Vietnam News
There are certain things that are a sure sign that Autumn is in the air. Here are several sights and flavors that will make you realize Summer has left, and autumn has rolled into town.
Source: VOV
However, these estimates could be inaccurate according to experts as only 20% of patients seek treatment. Many thought that they were only tired or the conditions are light and don’t pay much attention to their mental health.
Others think that mental problems may affect their relationships so they decide to hide the problem. Several people are also confused about their symptoms and may seek the wrong treatments.
Changing habits or environment can also cause stress. The symptoms include headaches, backaches, increased heart rate or high blood pressure. Prolonged exposure to stress will lead to depression which accounts for 35% of all mental disorder cases.
The patients lack enthusiasm, concentration and face a deteriorating physical health from sleeping and eating disorders. Stress is considered a silent killer as it can badly affect the body’s organs and may even lead to cancer.
However, Vietnam is lacking mental health resources. Trinh Tat Thang, director of HCM City Mental Health Hospital, said that the number of out and in-patients increase by 10-15% annually.
Despite the increasing number of patients, HCM City Mental Health Hospital only has 500 beds and 61 doctors. The average number of beds to patients ratio in HCM City is 0.07 per 1,000 people. This ratio is 0.2 per 1,000 nation-wide and 0.5-1.5 per 1,000 worldwide. In April, the HCM City Department of Health has been tasked with addressing the issue.
The Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, the President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, the Central Committee of the Vietnamese Fatherland Front are deeply grieved to inform the passing of President Tran Dai Quang.
Comrade Tran Dai Quang was born on October 12, 1956 in Quang Thien commune, Kim Son district, Ninh Binh province; and resided at number 8 Nguy Nhu Kon Tum street, Nhan Chinh ward, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi.
He joined the Communist Party of Vietnam on July 26, 1980; was member of the Party Central Committee of the 10th, 11th and 12th tenures; Politburo member of the 11th and 12th tenures; State President (from April 2016 to present), Chairman of the Defence and Security Council; standing member of the Central Military Commission; standing member of the Central Public Security Party Committee; member of the National Assembly of the 13th and 14 tenures; Head of the Central Steering Committee on Judicial Reform.
After a period of falling ill and despite the enormous treatment efforts made by the Party, State, professors, doctors as well as the utmost care given by his family, he passed away at 10:05 on the morning of September 21, 2018 at the 108 Military Central Hospital, due to serious illness.
During his entire career, he made many contributions to the glorious revolutionary cause of the Party and the nation. He was awarded many noble medals and orders and the 30-year Party membership insignia.
His passing is a great loss to the Vietnamese Party, State and people.
In memory of comrade Tran Dai Quang, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, the President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, the Central Committee of the Vietnamese Fatherland Front decide to hold a national funeral for comrade Tran Dai Quang.
CENTRAL COMMITTEE OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF VIETNAM
NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM
PRESIDENT OF THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM
GOVERNMENT OF THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM
CENTRAL COMMITTEE OF THE VIETNAMESE FATHERLAND FRONT
A SHORT BIOGRAPHY OF COMRADE TRAN DAI QUANG
Politburo member, President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Comrade Tran Dai Quang was born on October 12, 1956 in Quang Thien commune, Kim Son district, Ninh Binh province; and resided at No. 8 Nguy Nhu Kon Tum street, Nhan Chinh ward, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi. He was admitted to the Communist Party of Vietnam on July 26, 1980.
July 1972 – October 1975: He was student of the People’s Police School; student of the Language and Culture School under the Ministry of Home Affairs (now Ministry of Public of Security).
October 1975 – June 1990: Officer, Deputy Head, Head of the Political Protection Department, Ministry of Home Affairs.
June 6 – September 1996: Deputy Secretary, Deputy Head of the Security Staff Department and later Deputy Head in charge of the Security Staff Department, General Department of Security.
September 1996 – October 2000: member of the standing board of the Party Committee of the General Department of Security, Secretary of the Party Committee and Head of the Security Staff Department.
October 2000 – April 2006: Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee, Deputy Head of the General Department of Security, Ministry of Public Security. Promoted to Major General and conferred the Associate Professor title in 2003.
April 2006 – January 2011: Standing member of the Central Public Security Party Committee, Deputy Minister of Public Security; promoted to Lieutenant General in April 2007 and conferred the Professor title in 2009. At the 10th National Party Congress, he was elected to the Party Central Committee.
