Social News 15/12 Vietnam zeroes in on hunger elimination Poverty alleviation and hunger eradication has been a consistent priority for Vietnam and the country is committed to achieving these goals in cooperation with the international community, Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung said in Hanoi on December 13. Dung was speaking at the first meeting of the National Steering Committee for the ten year (2016-2025) Zero Hunger Action Programme. The programme was established by the Prime Minister in 2014 in response to the “Zero Hunger Challenge” of the United Nations, a major initiative to eradicate hunger worldwide. Vietnam’s action programme targets ensuring enough food and nutrition for all citizens towards improved physical and intellectual health; and towards fulfilling sustainable development goals (SDGs) of food security and sustainable agricultural development. There are five specifics targets under the action programme, including ensuring food and nutrition for people all year around; no malnutrition among children under two; development of a sustainable food system; most small-scale farmers enjoying increase in productivity and income; and no wastefulness and loss of food.   The programme will create an institutional platform to design and implement food security and nutrition policies measures in a coordinated manner so as to have a sustained impact on national food security, poverty reduction and development of new rural areas (under criteria set by the Government). Funds for the programme will be mobilised from international donors as well as allocations made to target programmes earmarked by the Government. Dung said Vietnam has participated resolutely and effectively in the “Zero Hunger  Challenge” and has gained many achievements in human development, particularly poverty reduction. He urged relevant ministries and agencies to proactively and resolutely implement tasks to help improve the efficiency and efficacy of the action programme. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the nation’s poverty rate reduced from 46.9 percent in 1990-1992 to 9 percent in 2010-2012 period. The national plan aims at “basically tackling poverty” by 2020.      Army chief commits support to Vietnam-Cambodian naval ties Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People’s Army Sen. Lieut. Gen Phan Van Giang has committed support for the Vietnam People’s Navy and the Royal Cambodian Navy to enhance their extensive collaboration.  During a reception in Hanoi on December 14 for Commander of the Royal Cambodian Navy Gen. Tea Vinh, Giang urged the two navies to continue push forward their effective links.  He believed that ties between the two countries in general and the two navies in particular will continue to be reinforced.  Tea Vinh, who is also Secretary General of the National Committee for Maritime Security, informed the host about the outcomes of recent talks between the Vietnam People’s Navy and the Royal Cambodian Navy.  He expressed wish to further strengthen exchange and cooperation between the two navies, contributing to traditional friendship between the two countries.      RoK film festival held in Quang Nam    A festival featuring films from the Republic of Korea (RoK) is running in the central province of Quang Nam from December 11 – 17. Films on the Korean land and people are screened free of charge at the Quang Nam culture centre in Tam Ky city between 4pm and 9pm. Pham Hong Quang, Director of the provincial Department of Information and Communications, said the event marks 25 years of Vietnam – RoK diplomatic ties (December 12, 1992 - 2017) as well as the ASEAN – RoK cultural exchange year 2017. It will help increase mutual understanding and cooperation between Quang Nam and RoK localities across diplomacy, culture, economy, tourism, and education, he added. Alongside the festival, there will be meetings to honour RoK organisations and individuals who have made contributions to Quang Nam, an exchange between Vietnamese and RoK students, and art performances by Vietnamese and Korean artists.      Agencies join hands to step up ethnic minority activities The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Committee for Ethnic Minority Affairs will coordinate in a five-year programme to step up activities in culture, sports, tourism and family planning for mountainous and ethnic minority-inhabited areas. Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Trinh Thi Thuy and Vice Chairman of the Committee on Ethnic Minority Affairs Nong Quoc Tuan signed an agreement for the implementation of the joint programme which will take place between 2017 and 2022. The joint programme aims to strengthen state management of mountainous regions and areas with ethnic minority communities in terms of culture, sports, tourism and family planning.  Accordingly, the two sides will cooperate to bolster dissemination and education of laws among ethnic minority people. At the same time, they will work together to preserve and promote the ethnic minority groups’ good traditional values and cultural identities to boost tourism. The programme will be carried out in 52 cities and provinces across the countries with large population of ethnic minority people and mountain areas. Speaking at the signing ceremony, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Trinh Thi Thuy said the ministry has paid greater attention to preserving cultural values of ethnic minority communities, improving their cultural life and enhance their physical development and health. The ministry is also working to help such communities turn their cultural heritage into assets and tourism products towards sustainable development, she added.      Salary policy reform spotlighted at conference Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue emphasized that salary reform is an urgent demand at a conference in Hanoi on December 13 to discuss experience of the world and Vietnam in renovating salary policies. The Deputy PM said that salary reform is closely linked with administrative reform and reshuffling the political apparatus and public service agencies. However, he pointed to the need to seek proper payment policies that suit the specific conditions of Vietnam, which requires careful calculation. Dr. Jinho Jeong from the Korea Labour Institute held that it is necessary to consider the complication of tasks and level of responsibility along with price and living costs in deciding salary levels in public sector, to ensure salary can cover minimum standards of living. It is crucial to consider the equality of wage between State-owned and private sectors, he said. Meanwhile, Director of the International Labour Organisation’s Office in Vietnam Changhee Lee said that the salary system in Vietnam’s public sector is confusing, such as a person in a higher position may have lower salary than some subordinates. He asserted that the application of wage coefficient makes it difficult for the adjustments of salary in a regular and orderly manner in public sector. At the same time, there are too many types of supplementary allowance, he added. Changhee Lee recommended that along with change in the salary payment policy, it is necessary to keep supplementary allowance at under 50 percent of the total salary package. Economist Pham Chi Lan noted that regular spending accounts for nearly 70 percent of State budget spending, of which 47 percent is spent on salary payment. Lan pointed out a number of challenges facing salary reform, including the mindset about the role of the State and the relations between the State, the market and society. Irrational and overlapping allocation of functions among State agencies, a lack of transparency, poor accountability along with red tape and corruption are also among barriers to salary policy reform, stressed Lan. She added that the current system of recruitment, salary payment, promotion and dismissing of public servants does not create necessary pressure and motivation for salary reform. Concluding the discussions, Deputy PM Hue shared the specialists’ opinion that public servants’ salary must ensure minimum standards of living, and is balanced with the business sector and the market. He also agreed on the need to switch from the use of wage coefficient to calculate salary to specific figures, and to reduce the proportion of supplementary allowance in salary package. In the private sector, he stressed the need for maintaining minimum wage to make sure no worker is paid under the minimum amount, thus protecting vulnerable groups.      