Boeing helps build schools in Mekong Delta

The schools built with funding of almost 125,000 USD from Boeing company are Thanh Tien 2 Primary school in Can Tho province and Dao Huu Canh Kindergarten in An Giang province. 

Attending the inauguration ceremony were US Ambassador to Vietnam Michael Michalak, Boeing’s representatives and the East Meet West Foundation. 

The construction of the two schools is part of Boeing’s efforts to improve education system in Vietnam’s rural areas.

Southern amateur music to be submitted to UNESCO

HCM City (VNA) – The Mekong Delta city of Can Tho is building up a file on Dan ca tai tu Nam bo (Southern amateur music) to be submitted to the UNESCO for recognition as an intangible cultural heritage, said a provincial official. 

According to Ho Van Hoang, Deputy Director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Dan ca tai tu Nam bo is a genre of chamber music in the traditional music of southern Vietnam which was born in the end of the 19 th century. 

This kind of music is not only performed in festivals and parties but also in post-harvest time. Additionally, it can be played in the shade of trees, on boat or in bright moonlit night. 

Hoang expressed his hope that with experiences got from making the Nha Nhac (Royal Court Music) file, the file on Dan ca tai tu Nam bo will be well prepared and the Mekong Delta will own a world cultural heritage.

Vietnam backs reconstruction in Cote d’Ivoire

New York (VNA) – Vietnam continues to support the role played by UN agencies, the AU, the ECOWAS, the Facilitator, President Blaise Compaore of Burkina Faso, and the international community in helping Cote d’Ivoire advance its nationally-owned agenda of post-conflict stabilisation and reconstruction. 

The statement was made by Ambassador Bui The Giang, Vietnamese Deputy Representative to the UN Security Council at a council debate on the situation in Cote d’Ivoire in New York on December 7. 

The Vietnamese diplomat expressed concern about the postponement of the first round of the presidential election scheduled for November 29 to late February or early March 2010. He said this delay, if continuously repeated, may exert complicated impacts on the political process in Cote d’Ivoire . 

Recognising the importance of overcoming technical and financial constraints and fulfilling the remaining electoral tasks, Ambassador Giang urged all parties in Cote d’Ivoire to renew commitments to and redouble efforts of dialogue and reconciliation towards open, free, fair and transparent presidential elections in accordance with the agreed timeframe.

“The long-term peace, stability and development of Cote d’Ivoire is also dependent on the balanced and comprehensive settlement of many other security, socio-economic and cross-border challenges,” he noted. 

Speaking at the UNSC’s urgent consultative meeting on the Darfur situation and UN and African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) on the same day, the Vietnamese representative strongly condemned the recent attacks targeting UNAMID peacekeepers in Darfur . 

“We denounce all acts of violence against United Nations personnel. We wish to express our deep condolences to the families of the fallen peacekeepers, the Rwandan Government and UNAMID staff,” he said. 

The ambassador expressed his support for an early and full investigation to bring the perpetrators to justice and recognised the efforts of the Sudan Government which have led to the swift identification and arrest of a number of suspected perpetrators.

He said he hoped that the cooperation between the Government of Sudan and UNAMID will be further promoted to ensure better safety and security for peacekeepers and prevent similar incidents in the future.

Japanese scholarships for disadvantaged

HCM City (VNA) – The Japanese Business Association in HCM City (JBAH), in collaboration with the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren), awarded 90 scholarships to disadvantaged university students in the city. 

Forty-five students from HCM City University of Social Sciences and Humanities and another 45 from HCM City University of Technology were given scholarships for academic excellence worth 2 million VND (111 USD). 

“Students who received scholarships at December 8’s presentation have worked very hard,” Chairman of the Japan -Vietnam Economic Committee of Keidanren Susumu Kato, said.

Hanoi seeks six express bus routes

Hanoi (VNA) – Hanoi Department of Transport delivered a proposal to the municipal People’s Committee. The proposal has asked that six express non-stop bus routes open in the city by December 15. 

The routes include buses No.8: Long Bien-Dong My, No.32: Giap Bat-Nhon, No.16 Long Bien-Bac Ninh, and No. 2 Bac Co-Yen Nghia station. 

Twelve buses that will make 88 trips each day will run on the routes. This plan will hopefully meet the passengers’ demand better and prevent bus drivers from skipping stops.

News agency to promote science

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam News Agency on Dec. 7 signed a deal with the Ministry of Science and Technology to help it promote science and technology activities. 