January 2011 – July 2011: Standing member of the Central Public Security Party Committee, Deputy Minister of Public Security. At the 11th National Party Congress, he was elected to the Party Central Committee, elected by the Party Central Committee to the Politburo; member of the 13th National Assembly.
July 2011 – December 2012: Politburo member, Secretary of the Central Public Security Party Committee, Minister of Public Security. Promoted to Senior Lieutenant General in December 2011; Head of the Central Highlands Steering Committee.
December 2012 – April 2016: Politburo member, Secretary of the Central Public Security Party Committee, Minister of Public Security, promoted to full General in December 2012; Deputy Head of the Central Steering Committee on Corruption Prevention; Deputy Head of the Central Subcommittee on Internal Political Protection. At the 12th National Party Congress, he was re-elected to the Party Central Committee, elected to the Politburo by the Party Central Committee in January 2016. At the 11th plenary meeting of the 13th National Assembly in April 2016, he was elected President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. At the first plenary meeting of the 14th National Assembly in July 2016, he was re-elected President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
April 2016 – present: Politburo member, President, Chairman of the Defence and Security Council, Standing member of the Central Military Commission, Standing member of the Central Public Security Party Committee; member of the 14th National Assembly, Head of the Central Steering Committee on Judicial Reform.
He was member of the Party Central Committee of the 10th, 11th and 12th tenures, Politburo member of the 11th and 12th tenures; member of the National Assembly of the 13 and 14th tenures.
He was awarded many noble orders and medals and the 30-year Party membership insignia by the Party and State for his many contributions to the revolutionary cause of the Party and the nation.
FUNERAL ORGANISING BOARD
1. General Secretary of the CPVCC Nguyen Phu Trong, Head of the Funeral Organising Board.
2. Politburo member and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.
3. Politburo member and Chairwoman of the National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.
4. Politburo member and permanent member of the CPVCC’s Secretariat Tran Quoc Vuong.
5. Politburo member, Secretary of the CPVCC and Head of the CPVCC’s Organisation Commission Pham Minh Chinh.
6. Politburo member, Secretary of the CPVCC and Head of the CPVCC’s Commission for Communication and Education Vo Van Thuong.
7. Politburo member, Secretary of the CPVCC and Head of the CPVCC’s Commission for Mass Mobilisation Truong Thi Mai.
8. Politburo member, Secretary of the CPVCC and Head of the CPVCC’s Economic Commission Nguyen Van Binh.
9. Politburo member and Standing Vice Chairwoman of the National Assembly Tong Thi Phong.
10. Politburo member and Standing Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh.
11. Politburo member, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Binh Minh.
12. Politburo member and Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue.
13. Politburo member, Minister of Defence, General Ngo Xuan Lich.
14. Politburo member, Minister of Public Security, Senior Lieutenant General To Lam.
15. Politburo member and Secretary of Hanoi Party Committee Hoang Trung Hai.
16. Politburo member and Secretary of Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee Nguyen Thien Nhan.
17. Member of the CPVCC, Acting President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh.
18. Secretary of the CPVCC and President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee Tran Thanh Man.
19. Secretary of the CPVCC and Director of the Vietnam People’s Army (VPA)’s General Department of Politics Sen. Lieut. Gen. Luong Cuong.
20. Secretary of the CPVCC and Head of the CPVCC Office Nguyen Van Nen.
21. Secretary of the CPVCC, Chief Justice of the Supreme People’s Court Nguyen Hoa Binh.
22. Secretary of the CPVCC, Head of the CPVCC’s Commission for Internal Affairs Phan Dinh Trac.
23. Secretary of the CPVCC, Director of the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics, and Chairman of the Central Theoretical Council Nguyen Xuan Thang.
