Severe power shortage to hit next dry season

The Ministry of Industry and Trade, and Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) have warned of severe shortage of power during the next dry season as existing hydropower plants are now old and new ones have still not been constructed.

EVN said 89 hydropower plants, excluding some smaller plants, produce around 25,565 MW of electricity a year and EVN expects to add around 1,283 MW by year end.

However, energy demand in Vietnam is growing by upto 11.1 percent and to ensure supply of 150.5 billion kWh, EVN plans to raise capacity by 33,017 MW across 15 new plants.

With the Ministry unwilling to exploit hydropower plants any more and EVN having no back up system, people in the south will face irregular supply during the next dry season.

In addition, a series of construction works in the South are running far behind schedule such as the 500kV Pleiku-My Phuoc-Cau Bong power transmission system invested by National Power Transmission Corporation with VND9,288 billion across six provinces, including the highland provinces of Pleiku, Dak Lak, Dak Nong, the southern province of Binh Phuoc, Binh Duong and Ho Chi Minh City.

Tran Viet Ngai, Chairman of Vietnam Energy Association, said as per development plan for the period 2011-2020 with vision for 2030, the country should have 52 coal thermal power plants, two nuclear power plants and some hydroelectric power projects.

Funds for these projects are estimated at US$50 billion, and capital is severely lacking. Besides there is need for 50 million tons of coal a year and the coal sector can only provide around 40 million a year.

The government should tackle these matters soon or else shortage of electricity will impact all aspects of development in coming years.

Nine black-box makers punished

Ministry of Transport inspectors have checked black-box production at 30 enterprises and withdrawn quality certification for nine of them.

They said the boxes they produced for monitoring the speed, time breaks and other data on buses and trucks were substandard.

Nguyen Van Huyen, deputy chief inspector of the ministry, said that another 22 black-box suppliers would be inspected this month.

Any found producing shoddy goods will have their names publicised.

Currently, about 48,000 Vietnamese vehicles have the boxes installed.

Banned chemicals found in vermicelli

The Health Department of the Mekong Delta's Tra Vinh Province has fined four rice vermicelli producers, VND15 million (US$705) each, for using banned chemicals.

The rice vermicelli tested positive for Tinopal and oxalic acid, which is used for bleaching and brightening. The substances can be harmful to health, causing gastrointestinal damage or even cancer.

To recognise if the chemical is present in food, buyers are advised to use ultraviolet light to check the quality of rice vermicelli, since the contaminant will glow under the light.

Viet Nam Creativity Association opens its doors

The Viet Nam Creativity Association, under the Ministry of Science and Technology, has been set up in Ha Noi.

Tran Xuan Tu, President of the association, said that the association is the first organisation specialising in the support of creative thinking for labourers; bringing the creativity of both intellectuals and skilled labourers together; and protects the copyright of science projects, inventions and patents.

The association also helps put science projects into practice, thereby promoting the application of technology in production, he said.

Mekong Delta People receive new houses from ECHAD

About 3,000 residents affected by floods in 2011 in Cuu Long Delta provinces An Giang and Dong Thap, were provided with new houses and water and sanitation facilities by a 12-month project funded by the European Commission Humanitarian Aid Department.

The US$1.33million project which started in August last year, helped provide 200 houses, 2,000 water filters and 1,000 stainless steel tanks to households.

On September 2011, a historic flood ravaged the area; killing 85 people and destroying 13,000 houses and 11,800 ha of rice crops in the region

It also enabled 20 clean water systems and funded toilets for 9 schools, while raising awareness on disaster prevention, water safety and environmental hygiene for 3,000 households and 2,440 students.

On September 2011, a historic flood ravaged the area; killing 85 people and destroying 13,000 houses and 11,800 ha of rice crops in the region.

Da Nang to close 19 slaughter-houses

Nineteen small-sized slaughter-houses in the central city of Da Nang will be closed starting from January 1 next year.

This is part of the content of the city's plan to manage animal slaughter, transportation and trading.