The deal will also create conditions for technology developments to be applied in daily life. 

Under a cooperation agreement signed by VNA deputy general director Nguyen Duc Loi and Science and Technology minister Hoang Van Phong, the two sides will regularly exchange information of management policies and operation regimes used in the science and technology sector. 

The ministry will help the VNA’s staff access and report on science and technology activities and take measures to improve the agency’s information technology infrastructure. 

The VNA will build more dissemination programmes on science and technology to supply timely information to the public about the ministry’s activities, legal documents and policies related to the sector, as well as prominent achievements and technical renovation initiatives from scientists, managers, technology organisations and enterprises. 

VNA General Director Tran Mai Huong said that with this agreement, the ministry and the agency would have foundations for more effective and closer cooperation so that the science and technology sector would be able to contribute more to the country’s socio-economic development. 

Minister Phong also expressed his hope that science and technology applications would be used more widely and effectively when they were updated regularly in the VNA’s publications.

President Triet to tighten ties with Italy, Spain, Slovakia

Hanoi (VNA) – President Nguyen Minh Triet will pay State visits to Italy , Spain and Slovakia from Dec. 9-18 to seek ways of boosting friendly and cooperative relations with the European countries. 

The visits will be made at the invitation of Italian President Giorgio Napolitano, Spanish King Juan Carlos and Slovakian President Ivan Gasparovic. 

During his visit in Italy, President Triet is scheduled to meet with Pope Benedict XVI on Dec. 11. 

Italy officially established diplomatic ties with Vietnam on March 23, 1973. Since then, the two countries have seen positive developments in their bilateral relationship and exchanged regular visits at all levels. 

Two-way trade has grown steadily in recent years, from just 320 million USD in 1996 to 1.67 billion USD in 2008. 

Vietnam has mainly exported footwear, coffee, garments and seafood to Italy, and imported machines, mechanical equipment, transport vehicles and leather materials. 

Italy began its development cooperation with Vietnam in 1980s in the form of soft loans, emergency relief aid and bilateral non-refundable aid or grants channelled through international organisations such as the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). 

Italy now ranks 33rd amongst foreign countries and territories in terms of its direct investment in Vietnam with 130 million USD invested in 31 projects, focusing on leather shoes, construction, sanitation equipment, water heaters and steel production. 

The Piaggio Company has built a 30 million USD factory in the northern province of Vinh Phuc to produce scooters under the brand name of Vespa, with a capacity of 100,000 units a year. 

Spain - on the second leg of President Triet’s European tour - set up diplomatic relations with Vietnam on May 23, 1977. Since 1990s, Spain has supported Vietnam’s efforts to normalise and beef up ties with international financial and monetary organisations and the European Union (EU). 

Vietnam-Spain relations have developed fruitfully in many fields. In terms of trade, Spain has seen rapid growth in two way trade with Vietnam, reaching 1.1 billion USD in 2008 from 470 million USD three years earlier. Vietnam’s exports to Spain include seafood, coffee, garments and footwear. 

In terms of investment, Spain now has a total of 12 valid projects in Vietnam with a combined capital of 11 million USD, mainly in the areas of porcelain and ceramic tiles, insulated boards and handbags. 

Spain is the world’s 6th largest provider of official development assistance to Vietnam, focusing on hunger eradication, poverty reduction, health care and education. 

Projects of note include general hospitals in the Central Highlands provinces of Gia Lai and Lam Dong, the central provinces of Quang Nam and Quang Ngai, and the northern province of Bac Ninh, each costing 2 million EUR. 

Vietnam has so far disbursed 98 million USD out of 315 million USD worth of Spanish ODA. In February 2008, the two nations signed an accord under which Spain will provide an additional 65 million EUR (96 million USD) in ODA to support Vietnam’s infrastructure, energy, communications and water management projects from 2008 to 2010. 

In June 2006, Vietnam and Spain also inked an agreement covering cultural, educational and scientific cooperation, laying a foundation for the two sides to organise various cultural activities. 

The two countries have seen developments in education and training cooperation, focusing on language training activities. In 2005, the Spanish Department was established at the Hanoi University with Spain’s assistance in infrastructure and teachers. At present, there are two Spanish teachers working in the department. Between 1998 and 2008, Spain granted 140 scholarships to Vietnam . 

Since Vietnam and Slovakia set up their diplomatic ties on February 2, 1950, their relationship has seen positive developments. The two sides attach importance to their traditional friendship and regularly exchange high-ranking delegations. 

