VIETNAM NEWS HEADLINES OCTOBER 12 14:50   Vietnam’s development agenda receives additional boost by Australia, World Bank   This grant represents additional funding to the ongoing Australia – Bank Partnership in Vietnam (ABP), which focuses on a wide range of policy areas designed to support the country’s development agenda. “The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on Vietnam’s reform agenda and exacerbate inequalities, which are more pronounced and harder to close for ethnic minorities, for women and for other marginalized groups. Responding to this, Australia’s extended collaboration with the World Bank will continue to support Vietnam’s quick economic recovery and help achieve its development goals,” Australia’s Ambassador to Vietnam HE Robyn Mudie said. The ABP will continue its work on gender equality and the sustainable development of the Mekong Delta. In addition, it will also help address new priorities set out in the country’s recently adopted socio-economic development strategy and socio-economic development plan, including the transition to a low carbon economy, social equity and inclusion, and innovation-driven growth. “The ABP will continue providing high-quality advisory work, enabling Vietnamese policymakers to pursue substantive reforms,” said Carolyn Turk, World Bank Country Director for Vietnam. “These reforms are needed both for recovery from the economic costs of COVID-19, but also to set a solid basis for the pathway to higher income status.” The ABP was established in 2017 with an initial funding amount of AUD25 million. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the ABP responded quickly and provided an additional AUD5 million to support Vietnam to respond to, and recover from, the pandemic. The program leverages expertise from Australia and the World Bank Group to support the Government of Vietnam in strengthening its development policies and programs. Australia grants 5 million AUD for Vietnam’s development agenda The Australian Government has approved a grant of 5 million AUD to help Vietnam enhance competitiveness, reduce carbon footprint, and improve lives and livelihoods, according to the World Bank. The grant represents additional funding to the ongoing Australia – Bank Partnership in Vietnam (ABP), which focuses on a wide range of policy areas designed to support the country’s development agenda. “The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on Vietnam’s reform agenda and exacerbate inequalities, which are more pronounced and harder to close for ethnic minorities, for women and for other marginalised groups. Responding to this, Australia’s extended collaboration with the World Bank will continue to support Vietnam’s quick economic recovery and help achieve its development goals,” Australian Ambassador to Vietnam Robyn Mudie said. The ABP will continue its work on gender equality and the sustainable development of the Mekong Delta. In addition, it will also help address new priorities set out in the country’s recently adopted socio-economic development strategy for 2021-2030 and plan for 2021-2025, including the transition to a low carbon economy, social equity and inclusion, and innovation-driven growth. “The ABP will continue providing high-quality advisory work, enabling Vietnamese policymakers to pursue substantive reforms,” said Carolyn Turk, World Bank Country Director for Vietnam. “These reforms are needed both for recovery from the economic costs of COVID-19, but also to set a solid basis for the pathway to higher income status.” The ABP was established in 2017 with an initial funding amount of 25 million AUD. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it responded quickly and provided an additional 5 million AUD to support Vietnam to respond to, and recover from, the pandemic. The programme leverages expertise from Australia and the World Bank Group to support the Vietnamese Government in strengthening its development policies and programmes./. Singing contest fosters connectivity of Vietnamese community in Europe The final gala of a singing contest for Vietnamese people in Europe was held in Prague, the Czech Republic, on October 10, gathering 17 outstanding contestanats from many European countries. Addressing the event, President of the Union of Vietnamese Associations in Europe Hoang Dinh Thang said that the contest not only aims to seek talents in Bolero singing, but also contributes to strengthening the connectivity and solidarity among the Vietnamese community in Europe, and fostering their ties with the homeland. Meanwhile, Vietnamese Ambassador to the Czech Republic Thai Xuan Dung lauded the organisation of the contest, which helps maintain and promote cultural and art movements among the Vietnamese community, strengthening relations between the Vietnamese community in the Czech Republic and those in the rest of Europe. Speaking to the Vietnam News Agency's correspondent in the Czech Republic, Ho Ngoc Nga, an overseas Vietnamese in Hungary, who is an advisor of the contest, said that after two years hit by COVID-19, the contest drew more than 17,000 contestants from 17 European countries. This is not only a singing contest but also a place for the Vietnamese community to support each other amid COVID-19 pandemic, she said. Concluding the contest, the organisation board presented one special prize to Tran Phuong Quyen in the Czech Republic, along with three gold, five silver and seven bronze prizes, and four prizes for singers receiving the highest votes from audiences./. Young man in Cần Thơ Province dedicated to helping people in need Ngôn Đức Thắng, 33, in Cần Thơ City decided to keep providing meals for people in difficult circumstances through his charity kitchen, even though the city eased its lockdown measures in early October.   