Vietnam, Argentina works to boost trade Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh met Argentine Foreign Minister Jorge Faurie in Buenos Aires on December 13 to discuss trade and economic cooperation between Vietnam and Argentina. At the meeting, which took place on the sidelines of the 11th WTO Ministerial Conference, both sides praised their economic, trade and investment cooperation in recent years. They agreed to seek trade stimulation measures together, while Khanh suggested Argentina create favourable conditions for Vietnamese products to enter the South American market to balance trade between the two countries. They highlighted their coordination in preparation for next year’s Vietnamese trip of Argentine President Mauricio Macri on the occasion of 45th anniversary of the founding of bilateral diplomatic relations. Both said that the official visit would reinforce the two countries’ comprehensive partnership. Vietnam and Argentina established a comprehensive partnership in 2010, with bilateral trade increasing tenfold in the past 10 years from about 300 million in 2006 to exceed 3 billion USD in 2016. According to the General Department of Vietnam Customs, in the first 10 months of 2017, Vietnam – Argentina trade hit 2.62 billion USD, up 8.87 percent from the same period last year, and was estimated to reach 3.5 billion USD by year’s end. Vietnam is now the sixth biggest trade partner of Argentina. Vietnam mainly exports to Argentina footwear, electronic products, garment-textiles goods and agricultural machines, while Argentina is the second biggest foreign supplier of food and farm produce in Vietnam.      Vocational training for rural labourers to centre on businesses’ needs In future the revised project on vocational training for rural labourers will be based on demands from enterprises. In place of the usual ‘top-down’ mentality where orders and targets are set by higher-ups, in 2018, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said its training programmes and curricula will be crafted with input from enterprises. With the needs and criteria of potential employers being taken in, the training is hoped to achieve practical results, ensuring those who received training can be hired by the firms in need. The change is in line with the Government’s new rural building programme and restructuring in the agriculture sector, said Ma Quang Trung, head of the department of co-operatives and rural development, under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD). The agriculture ministry said surveys will be sent to businesses and co-operatives, especially those that have already established production and consumption ties with farmers. Training programmes and most of the budget for 2018 will be tailored for these businesses, as well as businesses in important production areas or high-tech production areas. 104 agriculture vocational training classes – covering topics from production, storage and manufacturing, but focusing on nationally important products and local spearhead products – will be held for workers in co-operatives. Another 16 classes on management skills will also be held for 560 officials in charge of co-operatives affairs in localities. The steering committee under the agriculture ministry recommended these tasks be undertaken by “all central-level agencies, in direct co-ordination with businesses’ associations, general companies or businesses who have placed orders for labourers at ministry-level and local-level training centres.” In 2009, then Prime Minister Nguyễn Tấn Dũng approved the project “Vocational training for rural labourers until 2020”, and six years later, the amended decision No 971 came out with adjustments deemed more practical. The changes include raising the target number of trained labourers in 2016-20 to six million and making sure that 80 per cent of the trained workers are employed or have better wages and productivity, a new requirement to combine “theoretical lessons with field practice”, as well as no longer distinguishing between public or non-public vocational training centres in the programme. In 2017, the number of people receiving vocational training in the first nine months reached 162,180, or 77 per cent of the target (210,430 workers), according to an agricutlure ministry’s report summarising vocational training activities in the first nine months. The majority of the trained workers are in agriculture, reaching 120,000. Most of the trained workers in the agriculture sector this year – about 43,000 – are members of co-operatives or individual workers in collaboration with agro-businesses. Some successful co-operation models between the Government-sponsored vocational training programme and businesses include classes held to teach growing and harvesting techniques for rubber trees for new employees of the State-owned Việt Nam Rubber Group, training on VietGAP shrimp breeding for employees of Quảng Ninh Seaproducts Import-Export Company and training on high-quality rice production for VinaFood 2. According to the report however, the implementation of the training programme still has a lot of room for improvement. The effectiveness gap of the programme is one notable weakness. Midland mountainous provinces in the northern region and the Central Highlands, despite receiving equal or more financial support from the Government than other localities, recorded lower numbers of trained workers and a lower employment rate amongst those with training. Follow-up support for the trained rural workers is also a problem, as without capital, these people would not be able to establish a business to utilise the knowledge they have obtained. This is a serious setback for the training programme, as the goal is to ensure people’s livelihood and help them escape poverty. A lack of “serious efforts and determination” on the parts of workers during training and a shortage of qualified trainers are other issues that need to be addressed, the agriculture ministry’s report said. Bus stations announce Tết holiday ticket plans HCM City’s Miền Đông (Eastern) and Miền Tây (Western) bus stations will begin selling tickets for the Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday in January. Bình Thạnh District’s Miền Đông bus station is selling Tết tickets from January 6 to February 11. The bus station said it expected to see a 2 per cent increase in passengers travelling for Tết compared to the same period last year. Bình Tân District’s Miền Tây bus station will sell Tết tickets from January 26 to February 