24. Secretary of the CPVCC and Head of the CPVCC’s Commission for Inspection Tran Cam Tu.
25. Member of the CPVCC and Head of the CPVCC’s Commission for External Relations Hoang Binh Quan.
26. Member of the CPVCC and Prosecutor General of the Supreme People’s Procuracy Le Minh Tri.
27. Member of the CPVCC, Minister-Chairman of the Government Office Mai Tien Dung.
28. Member of the CPVCC and Chairman of the Presidential Office Dao Viet Trung.
29. Member of the CPVCC, Secretary-General of the National Assembly, and Chairman of the NA Office Nguyen Hanh Phuc.
30. Member of the CPVCC and Minister of Home Affairs Le Vinh Tan.
31. Member of the CPVCC and Minister of Justice Le Thanh Long.
32. Member of the CPVCC and President of the Vietnam Confederation of Labour Bui Van Cuong.
33. Member of the CPVCC and President of the Vietnam Farmers’ Association Thao Xuan Sung.
34. Member of the CPVCC and Chairwoman of the Vietnam Women’s Union Nguyen Thi Thu Ha.
35. Member of the CPVCC and Secretary of the Party Committee of Ninh Binh province Nguyen Thi Thanh.
36. Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Duoc, President of the Vietnam Veterans’ Association.
37. Alternative Member of the CPVCC and First Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union Central Committee Le Quoc Phong.
ANNOUNCEMENT
On the respect-paying, memorial and burial ceremonies for Comrade Tran Dai Quang
The funeral of Comrade Tran Dai Quang will be organised in the national mourning etiquette.
He will be laid in state at the National Funeral Hall, No. 5 Tran Thanh Tong street, Hanoi.
The respect-paying ceremony will start at 7:00 am on September 26 at the National Funeral Hall, No. 5 Tran Thanh Tong street, Hanoi.
The memorial service will be held at 7:30 am on September 27 at the National Funeral Hall, No. 5 Tran Thanh Tong street, Hanoi. The burial ceremony will take place from 3:30 pm on the same day in the President’s native land in Quang Thien commune, Kim Son district, Ninh Binh province.
At the same time, at the Thong Nhat Hall in Ho Chi Minh City and the Hall of the People’s Committee of Kim Son district, Ninh Binh province, the respect-paying and memorial ceremonies for Comrade Tran Dai Quang will also be held.
The Vietnam Television and the Voice of Vietnam will broadcast live the ceremonies in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Kim Son district, Ninh Binh province.
During the two days of national mourning on September 26-27, national flags will be flown at half-mast at government offices and public places, and recreational and entertainment activities will be suspended.
Source: NDO
In childhood, Huynh Lam Tinh, in HCM City, had a rather strange hobby. He showed special passion for bubbles and paper folding, and liked contemplating bridges.
In class, he could not sit still for more than five minutes. He did not like playing with friends, but only wanted to talk to teachers.
Tinh had problems with his retina, which made it difficult to see and observe. This was also why he usually lost his temper. Being isolated from friends, Tinh had to look for fun in electronic games and became a game addict.
Trang, Tinh’s mother, after realizing the signs of autism in her son, brought him to many hospitals. She was advised by physicians to bring the boy to hospitals regularly to have psychological treatment.
Later, Trang and her son came to see Nguyen Phung Phong, a world record holder of memory, for memory training.
The mother said she did not have high expectations from the training. She only wanted her son to be able to control his life when he grows up and integrates with society.
Phong, who knows the national flags of 198 countries and can memorize their positions when they are rearranged, discovered Tinh’s special aptitude and decided to receive the boy.
At the beginning, Tinh practiced with the memory method once a week. Just after a short period, he showed outstanding capability. He could remember things in class and had no need to learn again at home.
In late 2017, the once autistic boy was officially chosen to attend the world Super Memory Championship.
Good news came in December 2017. The Vietnamese team of super memorizers with three trainers and six competitors, including Tinh, won the teammate prize in China.
Asked what he did with Tinh to promote the boy’s abilities, Phong said he tried to help the boy encode numerals into images.
“Numerals are controlled by the left brain, while images by the right brain. If you only memorize numbers, you will use only a part of brain. When you practice, you can memorize with both hemispheres, so you can remember more things for a longer time,” he said.
Nguyen Phung Phong was officially conferred the World Record Certificate by World Records Union – WorldKings at the 33rd Meeting of Vietnam Record Holders in May 2017.
He achieved the world record with its title ‘The person who knows the national flags of 198 countries in the world and can memorize their position within the shortest time when they are accidentally arranged’.
According to a report on Vietnamnet
Police in the southern Hau Giang Province arrested a man with four dogs he allegedly helped gun down on Saturday.
Tam, 33, was caught as he and another person were carrying the dogs they had shot down with stun guns to sell to local restaurants early on Saturday morning. The Phong reports on VNExpress.
