Vietnamese man earns master’s degree at 85

Advertisements

An octogenarian in central Vietnam has earned a master of business administration degree after surmounting obstacles associated with aging, illness, and family.

Le Phuoc Thiet, 85, received his master’s degree on Sunday to the rapturous ovation resounding through a hall of over 500 people, including his fellow postgraduates, none of whom were older than him and many at the age of his grandchildren.

Vo Thanh Hai, president of the institution awarding the degree, private-run Duy Tan University in the central city of Da Nang, praised Thiet’s achievement as exemplary for efforts to acquire knowledge at an advanced age.

After leaving Vietnam for the U.S. in 1975, Thiet failed to continue pursuing an education since he had to grind away to earn money for his wife and seven children.

It was not until 1995, when the children were all married, that he attended California State University at 62 and obtained a graduate degree in economics seven years later.

In 2013, Thiet and his wife returned to their hometown in the central province of Quang Nam in order to facilitate the latter’s treatment of dementia, while the children decided to settle in the U.S.

Two years later, at the age of 82, he enrolled in a master’s degree program at Duy Tan University, citing the purpose of preventing the decrease of memory. His wife passed away shortly after his enrollment.

Thiet finished the MBA program with a remarkable result, after overcoming the pain from his wife’s death and frequent illness.

He diligently read books and took physical exercises to improve his memory and logical thinking and keep pace with classmates.

It was the industriousness that enabled Thiet, who is proficient in English, to far surpass other students and pass exams with flying colors, said Vo Thanh Hai, the Vietnamese university’s vice-president.

“He would invariably be the first person to get to the class, rain or shine. He even braved the stormy weather traveling over 30 kilometers on the bus to go to school, against dissuasion from his family.”

Source: Tuoitrenews

Myanmar and Vietnam militaries launch MyTel mobile carrier

Advertisements

Holding companies push 4G and fiber-optic advantage with Myanmar’s fourth operator

Commercial fronts for the militaries of Myanmar and Vietnam formally kicked off a mobile carrier joint venture on June 9 at the launch ceremony of Myanmar National Tele and Communications, or MyTel. Nikkei reported

The event in Yangon was presided over by Myanmar’s commander in chief, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, with Gen. Sein Win, the defense minister, and 50 other senior officers present.

The ceremony was attended by Luan Thuy Duong, Vietnam’s ambassador in Myanmar, and Major General Nguyen Manh Hung, the group’s Soviet-trained top executive.

Viettel refused to comment on the relationship between the militaries of the two countries.

MyTel is 49% owned by Viettel, a Vietnamese enterprise wholly owned and operated by the defense ministry. Of MyTel’s other shares, 28% are owned by Star High, a subsidiary of Myanmar Economic Corporation (MEC), a conglomerate belonging to Myanmar’s military. The remaining 23% are owned by Myanmar National Telecom Holding, a consortium of 11 local companies.

Min Aung Hlaing was afforded a VIP reception when he visited Vietnam in March 2017 and met President Tran Dai Quang, who told him that Myanmar has always been important to Vietnam’s foreign policy.

MyTel plans to invest $1 billion more developing its 2G and 4G network, which already provides 80% national coverage. The system includes 30,000km of fiber-optic cable, which is about half the total nationwide. The 4G services have already been rolled out in 300 townships.

“We will give a quality service at an affordable price,” Zaw Min Oo, MyTel’s chief external officer, told the Nikkei Asian Review. “We will provide everything our customers need.”

Mytel offers services in the Shan language, targeting some 6 million people close to Myanmar’s borders with China, Laos, and Thailand. It also offers free roaming on Viettel networks for subscribers travelling between Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam.

MyTel was granted a license in January 2017, and prior to the official launch provided a limited service in the capital, Nay Pyi Taw.

MyTel is Myanmar’s fourth mobile operator. The biggest player with a 42% market share is Myanma Post and Telecommunications (MPT), which partnered in 2014 with Japan’s KDDI and Sumitomo. Norway’s Telenor and Qatar’s Ooredoo have 35% and 23% market shares respectively.

Although there is not much price differential, and all providers offer affordable packages, users are already buying MyTel sim cards. “Even though they already have MPT, Telenor or Ooredoo SIM cards, my customers believe that MyTel internet data is faster,” said one shopowner in Yangon.

“My family is in Myitkyina in the north,” Gwan Sai, a user, told Nikkei. “They told me MyTel internet is very fast in that area.”