10, and expects to see a 5 to 7 per cent increase in customers over last year. Both stations will charge around 20-60 per cent more for Tết trips, depending on the time and destination. Ticket booths at the stations will operate from 5am-7pm daily during the special period. Passengers can also purchase tickets online. Japanese ambassador appraises Thanh Hoa-Japan cooperation The Nghi Son 2 thermal power project is a typical work of cooperation between the north central province of Thanh Hoa and Japan, stated Japanese Ambassador to Vietnam Kunio Umeda at a working session with Secretary of the Thanh Hoa Party Committee Trinh Van Chien on December 14. The diplomat highly valued support that Chien and leaders of Thanh Hoa have given to Japanese firms to conduct their projects, including Nghi Son petrochemical refinery project, Nghi Son cement project, and Sakurai Vietnam company in Thanh Hoa. He expressed his hope that Japanese firms will continue receiving assistance from the locality. He said he hopes Thanh Hoa and Japan will continue increasing investment in agriculture, contributing to promoting Thanh Hoa’s strength in the field. At the session, Chien thanked the Government and businesses of Japan for investing in Thanh Hoa, while pledging to create optimal conditions for Japanese firms in the locality. Currently, Japan is the largest partner of Thanh Hoa with total investment of 5.6 billion USD, accounting for 40 percent of total FDI attracted by the province. Thanh Hoa will work to remove obstacles and difficulties facing the investors to facilitate the 2.54 billion USD Nghi Son 2 thermal power plant that will be launched in the first quarter of 2018, he stated. Chien asked Ambassador Kunio Umeda to continue encouraging Japanese firms to invest to Thanh Hoa, the leading locality in FDI attraction of Vietnam. Chien also proposed that the Japanese side strengthen the provision of ODA to Thanh Hoa, while coordinating with the province to hold the Japanese Culture Day in the province. Forum raises women’s awareness of start-ups While the profile of Vietnamese businesswomen has been raised significantly in recent years with the emergence of leaders in certain sectors, budding women entrepreneurs still have to fight with one hand tied behind their backs. Experts and officials said at a forum in Hanoi on December 14 that women still experienced very limited access to credit and technology despite contributing significantly to national growth. At the national platform on “Women Business Start-ups: Innovation and Connection,” speakers discussed challenges and opportunities as well as policy solutions to boost female entrepreneurship and promote gender equality in the business field. The platform was organised by the Vietnam Women’s Union (VWU) and the SNV Netherlands Development Organisation. Nguyen Van Binh, Chairman of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Economic Affairs, stressed the importance role women have to play in boosting business start-ups in the country. Women-led enterprises and households have greatly contributed to economic development, been a significant income source and created millions of jobs, he said. “More and more Vietnamese women entrepreneurs have been ranked among the most powerful women in Asia by prestigious international organisations,” Binh said. But other speakers said women faced major challenges including gender norms, limited access to resources and markets because of insufficient collateral as well as lack of skills and knowledge of corporate governance, finance and marketing. Nguyen Thi Thu Ha, VWU Chairwoman, said “The proportion of women-led large enterprises has gradually decreased, accounting for 19.8 percent, and the number of women-led science and technology businesses is still limited. “In addition, the percentage of female start-ups with more than three people is just 5.5 percent, compared to 15.7 percent for men,” she said. While the Government has promulgated numerous incentive policies to support women in business, implementation has been weak and lacked necessary guidance, Ha said. Delegates agreed that the platform was a good place for line ministries and aspiring female entrepreneurs to exchange knowledge and experiences, especially in terms of difficulties and obstacles in production and business and related policies, mechanisms and transactions with State management agencies from national to local levels. The platform also marked the official kick-off of the National Women-led Business Start-up Programme, which will be implemented by the VWU between 2017 and 2025. The programme aims to boost women entrepreneurship and innovation in all 63 provinces and cities in the country. It will enable the VWU to strengthen its bridging role in supporting start-ups by women and encouraging their development, especially in agriculture and other areas linked to climate change adaptation, the meeting heard. One of the businesswomen attending the meeting was Nguyen Thi Ha, who expressed pride and happiness in helping many women earn stable incomes, either from their farms or through regular jobs with consolidated farms. Ha, who is Director of the Thanh Hung Agricultural Service and Integrated Business Cooperative in Thanh Hung commune, Thach Thanh district in the central province of Thanh Hoa, said they have received active support from local authorities and high commitment from its members to function as an effective economic model. This has helped Thanh Hung become just one of five communes in the district be recognised as new-style rural commune, she said. The Thanh Hung cooperative was founded in September 2014. With seed funding from the Vietnam Women’s Union that was invested in high capacity tractors, and contributions from 33 members of whom six are ethnic minority women, the cooperative has taken big strides forward, Ha said. “The cooperative prioritises the timely provision of land preparation services and other inputs including pesticides and rice seedlings to members at favourable prices,” she said. It also offers extension services and annually leases 200ha of land to farmers. Constant attention by the board of directors to the needs of members was the key factor in the cooperative’s success, Ha said. The cooperative has also created jobs for 15 women by connecting them with other large-scale agricultural farms in the commune. “Thus cooperative members are highly motivated to contribute,” she said. Building on its initial success, the co-operative is now developing the Hy Thiem herbal production area, complying with good agricultural practices (GAP). “Development of the herbal production area is an innovative initiative and expected to bring sustainable economic development for members,” Ha said. Due to all of the aforementioned efforts, cooperative members have stable annual incomes of 50-70 million VND (2,200-3,100 USD). Catholic solidarity committee reviews 2017 work The Committee for Solidarity of Vietnamese Catholics held the fifth conference of the 2013 – 2018 tenure and hosted Christmas celebration in Ho Chi Minh City on December 14. The event was attended by senior officials of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee, the Government Committee for Religious Affairs and several governmental agencies at central and local levels. During the event, delegates reviewed reports on the committee’s performance in 2017 and outlined tasks and directions for 2018. They also discussed the outcomes of this year’s patriotic emulation movement carried out by the committee and evaluated the