PM updates Hai Phong voters on outcomes of parliament’s session

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and other National Assembly (NA) deputies of northern Hai Phong city met with voters of Hai An district on November 25 to announce the outcomes of the 14th NA’s second session which just concluded in Hanoi on November 23.

The meeting focused on issues of voters’ concern such as socio-economic management, food safety, environmental protection, the future of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and personnel work.

Voter Hoang Hai Bang said he is impressed with the leadership of the Government and the PM in socio-economic issue, particularly their resolve to build a constructive Government of integrity that works for the sake of people and businesses. He said the recent socio-economic attainments prove that the Cabinet has issued right decisions and policies in a timely manner.

He asked the Government and Hai Phong’s administration to take flexible measures to stabilise the VND/USD exchange rate, which is on the rising trend over several recent days, along with prices of essential goods to keep inflation under control at the end of the year.

Local residents asked for the acceleration of the building of a coastal expressway linking Hai Phong and central Thanh Hoa city, which is hoped to open up new opportunities for the city’s  economy to make a breakthrough.

Many expressed concerns about the environmental pollution caused by waste release by fertilizer factory DAP Dinh Vu-Vinachem, and scandals involving officials, especially former Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang who was dismissed from the post of Secretary of the Party Delegation to this ministry in the 2011-2016 tenure.

Speaking to voters, PM Phuc said most of the Government’s proposals, including those on State budget spending and major economic policies, were approved by the NA at the second session. The success of this session illustrates the deputies and voters’ trust in the Government’s leadership and management of society and the economy.

Regarding the opinion that the growth target should be set at around 6 percent to ensure it is achievable, he clarified that as public debt has already been close to the ceiling rate of 65 percent of GDP, the targeted GDP growth rate must be high to prevent public debt from hitting the cap. He added that the higher GDP is, the more jobs will be created.

The PM assured the voters that Vietnam has sufficient monetary supply, including foreign currencies, to stabilise the monetary market under any circumstances.

He assigned the city’s NA deputy delegation and municipal authorities to investigate the pollution allegedly caused by fertilizer factory DAP Dinh Vu and listen to public opinion to devise appropriate solutions.

Mentioning the future of the TPP agreement after the US President-elect said he will take the US out of the deal, PM Phuc said excluding the US, the total GDP of the remaining 11 member countries is very big, nearly 20 trillion USD. Apart from TPP, Vietnam has also participated in 12 other new-generation free trade agreements with many major markets.

With or without TPP, Vietnam will still continue its intensive and proactive integration into global economies. It will also continue working with other TPP countries to ink this pact, he added.

Talking about officials who committed violations, PM Phuc said mechanisms for implementing reward and punishment will be clarified in order to appropriately handle violators.

Project supports youth strategy’s implementation

The Ministry of Home Affairs and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) in Vietnam held a conference on November 24 in Ho Chi Minh City to review a project to enhance Vietnam’s capacity in implementing youth strategy from 2011 to 2020.

The project was launched across the country in 2012 with the support of the UNFPA in Vietnam. 

Its general objective is aid the implementation of Vietnam’s youth strategy for 2011-2020 through interdisciplinary coordination and encouraging policies and getting youngsters engaged in providing other youths with information on sexual health.

Vu Dang Minh, head of the Department of Youth Affairs under the Ministry of Home Affairs, said that the project has helped devise policies for youths and encouraged them to get involved in building policies and programmes for youths.

The project’s activities have resulted in an improvement in capacity of the youth in the work, he said.

However, he also pointed to a number of difficulties in youngsters’ access to health care, education and employment. He proposed that the project prioritise the comprehensive development of the youth and their access to health care, as well as gender inequality.

All activities should leave no one behind, especially vulnerable groups, said Minh.

The Ministry of Home Affairs also suggested future cooperation plans, focusing on the building of a database on youths to serve policy-making.

It is necessary to revise the 2005 Youth Law and build policies and programmes for the youth in line with requirement of integration period, according to the ministry.