MEC, founded in 1997, is one of the two major conglomerates used as economic vehicles by the military in Myanmar. The other, Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings (UMEH), was set up in 1990 and enjoys a large range of business concessions. Both MEC and UMEH became public companies in 2016, and were listed among the country’s top five taxpayers in 2015 and 2016.

By THUREIN HLA HTWAY, Nikkei staff writer

Lawmakers urge caution on Vietnam cyber security bill

Advertisements

It goes against international commitments and could open the door to abuse of power, MPs say.

Several legislators on Monday expressed grave reservations and urged serious consideration of the proposed cyber security law before taking a decision tomorrow morning on passing it. VNExpress reported

Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy, member of the legislative National Assembly Committee for Social Affairs, said some provisions of the bill go against commitments Vietnam made when joining the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the EU-Vietnam free trade agreement (FTA).

The bill requires firms like Google and Facebook to open representative offices in Vietnam, but both WTO and EU-Vietnam FTA rules say that cross-border telecommunications services are unlimited to WTO member markets.

And while there are certain exceptions to the rule, there is nothing that requires foreign companies to have a representative office in member countries, she said.

Besides, the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP 12) that Vietnam signed in February last year does not allow signatories to dictate if a company is allowed to conduct business based on where its IT infrastructure is located.

“National security is very important and therefore, the National Assembly has already issued the law on national security and law on cyber-information security and it can be said that these two laws have worked like two very strong locks. And if the law on cyber security comes into life, it is just like adding one more lock,” said Thuy.

The law on cyber information security does not cover operations of foreign digital media firms in Vietnam. It mainly regulates the use of internet by Vietnamese nationals.

Some provisions of the bill under discussion aim to give the government greater control over foreign digital giants as well as local users posting anti-government propaganda or information that ignites violence and disturbs public security, or defamatory and slanderous content.

The bill, proposed by the Ministry of Public Security, also wants the digital tech giants to store local users’ information in Vietnam and provide such information to the ministry on request.

The NA Standing Committee has explained that the above requirement is to protect national sovereignty over electronics data and deal with cyber-incidents and behaviors that violate national security and social order.

It will also support state agencies to investigate, verify and handle violations and prevent information against the Party and the state being posted on the internet, the committee said.

Initially, the bill had a provision requiring foreign companies to install servers in Vietnam, but arguments about integration and the need for an open environment pushed the ministry to scrap it in January.

Legislator Nguyen Lan Hieu said the cyber security law was new not only for Vietnam, but also many other countries in the world.

Since several of its provisions remain controversial, he urged the parliament to “give the bill careful consideration before passing it.”

Hieu also questioned a provision which says “the bill will prevent and handle cyber information with anti-state propaganda contents, inciting riots, disturbing security and social order, and humiliating, slandering, violating economic management order.”

He argued that there was a thin line between what is wrong and what is right for many things that happen in everyday life, so “who is going to decide whether a (piece of) cyber information is violating or not?”

He noted that in Indonesia, a judge decides whether a piece of information is toxic or not.

Nguyen Huu Cau, director of the police department in Nghe An Province, told Hieu that so far, agencies in charge of verifying information have consulted other concerned agencies for clarification.

“If the information has to do with culture, we reach out to the culture ministry, for example,” he said.

Another controversial provision of the draft law is the examination of internal networks of agencies and organizations by units under the public security ministry in case the former violate regulations or when the ministry orders such examinations.

Legislator Ta Van Ha said this provision should be reconsidered because it can trigger abuse of power and undermine the operations of agencies and organizations.

However, at the end of Monday meeting, Lieutenant General Vo Trong Viet, chairman of the NA’s National Security and Defense Committee, urged three times that the draft law is kept unchanged.

by Vu Hoang

Market to remain firm despite adjustments

Advertisements

Vietnamese stocks are forecast to experience volatility and adjustments in some trading sessions next week but the rising momentum will continue to be the mainstream trend in the short term, analysts said.

The benchmark VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HOSE) increased 0.22 per cent to close at 1,039.01 points. Last week witnessed the strongest growth of the VN-Index during the last two months with the index recording weekly gains of 4.7 per cent.

On the Hà Nội Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index edged up 0.73 per cent to end at 119.86 points on Friday.

The northern market index fell a total 3.6 per cent in the week.

An average of 223.3 million shares worth VNĐ6.2 trillion (US$272 million) were traded per session on the two exchanges, down 6.2 per cent in volume and 1.5 per cent in value compared to the previous week.

