediate turnover is one method, another would be allowing enterprises to borrow the State or province’s capital credit for investment and development. Volunteer contributions from local people are also a source of capital mobilisation but the use of the donations should be approved by the communes’ people’s councils. Total State investment capital for the programme is estimated to be at least 193,155.6 billion VND (8.66 billion USD), in which 63,155.6 billion VND will be from the central budget and 130,000 billion VND from local budgets. Ambassador: New Zealand can help Mekong Delta with hi-tech farming New Zealand, which exports 80 percent of its agricultural products, is willing to transfer its advanced farming technologies and machinery to the Mekong Delta, New Zealand Ambassador Haike Manning said in a recent trip to the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho. Talking to Vietnam News Agency reporters during the trip, the ambassador spoke highly of Mekong Delta’s potential for agricultural development, adding that the region must make breakthrough steps in mechanisation and quality control in order to adapt to globalisation and cope with fierce competition on the world market. He recommended that the government uses its coordinating role and financial assistance policy to help local farmers buy machinery and invest in modern processing technology, while farmers should join hand to improve their collective capacity. The ambassador reviewed several effective agricultural projects funded by New Zealand in the Mekong Delta, including a 4.1 million USD scheme on cultivating dragon fruit in Tien Giang province. He revealed that another project will be rolled out in the near future in Can Tho City to help local farmers adopt a new pig-rearing model. Looking back at the recent drought and salt water intrusion in the Mekong Delta, Ambassador Haike Manning said such natural disasters will come again in the future, so the key solution is to help the region find suitable plants and animals as well as farming and husbandry techniques in order to cope with the impacts of climate change. New Zealand has been providing 4.13 million USD in emergency aid since 2012 to Ben Tre province to help local residents, particularly coastal communities and low-income groups, to improve their capacity to cope with climate change through changing their cultivation and husbandry habits. Farmers are taught how to plant short-term and long-term crops alternately and raise animals on small scale to divide risks while ensuring regular income from different sources instead of only one. According to the ambassador, New Zealand is also willing to share with Mekong Delta experiences in developing a system to ensure food safety and a modern distribution network.- Central Highlands grants nearly 2.4 mln land-use rights certificates Provinces in the Central Highlands – Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Dak Nong and Lam Dong – have granted 2.383 million first-time land-use rights certificates for ethnic households with a combined area of 4.156 million hectares. The information was released by the Standing Board of the Steering Committee for the Central Highlands. Dak Lak has granted 730,674 certificates for 967,436 hectares, equal to 92.8 percent of the task. Kon Tum, Dak Nong, and Lam Dong all have completed at least 90 percent of their work. Gia Lai is the only province with the rate falling short of 90 percent. According to the standing committee, the reasons behind the provinces’ incomplete granting of certificates are prolonged land-clearance and compensation, ethnic households not coming to register or receive certificates and localities’ lack of consideration in changing land-use goals. Provinces in the region continue reviewing and issuing regulations related to land, rectifying and overcoming limitations in land registration, granting certificates, building land databases in the region as well as promoting public communications campaigns to help ethnic minorities get a better understanding of their rights and responsibility to land. Central Highlands provinces recommended the legitimacy of and the granting of certificates to households and individuals who reclaimed virgin land and illegally occupied forestry land that has been stably used prior to July 1, 2004; and then changed the land-using purpose to housing land or agricultural land in line with the land-use planning approved by authorised agencies. Regional provinces will strive for completing the measurement and the granting of land-use certificates for agricultural land and forestry plantations in 2016 according to instructions by the Prime Minister.- Party delegation inspects Thai Nguyen’s fight against corruption A working delegation led by head of the Party Central Committee’s Inspection Commission Tran Quoc Vuong held a working session with authorities of northern Thai Nguyen province on August 22 to inspect the investigation and prosecution of corruption and economic cases of public concern. Between now and October 20, the delegation will inspect 18 local units in terms of the discovery, investigation and trial of corruption and economic corruption cases, as well as the implementation of the Politburo’s Direction on strengthening the Party’s leadership over the settlement of corruption cases. Speaking at the session, Vuong said the inspection aims to affirm the Party’s strong determination in the fight against corruption in line with the Resolution adopted by the 12 th National Party Congress, thereby spreading effective models and seeking measures to improve the efficiency of uncovering and dealing with corruption. Overseas Vietnamese in Czech Republic pay tribute to heroic martyrs A requiem has been held in Prague, the Czech Republic on the occasion of Vu Lan (Ullambana) – a major Buddhist festival, to commemorate soldiers who laid down their lives to defend Vietnam’s sea and island sovereignty. Former Vice President Truong My Hoa took part in the event on her working visit to the country to raise funds for the Vu A Dinh Scholarship Fund and the “For beloved Hoang Sa and Truong Sa” club. She said most Vietnamese expatriates in countries understood more about the significance of sea and island activities after watching documentary films from the club. In his speech at the event, Most Venerable Thich Thien Bao from the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha Central Committee highlighted the significance of the Vu Lan festival, which falls on the 15th day of the seventh lunar month (August 17 this year). He said it is an occasion to pay tribute to parents, teachers, and revolutionary martyrs who sacrificed their lives to safeguard national sovereignty, adding that Vietnamese communities abroad should educate young people to preserve the tradition. Illegal fishing in Hon Mun to face big fines Nha Trang Bay Management Board has proposed strict fines for people caught illegally fishing in Hon Mun Marine Protected Area. A fine from VND 25-35 million (USD1,123-1,572) has just been proposed by the board for two local fishermen who were caught fishing in the area on August 21. Nha Trang Bay Management Board detained a fishing boat for illegally fishing in Hon Mun Marine Protected Area on August 21. Head of the board, Huynh Binh Thai, said that Hon Mun Marine Protected Area boasts a diversified marine life with many rare species which are under threat due to the rising number of illegal fishing activities by local people. "Marine life has been seriously affected by the use of explosives and chemicals to catch fish by local fishermen," Thai said. "It's time we issued strict punishments to prevent further violations. Hon Mun Marine Protected Area was established in 2001 with financial support from the World Bank, the Danish government, and the World Conservation Union. The area is home to 340 out of the total 800 coral species in the world. Since the project was initiated, it has sought to plan for the sustainable management of the Nha Trang Bay while undertaking community development activities to support local users of the bay’s resources. VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/TT/TN/Dantri/VNE