The pair were spotted with two suspects carrying another three dogs they had killed and stolen. The police arrested Tam but the others managed to flee.
Dog theft is rarely treated as a criminal offense in Vietnam unless the stolen animals are valued at more than VND2 million ($86).
Vietnam consumes an estimated five million dogs a year, second only to China’s 20 million.
The practice has received widespread criticism as the dogs eaten are usually pets stolen and killed in brutal ways.
Recently, Hanoi has called on residents to stop eating cats and dogs, arguing that the killing and selling of dogs and cats for human consumption have undermined its image in the eyes of international tourists and expats.
The capital city also annnounced plans to ban dog meat from 2021.
Vietnam’s textile and garment exports to South Korea are expected to increase by 20 percent this year and continue rising in upcoming years.
The advantages for Vietnam’s textile and garment exports increased after multilateral and bilateral agreements took effect. According to the General Department of Customs (GDC), in the first seven months of the year, Vietnam’s total export turnover to South Korea reached $10.2 billion, increasing by 32 percent compared with the same period last year.
Of these, textile and garment exports to South Korea reached $1.5 billion, an increase of 24.9 percent. In July alone, the figure was $270.7 million, up by 24.18 percent over June and 24.06 percent over July 2017.
Vietnam and China are the two biggest suppliers of textiles and garments in South Korea which hold 32.7 percent and 34.5 percent of market share, respectively, compared to 29.5 percent and 40.2 percent as seen three years ago.
Vietnam has made a big leap in the South Korean market, narrowing the market share gap with China. Also according to GDC, South Korea has become the fourth largest export market of Vietnam, after Japan, with import turnover of $2.7 billion in 2017.
The EU-Vietnam FTA (EVFTA) applies cumulative rules of origin, allowing Vietnamese exporters to use fabric made by third countries which have FTAs with Vietnam or the EU. South Korea is one of the third countries.
Analysts commented that the principle will bring new opportunities to Vietnam to boost exports, because in the future, when more ASEAN countries sign FTAs with the EU, Vietnam will be able to expand material supply sources, while still enjoying preferential tariffs.
As such, Vietnam can import fabric from South Korea to make products domestically and then export finished products back to South Korea, and use South Korean materials to make products for exports to the EU.
This is a great advantage for Vietnam, which has been mostly importing materials from China.
Analysts predict that Vietnam’s textile and garment exports to South Korea will increase by 20 percent this year.
They said becoming the biggest garment supplier to South Korea is within reach of Vietnamese enterprises as South Koreans favor Vietnam-made garment products.
As Vietnam’s textile and garment exports have bounced back, the price of textile and garment companies’ shares has increased by 20 percent.
Thanh Cong Textile & Garment, Investment and Trade (TCM) reported that its profit in July alone was equal to 77 percent of the profit of the entire third quarter of 2017.
According to a report on Vietnamnet
The Vietnamese version of The Bachelor dished up drama when one female contestant asked another to leave the show to be with her — and the second woman almost went through with it.
During the shocking rose ceremony, Minh Thu tearfully explained to the bachelor, Nguyen Quoc Trung, that she had her eye on another person after it appeared Thu was not going to receive a rose.
“I went into this competition to find love,” she said. “But I’ve found that love for myself. But it isn’t you. It’s someone else.”
Thu then left her spot in the lineup and walked over to Truc Nhu. They shared a long hug as the surprised contestants looked on.
“Come home with me. Come home with me. Yeah?” Thu said to Nhu, who patted her head emotionally.
Then Nhu got her turn to speak. Approaching Trung, she said, “I’m sorry. I really want to get to know you because you’re someone who made me feel special and I haven’t felt that way in a long time.”
Trung did not want her to go. “I want to ask, if you decide this, would you feel regretful? This doesn’t change my decision,” he pleaded. “I’m not going to give this rose to anyone else. You only get one chance in this life, and you need to take it. Only you, not anyone else. I want to let you know that I think you’ll have regret if you continue with what you are about to say.”
Despite Trung’s impassioned speech, Nhu returned the rose, embraced Trung and told him, “I know you’ll find someone who really loves you, who understands you, who knows how to take care of you, who can look at you from afar and know how you’re feeling. I’m sorry.”
Nhu and Thu then walked out together, but according to NextShark, Nhu ultimately came back.