Lao decorations awarded to Vietnamese volunteer soldiers

Seventeen Vietnamese officials, volunteer experts and soldiers who had performed international missions in Laos were awarded with the orders and medals of Laos at a ceremony held in the northern mountainous province of Son La on November 25. 

Speaking at the event, Vice Chairwoman of the provincial People’s Committee Trang Thi Xuan said nearly 10,000 ethnic people in Son La joined international missions in Laos and thousands of them dedicated their lives to the Lao national liberation cause. 

The glorious victory of Laos is a pride and historic milestone in bilateral relations, she said. 

Over the past years, the provincial liaison board for the former Vietnamese volunteer soldiers and experts in Laos has made practical contributions to promoting solidarity and mutual support between the two Parties, countries and peoples. 

In the near future, the provincial Party committee, authorities and people will continue popularising the two Parties and States’ policies to foster bilateral friendship and special solidarity, Xuan said.

Hanoi: Policies improve living standards among ethnic groups

The effective implementation of policies on ethnic groups has helped reduce poverty and improved the living standards of ethnic people in Hanoi.

The capital has more than 68,000 ethnic minorities people living across its 30 districts and towns. The Hanoi Party Committee issued resolution No. 06-NQ/TU on October 31, 2011, on socio-economic development in the city’s mountainous ethnic minority-inhabited areas in the 2011-2015 period.

All levels of the city’s authority have made efforts to implement ethnic policies and made progress.

At a conference assessing the execution of policies on ethnic groups during 2011- 2015, the action programme for policies until 2020 and the preliminary review of instruction No. 28/CT-TTg on raising the effectiveness of State management on ethnic works, data showed the economic growth rate in mountainous communes was relatively high, income per capita has improved and the poor household rate dropped to five percent in 2015.

All communes now have cement or asphat roads to their administrative areas, 62.5 percent of schools meet national standards, over 70 percent of households have access to sanitary water and all households are connected to the national grid.

These efforts have cut the development gap between mountainous and ethnic minority-inhabited areas and delta areas and consolidated ethnic minority groups’ faith in the Party and State.

Speaking at the event, Vice Chairman of the Committee for Ethnic Affairs Dinh Que Hai said the city needs to review all policies to make proper investments, avoid spreading resources and boost the effectiveness of policies.

He urged the city to pay attention to training ethnic minority young people and lead the country in bringing all rural and mountainous communes out of poverty sustainably.

To execute ethnic policies well, Nguyen Van Suu, Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee, recommended leaders of departments, districts and towns focus on implementing plans and instructions of the Party and State on ethnic policies and effectively implement plan 138/KH-UBND of the Hanoi People’s Committee on social-economic development in the mountainous ethnic minority-resided region in the 2016-2020 period. 

The plan aims for an average economic growth of 10 percent, cutting the poor household rate to 1.8 percent by 2020, having 80 percent of schools at international standards by 2020 and no communes being in extreme difficulty.

Hanoi Protestants contribute to environmental protection

Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Nguyen Duc Chung has called on the Hanoi Evangelical Church (HEC) to join hands in environmental protection, thereby building a green and modern city. 

At a working session with the HEC on November 25, the official said Hanoi is stepping up efforts in environmental protection, such as investing in facilities for waste collection and treatment, and planting more trees under a plan to grow one million trees in the next five years. 

Chung acknowledged contributions made by the Christian community in Hanoi in general and the HEC in particular to the capital city’s development over the years. 

Extending his best wishes to the HEC as well as local Protestants on the occasion of the centennial of the HEC last October and the upcoming Christmas, the official promised that departments and agencies in Hanoi will do their best to help the Protestant community enjoy merry and peaceful holidays. 

For his part, Lead Pastor Bui Quoc Phong informed that the HEC has recently participated in a workshop on environmental protection held by the city administration. 

