28 kinds of trees banned on HCM City streets

The People's Committee of HCM City has issued a list of 28 kinds of trees banned from planting along city streets.

The trees have poisonous seeds, easily broken branches or many thorns.

Sandbox trees, for instance, have poisonous latex and seeds, and tropical almond trees can be easily infected with worms.

Individuals and organisations will not be allowed to plant these kind of trees along streets from December 5.

Government agencies are responsible for replacing the banned trees along city streets with other species.

The banned trees include sandbox, tropical almond, rubber, coconut, Manila tamarind, strangler fig and fishtail palms.

Two drug traffickers seized in Bac Ninh

Police in the northern province of Bac Ninh on November 3 surprised two drug traffickers transporting and making an illegal deal of a large amount of crystal meth.

Hoang The Bao, 31, from Ren village in Minh Duc commune, Viet Yen district in neighbouring Bac Giang province, and Nguyen Van Hieu, 27, from An Dong village, Lac Ve commune, Tien Du district in Bac Ninh were caught carrying one kilogram of crystal meth.

The police also seized another two kilograms of the drug after examining Hieu’s rented room at a mini hotel in Bac Ninh city.

Further investigations are underway.-

Drug demand rising in Viet Nam

Viet Nam ranks 13th out of 175 countries for the fastest growing in drug spending, according to the Business Monitor International – an independent provider of proprietary data, analysis, rating, and ranking.

In 2012, Viet Nam's pharmaceutical market was worth nearly US$3 billion, estimated to grow at a rate of more than 20 per cent by 2017.

Drug consumption per capita in Viet Nam is also climbing. A Vietnamese citizen spent $104 on medicine products in 2010, compared to $148 in China and $51 in India. It is expected to double by 2015.

Meanwhile, local pharmaceutical production only satisfied nearly half of Viet Nam's drug needs in 2012. Those products were almost all low-cost generics.

Da Nang joins Resilient Cities

Da Nang has been included among the first 33 cities selected from nearly 400 applicants across six continents to join the 100 Resilient Cities network, the Rockefeller Foundation announced yesterday.

In applying for the 100 Resilient cities challenge, cities were required to submit their visions, needs and plans to build resilience in a way that connects government, the private sector and civil society, while specifically addressing the needs of their poor and vulnerable citizens.

"The 33 cities named today represent a diversity of urban resilience needs, and as the inaugural members of the 100 resilient cities network, they have much to share with and learn from each other," said Dr. Judith Rodin, president of the Rockefeller Foundation.

"We are excited to get to work so that these dynamic groups of cities are better prepared to withstand the shocks and stresses of our disruptive world."

Last year, Da Nang was selected an APEC city for a Low-Carbon Model Town Project at the 44th APEC energy meeting in Washington DC.

Further, the central city plans to transform itself into a green city by 2020.

Police cameras detect 22 violators in new tunnel

Police in HCM City apprehended 22 speeding vehicles in one hour thanks to cameras installed along the Thu Thiem Tunnel underneath the Sai Gon River on Monday.

According to the city's Road and Railway Traffic Police Department, these violations were recorded by a system with five cameras. With the new system, violators are stopped by nearby police and escorted to a location to pay fines.

The police will also notify the localities where the violators reside and post violations on the city police's website www.catphcm.bocongan.gov.vn

The 1,490 metres long Thu Thiem Tunnel, the largest underwater tunnel in Southeast Asia, opened to traffic in November. The systems will officially officially open at 6am on December 12.

RoK volunteers support people in Quang Tri

Volunteers from the Republic of Korea (RoK) are joining in numerous social activities to support disadvantaged people in the central province of Quang Tri.

A team of volunteers sent by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) provided free check-ups, treatment and medicines for orphans and poor households in the locality.

The agency also presented 100 blankets, 80 pillows and 60 sweaters to the elderly and children living at the province’s welfare centre.

On the occasion, a KOICA-funded programme was launched at Trieu Phong district to rebuild schools, cultural houses and medical stations damaged by the recent flood.

Earlier, the agency and Quang Tri authorities signed a Memorandum of Understanding on December 3 on their cooperation plan between 2014 and 2017, aiming to step up local poverty reduction, reform administrative procedures and curb corruption.

RoK assists with vocational training for women

A Republic of Korea-funded project has enhanced the capacity building of employment centres for Vietnamese women, helping them operate more efficiently.