organisation of the congress, namely “Vietnamese Catholics to build and defend the motherland", in cities and provinces for the 2017-2022 term. Priest Phan Dinh Son, Vice President of the Committee for Solidarity of Vietnamese Catholics, said the Catholics in Vietnam have applied advanced technology in production in recent years. They also raised funds and donated lands and building materials for construction of rural roads, changing the face of their homeland for the better, he added. He noted that the committee will focus on educating Catholic people on the Party’s policies and State’s laws and disseminating movements of the Vietnam Fatherland Front among them in 2018. VFF Central Committee Vice Chairman Ngo Sach Thuc expressed his delight at what the committee has achieved so far, saying it has promoted the good Catholic values in its activities, particularly upholding the traditional “Love your neighbours as yourself” and building safe neighborhoods and happy families Thuc expected that the committee will continue popularising the Law on Belief and Religion, which will take effect from January 2018, among the Catholics and promote the role of Catholic organisations in healthcare and education. PM asks mathematics institute to apply technologies to boost production Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan “placed an order” for the Institute of Mathematics under the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST) to boost the application of technologies in production to increase labour productivity at a working session in Hanoi on December 14. The PM affirmed that the Party and State will create the optimal conditions for the institute to become a leading mathematical research and postgraduate training centre in Vietnam. He highlighted shortcomings in the applied research and difficulties in employing excellent mathematicians who can meet the country’s socio-economic development demands. The VAST must pay more attention to developing the maths institute more strongly as well as recognise the institute’s crucial and position in the national development to put forth the most favourable policies and mechanisms, he said. The PM agreed with the institute’s proposal of providing scholarships – which are close to the international level - for domestic and foreign students at the international centre for training and research in mathematics. He supported the increase of staff for the centre, especially young and talented mathematicians, in addition to providing financial assistance for highly qualified scientists. The same day, the PM attended an international workshop held by the institute to celebrate the 90th birthday anniversary of Professor Hoang Tuy, a prominent Vietnamese mathematician and one of the two founders of the mathematics sector in Vietnam, the other is Professor Le Van Thiem. PM Phuc expressed his impressions of the Professor’s scientific contributions, particularly in the applied mathematics field. He said the Government will create favourable conditions for young generations, scientists and the Institute of Mathematics to promote their capacity and brainpower to make remarkable contributions to the cause of national building. The Institute of Mathematics has 70 officials, including many young researchers. In August 2017, the Ministry of Science and Technology and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) signed an agreement to establish an international centre for training and research in mathematics in Vietnam. Salary reform talks in Hà Nội Deputy Prime Minister Vương Đình Huệ emphasised that salary reform is an urgent need at a conference in Hà Nội yesterday to discuss global and local experience in renovating salary policies. The Deputy PM said salary reform is closely linked with administrative reform and reshuffling the political apparatus and public service agencies. However, he pointed to the need to seek proper payment policies that suit the conditions of Việt Nam, which requires careful calculation. Dr Jinho Jeong from the Korea Labour Institute said that it is necessary to consider the complexity of tasks and level of responsibility along with price and living costs in deciding salary levels in the public sector, to ensure salary can cover minimum standards of living. It is crucial to consider the equality of wage between the State-owned and private sectors, he said. Meanwhile, Director of the International Labour Organisation’s Office in Việt Nam Changhee Lee said the salary system in Việt Nam’s public sector is confusing, as a person in a higher position may have a lower salary than their subordinates. He asserted that using a wage coefficient makes it difficult adjust salary in an orderly manner in the public sector. At the same time, there are too many types of supplementary allowances, he added. Lee recommended that along with changes in salary payment policy, it is necessary to keep supplementary allowance below 50 per cent of the total salary package. Economist Pham Chi Lan noted that regular spending accounts for nearly 70 per cent of State budget spending, of which 47 per cent is spent on salaries. Lan pointed out a number of challenges facing salary reform, including thinking about the role of the State and the relationship between the State, the market and society. Irrational and overlapping functions among State agencies, a lack of transparency, poor accountability along with red tape and corruption are also barriers to salary reform, stressed Lan. She added that the current system of recruitment, salary payment, promotion and dismissal of public servants does not create necessary pressure or motivation for salary reform. Concluding the discussions, Deputy PM Huệ shared the specialists’ opinion that public servants’ salary must ensure minimum standards of living, and is balanced with the business sector and the market. He also agreed on the need to switch from the use of wage coefficients to calculate salary to specific figures, and to reduce supplementary allowances in salary packages. In the private sector, he stressed the need for maintaining the minimum wage to make sure no worker is paid under the minimum, thus protecting vulnerable groups. As of Janurary 1, 2018, the regional minimum wages will increase by VNĐ180,000-230,000 (US$7.2-9.2), according to a Government Decree issued on December7. Under the decree, the minimum wage will be raised from the current VNĐ3.75 million (US$165) to VNĐ3.98 million ($175) for contracted workers of enterprises located in region I, from VNĐ3.32 million ($146) to VNĐ3.53 million ($155) in region II, from VNĐ2.9 million ($127) to VNĐ3.09 million ($136) in region III and VNĐ2.58 million ($113) to VNĐ2.76 million ($121) in region IV. Diplomat vows continued efforts to enhance Vietnam-Indonesia ties Deputy Speaker of the People’s Representative Council (DPR) of Indonesia Fahri Hamzah on December 14 received outgoing Vietnamese Ambassador Hoang Anh Tuan, who pledged to keep contributing to the two countries’ relations in his new post. At the meeting in Jakarta, the two sides shared the view that the traditional friendship between Vietnam and Indonesia was founded by late Presidents Ho Chi Minh and Sukarno and nurtured by generations of the countries’ leaders and people. Bilateral ties are strongly developing in multiple spheres and became a strategic partnership that benefits both nations. Deputy Speaker Fahri Hamzah affirmed that his country always treasures cooperation with Vietnam. He is looking forward to leading a parliamentary delegation of Indonesia to the 