Hanoi street food guide

Hanoi authorities have decided to temporarily shut all local street food and refreshment stalls and coffee shops from 0:00 on February 16.

The move followed the infections related to a Japanese man who tested positive for Covid-19 after he had died at a local hotel.

The city has also closed all local historical relics from 0:00 on February 16, said Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee and head of the municipal Steering Committee on Covid-19 Prevention and Control Chu Xuan Dung.

The 54-year-old Japanese patient, an expert of Mitsui Vietnam Co., Ltd, entered Vietnam on January 17 via Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City. After two tests which showed negative results, on February 1, he flew to Hanoi and stayed at the Somerset Westpoint Hotel.

Around 7pm on February 13, he was found dead in his hotel room. His sample tested positive for the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 on February 14. The cause of his death is under investigation.

Two people who had come into close contact with him have also tested positive for the virus. One is a Japanese 43-year-old man and the other is a woman in Hanoi.

Dung cited the Hanoi Centre for Disease Control as saying that the city is facing the high risk of Covid-19 infection related to the 54-year-old Japanese patient.

Concerned agencies in Hanoi are working urgently and drastically to screen F1 and F2 cases of him, he said.

Nguyen Khac Hien, director of the Hanoi Department of Health, said many people still do not wear a face mask in public places. Meanwhile, people gather in crowds. He urged for stricter punishment for those violating guidance.

Ha Cam Toan and his family in District 11 have been making ba trang , a savory glutinous rice cake, for the summer cleansing festival for the past 25 years. In Chinese, “ba” is meat and “trang” is rice cake. It is made especially for Tet Doan Ngo, a summer festival that cleanses the body and spirit. The festival is celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, which falls on June 14 this year. ba trang cake hanging in their houses. There are many ways to make this cake. Every family gives their own twist to the recipe,” Toan said as he hung the cakes on two bamboo poles.

Inside Toan’s house on Tue Tinh Street, relatives gather to help make the cake. Every year, the family makes about 6,000 cakes to sell. For the entire week, nearly a dozen of his relatives have helped soak rice, wash leaves, wrap and boil the cakes. Tet Doan Ngo , we make a lot more to sell, mostly to traders from the Chinatown area,” said Toan.

A relative helps soak rice and mung beans, main ingredients of the ba trang cake. Glutinous rice will be added with little salt and soaked for three hours. The mung beans are soaked for six hours.

Tran Cam Thao, Toan’s mother, arranges bundles of washed and pre-boiled banana leaves and bamboo leaves in baskets for wrapping. “Many Chinese families just use bamboo leaves. But my family adds an extra layer of banana leaves on the outside to give the cake its own flavor and make it easier to wrap,” she said.

The filling of the rice cake typically includes meat, salted egg yolk, dried shrimp, peanuts and shiitake mushrooms. The filling is seasoned with spices, giving the cake its distinct aroma.

Depending on the size or customer’s request, each cake will have one to four salted egg yolks. Ba trang cakes are wrapped in a pyramid or square shape.

The Hong (R), a neighbor of Toan who has been coming over to help make the rice cake for Tet Doan Ngo for the past five yeas, said: “It’s very hard to make this cake, because it doesn’t use a mold, so the banana and bamboo leaves have to be cut in a certain way to get the desired shape. It’s fun to see children and youngsters gathering together for this and talk about all kinds of things,” she said.

About four km away, nearly a dozen households on Gia Phu Street in District 6 are also busy making and wrapping the cakes. Chu Que Lan (orange shirt) said nearly 10,000 cakes were made this year, using only bamboo leaves as wrapping.

In the kitchen, Luong Dung Quang watches over six pots at the same time. The cake is cooked on a fire with firewood and charcoal for eight hours.

Nearly a week before the festival, ba trang cakes would be sold on Gia Phu Street in District 6. Each cake weighs about half a kilogram and costs about VND60,000-70,000 ($2.61-3.04).

Hanoimoi’s Weekend interviews architect Doan Ky Thanh, who is one of Hanoi Creative City’s founders.

Architect Doan Ky Thanh.

How do you assess the creative industry in Vietnam?

The creative industry has prevailed in the world for a long time, while in Vietnam this concept is still quite new. In fact, the creative industry is not something that is far away. What people imagine is turned into a product through their hands. It is creative industry.

But to be creative it is necessary to create an environment for creativity to grow and develop. That environment requires transparency in intellectual property rights. Certain creators must be protected for the products they create. That is the motivation to encourage and acknowledge the efforts and talent of creative people.

The creative industry has been showing its great contribution to the GDP of nations. In developed countries, the creative industry even accounts for the largest proportion. Innovative industries in countries such as Japan or Singapore contribute greatly and have high growth rates.

The creative industry only appeared in Vietnam recently. Compared to other countries in the region, we have been delayed by one step.

Recently, the Ha Noi Committee’s Commission’s for Publicity and Education organised a workshop to assess and re-examine the benefits of creative spaces in urban areas and the role of creative activities in socio-economic development.

This recognition shows the changing perception of managers about the role of creative spaces in socio-economic development and their contribution to the creative industry.

What is the most important thing for creators?

It is tolerance. In the office of Hanoi Creative City, we put the word “tolerant” at the highest level to remind our colleagues that to be creative, there must be tolerance to accept the ‘new’. Only tolerance makes people accept the difference of others. Then the difference and tolerance will be the cornerstone of creativity.

So where should we start?

The first thing that can be done right now is to create hubs that connect resources together.

The Vietnamese game Flappy Bird was very successful. To be like that people need to create, write music, graphics, sales and marketing, communications, etc. There must be a lot of capacity to be together to create a product that can convince the market.

For that, first, there must be creative hubs, infrastructure, which are hubs for people to share with each other.

This is very suitable for the knowledge economy that our country and the world are pursuing. Sharing resources, opportunities or legal issues and governance will create an entrepreneurial ecosystem.

A business that starts will cost a lot but if it joins hubs it can reduce costs and spend resources investing in innovation and development.

Hanoi should create creative hubs. It can be seen that the benefits of innovative hubs are to connect the resources that inspire society and those who inspire creativity, attract tourism, and promote trade and production.

All these are socially beneficial when people; tourists and the youth in particular enjoy and consume innovative products. It also contributes to the economy. These hubs will create many other opportunities.

What role does traditional cultural heritage play in creative hub development?

In fact, creators always consider cultural heritage as an asset, an inspiration, and a material to create from.

Selling products is just a normal business. We need to sell cultural products and sell “joy”. To sell cultural products people must know how to exploit and use culture appropriately.

So what role does the creative hub play in developing the creative industry?

The art district is a place where young people have a place to play, enjoy art and interact with artists. Hanoi does not have such art districts.

Art districts are where artists show, experiment and commercialise their art products and bring them to the public faster and more efficiently.

Hoan Kiem District seems to form a creative hub with cultural heritage spaces such as book streets, walking streets or mural streets.

In addition to creating creative spaces and cultural spaces, these creative hubs also contribute to preserving heritage spaces and developing tourism.

Hanoi used to have Zone 9. It once attracted many tourists. Tourists could watch, drinking coffee, buying some items and painting and watching artists work.

In your opinion how should we connect traditional culture to youth?

Many artists around the world and in Vietnam have done that. There needs to be creative hubs or art districts to have space for the creators show their artworks.

Young people today do not have or have very few opportunities to access and transform traditional values. They don’t see and they are not inspired to get to know and like traditional culture.

I believe that if there are spaces for artists to perform surely young people will love traditional culture. VNS

Bao Khanh

Among 81 new locally-transmitted Covid-19 cases reported in Bac Giang, HCMC, Bac Ninh, Hanoi and Ha Tinh this afternoon, June 11, as many as 77 infections were found at quarantine centers or areas under lockdown, according to the Ministry of Health.

Bac Giang Province accounted for the most, 45, followed by HCMC with 18, Bac Ninh with nine, Hanoi with five and Ha Tinh with four.