In a screenshot on the website, Nhu said, “After talking to Trung, I’ve changed my mind to accept this rose and continue this journey.”
According to a report on People
Despite the broad-based pessimism among cryptocurrency speculators, there are facts that speak by themselves – the numbers. Do you know that even in the environment of the crypto bubble bursting in December 2017, those who bought crypto a year ago are still in profit.
Bitcoin during the recent 12 months has gained more than 100%, Litecoin appreciated by 60%, and Ethereum added 50% in value. Taking a shorter period, during the recent month Bitcoin managed to rise by 8%, while Litecoin and Ethereum lost just around 10%.
Let’s compare it to more traditional assets. NASDAQ 100, the leader of growth among indices, appreciated by 25% during the last 12 months, and in the previous month it rose only 3,3%. Even Brent Crude Oil that has been experiencing the bullish trend due to the end of oil wars between the Middle East and the USA managed to surge only by 40% from last August.
Digital assets are only starting to attract the attention of the mass auditory. The hype we saw at the end of last year was driven mainly by early adopters. This hypothesis is proved by the number of companies and institutions taking measures to come closer to the crypto industry.
In early August, the Intercontinental Exchange, the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, confirmed its plans to establish a new company that would offer “consumers and institutions to buy, sell, store and spend digital assets on a seamless global network.”
It means that very soon a horde of large-scale investors will enter the market, and one should be prepared for that.
If you don’t want to take risks of buying and holding cryptocurrency, you may try to mine it. If you still have doubts, it’s not necessary to purchase costly equipment and to waste money paying electricity bills. You can try renting hashing power from the service provider with the help of cloud mining.
Take, for example, cloud mining of Ethereum. According to Cryptocompare calculator, the profit per year is about $1,424 with 3.59 ETH mined during this period. With cloud mining services cost deducted, your annual net profit is around 886 US dollars. And it’s even more profitable if you buy an unlimited contract. Hashtoro.com service offers unlimited ETH contracts for $2,610. It means that in three years you will get stable profit without any need to think of equipment or to look after your rig.
In Bitcoin’s case, cloud mining may become even more profitable, as the cryptocurrency keeps attracting the attention of the mass market showing a higher rate of appreciation. The total revenue at the current exchange rate will be around $870 annually.
However, it is essential to take into account that the world of cryptocurrencies is highly volatile and dynamic. And these numbers will rise and fall accordingly with the movements of prices of these cryptocurrencies.
By Alexander Petersons, product director of Hashtoro.comcloud mining provider.
He was an IT specialist, serial entrepreneur. Started his professional career in small IT companies in Europe, then moved to America for several years. Worked on the development of mobile processors in Telecommunications equipment company Qualcomm (USA).
Since 2012, with a team of like-minded people been working towards creating their own cryptocurrency. Crypto-enthusiast, author of articles on IT and blockchain. He graduated Riga Technical University and Cass business school (The UK), MSc in Corporate Finance.
The components and systems supplier segment of the auto industry is facing many challenges because it is still a fledgling industry compared to some of its neighbors like Thailand. At the same time it is providing incredible opportunities and with the right steps, can quickly leapfrog to an advanced/developed industry status with greater contribution to the country’s GDP.
Current manufacturing in the country, caters predominantly to the two wheeler producers and the aftermarket segment of vehicles where the requirements in terms of technology, quality, processes, logistics, management systems, costing etc. are not as demanding as OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) need. Because of the low volumes the many car manufacturers in the country resorted to CKD (Completely Knocked Down) assembly operations and hence do not buy components locally.
Many factors show that this is about to change, and augurs well for the component industry
Govt’s initiative to encourage manufacturing in the country (“Decree 116”), have made the likes of Toyota, Hyundai and others, expand their production operations to make more vehicles within the country.
Volumes of vehicles are expected to surge 30% in 2020 from the 7.5 million two wheelers and 250,000 cars last year. Other economic indicators predict a swell in consumption because of the high population at 93 mn and the poor vehicle density. (16 per 1000 in 2016, compared to 341 in Malaysia and 196 in Thailand), which gives an indication of the potential demand. The average GDP growth rate of 7% (achieved in the maintained in the past years) would of course ensure this potential materializes. Establishment of a new production facility with a planned capacity of 250,000 vehicles by VinFast, the home grown automaker is indicative of the forecasted escalation in demand for vehicles which would translate to demand for local components as well. The statutory local content norms for vehicle manufacturers is another big driver for manufacturing.