26th Annual Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF 26), slated for January, 2018 in Vietnam. He noted that Indonesia has taken part in the APPF since its establishment in 1993 and hosted the 14th meeting of the forum in Jakarta in 2006. Many of its initiatives have been recognised, including the one on organising female parliamentarians’ meetings. For his part, Tuan said the Indonesian delegation’s participation in the APPF 26 will help step up multifaceted cooperation between the two parliaments and the two countries, thus contributing to the APPF’s role in resolving regional and global issues and to peace and development in the world. The outgoing ambassador appreciated the support that the Indonesian parliament and the DPR Deputy Speaker have given to him during his tenure. He stressed that in the new position of Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN, he will continue working to strengthen multifaceted cooperation between the two ASEAN members and promote a united, inter-connected, resilient and prosperous ASEAN for the sake of each country’s people, as well as peace, stability, cooperation and development. Photo exhibition features sea, islands in Hanoi Nearly 150 photos featuring the nation’s seas and islands are being on display at the Headquarters of the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) at No 5 Ly Thuong Kiet Street, Hanoi. Addressing the opening ceremony on December 14, VNA Deputy Director General Le Quoc Minh highlighted VNA journalists’ efforts to capture lively moments of daily activities of residents and soldiers in coastal areas and on islands. The exhibition introduces photos on late President Ho Chi Minh’s fact-finding visit to a coastal area, as well as Party State leaders and fishermen, and workers at offshore oil drilling platforms. All the photos show determination of the Party, State and people in protecting the nation’s sovereignty over seas and islands. The event runs until December 20. Vietnam, China hold negotiation on less sensitive marine areas The 10th round of negotiations of the working group on less sensitive sea-related fields between Vietnam and China was held in Beijing, China, from December 11 to 14. In a straightforward and friendly manner, the two sides reviewed the situation and expressed their delight at the cooperation outcomes in 2017.  They also devised a working agenda for cooperation projects in 2018, namely studying and comparing Holocene sediments of the Red River Delta and the Yangtze River Delta; exchanging information about and studying the management of the sea and island environment in the Gulf of Tonkin; and releasing fry and protecting aquatic resources in the Gulf of Tonkin. The delegates also discussed the possibility of cooperation in some new projects within the framework of the working group on less sensitive fields at sea. They emphasised that cooperation need to be made on the basis of high-level agreements in an equal, mutually beneficiary, practical and effective manner, and in line with each side’s resources, thereby helping to promote the Vietnam-China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership. They agreed to organise the working group’s 11th round of talks in Vietnam in 2018. Can Tho greets 7.5 million tourist arrivals in 2017 The Mekong Delta city of Can Tho welcomed 7.5 million tourist arrivals in 2017, 34 percent beyond the yearly plan and up 40 percent from 2016. Total revenue from tourism activities is estimated at 2.9 trillion VND in the year, 45 percent higher than the set target and up 61 percent year-on-year. The result is attributed to efforts made by the municipal authorities to promote the city’s images and tourism potential, and stronger cooperation between local tourism firms with their counterparts in and outside the country. The city aims to serve 2.45 million holiday-makers staying overnight in 2018, up 28.9 percent against 2017. Attention will be paid to building typical tourism products, especially water-way tours in connection with historical and cultural tourism sites, trade villages, and eco-tourism sites; and promoting the tourism form of Meeting, Incentive, Convention and Exhibition (MICE) and homestay. According to Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism Le Minh Son, the locality encourages investors to tap advantages for forming interprovincial and international waterway tourism routes.  Can Tho, for the first time, will welcome international cruise visitors operated by France’s TitanFleet tourism group in the last days of this year. This is hoped to open prospects for further promoting water-way tourism products in the city. Global HR Forum 2017 opens in Hanoi The Global HR Forum 2017, initiated by the Republic of Korea (RoK), convened in Hanoi on December 14, aiming to help Vietnam improve the local workforce quality. The conference was participated by RoK Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Kim Sang-kon, Vietnamese Minister of Education and Training Phung Xuan Nha, RoK Ambassador to Vietnam Lee Hyuk, and Jaime Saavedra, head of Education Global Practice at the World Bank Group, and others. During its two-day course, the event introduces RoK experience that helped the country create its Miracle on the Han River of rapid growth in the 1990s. The Vietnamese and Korean sides are set to discuss measures to enhance their strategic partnership across sectors, particularly in the management and development of high-quality human resources. Delivering an opening speech, Minister Phung Xuan Nha said Vietnam is learning from developed countries like the RoK, as it considers human resources development a breakthrough solution to economic growth. He noted the country is working to improve its workforce capacity via education, training, and international cooperation, with priority given to the establishment of international-standard educational centres and training of leading experts.   Nha said he expects the forum will help both sides define opportunities and challenges in the development of a high-quality workforce, thus suggesting suitable measures for Vietnam to meet new demand on the field. Party chief lauded veterans’ contributions General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong has lauded the contributions Vietnamese veterans have made to national defence and construction, urging them to uphold their role in protecting the fruits of the revolution. He made the compliment at the sixth National Congress of the Vietnam War Veterans’ Association (VWVA) for tenure 2017-2022 that officially opened in Hanoi on December 14. The event was also attended by President Tran Dai Quang, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, and Chairwoman of the National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan. The Party chief stressed that as an association of those who have stood the test of revolutionary and resistance wars, the VWVA must continue implementing its most important task of resolutely protecting the fruits of the revolution, helping defeat hostile forces’ schemes, and actively participating in building and protecting the Party, the State, people, and the socialist regime. General Secretary Trong asked the association to actively join the fight against corruption, wastefulness, and negative phenomena, as well as in efforts to build a clean and strong Party and administration. The veterans, with their political zeal and experience, should work to educate young generations in tradition and revolutionary heroism, while setting good examples for their families and descendants to follow, he said.  