He proposed the municipal People’s Committee allow Protestant followers to take care of greenery near the HEC’s headquarters and their residential areas, adding that the HEC has encouraged the religious followers to contribute to keeping the city clean, such as putting out garbage at the designated place and time or cleaning up roads and alleys. 

The Pastor voiced his hope that the committee will create optimal conditions for the HEC to organise a music gala to celebrate the upcoming Christmas.

North, central Vietnam urged to brace for Storm Tokage

Boats docked at Cai Rong port, Quang Nin

Coastal provinces and cities from Quang Ninh in the north to Khanh Hoa in the central region have been told to prepare for tropical storm Tokage.

According to the National Centre of Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, at 7am on November 25, the eye of the typhoon was at 11.4 degrees north latitude and 123.5 degrees east longitude, in the Philippines’ central region. 

In the next 24 hours, the storm is forecast to move west-northwest at about 15-20km per hour and is gaining in strength. 

At 7 am of November 26, its centre is forecast at 12.7 degrees north latitude and 118.7 degrees east longitude, about 500km to the east-northeast of the Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago. 

The steering committee for natural disaster prevention has sent a dispatch tasking relevant agencies of the vulnerable coastal areas with updating locals on the storm movement and strictly monitoring boat activities at sea.

Mekong Delta bridges need to be repaired: experts

Weak bridges in the Mekong Delta region need to be upgraded, said Vice Rector of the Ho Chi Minh City University of Transport Nguyen Van Hung at a seminar on November 24.

At the seminar on applying advanced technology in bridge repairs, scientists, experts, managers and businesses discussed technological solutions to be used to repair bridges in Mekong Delta localities.

Tran Huu Hiep from the Steering Committee for the Southwestern Region said in recent years, huge investment has been poured into the region’s transport system. Many projects have been implemented to create a smooth transport system and reduce transport costs, thus boosting the socio-economic development and improving local lives.

However, some shortcomings still remain in the region’s infrastructure, as weak bridges in provincial routes are threatening traffic safety. Meanwhile, the transport system linking manufacturing areas with industrial zones has yet to be upgraded.

Meanwhile, investment for infrastructure in the region is limited, he noted.

Hung said that his university has found many advanced technologies to improve bridge quality. It has also engaged in designing, repairing and upgrading hundreds of bridges across the nation, including 20 in the Mekong Delta.

According to the Steering Committee, Mekong Delta localities have applied new technology in bridge building and management to achieve remarkable outcomes.

Many participants emphasised the need to optimise bridge management and maintenance, saying the urgent task is to build a nationwide bridge management information system.

Dak Nong: Pepper farmers, enterprises urged to team up

Pepper growers and enterprises in the Central Highlands province of Dak Nong were urged to link up to improve quality, value and competitiveness as well as form a sustainable value chain of peppercorns.

At a forum on developing a sustainable pepper value chain in Gia Nghia town in Dak Nong on November 24, Professor Nguyen Lan Hung said that the cooperation between enterprises and farmers is extremely important to boosting the output of peppercorns and enhancing the quality of the product.

Farmers and enterprises were also told to grow pepper according to a clean cultivation process from selecting seedlings, using organic fertilisers or biotic products, and applying disease-curing techniques.

In recent years, peppercorn has become an important agri-product of Dak Nong due to its high profit and great potentials for export.

Dak Nong’s pepper cultivation area has grown to 27,000 hectares, the largest in the country, with over 14,000 hectares being commercial pepper area.

However, a majority of the pepper area in Dak Nong was planted without planning and a standard technical process, leading to a significant amount of pepper trees dying of diseases or producing low-quality peppercorns.

Hanoi reviews over 18,000 power transformers

he Electricity of Vietnam’s (EVN) Hanoi Power Corporation (EVN Hanoi) said it plans to review over 18,000 power transformers across the city.

The move aims to inspect the protection corridors of the stations, make a list of the violated cases, thus drastically preventing residents from misusing power transformer stations for doing their business and other purposes.

EVN will cooperate with local-level authorities and relevant bodies to monitor and handle the violated cases. 

