Tourists at Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, Cambodia (Photo: khmertimeskh.com) Phnom Penh (VNA) - Tourists who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 will not be exempted from quarantine when entering Cambodia, according to the national press agency of Cambodia AKP . AKP quoted Prime Minister Hun Sen as saying at a meeting on May 17 with the Samdech Techo Young Volunteer Doctors Association (TYDA) that Cambodia welcomes all visitors, but people who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 must still be quarantined for seven days. The PM emphasised that Cambodia has overcome the epidemic waves caused by variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus such as Alpha, Delta and Omicron, but has not yet conquered COVID-19. Cambodia is devoting all of its efforts to pushing the COVID-19 vaccination programme, so unvaccinated travellers cannot enter without quarantine. Travellers who have been immunized against COVID-19 do not need to be quarantined and are not required to take rapid or … [Read more...] about Unvaccinated tourists not exempted from quarantine upon arrival in Cambodia
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Equinor reaffirms entry in Vietnam’s offshore wind
Jens Olaf Økland, Equinor’s senior vice president Why did Equinor choose now to open an office in Hanoi? We believe it is very timely to open an office now. Vietnam is one of the world’s fastest-growing economies and power markets. With its long coastline and favourable wind conditions, the country has among the best wind resources in Asia and a strong desire to develop an offshore wind market. The country is on a path to becoming net-zero and offshore wind can enable this transition. We believe Vietnam has a high potential to become an interesting growth market for offshore wind and have therefore opened a representative office in Hanoi. Vietnam has set ambitious targets for offshore wind both for 2030 and 2045 which would result in Vietnam being one of the top offshore wind markets globally. The end of the decade is not that far away and a lot of things still need to come into place, both on the regulatory side and for the industry, but this is also natural in the … [Read more...] about Equinor reaffirms entry in Vietnam’s offshore wind
Vietnam’s next steps in the fight to eradicate child labor
Deputy Minister of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs Nguyen Thi Ha shared Vietnam’s plans to eradicate child labor at a conference in South Africa on Tuesday. At the fifth Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labor in Durban, South Africa, Ha spoke about the pivotal role that childhood education plays in reducing the risk of children leaving school to find work. Currently, about 94.4 percent of Vietnamese children have access to education thanks to government policies to make primary and secondary education compulsory, eradicate illiteracy, and reduce or exempt tuition fees for poor, disabled, ethnic minority, and underprivileged children. The Vietnamese government also has policies which help these marginalized groups gain access to health insurance and other social welfare programs. Currently, Vietnam is cooperating with other entities, such as the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and the International Labor Organization (ILO) to … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s next steps in the fight to eradicate child labor
HCMC cooperates with USAID to ease container congestion at Cat Lai Port
Many delegates discuss solutions to reduce congestion at Cat Lai Port in HCMC. (Photo: SGGP) The workshop attracted more than 70 delegates from customs authorities, ministries, and the business community to discuss this action plan. At the workshop, the relevant units announced 21 recommendations to improve the operational efficiency of Cat Lai Port to meet the increasing demand. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, the port was operating at full capacity. Meanwhile, the demand calculated by the number of containers is forecast to double by 2030. The above 21 recommendations are the results of a pre-feasibility study on congestion prevention and logistics facilitation at Cat Lai Port conducted by the Trade Facilitation Project funded by the USAID from May 2020 to March 2021. The study comprehensively reviewed port operations on an area of 160 hectares to assess operational efficiency, bottlenecks, and shortcomings in the process of enhancing the handling capacity of the port. On … [Read more...] about HCMC cooperates with USAID to ease container congestion at Cat Lai Port
Blue economy model gathering pace
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) last week again warned that the ocean is faced with increasing threats and multiple risks posed by climate change, natural disasters, environmental pollution, over-exploitation of natural resources, and unsustainable economic activities. “Global warming and marine litter are threatening marine resources, including widespread bleaching of coral reefs. Globally, an estimated 8-20 million tonnes of plastic enter the ocean every year. In Vietnam, around 2,000 tonnes of plastic waste leaks from the country into the ocean every day. It is estimated that there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050,” said Caitlin Wiesen, resident representative in Vietnam of the UNDP. The global ocean economy contributes an estimated $3 trillion per year, or about 5 per cent of the world’s GDP and comprises industries ranging from oil and gas, shipping and ports to renewable energy, fisheries, marine ecosystems and tourism. The value of the … [Read more...] about Blue economy model gathering pace