His free kitchen helps provide warm meals to many poor people, including lottery ticket sellers and scrap collectors. He has undertaken this charity work for a year, after opening a free kitchen in Kiên Giang Province, with his mother in charge of cooking. The work of providing food became even more difficult amid the fourth wave of COVID-19. Thắng also wanted to support people in need during the pandemic through the zero đồng kitchen. There was a street shop that was temporarily closed due to the pandemic, so Thắng and friends could cook rice here. He said in the early days, he and his friends were inexperienced, so they often cooked too much rice and had to ask volunteers to transport the food to those in need. When the city applied Directive 16, Thắng delivered vouchers for people to receive meals at a fixed time every day. For many months, Thắng's zero đồng kitchen helped people get daily nutrition. Currently, the kitchen is still providing free meals for the needy, homeless, as well as patients and doctors of Cần Thơ City Cancer Hospital. Along with the zero đồng kitchen, Thắng also opened a mobile market to give free necessities for people in isolation areas. Two trucks became mobile zero đồng markets that brought vegetables, fruits, books, rice and noodles to people in need. The hotline number was also printed on the truck, so Thắng and his friends could arrange to bring the goods directly to families. Thắng said he met many sick people who could not find an ambulance because all were used for emergencies and transporting COVID patients. In early June, Thắng borrowed money from the bank to buy a car and turn it into a free ambulance. Võ Ngọc Anh Thư, head of the women's union in Phú Thuận A, Tân Phú Ward, Cái Răng District, said: "Thắng has taken part in many charity activities to support people during the pandemic." Thắng started doing charity work six years ago when he joined a community volunteer project to build a house to care for elderly women. Thắng told his friends about the idea to build a house for the women and a friend agreed to provide a plot of land. He invited artists in HCM City to perform a charity concert in Cần Thơ City to raise money for the charity house. Currently, the charity house is taking care of nine elderly women. They lived together, and are given meals, milk, fruit, and cereals. He recalled his childhood, when he did not have books, nor money for school fees. He received clothes and books from sponsors, and he also had to study hard and get scholarships to continue studying. "Every time I had to pay school fees, I begged the school to let me pay late because I was waiting for money from my mother who sold vegetables at the market." Later, when he had a stable job, he always made sure to help people in need. For Tết, he sent rice, sugar, salted fish sauce, and lucky money to poor households in the neighbourhood. He gave gifts to poor, talented students in the summer, and cakes and toys to poor children during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Thắng and his friends are planning to build another house to support women giving birth in difficult circumstances, without family support. 3,619 fresh COVID-19 cases, 115 fatalities recorded on October 11 The Health Ministry confirmed 3,619 new COVID-19 cases across 44 localities on October 11 to increase the total number of infections in the current wave to 843,281. As the epicentre of the latest wave of infections, Ho Chi Minh City recorded the highest number of cases with 1,527, followed by the southern province of Dong Nai with 499 and Binh Duong province with 446. Furthermore, a total of 115 deaths were added to the national database on October 11, with HCM City and its neighbour Binh Duong suffering the highest number at 75, and 18, respectively. The total number of COVID-19 deaths so far stands at 20,670, representing roughly 2.4% of all infections. A total of 2,549 COVID-19 patients were also announced to have recovered from the virus, thereby bringing the total number of recovered cases to 784,748. As of October 10 the country had injected over 54.2 million vaccine doses, with more than 15.58 million people now being fully inoculated. With COVID-19 cases falling in many localities, including Ho Chi Minh City, the Ministry of Transport has decided to restart daily flights on 19 routes, including one between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City from October 10. Moreover, Ho Chi Minh City is poised to reopen fixed-route buses from November 1 with limited frequency initially. In line with the rules, all passengers and drivers