VWVA President Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Duoc said in his opening speech that in the 2012-2017 period, the association has gained significant achievements in implementing the Resolution of the fifth congress. The association has seen steady growth in terms of members and performance, Duoc said, affirming that it has become a prestigious socio-political organisation and an active member of the Vietnam Fatherland Front. Besides political tasks, the association also encouraged its members to engage in economic activities. Veteran-run enterprises and cooperatives have created jobs for 703,000 veterans, their children, and beneficiary families. Heads of the Cambodian and Lao delegations of war veterans spoke highly of the achievements the VWVA has made over the past tenure, expressed their hope that the association will continue thriving, contributing to fostering the friendship, solidarity and cooperation between the VWVA and its Lao and Cambodian counterparts. Vietnam calls for more support to disaster-hit residents The Vietnamese Government again appeals to individuals and organisations at home and abroad to continue supporting residents in the central region recently hit hard by storm Damrey and floods.  Speaking on behalf of the Government at a ceremony hosted by the Central Steering Committee for Flood and Storm Control in Hanoi on December 14, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong said the central region is the hardest-hit by natural disasters in recent years.  United Nations Resident Coordinator in Vietnam Kamal Malhotra promised to offer further support to flood victims in Vietnam, adding that governments of the Republic of Korea, Russia, New Zealand and the US have also committed an aid worth 7.3 million USD to ensure food security, water supply and environment hygiene in the affected region.  The UN, in coordination with humanitarian organisations, is making survey on the needs of central region residents in order to design suitable help. Vietnam needs financial assistance from the UN humanitarian relief programme and international community to restore local livelihoods, he said, adding that the country needs to partner with other entities to launch disaster response plans apart from receiving support from the UN Children’s Fund, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation.  A representative of the survey mission stressed the need to provide urgent food relief and makeshift houses for affected families in the next six months, as well as strengthen joint work with private sector to diversify support activities and facilitate locals’ access to insurance.  Tran Quang Hoai, General Director of the Directorate for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, said Vietnam has been hit by 14 storms and numerous landslides and floods since early 2017, which left 386 dead and missing and caused losses amounting to 60 trillion VND (2.6 billion USD).  In particular, storm Damrey and subsequent floods left serious impacts on the south central region, with 123 dead and missing. The region reported 3,550 collapsed houses and vast inundated areas of rice and vegetables along with destroyed transport and dyke works, with damage estimated at more than 22.6 trillion VND.  Around 700 tonnes of rice seeds, 4,400 tonnes of rice, 1 trillion VND and large amount of medicine have been promptly transferred to local people. Domestic and foreign organisations such as the Japan International Cooperation Agency, the UNDP, the Chinese, Russian and Kuwaiti governments and the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management offered relied in cash and kind to affected people. Cambodia, Vietnam share experience in religious management Officials in charge of religious affairs of Vietnam and Cambodia are gathering at a week-long conference in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho to share their working experience.  Co-organised by the Vietnamese Government Committee for Religious Affairs and Cambodian Ministry of Cults & Religion, the event lasts through December 20, with the participation of 30 officials in charge of religious affairs at central, municipal and provincial levels from Cambodia. Head of the Government Committee for Religious Affairs Vu Chien Thang said through the exchange of experience and lessons, the event hopes to enhance the capacity of both countries’ officials, contributing to maintaining social stability and national development in each country. He pledged his agency will try its best to implement the agreement on cooperation with the Cambodian Ministry of Cults & Religion toward effectiveness in contribution to the growth of Vietnam – Cambodia traditional ties and comprehensive partnership. Participating Vietnamese delegates presented reports on religious tasks which have been successfully carried out by the Vietnamese committee, focusing on how to unite all religions to serve socio-economic development and political security domestically and regionally. On the sidelines of the event, participants will tour religious establishments in Can Tho. HCM City wants US universities’ support in startup promotion Nguyen Thien Nhan, Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party’s Committee, hopes for further cooperation with the US Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Sloan School of Management in promoting innovation and start-up spirit in the Vietnamese economic hub. He had working session with leaders of the MIT Sloan School of Management in Boston on December 13 as part of the US visit by a HCM City delegation. HCM City, as the largest economic hub in Vietnam, wants to collaborate with the US’s prestigious academic research and training institutes to carry out its important development plan in startup, smart urban area and economic competitiveness capacity improvement, Nhan noted. On the occasion, the delegation visited MIT Sloan’s Media Lab where pioneer technologies are created. Attending a forum on challenges in urban development in 21st century for HCM City at Harvard Kennedy School, Nhan shared the city’s smart urban area development plan with professors and experts from Harvard University, Trinity College and Fulbright Vietnam University. He said that the plan aims at high and sustainable economic growth, good services in healthcare, education, and environment. Professor David Dapice from the Harvard Kennedy School recommended that Ho Chi Minh City branch out high-added value services, believing that a smart city’s economic growth is expected to rely on those services. Experts at the event agreed that Ho Chi Minh City has huge potential to turn into a smart city; however, workforce and public response and engagement are big challenges. Meanwhile, Professor Stephen Goldsmith from Harvard Kennedy said a foundation for digital services is the key to smart city construction. Earlier, Nhan had meeting with David Mandelbrot, CEO of Indiegogo- one of the two largest crowdfunding platforms in the US. Building material industry must go green: Deputy PM Vietnam’s building material industry should invest in the production of environmentally friendly building materials, according to Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung. Dung said at a conference on December 12 that building materials accounted for 70 percent of the value of a construction project. In the past years, investment in building materials had developed strongly, basically meeting the domestic demand.  