According to Bảo Việt Securities Company (BVSC), after two consecutive rising weeks, the VN-Index is forecast to face challenges next week.

“Key information likely to affect the stock market next week includes the results of the US Federal Reserve (Fed)’s meeting, restructuring of two ETF portfolios (June 15th) and information about first-quarter business outlooks of enterprises,” it said.

The inflow of foreign capital was a strong supporter of the market’s upward trend last week.

Foreigners were net purchasers for the first time in nearly two consecutive months of maintaining net selling.

They posted a net buy value of more than VNĐ122.8 billion on both exchanges.

Hoàng Thạch Lân, head of individual client analysis at Việt Dragon told tinnhanhchungkhoan.vn that the significant improvement in trading volume of foreigners in the past two weeks has created a solid foundation, at least psychologically, for investors to become more confident in the market.

However, the movements of foreign traders will be hardly predictable, as it will much depend on the Fed’s moves, he added.

According to Vũ Minh Đức, head of market analysis at Việt Capital Securities JSC (VCSC), in May, foreigners were increasingly accelerating net selling.

This period of time also witnessed the wave of capital withdrawal of foreign investors from emerging markets to shift towards the US market due to the increasing attractiveness of the US dollar.

“However during the current time, while observing the volatility of foreign-run exchange traded funds (ETFs), we do not see the trend of strong capital withdrawals,” Đức said.

This showed that most foreign capital flows were still being kept in the Vietnamese market to wait for the coming IPO wave, or beyond, for the prospect of the market being upgraded to emerging market status from its current frontier market, he added.

“Thus, although the Fed may continue to raise interest rates in this June meeting, the Vietnamese stock market is still attractive enough to compete with the strength of the dollar,” Đức said.

Technically, according to him, the market had found its bottom and will maintain an upward trend with the new target of reaching 1,080 points.

Sharing the same idea, Nguyễn Thế Minh, head of analysis at Yuanta Securities Vietnam Co, said cash flow had spread among large-cap stock groups last week and the pressure of adjustment due to profit-taking remained low.

“Although the market will see adjustments during some coming trading sessions, I still believe that it will continue to maintain its uptrend momentum next week,” Minh said.

Buyback scheme

Buyback schemes of large-cap business owners and their related shareholders have helped boost stock prices.

Among local stocks that have seen prices rise after business leaders and their relatives registered to purchase shares back was Vietnam Prosperity Joint Stock Commercial Bank (VPBank).

After debuting on the southern exchange in mid-August last year at VNĐ39,000 ($1.73) per share, VPBank (VPB) rose 77.7 per cent in eight months to the highest value of VNĐ69,300 per share on April 9. VPBank erased that growth to close May 28 at VNĐ38,800 per share – its post-listing record low.

VPBank shares had jumped 33.5 per cent since its record low to end Friday at VNĐ51,800 per share after the bank chairman’s wife announced on May 29 she would buy five million shares and the bank itself last week planned nearly VNĐ2.5 trillion on purchasing back 73.2 million bonus shares.

Chairman Nguyễn Đức Tài of Mobile World Investment Corporation (MWG) on May 29 registered to buy 100,000 shares after the company shares had experienced strong volatility for two months, ending May 28 at VNĐ102,300 per share.

This was also the first time Mobile World’s chairman registered his share buyback since the firm’s listing on the HCM Stock Exchange in July 2014. It has boosted MWG nearly 18.3 per cent to end Friday at VNĐ121,000 per share.

Budget carrier Vietjet (VJC) on April 2 reached its record high of VNĐ226,890 per share but then slipped to VNĐ147,000 per share on May 30. The firm’s managing director Lưu Đức Khánh registered to purchase 500,000 shares and VJC shares have gained 22 per cent to end Friday at VNĐ172,000 per share.

Source: VNS

 

Controversial draft law on special zones postponed

Advertisements

The vote to approve the controversial draft Law on Special Administrative and Economic Units will be postponed until the sixth National Assembly session, to commence in October, instead of the on-going fifth.

According to a special announcement released early on Saturday morning from the Government Office, the postponement aims to provide the Government with more time to study and complete debates on the draft law.

The Law on Special Administrative and Economic Units of Van Don, Bac Van Phong and Phu Quoc had been built carefully and elaborately to institutionalise Party resolutions and materialise the 2013 Constitution to create a legal basis for the construction of three special economic zones, said the announcement.

The draft law was submitted to the month-long fourth National Assembly last October and November for comments.