Previously on November 17, the Bui Thi Cuc 4 power transformer in Ha Dong district exploded, killing one person and injuring four others.

According to preliminary investigation, the explosion was caused by a leak of the insulating oil in the transformer.

Over 11,000 households in Dong Thap benefit from CHOBA programme

The Community Hygiene Output-Based Aid (CHOBA) programme has helped more than 11,000 poor households in the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap build hygienic toilets since 2012.

As many as 6.1 billion VND (2.68 million USD) was provided to more than 10,900 poor households to build standardised toilets, while more than 10,000 middle-income families were also helped to build toilets.

Currently, the project has covered all 45 communes in Dong Thap’s 12 districts. A 30 percent rise in the number of families having sanitary toilets was seen in seven communes.

Dong Thap is one of eight localities nationwide benefiting from the project, along with Ninh Binh, Hai Duong, Thanh Hoa, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Tien Giang and Tra Vinh.

The CHOBA project, funded by East Meets West foundation, assists poor, nearly poor, and disadvantaged families in building new sanitary toilets.    

The project does not give finance directly to the households, but via award packs for families, which are delivered after they build hygienic toilets with preferential loans. Communes with an increase of 30 percent in the number of sanitary lavatories will be presented with 64 million VND.

 Binh Phuoc Province reports over 3,8000 cases of dengue

The Department of Health in the southern province of Binh Phuoc yesterday said that in 11 months, over 3,800 people were infected with dengue fever including one dead.

The figure increased by 2,600 cases compared the same period last year.

The report said that  11 districts and town in the province all reported case of dengue fever. Dong Xoai Town, Districts Chon Thanh, Dong Phu and Bu Dang had most cases.

Though the province has no case of Zika zirus, the health sector asked medical clinics in the province to monitor closely the disease as well as increase information of the mosquito-borne disease to households and keep an eye on pregnant women.

Major family and children festival slated for next month

The Children & Family Expo 2016 will be organized on a larger scale from December 16 to 18 at Hoa Lu Stadium in District 1, HCMC.

The organizer, Boinrich Company Limited, expects to draw around 30,000 visitors to the expo themed “Penguin World”, up from 25,000 in 2015.

There will be 130 booths from local and international brands displaying their products in an area of over 11,000 square meters. Kids will have a chance to play with friends at different game zones like the ice island of penguins, ice castle, and painting village.

This will be also an opportunity for parents to get together with their children and join family games. Adults can also browse for many household products and fashion items with discounts of up to 50%. 

Le Manh Thuong from TruMan Holdings, one of the sponsors of the expo, expects to bring joy to kids and help them improve life skills, and join teamwork activities.

Tickets to the event are priced at VND250,000 per person, including admission of a kid under 12. For more information on tickets, visit www.bornrich.vn, or call the hotline (08) 6685 1597 or (08) 6685 2178 or go to the Facebook page of Children & Family Expo Vietnam.

HCM City builds more branches of Nguyen Van Cu Bridge to link districts

The Saigon Tunnel Management Center under the HCMC Department of Transport yesterday started work on two new branches of Nguyen Van Cu Bridge approaching to Vo Van Kiet Boulevard.

The project is expected to complete in the second quarter next year with the total capital of VND169 billion (US$7.48 million).

The two branches will be constructed in District 1 and 5 for vehicles to travel from the bridge to the boulevard and vice versa.

In addition, the project includes the construction of a six meter wide and 607 meter long road on the side of Vo Van Kiet street to create two motorbike lanes and a drainage system to drain rain and tide water to Ben Nghe Canal; plants trees and removes lightning network.

Construction will not affect vehicular traffic in the bridge, the center affirmed.

Stating at the ground-breaking ceremony, deputy chairman of the HCMC People’s Committee Le Van Khoa said that the two branches aimed to reduce traffic jam in Duong Ba Trac and Nguyen Van Cu streets, which are connected together by Nguyen Van Cu Bridge.