Apart from this the industry will look at export opportunities. Many MNC will start looking at Vietnam as a manufacturing base as soon as the skill levels go up and as long as the competitive advantages are retained, like the wiring harness business has already done. It constitutes nearly 50% of automotive exports from Vietnam.
The many big brand multinational suppliers coming into the country on the back of VinFast would obviously bring in the most advanced systems and technology with proven products. It is the other home grown tier 2 suppliers, mainly in the SME sector, those who aspire to manufacture and assemble parts for direct supply to the vehicle manufacturers, who would need to buck up to take advantage of the demand surge.
While local manufacture is being given a boost it has the opportunity to right away go in for the latest advanced technologies and skip some steps in modernization. In fact it has the option to even choose between electric/hybrid or conventional IC (Internal combustion) engine powered vehicles. And it should do that. However sometimes it may be advisable not to invest in very advanced high cost equipment. Volumes in the near future do not warrant high automation. Capital expense planning is very critical to financial success in the cyclical automotive business. In fact not planned prudently it may erode the competitive position of a business. And so a cautious and progressive increase in capital expenditure as the demand picks up is needed.
What will also be rational is to bring in the “appropriate” technology. Those that will foster the competitive position of the country in terms of employment generation, cost, skilling, and of course the competence building of the managerial/supervisory personnel.
Vietnamese labor cost advantage is being noticed by the world in the light of substantial increases in China. The escalating trade war between USA and China could probably create a new trade route, with a lot of value addition taking place in Vietnam. The SME sector must be ready to seize this opportunity
Supplying to the vehicle industry is not something everyone with a manufacturing facility can do. The specifications, standards, process controls, plant certifications required etc. can be daunting for the inexperienced. Those already manufacturing parts for the spares market do have some advantage to get into OEMs. JVs, technology tie-ups, collaborations, are some ways by which up- gradation is possible quickly. Globally experienced advisors can also be of great help and can facilitate industry keep pace with the change.
By V D Umashanker
Contact author at: vdumashanker@gmail.com or LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/umashanker-v-d-308a5320/
The 2018 Vietnam Mountain Marathon took place in Vietnam’s northern Lao Cai province on Sept. 22-23, with the participation of some 3,400 runners from 54 countries and regions.
Runners competed at the six categories of 10km, 15km, 21km, 42km, 70km and 100km in Sapa town, a popular trekking base.
They ran between villages, through rice terraces, across bamboo bridges and past water buffaloes and cheering ethnic minority people.
Let’s see the amazing pictures on the racing ways.
A total of over 3.5 million students have gained access to loans to cover their tuition fees thanks to a government credit programme, according to the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies.
As of July 31, the credit programme was valued as offering VND13.5 trillion (USD582.4 million ).
The loans have benefited students in poor households; those whose families face financial difficulties caused by severe disasters diseases, fires, and epidemics; as well as those who are orphaned.
A leader of the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies said that the credit programme is a significant policy in terms of economic, political, and social aspects, thus winning applaud of ministries, sectors, and the community.
It aims to use State resources to provide preferential credit for disadvantaged students to help them pursue their learning, contributing to the country’s high-quality human resources training.
Source: Dtinews
A white paper recently published by Asia-focused management consulting firm Solidiance highlights key initiatives taken by Vietnam to develop smart cities in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.
A smart city is generally defined as a city that leverages technology to manage and enhance quality of life, improve services, and use energy resources efficiently. Partnerships between the public and private sector are making progress to integrate smart city technologies into basic bureaucratic processes and government management systems in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, and 33 cities and provinces in the country have already begun implementing smart city initiatives.
Foreign tech companies supporting smart city development
VNPT and Microsoft began collaboratively deploying smart city development platforms in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi in December 2017. Trilliant Networks, a global internet service provider, partnered with the Ho Chi Minh City Power Corporation (EVN HCMC) and built Vietnam’s first smart city communications platform pilot, at Saigon Hi-Tech Park, in May 2017.