After receiving enthusiastic and considered opinions of NA deputies, scientists, economists, experts, voters and people throughout the country during the current fifth NA meetings, the Government agreed with the NA Standing Committee to re-consider and postpone the adoption of the draft law until the next meeting.

The move is hoped to meet the requirements and aspirations of NA deputies, voters and people to successfully build three special zones, firmly maintaining national security and sovereignty.

Regarding the duration of land leases, the Government will consider and submit to the National Assembly for adoption regulations as prescribed in the Land Law. There will be no regulations on a special land lease of up to 99 years in special economic zones.

Earlier on Thursday, on the sidelines of the NA’s fifth session, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc affirmed to media that all opinions on the land lease period detailed in the draft law would be considered, and reasonable adjustments will be made to meet people’s aspirations.

Recently, the regulation regarding land lease of 99 years in the draft Law on Special Administrative and Economic Units of Van Don, Bac Van Phong and Phu Quoc (in Quang Ninh, Nha Trang and Khanh Hoa provinces, respectively) has been a hot topic among the public.

Source: VNA

Sadness at Vietnam noodle shop where Bourdain dined with Obama

Advertisements

The owner of a Hanoi noodle shop where Anthony Bourdain slurped down ‘bun cha‘ with former US president Barack Obama expressed her shock and sorrow Saturday over the death of the globetrotting American celebrity chef.

Bun Cha Huong Lien restaurant in the Vietnamese capital’s leafy Old Quarter soared to fame after the 2016 sit-down between Obama and Bourdain for his CNN show.

The pair shared a simple meal of pork noodles and fried spring rolls — each dish worth around $3 — and photos of the casual dinner quickly went viral.

Bourdain died by suicide while in France filming an episode of his Emmy-winning CNN food and travel programme “Parts Unknown”, the network said Friday. He was 61.

“I was surprised and sad when I heard about (Bourdain’s) death,” Nguyen Thi Nga, co-owner of Bun Cha Huong Lien restaurant told AFP.

“(Bourdain) was a nice, friendly and folksy person… He praised our bun cha dish and its fish-sauce broth. He loved Vietnamese food,” Nga said.

Obama posted a tribute on Twitter to Bourdain on Friday, sharing a picture of the pair drinking beer during the meal which took place during his state visit to Hanoi.

Bourdain came to Vietnam several times throughout his life, making several TV programmes about his fascination with the country’s food.

Inside the restaurant, as hungry customers poured in for lunch on Saturday, diners gave extra attention to the glass box in which the table and chairs used by Bourdain and Obama are preserved.

“I came here to share the grief of the loss of such a talented chef… he was a such a special person because he had such a great passion for Vietnamese food,” customer Nguyen Quan told AFP.

Source: AFP

 

Vietnam’s beer market has potential, but not for all

Advertisements

Vietnam remains one of the few beer markets in the world which is still maintaining high growth. However, not all breweries have succeeded in the market.

Despite big difficulties because of new policies, a luxury tax and fierce competition, the brewing industry can obtain an annual 5 percent growth rate, according to Vietnam Association of Liquor, Beer and Beverage (VBA) chair Nguyen Van Viet.

“While consumption in other markets has levelled off, the Vietnamese market remains full of potential,” Viet said at a recent workshop on beverages.

Euromonitor also commented that Vietnam is a market with great potential thanks to street food culture and rapid urbanization, predicting that beer consumption in Vietnam would peak in 2016-2021.

The market is so attractive that Thaibev accepted to pay $5 billion to acquire Sabeco, which holds the largest market share.

Vietnam is a market with great potential thanks to street food culture and rapid urbanization, predicting that beer consumption in Vietnam would peak in 2016-2021.

In 2008, Vietnam ranked eighth in Asia in beer consumption. Eight years later, it ranked third, below Japan and China.

However, Vietnam has become a ‘battlefield’ for brewers.

Vietnam saw ‘beer clubs’ mushrooming in 2015-2016, and now many of them are shutting down. Of big brewers, only Heineken and Sabeco have been prospering, while others have made unsatisfactory profits. Sapporo has reported sales increases, but its expenses for marketing and ads are very high.

Four years after squeezing into the beer market, Masan, a big consumer goods manufacturer, marketed Su Tu Trang (White Lion) product. However, the product is rarely seen at sales agents or on supermarket shelves.

Prior to that, a series of big players failed. These include Laser brand of Tan Hiep Phat Group.

The product advertised as ‘the bottled fresh beer present in Vietnam for the first time’ had a selling price higher than Tiger beer and nearly the same as Heineken. Only one year after launching the product and spending $3 million on advertisements, Tan Hiep Phat had to stop production.