He asked investors as well as contractors to focus their human and material resources to build the project on schedule, ensure labor safety and give the top priority to the work’s quality.  

2,000 youths promise to protect wildlife

Nearly 2,000 youths in Ho Chi Minh City yesterday partook in an environment festival named “Lac vao hoang da” (Straying in wildland) jointly held by Global Environmental Change and the U.S.-based environmental organization WildAid in Labor Culture House in district 1. 

The event is one of activities in response to the conference on Illegal Wildlife Trade (IWT) – Vietnam’s most highlighted environment protection activity  in 2016.

The festival had eight different sections, young people could read information of the diversity, endangered status of wild animals such as pangolin, rhino, elephant, and tiger; play in activities to understand more the importance of wildlife and other games; take photos in 3D animated space. 

Especially, young people promised to protect wildlife by press a button in the wall.

The event had seen the participation of celebrities including singers Thanh Bui, Hoang Bach, Duc Tuyen, Trong Hieu, Miss Pham Huong, MC Phan Anh.

Canadian ambassador to run for children in Hanoi

The Canadian ambassador to Vietnam Ping Kitnikone and various celebrities will join in a charity run to raise fund for poor children in Hanoi on December 11.

Hanoi Run for Children 2016 event is held by the Embassy of Canada, Hanoi Union of Friendship Organisations and the Vietnam-Cambodia Friendship Association and many local artists.

The run will take place at Thong Nhat Park, at 7am on December 11.

The Hanoi Run for Children aims to raise fund to treat poor children who are suffering from heart diseases and cancer. Since 2009, Hanoi Run for Children attracts both locals and foreign residents who want to help poor children.

At the press conference on November 24, Ping Kitnikone announced that all children in Vietnam deserve a healthy life and together, they could make it happen.

Kitnikone said she was moved during the visit to the Oncology Department of Vietnam National Hospital of Pediatrics and met with may disadvantaged children. The Hanoi Run for Children is a proof that everyone can co-operate and promote Canada close friendship with Vietnam, she said.

Hanoi Run for Children raises about VND1bn (USD44,000) each year and donated to poor children at Vietnam National Hospital of Paediatrics, Hanoi Heart Hospital and to Heartbeat Vietnam Fund. VinaCapital Fund manages the donations and ensure the transparency.

As of now, over 300 children have been benefited from the event.

This year, actress Le Khanh, Miss Vietnam 2016 Do My Linh, footballer Hoang Vu Samson and TV personality Phan Anh will join the run.

Red Cross programme helps to re-unite families

Some 348 families have been reunited with their relatives over the past 30 years under the Reestablishment of Family Links programme in HCM City.

The programme aims to prevent separation and disappearances, restore and maintain contact among family members, and clarify the fate of missing persons.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is strongly committed to help financially and technically the Vietnam Red Cross in its tasks related to reestablishment of family links, said Cherine Pollini, head of ICRC Vietnam.

“In Vietnam like in a number of other countries in the world, families have been separated due to conflicts, violence, migration or natural disasters that struck their countries. For days, months, years even, families wait to receive news of their relatives from whom they were separated,” she said.

The Vietnam Red Cross Society is the Red Cross Movement partner that is in contact with families seeking support, Cherine said at a meeting held in HCM City on November 24 to celebrate 30 years of the Reestablishment of Family Links programme in HCM City. 

Established in 1987, the Reestablishment of Family Links office under Vietnam Red Cross Society received more than 3,800 petitions for reestablishment of family links nationwide. 

Vietnamese professor honoured by Japanese Consulate General

The representative office of the Japanese Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City has presented a certificate of merit to Professor, Dr. Vo Tong Xuan for his contributions to friendship between Vietnam and Japan. 

Addressing the award ceremony on November 23, Japanese Consul General in HCM City Nakajima Satoshi praised Xuan’s contributions to boosting economic and technological cooperation and friendship between the two countries after receiving his doctoral certificate in Japan, Lao Dong (Labour) newspaper reported. 