will be required to comply with COVID-19 prevention regulations. The municipal transportation department has also sent a three-phase draft plan detailing the reopening to other localities. The draft plan also requires passengers traveling from Ho Chi Minh City to have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at least 14 days prior to travelling, or having previously recovered from the virus within the last six months. In addition, all passengers should also have a negative result from a test done within the past 72 hours. People heading to the city will only require a negative test result, with all passengers needing to make health declarations and follow social distancing rules. Da Nang longest hospitalised COVID-19 patient given the all-clear After two months and 14 days of treatment, the longest hospitalised COVID-19 patient in Đà Nẵng has finally been discharged.  Deputy Director of the City’s Health Department, Trần Thanh Thủy, said the 51-year-old female patient had been in a life-threatening medical condition, complicated by serious pneumonia and sepsis, during her stay at the city’s lung hospital since July 26. However, the doctors and nurses hard work and dedication has paid off; the patient has now left the hospital for home quarantine and regular medical checks, Thủy added. She also said the field hospital at Hòa Vang medical centre has now been cleared of COVID-19 patients, after five months of providing services for COVID-19 patients only. The medical centre is being disinfected before normal operations resume later this week. At the moment, 74 COVID-19 patients are being treated between the Đà Nẵng General hospital and a field hospital in Hòa Minh ward. All but one of  Đà Nẵng's 56 wards and living quarters have been cleared of new COVID-19 infections within the community. A report from the city’s Centre for Disease Control (CDC) said around 800,000 people in the city have been given the first shot of the vaccine, or 73 per cent of the city. As of October 11 93,000 people have received both doses.   The CDC said it is providing rapid testing at the Đà Nẵng International Airport for all passengers who do not have a negative test result from the previous 72 hours. The city received a VietJet Air flight from HCM City last weekend. All 77 passengers were fully vaccinated and had negative test results for COVID-19.   In Quảng Nam province, no new cases have been found for 17 consecutive days. Around 1,000 people are currently being quarantined at medical centres. The province has allowed free travel within ‘green zones’ (areas free from infection in the past 14 days) since October 10. The central province has asked the government about hosting international tourists, now that COVID-19 has been put under control. In April, the province put forward a plan to host international tourists, with vaccine passports and negative COVID-19 tests, at the Hoiana resorts in Duy Xuyên District and Tui Blue Hotel in Núi Thành District, for five or 10 days. However, the plan was delayed by the most recent outbreak of COVID-19 in early May. Deputy Defence Minister receives Chinese Ambassador Deputy Defence Minister Senior Lieutenant General Hoang Xuan Chien hosted a reception in Hanoi on October 11 for Chinese Ambassador to Vietnam Xiong Bo. The two sides discussed regional and international issues of mutual concern as well as orientations to implement bilateral cooperation activities in the time to come./. NA Standing Committee discuss public opinions The National Assembly (NA) Standing Committee on October 11 looked into opinions that the public submitted to the upcoming second session of the 15th parliament, together with some other issues. Speaking at the NA Standing Committee’s fourth session, President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee Do Van Chien said voters and people highly value the directions made by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong at the 15th NA’s first session in July. However, Chien noted, they still voiced concerns about adverse impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Presidium of the VFF Central Committee put forth six proposals, including handling the vaccine strategy; increasing investment in the grassroots healthcare system and preventive medicine; thoroughly dealing with social security issues, labour, employment, social psychology, bringing up and education of orphans, and support for vulnerable groups; and listing medical equipment and biologicals for testing among the commodities subject to the State's management of prices. Voters and people supported the policy of delaying wage increases amid major impacts of the pandemic but called on the Party and State to raise pensions for those who retired before 1995. They held that the Party and State should consider policies for assisting and encouraging frontline forces in the pandemic combat, according to Chien./. Quang Binh kick-starts tourism recovery Central Quang Binh province has identified tourism and services as economic pillars, but Covid-19 hit the hospitality industry in Vietnam in general and Quang Binh in particular quite hard, forcing many destinations to close down. The province has now