The ministry also reported one imported Covid-19 case in Tay Ninh Province.

Since April 27, the country has tallied 6,717 locally-infected cases in 39 provinces and cities.

In related news, speaking at an anti-Covid-19 meeting today, Director of the HCMC Department of Health Nguyen Tan Binh said that the clusters related to the Revival Ekklesia Mission in Go Vap District had been put under control, while the infection sources of four other outbreaks remained unknown.

The four coronavirus clusters were discovered at a manufacturing facility in Hoc Mon District, the Ehome apartment building in Binh Tan District, Street 11 in Thu Duc City and Tan Thoi 2 Hamlet in Hoc Mon District.

The leader of the municipal department said that as these clusters were found during the social distancing period, the risk of infection was not high.

Addressing the meeting, chairman of Go Vap District Nguyen Tri Dung said that after 10 days of social distancing in line with the prime minister’s Directive 16, residents effectively complied with Covid-19 safety protocols and rarely ventured out for non-essential reasons.

The Covid-19 situation in the district is expected to get better in the remaining four days of the social distancing period, so he proposed easing social distancing from June 15, explaining that the residents have faced many difficulties during this period.

Meanwhile, chairman of District 12 Le Truong Hai Hieu proposed continuing imposing social distancing on the district in line with Directive 15.

In addition, the leader of Tan Binh District proposed extending social distancing in the city in line with Directive 15 to June 21, the local media reported.

HCMC sees 10 new Covid-19 infections

The Ministry of Health this morning, June 11 confirmed 51 more Covid-19 cases, including 10 imported cases in Ba Ria-Vung Tau and 41 domestic ones, with HCMC accounting for 10.

Apart from the locally-infected cases reported in HCMC, Bac Giang Province detected 23 cases, Bac Ninh and Ha Tinh provinces confirmed four infections each. 35 of the total were found at quarantine facilities or areas under lockdown.

Since April 27, the country has reported 6,636 community-transmitted Covid-19 cases in 39 provinces and cities, with 17 localities having undergone 14 straight days without fresh locally-infected Covid-19 cases.

In another development, Bac Ninh Province allowed Yen Phong District to stop applying Directive 16 on social distancing at midnight after 23 days and follow Covid-19 infection prevention and control measures in line with Directive 15 instead until further notice.

Besides, Song Lieu, Tri Qua and Hoai Thuong communes and 14 hamlets in Thuan Thanh District were also allowed to relax social distancing measures and adopt the prime minister’s Directive 19.

Many other parts of the province, including Luong Tai District and parts of Tien Du District were permitted to ease social distancing in line with Directive 15 and follow anti-Covid-19 measures in line with Directive 19.

Speaking at a meeting with Bac Ninh Province authorities on June 10, Deputy Minister of Health Do Xuan Tuyen said that despite easing social distancing measures, the province and its districts should not be negligent and ask residents to continue to strictly adopt Covid-19 safety protocols.

The province was told to regularly conduct Covid-19 tests on residents and workers, the local media reported.

Chinese experts fined for violating Covid-19 regulations in Hai Duong

The Chinese group at the police station

A group of Chinese experts have been fined for gathering at a restaurant in the northern province of Hai Duong’s Tu Ky District despite a ban.

According to the police in Tu Ky District, 18 Chinese people and a Vietnamese person were found gathering for a meal at Trung Hoa Phat Ky Restaurant in Cong Lac Commune in late May. The group did not wear face masks after finishing their meal.

Local people complained about the behaviour which alerted authorities.

All of the Chinese experts work for a company in Tu Ky District.

The restaurant was found to have been selling drinks of unclear origin.

As a result, the restaurant owner was fined VND32.5 million (USD1,413) for Covid-19 regulation violations and selling products of unclear origin. The diners were fined VND2 million each.

Health ministry warns of COVID-19 vaccine fraud

The Drug Administration of Vietnam under the Ministry of Health has suggested localities, organisations and businesses that want to buy COVID-19 vaccines negotiate directly with vaccine producers to avoid fraudulent deeds, citing warnings by Interpol.

In case they work with intermediaries, the intermediaries must be certified or authorised by producers, it said.

The agency gave the advice amid the mushrooming offers to sell COVID-19 vaccines from organisations and individuals that claim they have access to supplies or redundant vaccines. Many people are also invited to register for vaccination through different forms of advertising.

The drug administration agency said COVID-19 vaccines used in Vietnam must be approved by the health ministry for emergency use, adding that each batch of vaccines must be licensed by the agency before being imported to Vietnam, and assessed by the National Institute for Control of Vaccines and Biologicals before being used in the country. All of the vaccines require cold chain storage.

According to the agency, the ministry is actively negotiating with vaccine producers and international organisation to acquire more vaccines that are provided free of charge for the public.

People should get vaccine shots only at medical facilities authorised by the health ministry, the agency said, urging the public to report signs of scams in this regard to local authorities./.

Man arrested in Italy over deaths of 39 Vietnamese citizens

Police in Italy have arrested a 27-year-old man in connection with the deaths of 39 Vietnamese citizens found in the back of a lorry container.

An international arrest warrant was executed on June 10th and the man, named by police as Dragos Damian, was taken into custody just outside Milan.

He has since been charged with conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration and encouraging or assisting the commission of an offence.

The arrest is in relation to the deaths of the Vietnamese who were discovered in a lorry trailer in Grays, Essex in the United Kingdom in October 2019.

A spokesman for Essex Police said: “The Crown Prosecution Service sought approval of the warrant on behalf of Essex Police.

“Courts then granted the warrant, and Dragos Damian was able to be arrested. We await details of a court appearance in Italy.”

In January this year, seven men were jailed for a total of 92 years in connection with the deaths of the 39. Four of those were found guilty of manslaughter.

Hanoi prepares for high school entrance exams amid pandemic

More than 93,000 students in Hanoi are set to take the high school entrance exams this weekend and measures are in place to ensure COVID-19 safety.

Speaking at an online conference on June 10, Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Chu Ngoc Anh said the pandemic situation is largely under control and the city’s officials are confident in the safety of the students taking the exams.

The city has employed more than 14,500 education officials, teachers and staff for the exams and all 30 districts across the city are well-prepared. Social distancing protocols have been set up and drills have been conducted to ensure students are properly distanced during the exams.

Vice Chairman of the municipal People Committee Chu Xuan Dung asked those in charge of all 184 exam sites to ensure there is ample supply of sanitiser, to provide guidance for students and to stay in touch with parents on exam days.

Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Health Hoang Duc Hanh said the newly discovered cluster in Dong Anh district is proving to be complicated as a number of positive cases are shop owners who may have been in contact with a large number of people.

The department has set up testing centres in the district to screen the local population for the virus.

Industrial complexes in Dong Anh district and neighbouring Me Linh have been told to stay vigilant and step up their efforts to enforce strict social distancing and sanitising factories and workshops.

So far, more than 700 samples have been collected from people related to the cluster, while two exam sites in the district have already been moved. The district has also asked for all education workers who serve on-site to be tested for the virus prior to the exams.

The city’s authorities have asked all students to finish their health declaration forms online before June 11./.

Int’l football body highlights veteran midfielder’s role in World Cup qualifiers

The official site of the international governing body of football FIFA.com has posted an article highlighting the role of veteran midfielder Nguyen Trong Hoang in the upcoming game against Malaysia in the second round of 2022 World Cup Asian qualifiers.

With two draws and four victories, including a 4-0 rout of eliminated Indonesia on June 7, Park Hang-seo’s Golden Star Warriors are sitting top of a tricky Group G, it said.

The article continued that a victory against Malaysia on June 11 is likely to seal Vietnam’s maiden progression into the next round – at least as one of the best runners-up – ahead of the closing game against the hosts United Arab Emirates four days later.

In an interview with FIFA.com, Hoang said that Vietnam have never reached the decisive World Cup qualifying round before.