As a pioneer in rice research in Vietnam, the Professor has contributed to transforming the Mekong Delta from a hungry region into one of the world’s leading rice producers. 

He has also helped many countries across the world with wet rice cultivation.

Dong Nai wants Japan's support in high-quality workforce training

Southern Dong Nai province hopes to receive more support from Japanese firms in training high-quality human resources  for industrial development in the locality, a local official has said. 

Vice Chairwoman of the provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Hoa Hiep shared the wish at a working session on November 24 with a delegation from Japan, which was led by Turo Asai, Director of the Kansai Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry’s International Affairs Division. 

She said the local authorities appreciated the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Kansai region for their assistance to help Dong Nai train human resources to serve the local development.

Hiep took the occasion to call on Japanese enterprises to expand investment in Dong Nai while assuring favorable conditions for investors.

For his part, Turo Asai highlighted close cooperation in various areas between Kansai region and Dong Nai, especially in training workforce for industrial development. 

In 2015, JICA and Kansai region assisted Dong Nai in performing a project in the field, which aimed to improve knowledge and skills for lecturers and students at Lac Hong an Dong Nai university. 

JICA Chief  Representative of Ho Chi Minh City Office Toshifumi Sakai spoke highly the project’s feasibility and efficiency, stressing that it is necessary to intensify the work in order to meet the increasing demand of high-quality workforce of Japanese firms operating in the province. 

However, he noted that the local authorities needs to ensure financial sources to continue the project as it ends in March 2017 and JICA will not continue provision of funding for the project.

Dong Nai is home to over 1,000 foreign enterprises, including more than 190 Japanese companies with a total investment of 3.4 billion USD. The Japanese firms are mainly involving in supporting industry and high-technology.

Run in Hanoi to help disadvantaged children

Hanoi Run for Children 2016 will take place in the Thong Nhat Park, Hanoi from 7:00 am on December 11 to raise funds for the treatment of disadvantaged children with cancer and heart disease.

The annual event is jointly organised by the Vietnam-Canada Friendship Association, the Hanoi Union of Friendship Organisations, the Embassy of Canada and sponsors.

Canadian Ambassador to Vietnam Ping Kinikone highlighted the significance of the event saying that it aims to join hands to help disadvantaged children while consolidating the bilateral ties between Vietnam and Canada.

She pledged that the Embassy will continue supporting Vietnam’s community-oriented prorgrammes and initiatives.

Echoing the Ambassador’s opinion, Nguyen Thi Hoi, Vice President of the Vietnam-Canada Friendship Association said the event is a people-to-people diplomacy activity, representing the friendship between the two nations as well as between Vietnamese people and international friends.

The run raises about 1 billion VND (44,000 USD) each year, benefiting more than 300 needy children to date, she added.

The money raised from the event will be donated to the Heart Beat Vietnam programme, patients at the Vietnam National Hospital of Peadiatrics and Hanoi Heart Hospital.

Several celebrities are scheduled to take part in this year’s run, including People’s Artist Le Khanh, football player Hoang Vu Samson, Miss Vietnam 2016 Do My Linh, and actor Phan Anh.

Hoa Binh police arrest heroin traffickers

Anti-drug crime police of northern Hoa Binh province and relevant forces caught red-handed two individuals transporting 20 bricks of heroin and 2,000 synthetic drug pills on the night of November 23.

The two residents in northern Thai Nguyen province were captured when they drove through Phong Phu commune, Tan Lac district, Hoa Binh province, according to the police.

They are being detained and their houses were searched in service of further investigations.

On November 22, police of Nam Tu Liem district in Hanoi busted a drug trafficking ring in northern Vietnam involving 40 heroin bricks and 17,851 synthetic drug pills.

The ring involved Ma Tuan Hung (Thai Nguyen province), Trang A Trang (Hoa Binh province) and Song Thi Do (Son La province).