However, he said investment in producing these materials had achieved many results, but the sector still lacked new materials, friendly-environmental building materials at a cheap price, and high-grade building materials. Investment in the sector was done spontaneously, not according to plan, leading to overproduction, illegal exploitation of materials or exploitation with licences but damaging the environment. The Deputy Prime Minister requested state management and businesses should co-ordinate more to improve efficiency, invest in the production of environmental-friendly building materials and select new materials instead of traditional. Construction materials must be developed to meet demand for use at home and abroad, Dung said. At the same time, the sector should gradually renovate production technologies, save energy and promote the use of unbaked building materials to replace baked materials. Dung asked the Ministry of Construction to coordinate with other ministries and localities to update plans on building-material production. The ministry will review factories causing environmental pollution and control the exploitation of stones, gravel and sand. At the conference, Minister of Construction Pham Hong Ha said production of construction material had improved significant to reach regional and world standards.  Before 2010, Vietnam had to import some key building materials, such as cement, construction glass and ceramic tiles. Since then, the building-material industry had developed strongly by adopting many regional and world advanced technologies, Ha said. Many experts claim the production of traditional building materials had used large amounts of raw materials and energy, contributing to environmental pollution. The Ministry of Construction will urge its agencies to continue researching and renovating technologies to create green, clean and effective products and sustainable development. Thua Thien-Hue: Project strives for better future for needy children, youth A project to create a brighter future for disadvantaged children and youths in central Thua Thien-Hue province was launched during a workshop in Hue City on December 14. The project, worth 7.5 billion VND (over 329,000 USD) funded by International Plan Vietnam, aims to provide 226 street children with the chance to pursue education and expand support for 350 underprivileged youths, especially young women. It will also provide support in capital funding and livelihood for 70 poor households with street children and children with disabilities to boost their income.  In addition, it will work to improve capacity for three local non-governmental organisations – the Centre for Community for Development and Social Work (CODES), Centre for Community Capacity Development (CYCAD) and REACH, a non-profit provider of vocational training, career advice and job placement services for Vietnamese disadvantaged youths. International Plan Vietnam aims to integrate child protection, with the focus on child sexual abuse and child labour, in the project’s intervention activities and strengthen links between local authorities and schools. Representatives from International Plan Vietnam, CODES, CYCAD and REACH signed a memorandum of understanding on the project, which started from November 2017, and will run through to July, 2020. The workshop reviewed achievements of International Plan Vietnam and CODES in the project, namely “A brighter future for street children in Thua Thien-Hue”, from September 2014 to July 2017, benefiting about 300 street children, 40 disadvantaged youths and 90 poor families in Thua Thien-Hue. The project helped reduced the number of street and working children in the province by one third. Australia fosters logistics industry-led vocational training in Vietnam The Australian Government, through Aus4Skills programme, one of its Aus4Vietnam investment, on December 14 launched the pilot Logistics Industry Reference Council to promote industry linkages with vocational education and training (VET) in partnership with the Government of Vietnam. The pilot council aims to draw on the example of Australia’s vocational education and training system and adapt it to Vietnam’s context with stronger engagement with the business community.  “Australia is happy to share our experience in an industry-led vocational education and training system to assist Vietnam to develop a system that will increase its productivity and support its economic growth. Our system, developed over a number of decades, is underpinned by a national framework of skills standards developed through a process of consultation with industry. This ensures that standards for training are of a high quality and meet the workforce development needs of industry, enterprises and individuals,” said Australian Ambassador to Vietnam Craig Chittick. “The pilot Logistics Industry Reference Council is an innovative approach to actively engage the logistics enterprises in VET. The council will validate the occupational skills standards developed under the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Transport and Logistics project which was led by Australia and Vietnam is a participating economy,” said Vo Tan Thanh, Vice President of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry.  The logistics sector has been selected as a focal industry that can serve as a demonstration model that can potentially be applied in other sectors in Vietnam.  This launch will be followed by the first workshop, from December 18-21, on competency-based curriculum writing for academic leaders and senior trainers of selected VET colleges as well as enterprise-based trainers from logistics enterprises. Six arrested for illegal invoice business The Hà Nội police on December 14 announced they have arrested six people for allegedly selling fraudulent VAT invoices worth nearly VNĐ600 billion (US$26.6 million).  Nguyễn Thị Đào, 35, residing in Thanh Trì District, was the gang leader, while her underlings were aged between 20 and 26 years.  According to the police, Đào made deals with a 32-year-old woman with the same name to buy 17 companies operating at a loss in 2017. Sold for VNĐ50 million each, these companies became an illegal source of VAT invoices for the older woman.  Companies wanting to purchase VAT invoices could contact the older Đào directly or through brokers.  During searches of houses at four different locations, the police found 76 filled invoice books, another 92 blank books and several documents and stamps of the ghost companies.  The gang sold 3,500 invoices through those companies before it was busted, the police said. They were investigating if there were more ghost companies involved in the case. Seven fishermen saved at sea A ship from the Đà Nẵng-based Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Centre No 2 (MRCC2) has rescued all seven crew members of a sunken fishing boat in waters off Hoàng Sa (Paracels) Island. Director of MRCC2, Bùi Tấn Nguyên told Việt Nam News that a fishing boat from Quảng Bình Province had engine failure on Wednesday, and the boat went adrift in rough sea. The rescue ship found the fishing boat in the sea 100 nautical miles off the coast of Đà Nẵng at about 12.30pm, just an hour after the boat started sinking due to large waves and strong winds. Nguyên said rescuers found seven fishermen safe and healthy after a few hours, and the rescue ship was heading to Đà Nẵng Port. On Sunday, seven fishermen from Bình Định Province were rescued in rough conditions at sea by the MRCC2.   