Taking the right approach to the condotel legislation conundrum
Kenneth Atkinson-Vice chairman, Vietnam Tourism Advisory Board However, there is no separate body of law governing condotels and in most locations where they have been constructed it is clear that such developments cannot be issued with pink books for individual units, so ownership ultimately rests with the developers, with a lease term not extending beyond 50 years (70 years can be permitted). In addition, many buyers have been lured by guaranteed returns of 8-12 per cent for the 10 years. Warnings of potential future problems sounded from 2017, but due to the cyclical nature of tourism and potential disruptions to inbound tourists, these were largely ignored and we have already seen failures of such projects like Cocobay and other developers now unable to meet their guaranteed return commitments and for certain several more to come. Now, we have around 240 tourism real estate projects and over 114,000 condotel units, and Vietnam has the largest pipeline of tourism-related … [Read more...] about Taking the right approach to the condotel legislation conundrum
NA Chairman Hue welcomes Greek President
The top Greek leader is on her first official visit to Vietnam. The legislator congratulated Sakellaropoulou as the first female President of Greece, a country with an important position in Europe. Chairman Hue said he believed that the president's visit to Vietnam is an important step, helping to further promote the traditional friendship and multifaceted cooperation between the two countries. He expressed delight that the friendship and multifaceted cooperation between the two countries has been continuously strengthened and developed, which is demonstrated by exchanges of delegations at all levels. National Assembly Chairman Vuong Đinh Hue meets Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou in Hà Nội on Wednesday (Photo: VNA/VNS) The cooperation in trade and economy has developed positively, particularly since the Europe-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) was implemented. Chairman Hue proposed the two countries continue promoting cooperation in areas that are … [Read more...] about NA Chairman Hue welcomes Greek President
Conference discusses Public-Private Partnerships in healthcare
A panel discussion at the conference on strengthening ‘Public-Private Partnership for sustainable healthcare transformation’ in Hanoi on May 18. (Photo: VNA) Opening the event, the newspaper's editor-in-chief Le Trong Minh said that Vietnam's health sector faced many challenges, such as increasing infectious and non-communicable diseases, hospital overcrowding, shortage of supplies and equipment, the ageing population as well as the disparity between regions and healthcare levels in terms of quality of medical services and standardisation of modern equipment. “For the health system to be capable and always ready to respond to future situations, towards a comprehensive and sustainable health care system, it is necessary to have new investment orientations in social resources for the health system, as well as stronger cooperation from the parties involved, including the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) method,” said Minh. At the event, MPI deputy minister Tran Duy Dong said it … [Read more...] about Conference discusses Public-Private Partnerships in healthcare
Greek President wraps up official visit to Vietnam
During her stay in Vietnam, President Sakellaropoulou paid tribute to late President Ho Chi Minh at his Mausoleum, laid a wreath at the Heroic Martyrs’ Monument, held talks with President Nguyen Xuan Phuc, paid a courtesy visit on Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, met with National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue, witnessed the signing of important documents, and joined a tea party chaired by Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan. Welcoming the Greek President, Party General Secretary Trong affirmed that Vietnam attaches much importance to its traditional friendship with Greece and is delighted at the important progress in their bilateral ties. He gave a number of proposals to promote the partnership in all fields, and suggested Greece continue to support the Vietnamese community in the country. During talks between the two presidents, they shared delight that despite the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, trade between the two countries still increased to 447 million USD in 2021, … [Read more...] about Greek President wraps up official visit to Vietnam
Central bank limits foreign loans for trading stock, real estate
The bank is collecting feedback on its draft circular to replace the current version with stricter conditions for receiving short-term foreign loans to ensure a national debt limit. The draft will allow Vietnamese businesses to access short-term foreign loans for paying debt, but not for potentially risky purposes like trading stock and real estate. This is because once the stock and real estate market grows way above its intrinsic value, there would be a high chance of creating an asset bubble, causing economic instability. The central bank plans to ban the use of short-term foreign loans to buy projects or stakes in them, since mergers and acquisitions involve long-term investment and commitment. It also plans to ban companies using short-term foreign loans to acquire projects or stakes in projects, as mergers and acquisitions are long-term activities. Short-term loans could result in liquidity risks if used for medium- and long-term purposes, it explained. Companies may … [Read more...] about Central bank limits foreign loans for trading stock, real estate