introduced programmes to help the sector recover post pandemic, including private, exclusive, and closed-circle tours. Quang Binh province has piloted exclusive and closed-circle tours now after social distancing ended, in order to help its tourism sector recover. The tourism sector’s recovery and development need to follow a sustainable path while ensuring pandemic prevention and control. With great caution and major efforts from tourism businesses and with support from local authorities, Quang Binh’s tourism sector is expected to bounce back and contribute to helping Vietnam’s tourism industry recover post pandemic./. Defender Tan Tai hopes fans continue to get behind Viet Nam Defender Hồ Tấn Tài has expressed his hope that fans will continue to get behind the Vietnamese national team following their defeat against China in the third round of 2022 World Cup qualifying. “After the loss, the whole team were sad and regretful," Tài said. "Coach Park Hang-seo encouraged the team to have feel comfortable. As for the upcoming matches, we are determined to get good results in each match." With three losses in a row, Việt Nam are at the bottom of Group B of the World Cup qualifier in Asian region. But the team is in good spirits ahead of their next match against Oman which will take place at 11pm (Hà Nội time) today at Sultan Qaboos Stadium in Muscat, Oman. “Throughout each match, the whole team tried their best to get the best results. We hope to receive encouragement to have the highest spirit and get points. We hope the fans are at their best to support the team,” said Tài. In the recent match against China, Tài entered the field to replace Vũ Văn Thanh in the 71st minute. Tài made a strong impact and his goal gave hope in the 80th minute, lifting the spirit of his teammates. With this performance, Tài is expected to start against Oman today. At the training session on Sunday, captain Quế Ngọc Hải returned after his light injury forced him to miss Saturday's session. In the third qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup, Hải played 270 minutes in all three matches against Saudi Arabia, Australia and China. His return has been important to the Vietnamese team. Referee Adham Makhadmeh of Jordan will officiate the match between Oman and Việt Nam. Makhadmeh controlled the VAR in the match between Saudi Arabia and Việt Nam in September. This is the second match that Makhadmeh will be the main referee in the third qualifying round. Earlier, he refereed in the match between Saudi Arabia and Japan on October 8. Makhadmeh mainly served as the fourth referee in the second qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.  Vietnam attends IPU’s Pre-COP26 parliamentary meeting A Vietnamese delegation led by Deputy Chairman of the Vietnamese National Assembly's Committee for External Relations Don Tuan Phong attended the pre-COP26 parliamentary meeting in Rome, Italy from October 8-11. Co-organised by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the Italian Parliament, the meeting was held in preparation for the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), attracting 330 delegates from over 70 countries representing IPU member parliaments. Participants at the event expressed support for the goal of ensuring the global greenhouse emission at zero by 2050 and limiting the global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. They highlighted the role and actions of parliaments, saying that they are crucial to ensuring goals in the Paris Agreement 2015 on Climate Change. Speaking at the discussion on green approaches to post-COVID-19 recovery, the Vietnamese delegation suggested that the green economy policy should be drastically performed at national, regional and global level, within the framework of the UN Sustainable Development Goals 2030 and the 2015 Paris Agreement on Climate Change. The Vietnamese side proposed building a fair and effective legal corridor, encouraging the development of individuals, organisations and enterprises in a green manner, and raising public awareness of environment protection. On the occasion, the Vietnamese delegation held bilateral meetings with President of the Foreign Affairs Committee at the Italian Chamber of Deputies Piero Fassino, President of the Italian Parliamentarians’ Group at IPU and Honorary President of the IPU Pier Ferdinando Casini, and Chairwoman of the Italian Friendship Parliamentarians’ Group with Vietnam Chiara Gribaudo. At meetings, the Italian side affirmed that they consider Vietnam an important partner and wished to enhance strategic partnership with Vietnam in various areas. They suggested both sides offer mutual support at regional and global multilateral forums, and share experience in issues of shared concern.   