An intersectorial inspection group will be established to strengthen control and issue timely punishment for illegal transportation.

The provincial Planning and Investment Department will take charge of building a new slaughter establishment and provide VND208 million (US$9,780) to 104 motorbike transporters to purchase equipment that ensures food safety during transport.

Tien Giang arrests wanted fugitive

Police in southern Tien Giang Province's My Tho City arrested Tran Van Phuc, wanted for drug storage and escaping jail, on Sunday.

Phuc, 32, was caught while breaking into a house. Police seized one motorbike, three hand phones, two knives and lock breaking tools.

It has been reported that Phuc has had 3 previous convictions and one previous offence.

More funds to fight TB

The Global Fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria has given the central province of Binh Dinh VND6 billion (US$285,700) to fight tuberculosis over the next two years - an increase of more than $100,000 over the previous two years.

More than 2,000 new cases of tuberculosis are detected each year in the province.

The fund calls for the co-oporation from authorities at all levels and the community to prevent and treat the deadly disease. It also aims at improving the capacity of medical workers in six districts and towns in the province, said deputy director of the provincial Department of Health Le Quang Hung.

A total of 95 per cent of patients recover from the disease thanks to prompt attention by medical workers.-

“Connecting the East Sea” campaign launched

The month-long campaign “Connecting the East Sea” to raise funds to equip fishermen with telecommunications devices was launched on September 15.

Besides calling for donations, the programme also encourages fishermen to continue their operation in the sea in order to develop the local economy and safeguard Vietnam’s sea and island sovereignty.

Joining the programme, donors can send text messages “BIENDONG,” worth VND10,000 each, hand in communication equipment, and transfer money to bank accounts.

Vietnam now has about 130,000 fishing vessels, only 10% of which have been equipped with communications devices.

Dien Bien promotes cooperation with six Lao provinces

A meeting was held on September 16 to review the implementation of the memorandum of understanding on industry and trade cooperation between Dien Bien province and six Lao provinces in the 2011-2013 period and sign a new one for 2013-2015.

Leaders of seven provinces discussed measures to iron out snags in border trade activities to fulfill their export targets in the coming period.

Nguyen Van Tuong, Director of the Dien Bien provincial Department of Industry and Trade said since 2011 Dien Bien’s import, export turnover through the border has reached US$50 million.

Dien Bien has many companies and businesses operating in northern Laos provinces, such as Dien Bien Cement Plant, Hung Hai Trade and Construction Company, 705 International Cooperation Company and Vinh Phat Company.

Currently, around 74 businesses are investing in Phoongsali and 7 businesses in Udomsai.

Dien Bien is helping Udomsai build some social welfare projects, such as museums, hostels, and schools.

At the working session, Dien Bien and the six northern Lao provinces agreed to implement the newly signed MoU, exchange information and management experience, and join efforts to develop the border market network until 2020. They were committed to creating the best possible conditions for businesses to build shops and stands in the border areas, strengthening market management to restrict smuggling and trade fraud.

They proposed the two governments and relevant agencies speed up the construction of infrastructure facilities, especially roads to the border gates and border communes, the Tay Trang-Pang Hoc and Huoi Puoc-Na Son international border gates as well as border markets.

Boosting education, sci-tech cooperation with Russia

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan on September 16 toured a number of universities in Moscow to examine the possibility of increasing cooperation in various areas, especially education, science and technology.

At the State Finance University, Nhan briefed university leaders on Vietnam’s requirements for developing high-quality human resources for the financial sector.

The university has trained more than 400 Vietnamese experts, many of whom are holding senior positions in ministries, agencies and conglomerates.

The university is establishing close links with the Banking Academy of Vietnam.

Rector Mikhail Eskindarov shared Russian experience in managing pension and social insurance funds and restructuring the banking system, as well as in other macroeconomic issues.

Visiting the Moscow State University of Railway Engineering (MIIT), Nhan acknowledged the effective cooperation between the Russian institution and the Vietnam Transport University over the years.