The result of the 2011-2013 project was unveiled at a conference in Thai Binh province on December 3 by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids, and Social Affairs, in conjunction with the RoK Ministry of Gender Equality and Family.

Begun in 2011, the project was designed to create more jobs for women and support their economic independence and self-sufficiency.

It has offered participating women a number of training courses, Korean language lessons, and organised group counseling sessions.

A recent job bazaar in Thai Binh province welcomed 100 Vietnamese enterprises looking to recruit 15,000 employees for various domestic and international positions. Over 1,000 female jobseekers attended.

The project also encompassed a rural commune job consultancy pilot programme running in Can Tho City and its surrounds. It assisted more than 100 women looking for work, 76% of whom are interested in local employment.

Addressing the event, a Thai Binh official recommended the project extend its initiatives to continue helping rural women get steady jobs so as to realise the ultimate goal of achieving gender equality.

School healthcare, nutrition programme expands

Students from six more schools in Ha Noi, HCM City, and Hai Phong are set to benefit from a healthcare and nutrition education programme.

Carried out by Save the Children Viet Nam since 2011 and funded by Wrigley Company Foundation, the project's first phase was implemented at 30 schools in the three cities, with more than 27,000 students aged between six and 14 taught about health and nutrition through extra lessons.

A survey by Dr Pham Van Phu of the Ha Noi Medical University found that students at these schools had improved awareness of teeth, eyes, nutrition, hand washing, and reproductive health.

There was an increase in the number of students knowing about the causes of teeth decay, the right way to brush their teeth, and washing their hands with soap after going to the toilet and before eating.

Moreover, they receive periodical health checks, including of their ears and eyes.

Toilets and facilities for washing hands have been upgraded at these schools, with soap and clean water being provided to students.

In the second phase, the programme will be carried out at six more schools by 2015.

In HCM City, Trung My Tay Secondary School No.1 and Nhi Tan Primary School in disadvantaged Hoc Mon District will take part.

Nguyen Thi Kim Thanh, deputy head of the city Department of Education and Training, said the department would work with Save the Children Viet Nam to hand out handbooks and brochures to all schools in the city on effectively teaching about health and nutrition.

Canada helps Tien Giang’s cooperative development

SOCODEVI, a Canadian non-profit international development organisation, has pledged to assist the southern province of Tien Giang in implementing a programme to further economic efficiency of cooperatives in the locality for the 2013-2017 period.

The programme is expected to promote socio-economic development, while enhancing management capacity for the local agricultural cooperative union and agricultural cooperatives operating in the locality.

It aims to increase both quantity and quality of services provided for members of cooperatives and enhance the effectiveness of production and business to meet the demand of members. In addition, the programme will also pay attention to protecting the environment and gender equality.

In the framework of the programme, SOCODEVI will organise training courses for staff of the cooperatives union, thus raising their awareness of the value of cooperatives.

The programme will also provide courses for leaders of cooperatives to better their capacity in managing and applying Performcoop software, a useful tool for managing internal information in cooperatives built by SOCODEVI.

Nguyen Van Hong, President of the provincial Cooperative Alliance, said the programme will help raise the position and role of cooperative movements in Tien Giang, thus contributing to effectively implementing the National Target Programme on New Rural Development.

Over the 2007-2012 period, SOCODEVI also supported Tien Giang Cooperative Alliance in deploying a similar project in the locality.-

More storm shelters built in Tien Giang

Additional 600 models of storm shelters have been put into use in Go Cong Dong and Tan Phu Dong districts, southern Tien Giang province, helping locals in coastal areas access a safer place during the storm season.

The new facilities have brought the total of such models in the two districts’ 11 coastal communes to 1,100.

As designed, each model is 2 metres wide and 2.5 metres long with reinforced concreted roof, brick wall, ceramic tile floor and galvanised steel door frame.

Built at a cost of 17 million VND (799 USD), each facility is able to cover from 4-6 people in case of typhoon.

According to the provincial Department of Irrigation and Flood and Storm Prevention, about 600 poor households in the two districts’ coastal communes have received the province’s funding to build the shelters.

Seminar talks health care for submarine crews

A Vietnam-Russia seminar which opened in Hanoi on December 2 discussed occupational medicine and health care for submarine crews.

Addressing the function, Deputy Defence Minister Senior Lieutenant General Truong Quang Khanh stressed that better caring for submarine personnel is a new and urgent requirement facing Vietnam’s military medicine.