Foster’s, after 10 years of trying to seek a foothold in the market (1997-2007), was transferred to APB. The value of the deal was $105 million, according to some sources.

Sabmiller once joined forces with Vinamilk to build a 100 million liter per annum brewery in Binh Duong province. However, its product remains unfamiliar to Vietnamese. Meanwhile, Vinamilk left the joint venture after two years of operation.

According to VBA, 4 billion liters of beer were consumed in 2017, with 45 liters of beer per capita a year.

Under the beverage industry’s development strategy, Vietnam would produce 4.1 billion liters of beer by 2020 and 5.5 billion liters by 2035.

Source: Vietnamnet

Mr. Muoi Do – Honorary Consul of Estonia to Vietnam becomes CEEC Advisory Committee Member

Advertisements

CEEC is honor to receive Mr. Muoi Van Do – Honorary Consul of Estonia to Vietnam as one of our Advisory Committee Member since June 2018.

Mr. Muoi Do is member of the Board, CFO of TRA-SAS, a joint stock corporation is one the leading companies in the field of maritime agency, shipping broker, forwarding, logistic providing, Distribution for consumption products and exclusive importer for brand name of Remy Martin, Macallan Whisky, William Grand and Sons, Lobkovicz beer of Czech, Nokia care, Intel Vietnam products, Starbuck Vietnam and McDonald…. He became Honorary Consul of Estonia to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam since 2014.

He has 20 years in working with foreign with partner and consulting to foreign investment, familiar with import process for consumption products being imported to Vietnam as well as finding local partners.

We strongly believe that, with the presence of Mr. Muoi Do in the Advisory Committee, we will have more support and advise for our further activities and operations.

By Ceecvn

 

Asia must counter protectionist tide, Vietnam deputy PM says

Advertisements

The rising tide of protectionism threatens to disrupt economic growth in Asia, Vietnam’s deputy prime minister warned on Monday, calling for a renewed global commitment to the tried-and-true principle of free trade.

Economic cooperation, Truong Hoa Binh told the Future of Asia conference in Tokyo, has been instrumental in helping Asia overcome crises and become the world’s growth engine. In contrast, he said, “The return of protectionism leads to tension in trade relations between the world’s leading economies.”

Binh’s speech emphasized how Vietnam is moving on after U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew from the Trans-Pacific Partnership. He said Vietnam is committed to frameworks including the revived TPP 11 — a Japan-backed agreement formally known as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, or CPTPP.

“We also highly value the Japanese government’s effort in accelerating the conclusion of the negotiation and the signing of the CPTPP,” he said. “We hope that Japan, as a leading economic partner of many Asian economies, will serve as a locomotive for enhancing regional economic integration and connectivity.”

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc had said in March that he hoped to expand a revived TPP to include the U.S. and other countries, to drive growth and curb protectionism. But for the time being, Vietnam is focused not only on the CPTPP but also the proposed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, a China-led framework.

Binh stressed that Asia should adhere to international law-based frameworks like the World Trade Organization.

“Even without the U.S., the Trans-Pacific Partnership is very important as it covers a population of 500 million across the 11 member nations, with total GDP of over $10 trillion,” Binh said in a separate interview. “Coupled with the economic growth in Asia, the participating countries will reap a lot of benefits.”

Along with Vietnam and Japan, the CPTPP spans Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru and Singapore. Together, they account for around 13.5% of global economic output — a significant figure, though far smaller than the 40% the TPP would have covered with the U.S.

“Asia’s GDP growth accounts for 45% of global GDP and is expected to reach 50% by 2025,” Binh said. Asian countries have also become bigger players in global trade and investment, accounting for around one-third of international foreign direct investment, import and export values.

Aside from free trade, Binh said in the interview that agreeing on international standards through pacts like the CPTPP will help Vietnam accelerate domestic reform.

“It will be easier for foreign companies to enter Vietnam, which will connect the country with the global supply chain,” he said. “We will work more closely together with Japan, which has worked so hard toward signing the treaty, and push forward with the ratification process.”

Binh emphasized that Vietnam has been pushing hard to “eradicate” corruption. “Vietnam’s corruption index has improved a lot, and the world is taking note of [the country’s] progress.”

Asked about public debt, which is close to 65% of GDP, Binh said the government would “review infrastructure programs and suppress unnecessary investments.” He added that public-private partnerships would be used to tap private-sector funds for developing infrastructure.