The Vietnamese side thanked Italy for offering COVID-19 vaccine supplies to the country, proposed several measures to boost ties between the two legislatures and nations, and hoped that the Italian Parliament will soon ratify the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (IPA). On the occasion, the Vietnamese delegation met delegations from Russia, the Republic of Korea, the UK and Indonesia to discuss bilateral ties and issues of shared concern./. Vietnam, Singapore discuss enhancing cyber security ties Minister of Public Security Gen. To Lam held online talks with Singaporean Minister for Communications and Information and Minister-in-charge of Smart Nation and Cybersecurity Josephine Teo on October 11. At the talks, Lam hailed the growing strategic partnership between Vietnam and Singapore over the past years, as well as ties between the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security and Singaporean law enforcement agencies. He suggested both sides continue expanding international cooperation in cyber security in flexible forms that match COVID-19 situation, as well as raise public awareness of cyber security and Internet use skills. Lam proposed both sides reach consensus on ASEAN member states’ awareness and actions regarding cyber security, towards building common legal foundations conducive to international cooperation in the field. According to him, they need to work closely together to build the ASEAN Cyber Security Centre, establish a joint cooperation mechanism for relevant long-term and intensive training in the bloc with the support of dialogue countries such as China, Japan and the Republic of Korea. Teo, for her part, believed that both sides will overcome difficulties and lay a foundation for further development in the future, towards building ASEAN with a heightened role and position in the region and the world./.  Legislators debate draft resolutions on development of Hai Phong, Nghe An, Thua Thien-Hue The 15th National Assembly (NA) Standing Committee on October 11 gave opinions on the draft resolutions on piloting a number of specific mechanisms and policies for development of Hai Phong city and Nghe An and Thua Thien-Hue provinces as part of its ongoing fourth session. According to a Government proposal presented by Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung at the event, the specific mechanisms and policies aim to concretise the views and policies of the Politburo in its Resolution No. 54-NQ/TW on the construction and development of Thua Thien-Hue to 2030 with a vision to 2045; Resolution No. 26-NQ/TW and Notice No. 55-TB/TW regarding development orientations and tasks of Nghe An toward 2020 and the following years; and Resolution No. 45-NQ/TW on the construction and development of Hai Phong to 2030 with a vision to 2045. The proposal suggested the NA stipulate piloting four specific mechanisms and policies for Thua Thien-Hue; nine and seven specific policies for Nghe An and Hai Phong, respectively. It asked for the approval of studying and building a free trade area in Hai Phong based on successful models in the world, and in line with demand on socio-economic development in the coming period. Participating delegates affirmed the necessity of submitting these draft resolutions to the NA for consideration. They asked the Government and localities to clarify the legal basis, feasibility, and practicality behind the implementation of specific mechanisms and policies. On the Hai Phong free trade area mechanism, NA Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue agreed with the opinion of the Committee for Financial and Budgetary Affairs that the Government needs to carefully prepare and submit to the Politburo for comments on related pre-feasibility study policy. At the end of the discussion, the Standing Committee voted to add the three draft resolutions to the 2021 law-making programme which will be submitted to the NA./. Health experts oppose centralised quarantine requirements from Hà Nội city authorities Health experts have expressed disagreement over a seven-day centralised quarantine requirement from Hà Nội city authorities for those arriving from HCM City, regardless of their vaccination or recovery status, as “it is not in line with the Government’s guidelines on pandemic prevention”. They said that quarantine regulations “have failed to comply with the pandemic prevention guidelines of the Government.” According to the requirements, in addition to the green card showing vaccination status and a negative COVID test, passengers departing from HCM City’s Tân Sơn Nhất airport must be under concentrated isolation for seven days, regardless of their vaccination or recovery status. Passengers will have to pay for the costs of quarantine and testing. After the concentrated isolation period, they will continue to monitor their health at home for another seven days. Nguyễn Huy Nga, former director of the Department of Preventive Medicine under the Ministry of Health, said: “The requirement is completely unreasonable.” “According to the Ministry of Health, those who are fully vaccinated or have recovered from the disease within the last six months, and have a negative COVID test within 72 hours, only need to self-monitor their health at home for seven days and strictly follow the 5K prevention regulations,” Nga noted. “The requirement has challenged the Government’s effort to reopen the economy.” If someone takes a two-day business trip but is forced to be under a seven-day quarantine, they would never want to take the trip. “Concentrated isolation also poses a high risk of cross infection,” Nga said. Trần Đắc