The ring earlier had transported drugs through Son La, Hoa Binh, Hanoi, Thai Nguyen and Hai Phong city. 

Further investigations are underway.

Each heroin brick weighs about 350 grams.

Vietnamese successfully integrate into Czech society

Deputy head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Information and Education Lam Thi Phuong Thanh has praised successes reaped by the Vietnamese community in the Czech Republic during her trip to the country from November 21-23.

She expressed her hope that the community will integrate more deeply into the host society while preserving traditional language and culture. 

Nguyen Duy Nhien, President of the Vietnamese Association in the Czech Republic, said since its inception 17 years ago, the association has encouraged the Vietnamese to learn the Czech language and study culture, custom, law and business models of the European country. 

At the same time, the association has taught the mother tongue for Vietnamese children in the Czech Republic and maintained traditional culture and custom among the community. 

As many as 65,000 Vietnamese are living in the Czech Republic.

Chinese man steals over US$17,000 from passenger on Saigon-Da Nang flight

A Chinese man has been transferred to police officers after he was discovered stealing over US$17,000 from a passenger onboard a plane landing at an airport in central Vietnam on November 24.

Aviation security officers at Da Nang International Airport handed over Wang Qingjian and more than VND400 million (US$17,588) in cash to police in Da Nang City in the morning.

A Vietnamese passenger, Ngo Ngoc Thuan, told aviation security officers at 7:00 am on November 24 that Wang had stolen the cash from him after their flight, coded VN 104, landed at the Da Nang airport following a journey from Ho Chi Minh City.

Officers verified the report and quickly captured the Chinese man when he was running toward the public area of the airport.

They kept all the related documents and asked those involved to come to their office.

Aviation security officers checked Wang’s luggage and found more than VND400 million in it.

Thuan confirmed the Chinese man had stolen the cash from him.

Nguyen Thi Truc Giang, a witness, said that she had seen Wang rummaging through Thuan’s bag while aboard the plane and stealing the money.

Police decided to return the cash to Thuan following a verification process.

On November 17, another Chinese national, Yang Yong, was found searching the bag of N.T.H. when their flight, VN 164, was about to leave Da Nang for Hanoi

The bag contained two Sony cameras and an envelope with VND5 million (US$220) inside.

Yong was caught in the act by other passengers and security guards swiftly escorted the Chinese to airport operators’ office for handling.

On November 14, the cabin crew of the flight VN 110 bound for Da Nang from Ho Chi Minh City discovered Wang Ji Cheng, a Chinese citizen, rummaging through another passenger’s bag.

The passenger then realized VND15.5 million (US$681) had disappeared from his bag. The cash was later found in the toilet of the airport.

Goethe Institute hosts int’l typography exhibition

The New York-based Type Directors Club’s (TDC) travelling typography exhibition is being held in HCM City from November 25-29 by The Goethe Institute Vietnam.

The exhibition will showcase 400 award-wining typography and graphic designs from this year’s annual TDC competition for both communication and typeface design, which attracted more than 2,000 entries from 49 countries.

Apart from HCM City, the exhibition will also be held at the Goethe Institute in Hanoi in December along with a two-day workshop with Anfreas Uebele, a German visual and ommunicaitons designer and professor.

In 1996, he founded his agency, Uebele, focusing on visual identity, corporate communications and exhibitions.

Uebele has been a professor of communication design at Dussldorf Univesity of Appalied Sciences since 1998 and a member of TDC since 2002.-VNA

Quang Ninh to unlock tourism potential of Cai Chien island

Hai Ha district in the northern province of Quang Ninh has recently announced a plan to develop tourism in its Cai Chien island commune, which has beautiful beaches and primeval forests. 

Cai Chien island covers 2,500 hectares and is surrounded by a number of smaller islands. It boasts 2 km of white sand beaches and forests of straight Australian pie trees that can be seen almost everywhere on the island.

The three most beautiful local beaches are Cai Chien, Vung Bau and Dau Rong. Near the Dau Rong beach is a walking road spanning over 1 km along the beach.