“However, we are now seeing the chance of progressing to the next stage for the first time in history. Playing in the World Cup is the national dream for us Vietnamese. So we play with the country’s dream to realise,” he added.

Before arriving to the UAE, coach Park had stated the ambitions of grabbing at least six points from the three remaining matches, he went on.

“We always set the ultimate goals for each match. My team-mates and I will do whatever we can to do our country and supporters proud,” Hoang affirmed.

He missed the Indonesia game due to suspension,

In coach Park’s line-up – nearly half of which are under 23-years-old – the midfielder is a cornerstone figure. With 70 international appearances, he is the current team’s most experienced player, FIFA underlined.

Notably, he was on target in a 2-1 defeat of Qatar on the road to the 2014 World Cup. In the current qualifying campaign, Hoang started in all of the opening five fixtures, including Vietnam’s spirited 1-0 defeat of the UAE.

Vietnam have made remarkable progress since coach Park from the Republic of Korea took over in 2017. Under the manager, they reached the last eight at the 2019 AFC Asian Cup only to be edged out by eventual champions Japan 1-0.

“Even more exciting is the fact that a host of youth talents have been nurtured and form the backbone of the current national team,” it said./.

Spokesperson: foreign businesses actively, voluntarily contribute to COVID-19 vaccine fund

The Vietnamese Party and State consider public consensus, responsibility, and social resources as important factors in wiping out the pandemic, and in such a spirit, the Prime Minister on May 26 issued Resolution No 53/NQ-CP and Decision No 779/QD-TTg on the establishment of a COVID-19 national vaccine fund to receive, manage, and use donations in cash and kind to import, study, and produce vaccines at home, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang said.

At the ministry’s regular press conference, held online on June 10, Hang said the fund has so far received active and voluntary contributions from Vietnamese and foreign firms operating in the country as well as from the public.

She stressed that Vietnam has set the goal of early vaccinating its entire population for free to achieve herd immunity, considering this a basic, long-term, decisive, and strategic solution to escape from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Towards the goal, the National Assembly has decided to spend about 12 trillion VND from annual budget savings to buy COVID-19 vaccines.

The spokesperson stressed that the Party, State, and Government treasure all contributions from the public and companies and will oversee the fund’s operations in a transparent manner in line with the law, for the sake of people’s health and well-being and stable production at enterprises, including foreign-invested enterprises./.

Vietnam seeking to diversify vaccines supplies: spokeswoman

Vietnam will continue to seek vaccine sources to diversify the supplies, spokeswoman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang has said.

Speaking at the ministry’s regular press conference, held online on June 10, Hang said Vietnam will also step up the research and transfer of vaccine production technology, towards maximising vaccination coverage.

She cited the Government’s target of administering COVID-19 vaccines to about 75 percent of the national population, soon reaching herd immunity and bringing people’s lives to normal.

Vietnamese competent agencies will publicise agreements on vaccine purchase, import and donation, as well as vaccine production technology transfer, the spokeswoman affirmed.

Over the past time, the Ministries of Health and Foreign Affairs, and Vietnamese representative offices abroad have made every effort in negotiating and mobilising foreign governments, international organisations, and vaccine producers and suppliers so that Vietnam would acquire more COVID-19 vaccines, Hang said.

Vietnam has so far received around 2.6 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX Facility, along with commitments to donating and supplying vaccines from a number of countries, international organisations and producers, she added.

Regarding US President Joe Biden’s plan to buy 500 million doses of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to donate to other countries, Hang said Vietnam welcomes the US’s vaccine sharing strategy to allocate the first 25 million doses to the world, including Vietnam and other Southeast Asian nations.

Given the complex developments of the pandemic, Vietnam wishes that countries and international organisations will promote the spirit of solidarity and the sense of responsibility, and enhance the sharing of technological, financial and medical information, especially vaccine, to drive back the pandemic, Hang stressed.

She also informed the press about the health ministry’s issuance of a decision on June 3 on the conditional approval of COVID-19 vaccines for emergency use, including Vero Cell Inactivated vaccines produced by Beijing Institute of Biological Products of China./.

List of 499 winners in 15th NA election announced

The National Election Council (NEC) held a press conference in Hanoi on June 10 to announce its Resolution on the outcomes of the elections of deputies to the 15th National Assembly and People’s Councils at all levels for the 2021-2026 tenure along with the list of 499 candidates elected to the 15th legislature.

Speaking at the event, Politburo member, Standing Vice Chairman of the NA and Standing Vice Chairman of the NEC Tran Thanh Man emphasised that the elections were a success with a turnout rate of 99.6 percent.

The success of the elections demonstrates the collective power of the people and the entire political system under the Party’s leadership and State management, and vividly reflects the tradition of patriotism, the power of the great national unity and the people’s solid trust in the regime, the Party and State, he stated.

Chief of the NEC Office Bui Van Cuong said voters nationwide elected enough 500 deputies to the 15th NA. However, after considering eligibility of winners in line with the law, the NEC decided to not confirm the eligibility of one elected candidate in Binh Duong province .

According to Cuong, the rate of full-time NA deputies in this term has reached a record high of 38.6 percent of the total number of lawmakers. The rates of young, ethnic and re-elected deputies also met or surpassed the targets. In particular, the rate of female deputies has reached an all-time high of over 30 percent since the sixth NA tenure.

The list of 499 deputies of the 15th NA has been updated on Vietnam News Agency’s special website at http://baucuquochoi.vn./.

Vietnam chairs 46th meeting of Board of Trustees of ASEAN Foundation

Ambassador Nguyen Hai Bang, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to ASEAN, on June 10 presided over the 46th meeting of the Board of Trustees of the ASEAN Foundation (AF BOT 46), in his capacity as chair of the board in 2021.

He thanked for efforts and contributions by the ASEAN Foundation, and congratulated the foundation for winning two Global Good Governance (3G) Awards.

The meeting looked at limitations as well as development orientations for the foundation in the second half of this year.

Accordingly, the foundation will further focus on strategic targets such as raising the awareness about ASEAN, improving its capacity and brand, and seeking more funds to implement projects serving ASEAN’s priorities in COVID-19 impact mitigation, science-technology, innovation, renovation, and young human resources development.

The delegates also lauded the foundation’s performance over the past time despite the pandemic outbreak.

The foundation has implemented programmes and initiatives in education, arts and culture, communications and community building, notably projects under the KONNECT ASEAN programme, the ASEAN data science explorer (ADSE) contest, the ASEAN Foundation Model ASEAN Meeting (AFMAM), and others for young people in the region, the meeting heard./.

Traditional horse race festival recognised as national intangible heritage

A horse racing event in Bac Ha district in the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai is among the 10 newly-recognised national intangible heritage.

It resumed in 2007 after stopping for a long period, with the aim of conserving and developing traditional cultural values and promoting the region’s image among visitors at home and abroad.

Bac Ha horses are considered the most beautiful breed in Vietnam.

Lao Cai has two other heritage on the new list, including the traditional costume of the Nung Din ethnic minority group in Muong Khuong district and that of the Mong Hoa people in Bac Ha district.

Others include two festivals in Hanoi and a whale worshiping festival in Cam Xuyen district in the central province of Ha Tinh./.

Coach Park Hang-seo: No pressure on national men’s football squad

Head coach Park Hang-seo has said that he doesn’t want to put any pressure on his team and believed that the Vietnamese national men’s football squad will perform well during the match against Malaysia on June 11.

Speaking at a press conference on June 10 ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification match in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Park said the coaching staff has tried to help the players have their best spiritual and physical fitness.

Also present at the event, midfielder Luong Xuan Truong said it will be another tough match for Vietnam, but they will play cautiously and wait for opportunities.

Vietnam trounced Indonesia 4-0 in their match of Group G in the second round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Asian qualifiers which took place in the UAE on June 7.

Vietnam are now on top of Group G with 14 points while Malaysia have nine points. After the 0-4 loss against UAE last week, Malaysia have no choice but to defeat Vietnam to advance to the final World Cup qualifying round. Vietnam also need three points to hold the top position, meaning the game will prove crucial for both teams.