By Nikkei Asia

Vietnam’s top legislature agrees to delay approval of special economic zone law

Advertisements

Vietnam’s National Assembly, the country’s top legislature, agreed on Monday not to adopt the draft Law on Special Administrative and Economic Units of Van Don, Bac Van Phong, and Phu Quoc at its ongoing fifth session.

The Government Office on Saturday released an announcement, saying it had asked the National Assembly to delay the approval of the draft law to have more time for research and completion until the next session, Vietnam News Agency reported.

Special cases, that could lease land up to 99 years for production and business in the three special economic zones of Van Don in northern Quang Ninh province, of Bac Van Phong in central Khanh Hoa province, and of Phu Quoc in southern Kien Giang province, will not be regulated in the bill.

The decision was made after the National Assembly and the government took into account many aspects of the issue which caught interests and gathered a lot of ideas from local legislators, people of all walks of life and voters nationwide.

At the ongoing fifth session, legislators, scientists, economists, experts and constituents actively contributed their opinions to the draft law.

HCM City offers more incentives to lure more experts, scientists

Advertisements

HO CHI MINH CITY, June 11 (Xinhua) — Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City has adopted a policy on attracting experts and scientists, particularly those in the fields of information technology, biotech, logistics, nanotech and the support industry, in the 2018-2020 period.

Under the policy, the city will provide initial subsidy of 80-100 million Vietnamese dong (3,500-4,400 U.S. dollars) to each scientist or expert after they sign a contract, local daily newspaper Vietnam News reported Monday.

They will receive a monthly salary based on the coefficient used to calculate the pay of senior experts under a governmental decree. Experts and scientists who are professors will be paid at a coefficient of 9.4, while the others will be paid at a coefficient of 8.8.

In addition, experts and scientists will receive an allowance of 50 million Vietnamese dong (2,200 U.S. dollars) to 1 billion Vietnamese dong (44,000 U.S. dollars) per person per research project.

The city authorities will also provide housing or support 50 percent of the rent (up to 7 million Vietnamese dong, or 308 U.S. dollars, per month) for the experts and scientists.

The city’s current policies on attracting highly skilled professionals have resulted in the hiring of only 15 experts between 2015 and 2017, five of whom are foreigners.

How to see another side of Vietnam’s magical

Advertisements

Already one of Vietnam’s most visited destinations, a spate of recent events has brought renewed attention to mystical Halong Bay in northern Vietnam, including a blockbuster Hollywood movie and the imminent opening of a new expressway and international airport.

Inscribed as a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1994, travellers have long been drawn to Halong Bay’s nearly 2000 untouched, jungle-draped limestone islands which rise from deep emerald waters. The scenic bay ranks 3rd among Vietnam’s most visited destinations, behind Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, and hosted nearly 10 million visitors in 2017.

The destination got a boost last year when its mesmerizing seascapes were featured in many of the dreamy, otherworldly scenes in “Kong: Skull Mountain.” Additionally, Halong Bay, along with the broader northern coastal province of Quang Ninh, is the focus of Vietnam’s National Tourism Year 2018, under the banner “Ha Long – Heritage, Wonder, and Friendly Destination”. More than 50 events have been planned between April 2018 and January 2019, including photo exhibitions, a massive carnival, culinary festivals, travel expo and sporting events.

To gear up for the expected increase in visitors, a new highway is expected to open later this month, cutting the travel time between Hanoi and Halong Bay from four hours down to just two. In addition, an international airport is set to open later this year in Van Don, 50 kilometres from the bay.

However, despite there being hundreds of boats to choose from, many visitors find the actual touring of Halong Bay to be quite restrictive, especially since the Vietnamese government revamped the ticketing system in 2017. There are now only 5 routes through Halong and nearby Bai Tu Long Bay, meaning cruise ships all tend to follow the same itinerary in order to hit the main attractions, leading to a somewhat “cookie cutter” experience.

Visitors with a little cash looking for a different way to experience Halong have quietly found L’Azalée Premium Cruises, the bay’s only single-cabin ship. Launched this past February, the company offers an ultra-exclusive experience aboard a luxury junk that sleeps just two passengers who are cared for by five crew members including a butler and a private chef. Guests can choose where they want to stop and the captain will devise a custom itinerary, taking care to visit spots when fewer tourists are around.