On Monday, a navy ship also rescued and towed a fishing vessel with 16 crew members from Bình Định after a seven-day drift in the Trường Sa (Spratly) Archipelago. Textile industry in the throes of change brought by automation Some 300-400 engineers are needed every year by the yarn, fabric and dyeing sectors while universities supply only around 30, experts said. Besides, according to Hoàng Xuân Hiệp, principal of the Hà Nội Industrial Garment and Textile University, trained workers only account for around 25 per cent of the workers in the sector. Again there is a training shortfall. For instance, 11 schools in HCM City offer training in textile and garment-related skills and produce 1,900 graduates a year, but demand in the city runs into several thousands. Hiệp said the remaining 75 per cent of workers in the sector are not trained or are trained for less than three months. “That is a great challenge to the textile and garment industry in meeting the requirements of productivity, quality and fashion trends.” Fashion designers are not capable of designing and overseeing production on a large scale they are trained mostly in small-scale production. The Party Central Committee’s Economic Commission has said that the fourth industrial revolution, which is ushering in automation, is reducing the need for manual labour in the textile industry. In Việt Nam 86 per cent of garment and footwear workers are expected to be affected by the labour-replacement process. The annual demand for workers is expected to rise to 60,000 by 2025. But the demand for unskilled labour will be only around 50 per cent of that, with workers with intermediate- and college-level training and technical training accounting for the rest. On the other hand, the demand for skilled engineers is increasing, according to the World Bank. In countries adapting more slowly to the technological changes, the labour-replacement process would also be slower, it said. Việt Nam should focus on developing modern skills for its young people, the bank added. Experts have said it would be essential to train workers to modernise production in the country.  Typhoon victims to get more aid The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Nguyễn Xuân Cường, has called on domestic and international organisations and individuals to continue their support for people hit by the recent Typhoon Damrey. Speaking at a ceremony on Thursday to call for support, Cường said the typhoon, which swept through south central and central provinces early last month, caused damage of nearly US$1 billion. Cường expressed gratitude for the support of organisations and individuals who had helped those affected  by the strongest storm in at least a decade. Trần Quang Hoài, director of the General Department of Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, said the typhoon affected over 4.3 million people, leaving 123 dead or missing and 342 injured. “Over 300,000 houses were damaged, of which about 3,500 were totally demolished. In Khánh Hoà Province alone, 114,000 houses were partly or wholly destroyed,” Hoài said. “Heavy rainfall and floods in the following weeks caused great losses, particularly in Quảng Nam Province.” The typhoon came as the central region reeled from the aftermath of a series of natural disasters, including historical droughts from late 2014 to mid-2016, five serious floods from October-December 2016 and Typhoon Doksuri in September 2017. The natural disasters, one after the other, forced much reconstruction to start again. Kamal Malhotra, United Nations Resident Co-ordinator to Việt Nam, said the UN would support Việt Nam in meeting needs such as food, safety, temporary shelters, clean water and sanitation. The UN would also focus on helping women, farmers and fishermen stabilise their lives and restore their means of living. The European Commission said in a press release on Wednesday that it was providing 200,000 euros (US$236,700) for communities most affected by Typhoon Damrey. The EC said the humanitarian aid was responding to the urgent needs of more than 10,000 people in the provinces of Quảng Nam, Quảng Ngãi, Bình Định, Phú Yên, and Khánh Hòa. This EU-funding supports the Vietnamese Red Cross Society (VNRC) in delivering much-needed assistance through the distribution of tarpaulins, shelter tool kits, household kits, and water purification tablets. In addition, cash grants are being provided to ensure the most vulnerable families can meet their basic needs. As outbreaks of water-borne and mosquito-borne diseases, such as malaria, dengue fever and typhoid are common following flooding, disease prevention activities are also being conducted. National TV festival kicks off in Thanh Hóa Nearly 1,000 representatives from television and radio stations nationwide gathered yesterday at the 37th national TV festival being celebrated in the central province of Thanh Hóa. The annual event, organised by Việt Nam National Television, aims to honour producers, directors and camera crew, as well as to acknowledge the outstanding work that has provided insights into the daily lives of people. The work, divided into nine categories, including documentaries, reportage, talk shows, science education and ethnic minority television shows, will compete for the best television work awards at the festival. The festival also provides an opportunity for those working in television to share their experiences and get updated on the latest trends to serve viewers better. This is the first year that the festival is being held in Thanh Hóa Province. According to Trần Bình Minh, the general director of Vietnam Television and also the chairman of the festival, this year’s event has received 492 entries from 140 television channels, particularly the reportage category, which has attracted 150 entries, the most for any section. Other highlights of the 37th national TV festival are talks delivered by presenters from the United States and Indonesia about television and internet development trends throughout the world, as well as two seminars discussing the most concerning issues in television nowadays – producing children’s shows, which are both educational and entertaining, and promoting tourism through television. Marginal activities include an exhibition featuring photos taken by television producers throughout the country, seminars to exchange experiences in television broadcasting and the ceremony of presenting over 3,000 uniform coats and 1,000 sets of gifts to disadvantaged students in Thanh Hóa Province. The festival will end this Saturday.  Concert to raise funds for poor people Well-known singers and music players will perform at a charity concert tonight (December 15) in HCM City to raise funds for poor children and people affected by floods in the south central coastal province of  Khánh Hòa last month. The event, called Miền Trung Quê Tôi (My Homeland), is organised by pop star Đan Trường and his company, H.T Productions.    Organisers said the concert’s theme, "Sharing is Giving”, was chosen to encourage more people to contribute to raising funds during the Christmas season.   The artists, including Cao Thái Sơn, Phan Ngọc Luân, Trung Quang, and Hari Won, will sing and dance to Vietnamese music, with the highlight of the show being performances by Trường and his dance group of 30. At the event, Trường will also launch his new album, Đan Trường Vol.36, after three years of living in the US with his family. All proceeds from ticket sales and more than 200 gifts of food and clothes will be given to the poor. The concert will began at 8.30pm at Đồng Dao Club in District 1. VNN