The match will take place on June 11 at 11:45 pm (Hanoi time)./.

51 new COVID-19 infections raise national tally to 9,835

The Ministry of Health (MoH) reported 51 more COVID-19 infections detected in the past 12 hours to 6am on June 11, including 10 imported cases that were quarantined right upon their arrival in the southern province of Ba Ria – Vung Tau.

Among the 41 locally-transmitted cases, 10 each were found in Bac Giang province and Ho Chi Minh City, and four each in Bac Ninh and Ha Tinh province.

The number of domestic and imported infections stood at 8,206 and 1,629 respectively. Of the total, 6,636 were recorded since the fourth wave of COVID-19 that started on April 27.

Among the active patients, 267 have tested negative for the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 once, 96 twice and 55 thrice.

Currently, 184,749 people having close contact with confirmed COVID-19 patients are under quarantine nationwide.

Seventeen provinces that were hit by the pandemic have gone through 14 days without new infections.

On June 10, an additional 18,817 people received COVID-19 vaccine shots in 17 provinces and cities. So far, more than 1.41 million vaccine doses have been injected. The number of those getting two shots is 50,023./.

HCMC suspends 18 more bus routes due to pandemic

The HCMC Public Transport Management Center has announced the suspension of 18 more bus routes in the city starting today, June 8, due to the complicated development of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Among the suspended routes, many often transport students to schools and residents to local wet markets, reported Tuoi Tre newspaper.

Besides this, the remaining 56 subsidized routes will remain operational, as they operate along the main streets, ring roads or through industrial and export processing zones.

Earlier, due to the impact of the fourth coronavirus wave, the city had ceased the operation of various bus routes starting from May 29. Moreover, all buses passing through Go Vap District temporarily stopped offering services from May 31 to June 14.

Further, most of the bus routes linking the city with neighboring provinces such as Long An, Dong Nai and Binh Duong are also subject to the suspension to cushion the spread of the deadly virus.

As of this afternoon, the city had reported 447 locally-infected cases in the latest wave which started from April 27. It currently ranks third in the country by the number of domestic cases.

More Covid quick test kits of unknown origin found in Hanoi

Hanoi authorities have discovered 400 boxes of rapid Covid-19 test kits in a car in Cau Giay District with no papers certifying their point of origin.

The boxes, each consisting of two Covid-19 test kits, were labelled as Q Standard Covid-19 Ag Home Tests from South Korea. The batch was found in the car which was parked at an apartment building on Phung Chi Kien Street on Monday.

However, when being asked by police, the car owner whose name has not yet been disclosed failed to present any accompanying proof of purchase or certificate of origin for the products.

Currently, a rapid Covid-19 test kit box with the Ag Home Test brand is priced at around VND420,000-500,00, with the batch worth VND170-200 million.

Further investigations into the case are being conducted.

Earlier, Hanoi authorities also discovered 29 boxes of made-in-China Covid-19 quick test kits at a medical equipment store in Hanoi’s Hoang Mai District; but the store owner could not show any papers to prove their point of origin.

HCM City proposes VND1trn Covid-19 relief packages

HCM City Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs has proposed to the HCM City People’s Committee a VND1trn (USD43.3m) support package for businesses and employees.

This will be the second relief package released in HCM City since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. The first package was released in 2020.

About 42,000 people who lost their jobs will be given VND3m (USD130) per person. 2,000 people whose contracts end but do not meet the requirements for unemployment benefits will be given VND2m per person. About 230,000 people who are freelancers like street vendors, scrap collectors or motorbike taxi drivers will be given VND1.5m per person. 23,000 teachers and staff at private education facilities will be given VND2m per person.

Pregnant women or those with children less than six months old will be given an additional VND1m (USD43).

In addition, the Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs have proposed to support VND90,000 (USD4) for each disadvantaged child at quarantine centres from April 27 to December 31. 3,000 family households who are affected by social distancing rules will be given VND2m each. Policy beneficiaries will be given VND500,000 per person per month for three months.

Poor and near-poor households will be given VND250,000 (USD11) per person per month for three months. As of May 31, HCM City has 111,136 people in poor and near-poor households.

People who are entitled to multiple financial supports will only be given the highest one.

HCM City adds new service charge to water bills from Jan 1

The HCM City People’s Committee will add a service charge to domestic water bills for water drainage and wastewater treatment, effective from January 1 next year.

Currently, water bills include a charge for water consumption based on the amount of water used, a 10 per cent value-added tax (VAT) on water usage, and a 10 per cent charge for environmental protection.

Next year, the charge for environmental protection will be replaced by the service charge for water drainage and wastewater treatment.

The service charge for water drainage and wastewater treatment will start at 15 per cent next year and increase by five per cent each year between 2022 and 2025.

One per cent of the money collected through the charge will be used to cover collection encashment services and taxes, and the remaining 99 per cent will go to the State budget to operate, maintain and develop water drainage systems in the city.

HCM City sends metro line 3a plans to Government

HCM City’s 20km metro route 3a between Bến Thành and Tân Kiên will be built between 2025 and 2034, the city People’s Committee has said in a proposal to the Government.

It will be built in two phases, in 2025-31 and 2028-34.

The People’s Committee wants it to be funded by official development assistance loans from Japan.

It is estimated to cost VNĐ 71.6 billion (US$3.85 billion), VNĐ 42.427 billion (US$ 2.061 billion) for the first phase, and VNĐ 25.361 billion (US$ 1.024 billions) for the second.

The first will be 9.9 kilometres long between Bến Thành and the Western Bus Station, and the second between the station and Tân Kiên will be 9.7 kilometres long.

When completed, it will be linked with metro line 1 (Bến Thành – Suối Tiên).

HCM City quarantine zones face risk of being overloaded

As the number of COVID-19 cases in HCM City has increased in recent days, concentrated quarantine centres are at risk of being overwhelmed.

According to the municipal Centre for Diseases Control and Prevention (HCDC), more than 21,400 people are currently in some form of quarantine in the city.

Of the figure, 7,770 are in concentrated quarantine areas, with the rest at home or special accommodations.

If F1 cases later test positive, then the F2 cases must be isolated in concentrated quarantine areas.

HCM City plans to build a new field hospital with 1,000 beds at Phú Thọ Stadium in District 11 if the number of COVID-19 infections exceeds 1,000.

Health workers, beds and medical equipment will be prepared for the field hospital.

Earlier, the municipal department issued a COVID-19 response plan for treatment, with three scenarios: fewer than 100 cases, 100-1,000 cases and 1,000-5,000 cases.

The establishment of the field hospital is part of the city’s preparation for the worst-case scenario.

The city’s Health Department is also planning to set up other field hospitals at the Saigon Exhibition & Convention Centre in District 7, and culture and sports centres in city districts, with a total capacity of up to 5,000 beds and 1,000 ventilators.

Tân Phú District is considering using district cultural houses, children’s houses, and political training centers as quarantine zones.

The city has five hospitals for COVID-19 treatment, Chợ Rẫy, Củ Chi Field Hospital, HCMC Children’s Hospital, the Hospital for Tropical Diseases and Cần Giờ Covid-19 Treatment Hospital, with a total of more than 970 beds and 42 ventilators.

The city has also requested military units to use military areas as concentrated quarantine sites to respond promptly if the city has more than 3,000 cases.

Nguyễn Trung Hòa, director of the Gò Vấp District Health Centre, said the district continued to promote screening, focusing on high-risk places, testing in quarantined areas, so F1 cases could increase. The health centre has set up an 80-bed quarantine area located at the Gò Vấp District Political Training Centre, but in the long run, it needed to increase its capacity.

Bình Thạnh District has recorded the second highest number of infections in the city in this outbreak with 49 cases. The district’s quarantine area has 585 beds but it is forecast that the F1 cases will increase, putting pressure on the existing quarantine area. The district has used schools in the area to set up quarantine centres with a capacity of 200-300 beds, said Đinh Khắc Huy, chairman of the district people’s committee.