Another unique way to see the entirety of Halong Bay is from a 12-seater seaplane. From above, the individual islands come together to form rows upon rows of mountain ranges, looking very much like the undulating body of a “descending dragon”, the meaning of “Halong”. In addition to scenic flights, Hai Au Aviation is set to launch new routes in Quang Ninh within the next few months to Cat Ba Island and up-and-coming Co To Island, with its blissfully quiet beaches and clear, blue water.

By James Pham

Police hold 102 protestors for vandalizing government office in central Vietnam

Advertisements

Officers dispatched by the Ministry of Public Security helped disperse a rowdy protest in Binh Thuan Province.
Police in Binh Thuan Province announced that they have detained 102 people pending investigation into Sunday’s vandalism at the local government office.

“There were no casualties. But dozens of police officers were injured,” police spokesman Nguyen Van Nhieu said.

According to a report by VNExpress, hundreds of protestors had stormed the office of the People’s Committee in Binh Thuan on Sunday, burnt vehicles, destroyed other property and clashed with the police, authorities said.

The situation was resolved near midnight with help from forces from the Ministry of Public Security, Nhieu said.

The vandalizing of the office took place at around 8 p.m., and authorities could only watch helplessly.

Protesters in front of Binh Thuan People’s Committee. Photo by VnExpress

Earlier that night, authorities used smoke bombs and firefighting hoses to diffuse the protest after local officials could not convince the crowd to disperse, but such tactics also proved ineffective.

Nguyen Trung Truc, vice chairman of the People’s Committee of Tuy Phong District, said that traffic patrols had to direct vehicles to take detours because Highway 1A had been immobilized from the afternoon. Some of the protestors threw rocks at public vehicles.

Secretary of the Binh Thuan Party Committee, Nguyen Manh Hung, said that the State does not ban people from expressing their opinions, but the process should be within an allowed framework and should not violate any law.

“It is unacceptable that people engage in aggressive behavior. We must strictly handle these actions under the law,” Hung said.

Last weekend saw huge crowds of protesters gather across the nation, in Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Hanoi and other places. The police in HCMC and the neighboring Binh Duong Province arrested several people for leading the “illegal” protests, media reports said.

There has been general disagreement over a proposed provision in the draft law on Special Economic Zones (SEZs) that would allow foreign investors to lease land for 99 years.

The proposal has since been deferred, as voted by the National Assembly on Monday.

On June 6, Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung had dismissed concerns about other countries, especially China, being able to undermine national sovereignty. He said: “there is no word that mentions China.”

“Foreigners will not be able to migrate easily into the country. Vietnam’s land ownership law is tight enough to prevent them from doing so,” he’d said.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc had also told the press on June 7 that the duration of land lease permit was not “the bottom line” of the draft law. The most important thing is to create a favorable mechanism and business environment for investors at the SEZs, he said.

“The government will respect the National Assembly’s decision on this matter, whatever that is,” the PM added.

The SEZ bill, which was initially planned to be passed next week, is scheduled to be discussed again at the National Assembly’s next session in October.

By Phuoc Tuan

Trump arrives in Singapore for historic summit with Kim Jong Un

Advertisements

President of the United States, Donal Trump touched down in Singapore late Sunday hours after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrived, setting the stage for the two leaders’ high-stakes summit to bring a long-sought end to nuclear tensions on the Korean peninsula.

Trump waved as he walked down the stairs of Air Force One and declared he felt “very good” about the talks before his motorcade with flashers blinking coursed through the streets of Singapore on its way to the Shangri-la hotel. New York Post reported

On-lookers wearing flip-flops snapped shots of the president’s arrival.

Trump traveled to Singapore from Canada where he ​left members of the G-7 countries stunned by refusing to sign a joint-statement and blasted Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as “very dishonest and weak.”

Kim landed in the Southeast Asian nation several hours before Trump and was greeted on the tarmac by the Singapore foreign minister.

He traveled in a black Mercedes-Benz limousine with North Korean flags on the hood to the St. Regis Hotel.

Later Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong welcomed Kim at his official residence Istana Palace. Kim shook hands with Lee and smiled for photos.

“The entire world is watching the historic summit between (North Korea) and the United States of America, and thanks to your sincere efforts … we were able to complete the preparations for the historic summit,” Kim told Lee through an interpreter.

Trump is expected to meet with Lee on Monday.

Trump and Kim will gather for their landmark summit on Tuesday, marking the ​first-ever meeting between a sitting US president and a North Korean leader.

​Kim and Trump will meet at 9 a.m. Tuesday – or 9 p.m. Monday New York time – at the luxurious Capella Resort on Sentosa Island.

