Doctors at children’s hospitals in HCM City have reported a number of drowning deaths of kids and related injuries in recent days.

HCM City and other localities in the south have recorded temperatures of 38-39 degrees Celsius in recent days, leading to more heat-related illnesses, especially among children and the elderly.

A leading charity in Hanoi says there has been a threefold increase in the number of children living on the streets, forced from their homes in search of work during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Vietnam’s consumer price index (CPI) in January hit a record high, up 1.23 percent over the previous month and 6.43 percent year on year, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

Civil servants, public employees and members of the armed forces are set for a new basic salary, with the highest increase in the past eight years.

Garbage collection fees could significantly rise in HCM City from next year, with each household paying an average of VND48,000 per month more, according to a decision of the HCM City People’s Committee.

More than 100,000 people die each year from cancer in Vietnam, and medical experts believe the fatality rate will rise because more and more young people are starting to smoke.

The number of students from kindergarten to high school levels in HCM City will increase by more than 75,400 in the 2019-20 academic year, according to the city’s Department of Education and Training.

Starting next year, minimum wage in the private sector will increase by 5.5 per cent after three-party negotiations between representatives of the State, employers and employees ended yesterday.

A range of new policies are coming into effect this month, including wage increases, paternity leave for male workers and regulations relating to retirement age of the people’s public security force.

Doan Mau Diep, Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, speaks to the Tiền Phong (Vanguard) newspaper about how Vietnam will revise the retirement age for workers or State employees.

If the Cat Linh-Ha Dong urban railway ever begins operations, 15-20 per cent of drivers in Hanoi will switch to using the train, according to the municipal transport department.

Vietnam has seen a sharp increase in school violence, which has physically and mentally affected students and needs to be curbed quickly before it gets out of hand, according to experts.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The number of people hospitalised in HCM City with contagious diseases this year has sharply increased compared with the same period a year ago, 

 VietNamNet Bridge – Monthly minimum wage will increase from VND1.39 million (US$60) to VND1.49 million ($65) at the beginning of July next year, 

 VietNamNet Bridge – The HCM City People’s Committee has more than doubled the fee for household garbage collection.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnam has experienced unprecedented growth in the hospitality sector. Most hotels and resorts have high occupancy rates and construction of many new ones is underway. 

 VietNamNet Bridge – Landslides along riverbanks and the coast in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta have been increasing as local authorities continue to struggle to find solutions amid a budget shortage.  

Big cities like Hanoi and HCM City have few parks and playgrounds because many plots earmarked for this purpose were being used for parking, business or other projects, reported Lao Dong (Labour) newspaper.