Phu, senior advisor at the Centre for Public Health Emergency Response under the Ministry of Health, said: “Cities and provinces need to consistently implement isolation regulations in accordance with the regulations of the Ministry of Health.” Deputy Minister of Health Nguyễn Trường Sơn said: “For people having two vaccine doses or already recovered from COVID, it is not necessary to be under concentrated isolation. The requirement is no longer appropriate as the country has shifted away from the zero-COVID approach.” However, people who are fully immunised can still be a source of infection. They are recommended to have a test (a rapid test, for example) when they go to places where the vaccination rates remain low. According to the Ministry of Transport, from October 10 – 20, Hà Nội has flights to two destinations: HCM City and Hà Nội, with a frequency of one round-trip per day for each route. Meanwhile, passengers from the Đà Nẵng airport to Nội Bài airport in Hà Nội are not required to go to centralised quarantine, but they have to be under home quarantine for seven days and will get tested twice on the first and sixth day before the end of home quarantine. They will continue to monitor their health for the next seven days after the quarantine ends. During the period, Hải Phòng and Lâm Đồng will also operate one round-trip flight a day to HCM City. Similar rules to Hà Nội regulations are also applied to those arriving from HCM City. Earlier, Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính said at a national online meeting with 63 provinces and cities that regulations for transportation and quarantine must be carried out consistently throughout the country to ensure smooth transport and reopening of the economy.  HCM City presents 200,000 welfare bags to disadvantaged workers The Ho Chi Minh City Federation of Labour together with grassroots trade unions, 21 districts and Thu Duc city presented 200,000 welfare bags to workers returning to work. The activity was under the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL)’s programme to present 1 million welfare bags to trade union members and workers hit by COVID-19 in 25 cities, provinces and trade unions nationwide. Since October 1, the municipal Federation of Labour in collaboration with the outlying district of Hoc Mon and trade unions handed over 10,600 welfare bags and 2 tonnes of rice to disadvantaged workers. According to the VGCL, trade unions nationwide have spent over 5 trillion VND (217 million USD) in support of 3.5 million members, workers, frontliners and COVID-19 prevention and control funds since the fourth wave of the pandemic./.  Young volunteer helps islanders prevent COVID After returning to his hometown on Hải Tặc Island in the Mekong Delta's Kiên Giang Province, Nguyễn Thanh Nhựt’s found himself with time on his hands. Not wanting to sit around idle, the 19-year-old decided to volunteer to help fight the pandemic. “Although my hometown is far from the mainland, there is still a high risk for the pandemic to spread to the island because foods and other necessity goods must be transported from the mainland," Nhựt, a marketing student at An Giang University, told Tiền Phong (Pioneer) online newspaper.  During his time as a volunteer, Nhựt has had a chance to contribute to his hometown’s efforts in preventing the pandemic, as well as gain new knowledge about health and connect with many people on the island. But this was not an easy job. Besides juggling his volunteer work with online university classes, Nhựt had to deal with other challenges such as bad weather on the way to surrounding islands to collect samples for COVID-19 testing. “We often have to travel by boats to surrounding islands to collect samples for COVID-19 testing and it is easy to encounter dangerous weather conditions such as storms or whirlwinds. However, I am willing to help to keep the people safe,” he said. One of Nhựt’s most memorable moments was when he was assigned by local authorities to record and make video clips to report about pandemic prevention efforts of the island. The news report was then sent to local outlets for information dissemination about COVID-19. Nhựt also said this task helped him meet a lot of local officials, medical workers and soldiers who are all working hard to prevent COVID-19 and ensure safety for local residents.  Nhựt recalled a time when his delegation travelled to Hòn Giang island to collect samples for COVID-19 testing, and there was a thunderstorm bringing in heavy rains and strong waves. "All people on the boat got wet and felt nervous but we were still determined to overcome difficulties to accomplish the mission,” he said. Although volunteering in the islands seems difficult as it requires travelling a lot by boat, Nhựt and his team received support from local islanders who are willing to cooperate in taking samples for testing as well as prepare meals for the volunteers.  “I hope that local residents in the island would strictly abide by COVID-19 prevention and control regulations in order to keep the island free from the pandemic,” he said.  