The seminar, hosted by the Vietnam-Russia Tropical Centre, is expected to expand cooperation prospects in the field between the two countries, he added.

As many as 14 scientific topics are being presented at the four-day event.-

Vietnam hosts regional navigation satellite workshop

Around 150 delegates from agencies managing and exploiting navigation satellite systems in Asia and Oceania attended a symposium that opened in Hanoi on December 2.

This is the 5th time that the Asia Oceania Regional Workshop on Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) has been organised following the previous event in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia last year.

At the event, managers and scientists offered the latest information on aerospace development around the world and presented research outcomes and their application in socio-economic growth.

The two-day workshop was jointly organised by the Hanoi University of Science and Technology and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency with the support of the United Nations International Committee on GNSS.-

Over 150 studies on HIV/AIDS prevention deployed

As many as 150 research studies on HIV/AIDS prevention have been deployed in coordination with ministries, departments and agencies, contributing to controlling the HIV-infected rate below 0.3 percent.

The success was announced by Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long at the 5th National Science conference on HIV/AIDS prevention on December 2.

Addressing the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc highly valued the ministries, departments, relevant agencies, research institutes and universities’ efforts and contribution to the effective prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS.

However, he noted that the high potential risk of HIV spreading through sexual transmission and the limited awareness of some management officials and people could result in an outbreak.

The deputy PM required ministries and relevant authorities to better deploy a national strategy on HIV/AIDS prevention by 2020 with a vision to 2030, and improve public awareness and expand prevention and treatment services for HIV carriers.

In addition, he urged scientists and researchers to provide effective solutions and interventions for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment that could be applied nationwide.-

Int’l seminar shares experience on climate change

An international seminar was held in Hanoi on December 3 to share experience in managing, monitoring and evaluating state budget expenditure in response to climate change.

Co-hosted by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and the France’s Agency for Development, the seminar is in the framework of the Vietnam-France Year, in celebration of the diplomatic ties between the two countries.

Speaking at the event, Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha said as a country vulnerable to the consequences of climate change, over the past years, Vietnam has been developing a set of policies on fighting climate change.

He said the country is currently focusing on monitoring public expenditure related to the fight against climate change. He added that this is a must, but full of challenges for Vietnam.

The seminar allows French experts to share their experiences and know-how in monitoring and evaluating state expenditure in the field.

A representative from the French Agency for Development also gave a brief introduction on the country’s climate change fighting policies and the tracking of state agencies’ policies in response to climate change.-

Programme conserves biodiversity in central region

A programme within the framework of the core environment programme and biodiversity corridor initiative has contributed to strengthening forest ecosystem connection in the central provinces of Thua Thien-Hue, Quang Nam and Quang Tri.

Deputy Director of the Thua Thien-Hue provincial Natural Resources and Environment Department said at a consultative conference to introduce and ask for contributions to implement the second phase of the project in Hue city on December 2.

Once the biodiversity corridor is set up, it will bring benefits to the community and ensure the sustainable use of natural resources, he said.

According to Nguyen Van Tai, Head of the Institute for Strategy and Policy under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the programme, under the support of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), commenced in 2006 in the Greater Mekong Sub-region of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, China, Thailand and Vietnam.

With the first phase lasting until 2012 and the second phase from 2013-2016, the programme aims to improve environment quality, climate change adaptation and support sustainable employment in the region.-

HCMC strives to reduce number of poor households

Ho Chi Minh City plans to reduce the number of poor families within the next year from 21,000 to 14,000.

This was reported at a working session on December 3, organized by the Cultural and Social Committee of the People’s Council of HCMC and the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, which met to verify the new standards set for reducing number of poor families in the period 2014-2015.

The City has 21,000 households whose economic conditions are on the poverty line, with annual income being less than VND12 million (US$568) per head.

The Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs said it will strive to decrease the number of poor families in the City to 14,000 or 0.7 percent of the population.

However, if the City applies new standards of poverty household verification, there will be around 130,000 poor households and 50,000 families near the poverty line. The new standards will allow each member of the poor family to have an annual income of VND16 million and each member of a family living near the poverty line to have an annual income of a little less than VND21 million (US$995).

Nguyen Van Xe, Deputy Director of Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, said the City has so far focused on improving the income of poor households but has laid no emphasis on increasing the number of rich households.