Money

The Health Ministry and businesses in the liquor industry are at loggerheads over efforts to regulate and reduce alcohol consumption in the country, with the latter seeing no need to further tighten current regulations. Speaking at a seminar held on May 25 last week in Hanoi, Nguyen Van Viet, chairman of Vietnam Beer, Alcohol, and Beverage Association (VBA), said that Vietnam’s alcohol production and consumption rate was “at a moderate level.” The industry has not seen any growth for the past three years, he said. With a per capita annual consumption of 6.6 liters, Vietnam is ranked 94 among 194 countries by the World Health Organization (WHO). Tran Thi Trang, Deputy Head of the Health Ministry’s legal department, countered Viet’s claim, saying the average figure of 6.6 liters included non-drinkers above 15. She noted that alcohol consumption among females and males was at 11 percent and 77 percent respectively, compared the corresponding world figures of … [Read more...] about Spirited argument on liquor consumption between Vietnam’s health ministry, businesses

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. Retirement age increase necessary for Vietnam: ILO specialist Retirement age adjustment needs to be flexible: expert  Doan Mau Diep. — Photo tienphong.vn How do you respond to a proposal that Vietnam would raise the retirement age for its workers while many people in the working age still can’t find jobs? It is a real fact that in any labour market, job positions are always bigger than the actual number of working people. Yet, in all countries, many people are still unemployed. Japan is a good example. According to a national survey, there is only one candidate for four working positions while the unemployment rate in Japan currently stands at 2.4 per cent. In the real labour market, the mismatch between supply and demand happens in all countries, and … [Read more...] about Why we have to increase the retirement age?

Thousands of workers at the Vissan Joint Stock Company in HCM City will receive an additional month’s salary and an additional bonus as a reward for business performance to celebrate Tết (Lunar New Year). — Photo nld.com.vnViet Nam News HCM CITY — Trade unions in HCM City are offering their labourers Tết bonuses, gifts, year-end parties and tickets for buses and trains for the upcoming Lunar New Year (Tết) holiday. At the Saigon 3 Garment Joint Stock Company, workers are busy this season but they are happy about working there. In October the company announced that employees would receive a Tết bonus equal to three months of salary. Phạm Văn Có, chairman of the Saigon 3 Garment Joint Stock Company’s trade union, said the company’s board of directors and trade union were determined to please their workers during Tết. “Their hard work throughout the year contributed to our business performance, so they … [Read more...] about City trade unions ensure happy Tết for labourers

A vast array of companies are getting involved with foreign markets, especially Europe (Photo Le Toan) With years of experience in exporting produce to the EU, Phan Van Thuong, director of G.O.C Food Processing Export JSC, a private company located in the northern province of Bac Giang, said that his company is investing a large amount of money in expanding its operations. Over the years, the company’s export turnover of foods like pineapples, baby cucumbers, and asparagus to the EU has seen rapid growth. “Our company once had to refuse an order of 35 containers to Germany, and was able to accept 20 instead, because we didn’t have enough material,” Thuong said. According to him, since the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) was signed in late June, some EU companies have contacted his company seeking co-operation. “They’re interested in typical Vietnamese products,” he said. In another case, at the Nafoods factory in the Mekong Delta … [Read more...] about Agri-trade to blossom through EVFTA

The signing ceremony was held in Hanoi under the witness of the Ministry of Education and Training Based on the globally-recognised and award-winning financial literacy programme Cha-Ching Money Smart Kids, the partnership with JA Vietnam is expected to benefit up to 7,336 children from 31 primary schools in Hanoi in the 2019-2020 academic year and will expand nationwide in the coming years. Building on the success of the Cha-Ching, Prudence Foundation has partnered with Junior Achievement Asia-Pacific in 2016 to develop an enhanced Cha-Ching Curriculum that supports teachers in instilling money-smart skills in students’ daily life. Since then, the curriculum has been actively implemented in public primary schools for Grade 4 students by teachers in eight markets: the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. Since its launch in 2017, the curriculum has reached more than 380,000 students, with over 8,000 teachers trained to deliver … [Read more...] about Prudential and JA Vietnam implement Cha-Ching Curriculum across Hanoi