In Hanoi, Microsoft signed a memorandum of cooperation to support the city in developing technologies for smart cities, such as e-government, healthcare, education, and data collection for management. Local companies like Viettel, VNPT, FPT Group, and Nhat Cuong are also supporting the initiative. The estimated budget for developing Hanoi into a smart city is around $3 billion. It will spend approximately $350 million from the national and city budgets, with the remainder to be raised from private sector investors or by implementing certain public-private partnership (PPP) models.
HCMC: Vietnam’s first smart city, by 2020
Ho Chi Minh City will become the first smart city in Vietnam. It is focusing on cloud computing infrastructure, big data, building data warehouses / data centers and security-monitoring centers, and developing an open data ecosystem to achieve its 2020 goal. In addition, the city is planning to introduce smart solutions in healthcare, food safety, education, traffic management, flood control, and law enforcement.
The Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee announced plans in March to develop Can Gio district into a smart urban area, while all districts in the city are expected to have “smart development plans” by 2020. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed in April, and the pilot for Can Gio will also begin in Districts 1 and 12 and Thu Thiem ward in District 2.
Meanwhile, the American Chamber of Commerce has announced a collaborative effort between the government of Ho Chi Minh City and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to develop the PPP structure to fund the development of smart city systems, particularly in Districts 2 and 9 and Thu Duc, where a large amount of manufacturing and technology are now being centralized.
The city also plans for a smart city transportation network in new urban areas such as Thu Thiem, in order to ease traffic congestion, reduce emissions, and improve traffic safety. The Thu Thiem Eco Smart City project, funded by South Korea’s Lotte Group, is a 7.4-ha project that will to have a trade and finance center, hotels, office towers, and serviced and residential buildings, at an expected cost of $1.9 billion. A proposal from Vigilant Solution Inc. was received in 2016 for a smart transportation system and a network of 12,000 fixed and mobile cameras will be installed around the city.
Hanoi: Most modern smart city in Southeast Asia?
Hanoi aims to be a smart city by 2030 and focuses on four major sectors: healthcare, education, transport, and tourism. It has already implemented parking systems that allow users to search for parking lots and pay through mobile devices and is planning to launch it in all districts by the end of this year. It is also developing a digital traffic map to manage public transport.
In education, 2,700 schools and universities have introduced electronic school reports and family-to-school contacts as well as online enrollment systems. Regarding healthcare, the city was the first to introduce e-documents in its health management system, with 900,000 records so far. By 2020, the focus will be on developing core infrastructure and smart applications, while the second phase, from 2020 to 2025, will focus on making the solutions operational.
The construction of a smart city in Dong Anh province, worth more than $4 billion, will begin in October. A joint venture between Vietnam’s BRG Group and Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation, Japan’s Nikken Sekkei Architecture Company has been tasked with designing the 310-ha city.
Reducing traffic congestion through smart city technology
In order to move towards a more sustainable city model to confront challenges caused by rapid urbanization, Ho Chi Minh City’s Department of Information and Communications has partnered with Microsoft on smart city initiatives, including building a cloud-based platform for real-time monitoring of city traffic, parking spaces, and public bus routes in 2016.
Hanoi has different plans to reduce traffic congestion and develop smart city initiatives. In May 2017, it began piloting the iPARKING app for parking on Ly Thuong Kiet and Tran Hung Dao Streets. Other projects, such as upgrading traffic signal control systems and related equipment, adding more equipment and databases to improve the efficiency of the GPS tracking system, and efforts toward replacing bus tickets with transport cards, have also been implemented. Concurrently, Ho Chi Minh City launched a mobile app – TTGT TP.HCM – providing maps, traffic updates, and routing information.
While progress has been made, the two cities will still need to establish more smart city initiatives to minimize the consequences of severe traffic congestion seen in other large Asian cities.
Conclusion
Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi are facing increasing population growth driven by rapid urbanization and will need to make substantial changes to promote sustainable living. Over the last decade, the urban population in Vietnam has grown at an average of nearly 3 per cent a year – the fastest in Southeast Asia – with Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City growing 3.8 per cent and 4 per cent per year, respectively. Increasing population density is also adding pressure to aging infrastructure and is impacting the environment.
In an effort to reduce these urbanization challenges, the Vietnamese Government is moving towards a growth model that promotes an ecological balance between public health and safety and infrastructure and urban development. Smart city developments are seen as a necessary component to push for sustainability in urban cities, along with better public transport, green spaces, and green buildings.