To solve the problem of overloading quarantine areas in districts, deputy chairman of HCM City People’s Committee Dương Anh Đức has agreed to allow localities to set up quarantine centres in local hotels.

Đức asked the municipal Department of Health to provide urgent instructions for districts about this task.

Power price cuts

The Ministry of Industry and Trade has announced it will reduce electricity prices and power bills for customers from June to December following the Government’s approval.

Tourist accommodation establishments will also receive a price discount on electricity bills.

The concentrated quarantine areas and places for medical examination of COVID-19 patients will receive a 100 per cent discount off the retail electricity price. Medical facilities used for COVID-19 examinations, tests and treatment will receive a 20 per cent discount.

Faster actions needed to end HIV/AIDS in 2030: Deputy PM

It is necessary to speed up efforts to put an end to the AIDS pandemic in 2030, Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minster Vũ Đức Đam told a United Nations (UN) General Assembly high-level meeting on HIV/AIDS on Tuesday.

Addressing the event held virtually, the Deputy PM stressed the need to ensure sufficient resources for HIV/AIDS response, especially for developing nations, non-disruptive supply of antiretrovirals and accelerate the development of HIV vaccines and cure medicines.

Đam reiterated Việt Nam’s commitment to achieve the 90-90-90 target (90 per cent of all people living with HIV know their disease status, 90 per cent of all people with diagnosed HIV infection receive sustained antiretroviral therapy, and 90 per cent of all people receiving antiretroviral therapy will have viral suppression), stressing that to reach the upcoming 95-95-95 goal, the world needs 100-100-100 effort, and even more.

At the meeting, President of the UN General Assembly Volkan Bozkir, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed, and UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima praised the active engagement of member countries in coping with HIV/AIDS over the years.

Bozkir described AIDS as an epidemic of inequalities.  To end AIDS by 2030, he called for an end to inequalities.

Ending the disease is both a prerequisite for — and a result of — implementing the Sustainable Development Goals, he stressed.

According to UNAIDS, 37.6 million people across the globe were living with HIV in 2020, including 27.4 million people accessing antiretroviral therapy, more than three times higher than that in 2010, at 7.8 million.

The number of people died from AIDS-related illnesses fell 43 per cent in 2020 to 690,000.

Famous composer Chung performs in TV show for kids

Well-known composer Nguyễn Văn Chung of HCM City is working on a new TV game show for children and teenagers produced by Việt Nam Television.

Chung will appear as a music director for Super Idol Kids, which aims to seek and encourage children aged 4 to 15 to develop their talent in music and dance.

“The show will also offer opportunities to help its participants and audiences improve their love for the arts,” said Chung, who has 18 years of experience in the industry.

Super Idol Kids has a jury of skilled artists, such as choreographer Lâm Vinh Hải and singer-song writer Trịnh Thanh Bình.

It will also feature Miss Universe Việt Nam 2019 Hoàng Thuỳ as a trainer.

Casting began last month in Hà Nội and HCM City and will end this month.

The reality show is expected to be broadcast on VTV9 channel in August.

“Through the show, Super Idol Kids, I wanted to introduce and expand Vietnamese music and songs for children,” said Chung, who recently received a copyright certificate for his 300 songs for children given by the Copyright Office under the ministry of culture.

Chung has worked to bring more suitable songs for children, containing lessons on life and family.

He issued his first songbook for children, titled 100 Songs for Children, in mid-2017.

His new songbook will be released this summer.

The book will consist of his popular children’s songs, including 12 Con Giáp (12 Zodiacal Animals), Bài Hát Ru Của Mẹ (Mom’s Lullaby), and Bố Ơi Kể Chuyện Con Nghe (Dad, Tell Me a Bedtime Story), about childhood, family, friends, school and country.

It will include beautiful pictures and sheet music to help young readers learn how to sing and play instruments.

The work will come with a CD featuring the voices of popular child singers such as Bào Ngư, Thư Kỳ, Bảo Ngọc and Nhã Thy, and students from music clubs at cultural houses for children.

Remembering President Ho Chi Minh in France

110 years have passed since the day President Ho Chi Minh arrived in France on June 5, 1911 with a burning desire – to seek a way for Vietnam’s national salvation. On this occasion, join us to learn more about the memories of Uncle Ho that have been preserved in French hearts for more than a century.

The city is proud to have contributed to the friendship between Vietnamese and French people during years of fighting for Vietnam’s independence and reunification as well as in the process of building and developing the country.

Inside the park is a Living History Museum with a Ho Chi Minh Space housing documents and artifacts related to his time in the country

Meanwhile, historian Alain Ruscio, author of “Ho Chi Minh – Articles and Fights”, published in 2019, affirmed that Uncle Ho left several valuable and practical works for posterity.

Uncle Ho’s spirit of freedom and peace connected people from the two countries. The memorabilia and memories of the man in France continue to tighten the friendship and cooperation between the two peoples./.

Latin American political activists commemorate President Ho Chi Minh

A delegation of political activists from left wing and progressive parties in Latin America laid flowers at the statue of President Ho Chi Minh in Mexico City to show respect to the Vietnamese leader’s thoughts and morality.

The event was attended by political activists from Chile, the Dominican Republic, Peru, Brazil, and Bolivia as well as representatives from the National Regeneration Movement (Morena) – Mexico’s ruling party, and officials from the Vietnamese Embassy in the country.

In his address to the gathering, Vietnamese Ambassador to Mexico Nguyen Hoanh Nam said President Ho Chi Minh is a hero of national liberation hero, a great man of culture, and a model communist who devoted his whole life to the national freedom not only of Vietnam but of all suppressed countries around the world.

Vietnam has organised various activities in June to mark the 110th anniversary of President Ho leaving the country to travel around the world in search of ways to secure national salvation (June 5, 1911-2021), he noted.

The ambassador thanked the administration of Mexico City for arranging a special place for the statue, expressing the solidarity and friendship between Vietnam and Mexico.

He thanked international friends and lovers of peace and freedom around the world for their warm sentiments and support for Vietnam in its past struggles for national independence and its ongoing national construction and development efforts.

For her part, Martha Garcia Alvarado, First Secretary for External Relations of Morena, said that Morena and Mexico consider President Ho Chi Minh a mirror in the fight for democracy and the interests of the people./.

Vietnam accelerates efforts to secure adequate COVID-19 vaccine supplies: Scholar

Vietnam is accelerating efforts to secure adequate vaccine supplies amidst a resurgence of COVID-19 infections in the country, said Dr Le Hong Hiep, a Senior Fellow at Singapore-based ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, in a commentary published on fulcrum.sg on June 8.

Hiep said one of the reasons behind Vietnam’s low rate of COVID-19 vaccination was that the country suffers from the global shortage of vaccine supply, like most of developing countries.

Although the Vaccine Corporation Vietnam (VNVC) placed an order for 30 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine in 2020, the supply from this arrangement has so far remained limited, he said, so is the vaccine supply for the country under the COVAX Facility.

The scale and serious effects of the fourth wave have forced the Vietnamese government to accelerate vaccination as a crucial, fundamental and long-term strategy to overcome the pandemic. Great efforts have been made within a short period of time to secure as much vaccine supply as possible.

Rather than holding the government’s monopoly over vaccine import, Vietnam has encouraged all relevant stakeholders, especially private companies and foreign investors, to help acquire vaccines for the country.

On June 5, an initiative was officially launched by the government to raise 1.1 billion USD from the public and the business community to cover the cost of the vaccination programme. The initiative has attracted more than 250 million USD in pledged donations after only a few days.

At the international level, Vietnam has worked actively through diplomatic channels to secure more vaccine supplies. For example, the United States has decided to donate to Vietnam 500,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines. Japan is also reportedly preparing to donate vaccines to Vietnam.