The island is also home to 500ha of primeval forest that is particularly suitable for the development of adventure tourism.

According to statistics of the Hai Ha People’s Committee, the island has welcomed some 21,000 visitors as of November. It expects to serve up to 70,000 tourists next year, mostly during summer. 

These figures remain low compared to the island’s tourism potentials, which is partly attributable to underdeveloped tourism infrastructure in Cai Chien.

In a bid to tap these potential and draw investors’ interest, Hai Ha district announced its plan to develop the central area of Cai Chien with details on the zoning of areas for different purposes. 

Accordingly, the planning area will span over 180 hectares with a target population of 3,000 in 2020, increasing to some 3,700 ten years later.

It will consist of four main subdivisions. The centre area is earmarked for administrative buildings as well as cultural and convention centres. The area in the north will be used for public space, such as squares and parks, while the western subdivision will host hotels, resorts and restaurants. The eastern part is for farm houses serving homestay tourism. 

The plan also included the building of transport, power and telecommunications infrastructure as well as water supply and sewage systems. 

In addition to the plan, the local authorities have been implementing a number of measures to upgrade beaches, clean the environment, build cement roads and placing road signs, but still maintaining the intact beauty of the island.

Coastal functional zoning helps manage natural resources: workshop

Coastal functional zoning is necessary for the management of coastal natural resources, heard a workshop in Hanoi on November 25. 

Domestic and international experts at the workshop proposed how to implement the coastal functional zoning in Vietnam as well as difficulties hindering the work. 

In his opening remarks, Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Nguyen Linh Ngoc described coastal functional zoning as a step towards the building of a master plan on the use of coastal natural resources in line with the the Law on Sea and Island Natural Resources and Environment, thereby contributing to ensuring social welfare as well as maritime biological security and environment in Vietnam. 

Nguyen Duc Toan, from the Vietnam Administration of Seas and Islands, said the Vietnamese Government has made every effort in employing integrated management methods and establishing State management agencies over seas and islands at both central and grassroots levels. 

The country has gradually complete the legal system on seas and islands and pour more investments in basic research studies on natural resources and maritime environment, he said. 

Toan cited the integrated costal zone management strategy through 2020 with a vision towards 2030 and the action plan on implementing the strategy, along with the integrated coastal management programme up to 2010 a with vision to 2020 for north central and coastal central regions to demonstrate the Government’s efforts in this regard. 

Of note, he said, the Law on Sea and Island Natural Resources and Environment, which was adopted by the National Assembly on June 25, 2015 and took effect since July 1, 2016, prescribes the integrated management of coastal zones.

The workshop was held by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment in conjunction with the World Bank and the German Agency for International Cooperation.-

Bahamas-flagged luxury liner docks in Thua Thien-Hue

Luxury liner Ovation of the Seas, carrying nearly 4,100 tourists and 1,600 crewmembers, anchored in Chan May port, the central province of Thua Thien-Hue on November 25, beginning their tour of Hue, Hoi An and Da Nang. 

The Bahamas-flagged cruiser is the latest in Quantum class produced by Royal Caribbean. 

With 18 floors, the ship has a length of 348m and width of 41.5m and is equipped with the latest equipment and luxury services, assessed to outclass five-star resorts in the mainland. 

Since the beginning of 2016, Chan May port has served 66,000 visitors, and expects to welcomes more seven cruise liners this year, raising the total number of visitors to 74,000, said Director of the Chan May port company Huynh Van Toan. 

As one of the 46 seaports chosen by the Asia Cruise Association as a stop for cruisers in Southeast Asia, the port lies between the central cities of Thua Thien - Hue and Da Nang, and connects Vietnam with Singapore, the Philippines and Hong Kong (China). 

With the upgraded wharf of 420m in length and 12.5m in depth, the port is now able to accommodate vessels of 30,000 DWT and international cruisers carrying more than 3,000 passengers.

VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/TT/TN/Dantri/VNE