Both universities have developed a number of cooperation programmes, including receiving Vietnamese students for training courses, sending Russian professors to help with curriculum compilation, and organising joint international workshops on rail transport.

Nhan proposed the Moscow University re-train Vietnamese rail experts capable of mastering advanced technology after Vietnam completes the restructuring of its rail transport system.

He also asked the Russian university to support Vietnam in researching and applying new materials and technologies to public works, effectively managing transport infrastructure, and developing a metro system.

The same day, Deputy PM Nhan attended a workshop on strategic cooperation in education-training and science-technology.

In his keynote speech, he said the Vietnamese government has identified eight priority areas, namely bio-technology, new material technology, aerospace industry, renewable energy, pharmacy, marine science and marine-borne economy, maths and physics development, and economic development studies in Asia.

He revealed Vietnam plans to send approximately 4,000 students to Russia from now till 2020 to study in these key areas to meet the country’s future development requirements.

He asked for strong cooperation with Russia in researching and using nuclear power for peaceful purposes, increasing the teaching of Russian in Vietnam, and initiating joint research projects on social and natural sciences, especially in maths and physics.

Vietnamese institutions will work closely with their Russian counterparts to realise these cooperation programmes to create co-shared, high valued products, Nhan said.

He proposed the Russian Ministry of Education and Science and Russian scientists to engage in in-depth research projects on the consequences of Agent Orange/dioxin, coastal areas, and demography in Vietnam.

Building a "green wall" to cope with climate change

Coastal areas with high concentration of economic activities and population density are extremely vulnerable to climate change, warned experts at a recent workshop on community-based mangroves management in response to climate change.

Resilience and recovery of coastal areas depend on the capacity of communities and the health of marine and coastal ecosystems, of which mangrove forests play a very important role, they said at the event held in Hanoi by the Centre for Marinelife Conservation and Community Development.

According to Ho Thi Yen Thu, representative of Vietnamese Network of Non-governmental Organizations and Climate Change, climate change is currently one of the biggest challenges for the mankind. For Vietnam with a long coastline of over 3,260km, this problem becomes extremely urgent.

To respond to climate change and ensure livelihood and environment for coastal residents requires efforts from the government and the people as well as the unified direction of community-based mangrove rehabilitation in the long run.

The workshop is held in the framework of the 2013 Action Plan of the memorandum of cooperation, coordination and information sharing on climate change adaptation activities between the Department of Meteorology, Hydrology and Climate Change under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, and the network of Vietnamese non-governmental organizations.

The main objective of the workshop is to improve the general understanding of the current situation, as well as ecosystem services related to mangroves in the context of climate change in Vietnam. Thus, the role of the community and stakeholders in the development of a mechanism for management of mangrove forests respond to climate change has been enhanced effectively.

Mangrove forests are the places which nurse and develop many aquatic species, provide medicine, fuel and landscapes for tourism. On the other hand, they also serve as shields to protect coastal areas and green lungs absorbing carbon dioxide and regulating temperature and climate. However, at present, the area under mangroves in Vietnam is only about 155,000 hectares which declined about 60 percent in comparison with that of over the past 70 years.

With communities investing a great deal of effort in protecting and developing mangrove forests, its coverage has been relatively stable over the past 10 years in the country, and even increased in many provinces.

Supported by non-governmental organizations, community-based models of mangrove forest management have been developed in Giao Thuy (Nam Dinh), Cat Ba (Hai Phong), Can Gio (Ho Chi Minh City), and Hau Loc (Thanh Hoa).

To date, mangrove forests have brought into play its role in disaster prevention, building a "green wall" against wave and helping protect the dyke system. They help improve the ecological environment and development of many marine species and enrich the fauna and flora in coastal areas, thus help contribute to socio-economic development.

Many international organizations such as UNESCO, FFI and JICA have provided supports or collaborated with provincial authorities and organizations such as the Red Cross, Farmers' Association, Women's Union and Youth Union to raise public awareness and develop projects related to forest planting, care and protection in the coastal localities, especially Ha Long Bay.-