Thanks to these efforts, the Ministry of Health announced on June 3 that Vietnam had secured commitments by relevant suppliers to provide 120 million doses within 2021, including from Moderna (5 million doses), Sputnik V (20 million doses), AstraZeneca (30 million doses), Pfizer (31 million doses), and the COVAX Facility (38.9 million doses).

Vietnam is also in talks with Russian partners to produce Sputnik V vaccines in the country. With the NanoCovax vaccine entering phase-3 trials soon, there is a hope that Vietnam will also benefit from domestic sources./.

Dac Nong moves to improve ethnic minorities’ material, spiritual lives

The Central Highlands province of Dak Nong is building an action programme to improve the material and spiritual lives of ethnic minority groups in the 2021-2025 period so as to boost socio-economic development among the community.

The programme’s targets are per-capita income of ethnic minorities to increase by at least 1.5 times; provision of essential demands such as residential land, housing, water for daily activities, cultivation land and electricity; 100 percent of ethnic minorities participating in health insurance; at least 60 percent of households living in disaster-risk areas resettled; and at least 95 percent of ethnic minorities accessed clean water.

To that end, the Central Highlands province will focus on providing cultivation land, stabilising the life of unplanned migrants, expanding investment in building basic infrastructure to serve production and daily activities of locals, developing agro-forestry production models that conform to local customs, and stepping up the organisation of vocational training and healthcare programmes.

According to the provincial Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, Dak Nong is home to 40 ethnic groups, including nearly 213,000 ethnic minorities, or 31 percent of the locality’s population.

The proportion of poor ethnic minority households is 17.18 percent. Average income of ethnic minority households in many localities is equal to 40-50 percent of the country’s average./.

Ninh Thuận focuses on developing offshore fishing

The south-central province of Ninh Thuận is commissioning new fishing boats and installing modern facilities on them to improve fishing efficiency and protect resources.

Đặng Văn Tín, head of the province Fisheries Sub-department, said fishing is closely monitored, including for implementation of fishing regulations and origin traceability.

The province is prioritising the installation of black boxes on fishing boats with a length of at least 15 metres, he said.

So far they have been installed on 708 of 774 such boats, according to the sub-department, and the rest are being sold or cannot go fishing due to losses or repairs, he said.

The sub-department is carrying out advocacy activities for fishermen to know about regulations for fisheries exploitation and protection of resources.

Development

The province is also restructuring the fishing sector to improve efficiency, focusing on developing offshore groups.

Offshore groups enable boats to stay longer at sea and increase their catch, and help each other when there are accidents or natural disasters at sea.

The province is developing its offshore fleet by enabling fishermen to upgrade boats and build new high-capacity ones, and helping boat owners install modern fishing equipment and train fishermen in fishing techniques.

Under the Government’s Decree 67 on fisheries development policies issued in 2014 and Decree 89 issued in 2015 that amended and supplemented Decree 67, fishermen have been given soft loans to build high-capacity boats for offshore fishing.

Đào Nhật Định, a boat owner in Ninh Hải District’s Thanh Hải Commune, said he built a composite-hull fishing boat in 2018 with an 829 CV engine and a length of 24 metres using a loan.

It cost VNĐ13 billion (US$561,000), he said.

With modern fishing equipment, a boat could catch dozens of tonnes of seafood per trip, he said.

He earns more than VNĐ2 billion ($86,500) a year, and has repaid his loan, which along with interest had topped VNĐ2.5 billion, he said.

Đào Quốc Thắng, chairman of the coastal Thanh Hải Commune People’s Committee, said the fishing potential had not been exploited previously.

But the Government’s maritime economy development policies, especially Decree 67, have helped develop fishing rapidly, he said.

The commune now has 12 boats with a length of 24 metres built because of the decree, he said.

The boats’ owners go fishing offshore and earn an average of VNĐ900 million – 1 billion ($38,800-43,000) a year, he said.

“[The incomes] are due to the fishing boats being equipped with modern engines and fishing facilities and techniques.”

The province has approved loans worth VNĐ490 billion ($21.2 million) to upgrade or build 43 boats.

Nguyễn Khắc Lâm, deputy director of the province Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said Decrees 67 and 89 have helped change local fishing.

The province now has its first boats with steel and composite hulls, modern fishing facilities and engines of more than 800 CV, and more than 20 metres long, he said.

To further improve the efficiency of large boats, the department has instructed the sub-department to make proper fishing plans, train captains and chief engineers of fishing boats, teach fishermen the latest fishing techniques, and assess resources in fishing grounds to ensure there is no overfishing, he added.

Ninh Thuận has a coastline of 105 kilometres and 2,224 boats that fish near shore and offshore.

Last year its fishermen’s total catch exceeded 100,000 tonnes worth VNĐ7.4 trillion ($320 million), according to the sub-department.

Kiên Giang does not let COVID affect socio–economic development

The Cửu Long (Mekong) Delta province of Kiên Giang has managed outstanding socio-economic development in the first five months of this year despite the COVID-19 pandemic, according to its People’s Committee.

Lâm Minh Thành, its chairman, attributed it to authorities at all levels proactively implementing development measures.

Most sectors have achieved excellent growth so far, he said.

Industrial production grew by 10.6 per cent year-on-year to more than VNĐ20.4 trillion (US$870 million).

Its retail sales and services grew by 10 per cent to VNĐ 49.8 trillion ($2.16 billion).

Exports were up nearly 16 per cent at $317 million, with rice accounting for $111 million and seafood for $94 million.

Farmers in the province reaped a bumper harvest and got high prices for the 2020-21 winter – spring rice crop to earn an average of VNĐ40 million ($1,740) per hectare, according to the province Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Aquaculture output was up 9.1 per cent at more than 62,000 tonnes.

The province targets total exports of $750 million this year, and to step up promotion of agricultural products to expand export markets and boost the output of key items rice and seafood.

Agriculture production

Kiên Giang has been the country’s largest rice producer for long, and more than 50 per cent of its workforce is in the agricultural sector.

The province has implemented various measures to develop agriculture, especially rice and seafood production, in recent years.

They include developing efficient faming models adapted to climate change and sustainable development.

The province is developing the large-scale rice field model in which farmers pool their fields, grow the same rice varieties, use the same farming techniques and have the same crop schedule under contracts that guarantee purchase of the entire harvest.

It is also developing aquaculture, especially the models of breeding shrimp under advanced farming techniques and other environmental friendly models like rice – shrimp farming model in coastal areas.

Under the rice-shrimp farming model, farmers rotate between rice in the rainy season and shrimp in the dry season on the same field to adapt to saltwater intrusion in coastal areas.

The model also produces clean rice and shrimp as farmers use few chemicals.

They harvest about 4 – 4.5 tonnes of rice and 450 – 500 kg of shrimp per hectare annually, earning VNĐ100 – 130 million ($4,300 – 5,600), according to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

With a coastline of more than 200 kilometres, the province plans to turn more mono-rice fields in coastal areas into rice-shrimp farming fields to adapt to climate change.

Hòn Đất District, which has the largest area under rice in the province, is zoned for 16,000ha of rice-shrimp fields in coastal areas by 2030, according to its Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Development.

“Farmers in the district are actively turning monoculture rice fields into rice-shrimp fields,” Lê Văn Giàu, head of the bureau, said.

“The district plans to have 2,500ha of rice-shrimp fields this year.”

In 2017-20 the province switched to other crops and aquaculture on more than 32,800ha of unproductive rice fields, helping increase production efficiency and farmers’ incomes.

The income from these fields has been increased by 35 per cent, according to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Quảng Trọng Thao, deputy director of the department, said the province has restructured its crops to suit conditions in each area and achieved high efficiency.

Besides, it has boosted the use of advanced farming techniques and machinery to improve yield and quality and reduce costs, he said.

Kiên Giang had more 725,800ha under paddy and harvested 4.5 million tonnes last year, 5 per cent more than the target.

It also had 100 large-scale rice fields with a combined area of 30,672ha last year.