HCM City, Lyon sign MoU on artistic lighting cooperation Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee Le Hoa Binh and Vice Mayor of France’s Lyon city Sonia Zdorovzoff signed a memorandum of understanding on bilateral cooperation in artistic lighting for the Ho Chi Minh City State Treasury building via videoconference on October 11. It was the sixth urban lighting project between both sides which was signed at an online talks between the two officials. Speaking highly of bilateral ties within the framework of the urban research and forecasting centre (PADDI), Binh wished that Lyon would continue sending experts to the city to offer feedback on the master plans of Thu Duc city and Ho Chi Minh City. He said Ho Chi Minh City wishes to receive Lyon’s help in training workforce to operate buildings under urban lighting projects. He proposed Lyon consider with artistic lighting projects for historical buildings in the city. Binh also expressed his wish to learn from the city’s experience in sustainable urban development, boost joint work in flooding prevention and control, building green urban areas, renewable energy and clean technology. According to him, both sides should facilitate cultural coordination, technological transfer related to museums, improve the capacity of management officials, and popularise their cultures and peoples. As Ho Chi Minh City is building a post-pandemic economic recovery plan, Binh said the city wants to foster trade and investment with Lyon. Ho Chi Minh City will create favourable conditions for enterprises and investors of France and Lyon in particular to do business in the city, he said. Agreeing with Binh’s proposals, Zdorovzoff said both sides need to further step up join work in environment protection, culture, economy and trade. Ho Chi Minh City and Lyon established bilateral ties in 1997 with the priority cooperation fields of heritage preservation, urban planning and development, urban transportation and economy./. 27 domestic flights cancelled due to storms and quarantine regulations On the first day of resumed domestic air travel in Việt Nam, nearly 30 domestic flights were cancelled due to bad weather and restrictive quarantine regulations, the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam (CAAV) said on Sunday. Vietnam Airlines had to cancel a total of 11 flights. A flight from HCM City to Hà Nội was cancelled as passengers were required to isolate on arrival, though these arrangements had not yet been finalised. Two Vietjet Air flights on the Hà Nội-Đà Nẵng route had to be cancelled for the same reason.  Vietjet Air also cancelled 10 flights due to poor weather conditions and a lack of ticket sales, including the HCM City-Phú Yên route, HCM City-Gia Lai and Đà Nẵng-Cần Thơ routes.  Another four Vietnam Airlines flights, return services between HCM City-Thanh Hóa and HCM City-Nghệ An, could not operate due to storms. Flights between HCM City-Kiên Giang, HCM City-Cà Mau, and Thanh Hóa-Lâm Đồng were cancelled due to a lack of passengers.  Bamboo Airways has six flights that could not be conducted, including return services between HCM City to Thừa Thiên Huế, HCM City-Quảng Bình and Đà Nẵng to Đắk Lắk. In order to resume regular commercial flights as planned, the CAAV has proposed the Ministry of Transport remove requirements from distanced seating in queues, provide concentrated isolation to reduce costs for passengers and create uniform regulations on conditions for passengers.  RoK Consulate General, firms donate medical supplies to HCM City The Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Committee in Ho Chi Minh City received medical equipment and supplies worth nearly 6 billion VND (260,000 USD) donated by the Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in the city and members of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry on October 11. Speaking at the event, RoK Consul General to Ho Chi Minh City Kang Myong Il expressed his hope that the donation will make an active contribution to the fight against the pandemic in the city. He believed that Vietnam will soon defeat the pandemic and become a key economy in the Asia-Pacific in the future. Chairwoman of the municipal VFF Committee To Thi Bich Chau pledged to promptly allocate the supplies to hospitals and medical establishments in the city. She wished that businesses in the city in general and those from the RoK in particular would continue supporting policies of the Vietnamese State and the city, especially the strategy of safely living with COVID-19 to reopen the economy, towards achieving a new normal./.   