Source: Vneconomictimes
Vietnam has announced to hold a state funeral for President Tran Dai Quang, who passed away Friday, on September 26 and 27.
President Quang died, aged 62, at the 108 Military Hospital in Hanoi on Friday morning, after fighting a serious illness for more than a year.
“His passing is a great loss to the Party, the government and the people,” said a statement released by the country’s top Party and government leaders on Sunday afternoon.
It said that during the two-day funeral, governmental offices and public places will fly the national flag at half-mast, and no public entertainment events will be held.
Quang will lie in state at the National Funeral Home at 5 Tran Thanh Tong Street, Hanoi, where mourners can pay their respects from 7 a.m. Wednesday, September 26.
A memorial ceremony will be held at 7:30 a.m. on Thursday and he will be buried at Kim Son District Cemetery in his hometown Ninh Binh Province at 3:30 p.m. the same day.
All services will be aired live on national television.
Similar ceremonies will be held at the same time at the Independence Palace in Ho Chi Minh City and Kim Son District People’s Committee.
Cuba is also holding a state-funeral to mourn President Quang and rich tributes have poured in from leaders all over the world.
Viet Tuan report on Vnexpress
The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) may not approve the commercial banks’ proposal on lifting the credit growth rate ceiling, but banks still believe they will be able to fulfill their yearly business plans.
SBV’s standpoint on the credit growth ceiling is clear: it will not grant more credit ‘quotas’ to banks unless this is necessary. Commercial banks, which have been relying on lending, have to adjust their business targets.
LienViet Post Bank, for example, has lowered the targeted profit in 2018 from VND1.8 trillion to VND1.2 trillion.
However, many banks can have relatively high credit growth rates and have confidence in fulfilling the business plan. The credit growth rates of ACB, HDBank and TPBank were 11.7 percent, 15.1 percent and 16.2 percent, respectively, in the first half of the year.
Commercial banks have also reported very satisfactory profits for H1, many of which have nearly obtained profits projected for the whole year.
Vietcombank has got VND8 trillion pre-tax profit, fulfilling 57 percent of the yearly plan, Military Bank VND3,829 trillion (56 percent) and VIB Bank VND1.151 trillion (57 percent).
Some small banks have even made more impressive profits. Nam A Bank has got VND292 billion in pre-tax profit, equal to 97.3 percent of the profit projected for the whole year 2018.
The satisfactory business results gained so far this year give one reason to banks to keep optimistic about the business performance in 2018, though there is not much more room for credit growth.
HSC Securities has predicted that the total post-tax profit of listed banks would grow by 32.28 percent in 2018 and 22.52 percent in 2019.
HSC commented that with new instructions released recently, it is highly possible that the central bank won’t lift the credit growth ceiling in the third quarter like it did in previous years. However, some specific banks may get additional quota for credit growth.
Analysts commented that healthy banks will still be able to obtain high profit while there is no need to increase the lending. They can expect profit from payment services, foreign currency trading and other operations.
There are two other ways for banks to increase their profit. First, cutting operation costs by improving the productivity and reducing unnecessary expenses. Second, improving the quality of loans. Both solutions are feasible for banks as the bad debt ratio of the banking system has decreased to one percent.
An SBV report showed that the credit had grown by 7.88 percent by the end of June.
At the government’s regular press conference in late August, Deputy Governor of SBV Dao Minh Tu said that the figure had reached 8.5 percent by August 30, or half of the credit growth target set for 2018.
Nam Mai report on Vneconomictimes
Local police have detained two people allegedly involved in the deaths of seven people at a weekend music festival named “Trip to the moon” in Hanoi, Vietnam.
Le Thai Son, 26, director of the festival organizer company A Chau Connected Agency, was taken into custody for alleged violations of safety in mass gatherings.
According to the police, Son should be responsible for the deaths of seven young adults in the worst fatal narcotics-related case in Vietnam to date.
The police also issued an emergency arrest warrant for 19-year-old Bui Manh Duy. He was accused of luring others into illegally using narcotics.
Duy allegedly gathered a group of 15 young adults to chip in to buy 10 pills of ecstasy and marijuana to ingest at the music event.Among the group, one suffered a drug overdose.
The electric music festival Trip to the Moon hosted at the West Lake Water Park turned tragic on Sunday when seven young people died and another five were admitted to the hospital due to drug overdose.