To sustainably develop agriculture, it has strengthened investment in infrastructure, especially irrigation, to prevent saltwater intrusion and secure water for cultivation, according to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

It has built hundreds of temporary dams to prevent saltwater intrusion and store freshwater, properly regulated the operation of sluices and electric pumping stations to supply water to the Long Xuyên Quadrangle, the western part of the Hậu River delta and the U Minh Thượng region.

In the ongoing summer – autumn rice crop, the province plans to grow 280,000ha of rice and harvest an estimated 5 – 60 tonnes per hectare.

The province’s rice output will be 4.2 million tonnes this year, according to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The province plans to breed brackish water shrimp on 136,000ha this year using industrial, semi-industrial, advanced extensive and rice – shrimp farming models.

It has developed concentrated farming areas and value chains for key products like rice, vegetables, mango, pineapple, and pepper on a total area of more than 100,000ha.

Its average annual agricultural output per hectare last year was worth VNĐ100 million ($4,300), up nearly VNĐ22 million since 2015, according to the department.

HCM City administrative reforms continue

HCM City is continuing its administrative reforms this year, with a focus on urban governance and revamping administrative units.

Nguyễn Thành Phong, chairman of the city People’s Committee, said while the city has been focusing on reforms, administrative activities in Thủ Đức City are not efficient enough, and many individuals and businesses are being asked to come back with more documents.

More than 19 per cent are unsatisfied with the administrative services there, he said.

The city is also focusing on improving its investment climate and changing the administrative model by eliminating district-level people’s councils from the administrative system.

Huỳnh Thanh Nhân, director of the Department of Internal Affairs, said the city would examine and revamp departments and authorities where required, and bring in outside experts for leadership positions.

Phong said administrative reforms needs to be disruptive in how it can help solve businesses’ problems and be a part of the city’s digital transformation, and all public servants need to continuously learn and improve their skills.

Last year the city managed to reduce the time required for businesses to register by 30 per cent.

NA Chairman visits Military Medical University

National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue made a working visit to the Military Medical University under the Defence Ministry in Hanoi on June 10.

The top legislator lauded the university for actively joining defence diplomatic and international cooperation activities, including engaging in the field hospital No.2 of the UN peacekeeping force in South Sudan.

He also suggested the university work closely with ministries, agencies and units to speed up the third stage of clinical trial of the home-grown Nanocovax vaccine.

The leader proposed that the university devise a State scientific reseach programme on the production of vaccines for communicable diseases.

He also expressed his support for the construction of a centre for study and development of vaccines against communicable diseases in humans./.

President Nguyen Xuan Phuc presents 5,000 national flags to fishermen

President Nguyen Xuan Phuc on June 10 presented 5,000 national flags to fishermen through the programme “One million national flags for fishermen.”

The programme, an initiative of the Lao dong (Labour) newspaper, was launched on June 1, 2019, and has presented more than 400,000 national flags to fishermen in coastal areas, residents in border areas and border posts.

It plans to deliver 560,000 more flags to 28 coastal provinces and cities in the time ahead, with the aim of expressing solidarity and encouragement with fishermen and residents and soldiers in border areas in defending the country’s borderline./.

Vietnam keeps close watch on Vietnamese community situation in Cambodia

Vietnamese representative agencies in Cambodia will continue keeping a close watch on Cambodia’s plan of relocating floating houses, fish farming rafts and illegal floating works on the Mekong River passing through Phnom Penh and the Vietnamese community situation, and work with the Khmer – Vietnamese Association in Cambodia to support affected people, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Spokeswoman Le Thi Thu Hang has said.

During the ministry’s regular press conference held virtually on June 10, Hang said Vietnam has paid due attention to Cambodia’s plan which was announced on June 2 and involves works of Vietnamese Cambodians there.

Vietnam understands Cambodia’s socio-economic development, landscape and environment protection policies, she said, expressing her wish that the relocation will be carried out with a reasonable and feasible roadmap, with resettlement areas equipped with key infrastructure being provided for affected residents to help them stabilise lives and ensure their access to social welfare services, she said.

According to the spokeswoman, the Vietnamese representative agencies in collaboration with the Khmer – Vietnamese Association in Cambodia have helped Vietnamese households move to new areas in line with the Cambodian Government’s policy and they have begun settling down.

During a bilateral meeting with Cambodian Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Prak Sokhonn on June 7, Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son suggested Cambodia continue dealing with the legal status of Vietnamese Cambodians, ensure their rights and access to welfare services when performing socio-economic policies, create favourable conditions for affected residents to stabilise their lives, maintain or change to other jobs, and access key services.

Earlier, on June 4, Vietnamese Ambassador to Cambodia Vu Quang Minh visited Vietnamese Cambodians in relocated areas. The Foreign Ministry’s State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs and the Vietnamese Embassy in Cambodia worked with Cambodia authorities and asked them to offer practical support to resettled residents, thus ensuring their legitimate rights.

Hang added that the Cambodian side took note of Vietnam’s proposals and affirmed that the Cambodian Government will continue creating favourable conditions for Vietnamese students, and enterprises studying and doing bussiness, and Vietnamese Cambodians stably living in the country./.

Overseas Vietnamese present donations to COVID-19 fight

A ceremony was held in Hanoi on June 10 to receive donations in cash and kind from the Steve Bui & Friends Foundation, the Phuong Long Nhien Co. Ltd., and the Cosmos Japan Creation JSC in support of Vietnam’s fight against COVID-19.

The Foreign Ministry’s State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs received 50 million VND (21,700 USD) for the COVID-19 vaccine fund, as well as 500 mineral spray bottles worth 100 million VND, and 5,040 alkaline ionised water bottles valued at 126 million VND to support frontline medical staff in the northern provinces of Bac Giang and Bac Ninh.

Pham Quang Hieu, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, thanked the overseas Vietnamese companies for their important and timely contributions to the national COVID-19 vaccine fund, in response to an appeal from leaders of the Party, Government, and the Vietnam Fatherland Front.

Launched on June 5, the fund has received donations from individuals and organisations at home and abroad, including Vietnamese communities in the US, Egypt, Mozambique, Cambodia, Thailand, Singapore, Laos, Germany, Russia, and Switzerland.

Earlier, on May 31, Steve Bui, Chairman of the financial consulting and investment group based in Japan and Chairman of the Steve Bui & Friends Foundation, presented nearly 1,000 mineral spray bottles and 9,000 N95 masks worth around 300 million VND to medical staff in Bac Giang and Bac Ninh, according to the committee./.

Food, medical supplies presented to border forces in Lao province

The Border Guard Command of central Quang Nam province presented food and medical supplies to border protection forces in Sekong province of Laos to help them fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

Six tonnes of rice and other food, together with medical supplies such as body thermometers, disinfectant sprayers, antiseptic liquid, and medical gloves, were handed over to the Lao side at Nam Giang International Border Gate on June 10.

Colonel Loth Nathavong, Deputy Commander and Chief of Staff of Sekong’s Military Command, thanked the Vietnamese side for its timely support and assistance. This has strengthened the close friendship and partnership between the two sides, contributing to keeping the pandemic at bay and ensuring the safety of the border forces, he said.

Colonel Nguyen Ba Thong, Commander of the Quang Nam Border Guard Command, said more donations of food and medical supplies will be delivered to border forces in Sekong province./.

Education New Zealand to host partners workshop week

Education New Zealand is set to host New Zealand Partners Workshop Week (NZPWW) 2021 – a five-day virtual international education event taking place from 14 – 18 June.

The forum will showcase the unique qualities of a New Zealand education such as its future focus, provide updates on the latest trends, and highlight Education New Zealand’s current priorities and initiatives that partners stand to benefit from – with the aim of strengthening New Zealand’s education links with Asia.

Across the week, Government officials, international education professionals, education agents, counsellors and academic partners will convene to connect, collaborate, and share ideas.

“By working together, and with international education as an enabler, Partners Workshop Week has been designed to help us collectively tackle challenges and share best practices during such a challenging time. As international education leaders – now is the time to prioritise working as a global community”, Burrowes said.