President clarifies pandemic prevention measures for voters in HCM City Defining wards and communes as “fortresses” in COVID-19 prevention and control shows the importance of these areas and does not mean separating them to impede the movement of goods, services and labour, affirmed President Nguyen Xuan Phuc on October 11. The “fortresses” in COVID-19 prevention and control in Vietnam, particularly in the city, actually means increasing coordination, the President said at meetings with constituents in Ho Chi Minh City’s Hoc Mon and Cu Chi districts. Sharing local pandemic-related losses of lives and assets in the past time, he said under the direction of the Politburo, the Government and the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control have put forth measures to change the strategy from "Zero COVID-19" to an adaptive and flexible, effective control of the epidemic. The President noted it is a suitable move in the context of detecting a large number of infections. Regarding the voters’ proposal for the vaccination of children under 18 years old, Phuc said that it is a matter of special concern to the Party and State. Currently, the Ministry of Health and the professional council on vaccines have made related recommendations, striving to vaccinate children aged 12-18 in October and November. Pfizer has committed to supply 20 million doses of its vaccine for Vietnamese children. If the doses arrive early, their vaccination can begin late October./. Vietnam wishes to deepen relations with Panama: FM Vietnam treasures and wants to continue expanding and deepening its relations with Panama, especially in economy, trade and investment, Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son told Ambassador of Panama Eligio Alberto Salas De León on October 11. Receiving the ambassador, Son spoke highly of the role of the Embassy of Panama in Hanoi in promoting bilateral political, diplomatic and economic ties. The minister suggested the diplomat jointly promote all-level visits and exchanges, effectively maintain the mechanisms of political consultation and the Vietnam – Panama Joint Committee on Economic, Trade and Investment Cooperation, and step up maritime, finance-banking and agricultural collaboration. The ambassador vowed to serve as a bridge to foster bilateral friendship and cooperation in his position. He also proposed specific measures to enhance political exchanges, increase diplomatic presence and reinforce bilateral economic and trade links at the Government, local and corporate levels. Trade between the two nations has stayed at over 300 million USD each year. The two countries have also offered mutual support at international organisations and multilateral forums./. Vietnam strive to gain points at World Cup qualifiers' final round Vietnam will play against the hosts Oman on October 12 in the final round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Asian qualifiers. The game will kick off at 11 pm (Vietnam time). Defender Ho Tan Tai voiced his hope that football fans will continue to support the team and all members will exert further efforts in a bid to earn points in upcoming matches of the final qualifying round. After suffering a 2-3 defeat to China on October 7, Vietnam are the only squad in Group B that have yet to collect any points and remained at the bottom of the group. Head coach Park Hang-seo (centre) joins a training practice with Vietnames players (Photo: VNA) The Vietnamese team previously lost 0-1 to Australia and 1-3 to Saudi Arabia. This is the first time Vietnam have ever played in the final round of World Cup qualifiers. However, many Vietnamese footballers have suffered from injuries. Meanwhile, Oman defeated Asian powerhouses Japan 1-0 in their opening game of the final round in held September. They were later beaten by Saudi Arabia and Australia./. Quang Binh province supports Lao locality in COVID-19 fight A working delegation of the central province of Quang Binh on October 11 arrived in Khammouane province of Laos to support the Lao locality in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 11-member delegation includes staff of Quang Binh's departments, sectors and the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) led by Vice Director of the provincial Department of External Affairs Nguyen Thanh Xuan. They are tasked with assisting Khammouane province in performing COVID-19 testing in order to quickly detect and treat COVID-19 infections. The delegation brought along two RT-PCR testing systems, biological products for 15,000 single test samples, 1,000 sets of test kits and other modern medical equipment. The delegation’s working mission will last 15 days. If the pandemic situation in Khammoune develops more complicated, Quang Binh’s health sector will make plans to support the Lao locality in terms of human resources and medical equipment./. HCM City’s shopping malls become busier as restrictions eased Ho Chi Minh City residents are returning to one of their favourite pastimes - in-store shopping - now that lockdown restrictions have eased. The southern city’s shopping malls have begun drawing in large crowds after reopening their doors. Under regulations, visitors must strictly follow the “5K message” and show a vaccine passport. Pandemic prevention measures are still in place, to reduce the risk of any outbreak and improve the shopping experience. Shopping malls on the outskirts of the city are also popular destinations for families on weekends. Some 60-70 percent of outlets have opened their doors again, with essential goods being the most sought-after items. Shopping malls are a symbol of Ho Chi Minh City’s robust development. Despite grave concerns about the pandemic, the southern city hopes to stimulate consumption in the year-end period, contributing to the post-pandemic economic recovery./. Source: VNA/VNS/VOV/VIR/SGT/SGGP/Nhan Dan/Hanoitimes