Trump said he will know in the “first minute” if Kim is serious about giving up his nuclear arsenal.

“I think within the first minute, I’ll know,” Trump said Saturday as he was leaving the G-7 talks in Quebec for Singapore. “Just my touch, my feel. That’s what I do.”

“You know the way they say that you know if you’re going to like somebody in the first five seconds? Well, I think that very quickly I’ll know whether or not something good will happen​,​”​ he said. ​

The sit-down between Trump and Kim is the culmination of a year-and-a-half of often bitter and ferocious rhetoric that at times seemed to leave the countries on the brink of nuclear war.

Trump vowed to unleash “fire and fury” on North Korea if the regime continued to threaten South Korea and Japan as it test-fired missiles in the pursuit of finding a delivery system for its nuclear weapons.

​He also imposed crippling economic and trade sanctions as part of a “maximum pressure” campaign to isolate North Korea in the world and force it to the negotiating tables.

Since Trump entered the White House, Pyongyang has stepped up its work to develop a nuclear arsenal and said it wouldn’t disarm unless given assurances of protection by the US.

Kim’s regime said its weapons were a guarantee against invasion by the American military.

While the main topic of discussion is denuclearizing the Korean peninsula, the two leaders may also reach a deal to end the Korean War, which technically continues today because only an armistice was signed in July 1953 to stop the fighting.

By Mark Moore

Vietnam company brings industry 4.0 to change lives in Myanmar

Advertisements

Myanmar, where 70 per cent of the people are farm workers, needs modern technologies to improve its agricultural production. The opportunity has come through a Vietnamese telecom company, which provides industry 4.0 apps and services through mobile broadband – Vietnam News reported.

HCM City — The Pyin Oo Lwin Highland in Mandalay Province is Myanmar’s major flower and vegetable production hub thanks to its cool weather and ideal georaphic location.

Its affluence reminds one of Myanmar’s richness in the past. The military coup in 1962 destroyed Myanmar’s economy, but the country has strongly recovered since 2016 when the US lifted its embargo after 19 years.

However, it is not easy to achieve rapid economic development with 70 per cent of the population working as farmers.

Ms. San San Yi is a farmer and would like to change her life but has had to struggle for many years with her eight-hectare flower farm. A lack of knowledge of technology hindered her efforts to learn new things like how to install and operate a water-efficient irrigation system or measure the fertility of the land.

Everything has changed since she accepted an invitation to trial a smart farming app called Nextfarm from Mytel, Viettel’s company in Myanmar, which officially begin to provide mobile phone services on June 9.

Nextfarm is an application to manage farming through sensors buried in the land. It provides owners with all the information needed for farming such as salinity, humidity and light intensity.

In the past Yi’s farming was based on the traditional knowledge and skills passed down by her ancestors, and much depended on the weather. Now she only needs to touch her mobile phone screen to know about the status of her farm and start watering it from wherever she is.

She hires 10 to 20 workers depending on her crop, but believes the expenditure on human resources will be cut by half thanks to Nextfarm.

Elsewhere, Kyaw Shwe, another of the millions of Myanmarese farmers to benefit from smart phone agricultural apps, now has access to modern farming information and improved his output, the Nikkei Asian Review reports .

A few years ago no one in Shwe’s village knew about mobile phones, but now the younger generations are helping seniors like him use technology.

This enables them to escape the pattern of good harvest but low prices, debts and distress sale, which has haunted farmers for centuries.

Telecom revolution

When the Myanmarese Government ended the monopoly in telephony in 2013, the mobile phone usage rate in the country jumped several fold from the earlier 5 per cent in just a few months.

Officials and the media had predicted that when 90 per cent of the population, of which 80 per cent were farmers, used smart phones, the economy would benefit, and this has come true now.

Mytel has ushered in a revolution with its nation-wide mobile broadband infrastructure (the only 4G network that covers the whole country with 30,000 km of fibre-optic cable).

It also has the largest number of apps, with Nextfarm being a good example.

Mytel in fact provides a diverse range of services to help build a smarter society, such as smart agriculture solutions, traffic signal management system, electronic wallet, route surveillance equipment.

Mytel belongs to Telecom International Myanmar, a joint venture between Viettel and two local companies, Star High Public Company and Myanmar National Telecom Holding Public.

The company has a mission of creating “super mobile broadband” in Myanmar for people to connect with each other and offer industry 4.0 apps to help usher in a smarter society.

The world is currently looking at the Southeast Asian country as a new star in the global information technology and telecom firmament.

Exit mobile version