NZPWW will bring together international education audiences and partners from Greater China, India, Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines. Sessions will be available in six different languages – English, Vietnamese, Thai, Korean, Japanese and Bahasa Indonesia.

More than 45 international speakers will be featured, with sessions covering New Zealand updates and exclusive country-specific sessions, panel discussions, keynote presentations, professional development workshops, live Q&A session with experts, and virtual exhibitions. The week will cover a range of fields including K-12 education, Education Technology, Higher Education, Vocational Training and work-based education, as well as the English training sector.

Highlights of the programme include a performance by New Zealand musician Stan Walker and a special Waiata group performance, a panel discussion with Education New Zealand Chief Executive Grant McPherson and six New Zealand Heads of Mission across Asia, including H.E Tredene Dobson, New Zealand Ambassador to Viet Nam.

“We hugely value our international education partners – and would be delighted for both existing and prospective partners of New Zealand to join us to connect, collaborate, ask important questions and share ideas about the future of international education”, Burrowes said.

Education New Zealand is also offering the New Zealand Global Competence Certificate (NZGCC) Taster sessions to Vietnamese teachers, lecturers and school counsellors who register and participate in the NZPWW event. The NZGCC programme is an online programme that equips participants with essential global skills to become life-long learners and future leaders. NZGCC helps foster cultural exchanges in the context of limited travelling while contributing to nurturing a generation of global citizens.

Source: VNA/VNS/VOV/VIR/SGT/Nhan Dan/Hanoitimes

Alongside teaching chamber music and lecturing master classes, the 31-year-old artist has initiated “Schubert in a Mug” – a music project featuring concerts with the aim to bring classical performers and audiences closer together. The artist speaks to Thuy Hang about his decision to return home.

Phan Do Phuc

You decided to come back to Vietnam after spending more than 10 years studying and working in New York. Was that a difficult decision?

Well, it was not an easy and obvious decision for both my wife Hsin-Chiao and I. Both of us have already established our lives in New York and we were quite comfortable, so to leave all of that behind was not such a simple consideration, as you can imagine. But eventually, after considering many factors, involving ourselves, our families and other things, we decided it was worth a try to come back to Vietnam. After almost more than a year here (since February 2020), I can say I’m happy to have made that decision. Besides the fact that it’s good to be home and be close to family, I could feel tremendous untapped potential for classical music in Hanoi and have been thrilled to help to contribute to its growth.

Did you face any difficulties in returning to your home country? What is the biggest difference between the music scene in the US and Vietnam?

I think the biggest challenge for me personally has been finding ways to maintain my studying and practising to improve myself as a musician. New York was basically the cultural centre, and I absolutely loved being surrounded and pressured by countless world-class musicians, many of them at my age or younger. One constantly has to push oneself to be better, to stay relevant in the scene, so I would say there was a lot of outside pressure which I thrived on. In comparison, Hanoi has a rather young classical music tradition, relatively speaking, so naturally you don’t have such a huge crowd of die-hard professionals and enthusiasts who constantly threaten to take your place. The challenge then becomes creating the inner momentum and pressure to keep pushing myself to the standard that I have grown accustomed to during the time I lived abroad.

Another aspect is the matter of musical taste. While in New York, I felt a distinct sense that the public taste for classical music (or other musical genres and other art forms, for that matter) has been seasoned and refined over years and years, as the result of exposure to the absolutely best people in the field. On the other hand, here in Hanoi, I think we are still in the process of searching and refining our taste, of finding what really resonates. And I personally find it quite exciting to observe how the taste is being shaped, and (hopefully) to positively contribute to that.

Phan Do Phuc (right) seen together with other musicians during their SiaM Vol. 7: Wolfie! on April 22 concert. Photo courtesy of SiaM

Have you been lecturing since you came back?

Besides enjoying my time on stage, I find myself rather passionate about teaching, so I have been doing quite a lot, from private cello lessons, to chamber music coaching, to running cello sectionals and master classes. I have found teaching to help myself deepen my understanding of music and the craft of playing my instruments, since I feel I don’t truly understand something until I can verbalise it and explain it to someone else effectively. Also, it feels good to be able to pass on values that have been bestowed upon me from my mentors and teachers abroad. As Janos Starker – a legendary cellist and pedagogue – emphasised the importance of teaching as the act of “passing on the torch”, I’m hoping to do the same.

Many classical musicians in Vietnam can’t earn a living through music. Do you find this to be true?

That is a rather sad fact which I’m very well aware of, and it’s not something that only happens in Vietnam but many other places, New York included. Being a musician is not the most profitable profession and in many cases, we have to do other things to feed our passion.

I consider myself tremendously lucky that I have not had to do that here in Hanoi. Thanks to the relatively low living expense here in Vietnam, I feel a simple life is not too difficult to maintain; three meals a day and an occasional nice coffee outside here and there; I’m a happy man! But that’s probably because my wife and I have not had kids yet. I have a feeling once a kid enters the picture, things will be very different.

As classical music isn’t that popular among most Vietnamese people, what do you do to improve this?

Classical music, similar to other forms of fine arts, takes time, patience and a bit of effort from the listeners to get accustomed to, and eventually to enjoy and appreciate. Unfortunately the modern lifestyle often does not allow an average person that bit of time and patience to sit down and enjoy the beauty that classical music offers; so the majority of people often choose other musical genres such as pop, for more immediate emotional reactions and thus, enjoyment. But I personally think what a person could get out of a session of deep and focused listening to classical music is really something else that touches him/her at a much deeper level and a lot more satisfying. The job for me and other classical performers would be to help guide listeners through a few sessions like that, and I believe many will be hooked. That’s part of the reasons why my team and I have started the project “Schubert in a Mug”. We hope to be helpful tour guides for audiences who are willing to join us for the journey.

Listeners enjoy the SiaM Vol. 6: London Fog concert on March 30. Photo courtesy of SiaM

Can you tell us more about the project?

The idea of SiaM is to build a kind of bridge, to basically erase the distance between classical performers and audiences. As you know in a traditional concert hall setting, the two are in two different worlds, completely separated. Of course there’s beauty in the classic concert hall setting, and all of SiaM artists still regularly perform in such a context. But we hope to provide something different at SiaM, another perspective into classical music. Classical music could be very fancy, very majestic, but it could also be incredibly intimate. SiaM hopes to explore the beauty of warmth and intimacy in classical music at our concerts.

Since August 2020, we have hosted two concerts each month – every month with a different theme, from The First Viennese School, which feature the music of the Classical Era (around 1750-1832) to the most recent theme London Fog, which introduces rather modern, 20th century musical language from Britain. Almost every one of our concerts has been sold out and we got so much feedback from our dear audiences, both expressing their appreciation, as well as their constructive thoughts as to how SiaM can be even better. We are tremendously thankful.

In March, the project won the “Finest Project of the Year” by Hanoi Grapevine. SiaM is only eight months old, so it’s really encouraging for us to know that the project is being warmly received by our dear audiences, art lovers and critics.

Financial issues always challenge any project. Does SiaM face the same problem?

Solving the financial problem is always tricky for start-up projects. From the beginning, we have decided that we needed to aim for a sustainable model, in which the amount earned from ticket sales has to be able to at least cover all expenses. And luckily we have been able to do just that.

Has the current coronavirus pandemic affected the performing schedule of SiaM?

SiaM was born in August 2020, during the time that the COVID situation was also quite complicated, so we had to postpone our very first concert. But since then, we have been lucky that things have normalised enough for us to give monthly concerts. At the moment though, it seems we will have to postpone our SiaM Vol 8 concert again and we are looking into giving online concerts and other projects to utilise the social media platforms. It’s challenging for sure, but we are confident we will find ways to continue to thrive.

Alongside SiaM, are you involved in any other music projects?

I personally prefer to introduce projects after they have been more or less fully realised, so for now, I’d just say “wait and see”.

VNS