However, economic relations between the two countries have yet to meet their potential. 

Vietnam mainly exports garments, electronic products, food, agricultural products, seafood and footwear to Slovakia while importing chemicals, cattle-feed, plastic materials, equipment and machines from the European market. 

Two-way trade between Vietnam and Slovakia has increased rapidly over the past years with 100 million USD in 2008, up 25 million USD against the previous year. 

Slovakia’s financial group Jamp is planning to invest 150 million USD into construction of an office building in Ho Chi Minh City while SES TLMACE, a Slovak steam-furnace provider, will join hands with the Czech Skoda Praha Group to build a 3 billion USD thermoelectric power plant in the Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh. 

Since 2007, when Vietnam re-exported labourers to Slovakia, around 1,000 Vietnamese workers have been sent to work in the country, mainly in foreign-invested factories. 

Over the past 20 years, the relationship between Vietnam and Vatican has seen steady progress. In addition to visits by the Vietnam Catholic Church to address pastoral issues, the two sides have increased the exchange of delegations at all levels. In February 2009, the two sides held the first meeting of the Vietnam-Vatican Joint Working Group in Hanoi.

BUSINESS

Vietnam promotes tourism in France, Taiwan

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam ’s tourism sector will conclude its 2009 Vietnamese tourism promotion campaign with programmes in Taiwan , China , and France , according to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT). 

The promotion programme will take place in Paris , France , from December 12-19, focusing on introducing to the French public the cultural identities, delicious dishes and famous destinations of Vietnam . On the occasion, the VNAT will work with around 300 French travel companies to seek cooperation opportunities. 

A similar programme will be held in three Taiwanese cities, including Taipei , Taizhong and Kaohsiung , from December 10-18. During the programme, the VNAT representatives will meet with some 200 tourism businesses. 

France and Taiwan are considered the Vietnamese tourism sector’s two large markets. However, due to the impacts of the global economic crisis, in the first 11 months of this year, the number of arrivals from France and Taiwan dropped 3.7 percent and 12.4 percent, respectively, as compared to the same period last year. 

The sector hopes that with these promotion programmes, the number of French and Taiwanese tourists to Vietnam will increase again in the coming year.

Japan backs Vietnam’s afforestation project

Hanoi (VNA) – Japan will provide 2 million USD to help Vietnam improve its capacity to carry out afforestation projects over the next three years. 

An agreement to this effect was signed in the capital city of Hanoi on Dec. 7 between the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). 

JICA is currently supporting Vietnam ’s forestry development by providing technical assistance, non-refundable aid and loans to the country’s projects covering afforestation, sustainable forest management and conservation of nature reserves.

Stocks see tiny gains in slow trading

Hanoi (VNA) – The VN-Index edged up for a second day on Dec. 7 to close at 498.61, a gain of 0.74 percent, on continued sluggish volume on the HCM Stock Exchange. 

The volume of the day’s trades dropped to just 26.36 million shares, worth a combined 1.1 trillion VND (59.5 million USD), the lowest figures since July of this year. 

A strong performance by real estate and construction shares helped ensure the advance of the VN-Index despite the low volumes, remarked FPT Securities Co analysts in their daily report. Despite the attractive prices of many shares many investors were waiting for a clearer sign of market trends before deciding to buy or sell, they said. 

On the Hanoi Stock Exchange, solid blue chips also helped lift the HNX-Index by 0.44 percent to a close of 160.09 points, a second day of modest gains. 

The volume of trades on the northern bourse grew to 15.6 million shares, up 17.3 percent from Dec. 4’s session, for a total value of 602.38 billion VND (32.6 million USD), 33 percent higher than Dec. 4’s total. 

Kim Long Securities KLS was the most heavily-traded share on the Hanoi market, with over 2.1 million changing hands. 

Foreign investors finished on Dec. 7 as net buyers of over a million shares on the HCM City market, worth a net of 44.7 billion VND (2.4 million USD), while they were net sellers on the Hanoi bourse of 174,800 shares, worth a net of 12.4 billion VND (670,810 USD).

More coffee exported, but prices down

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam exported about 100,000 tonnes of coffee in November, earning a value of 145 million USD, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. 

In November, the export volume and value were nearly double the previous month, the ministry said. 

These numbers increased the coffee export volume and value in 11 months to 1.04 million tonnes and 1.54 billion USD, respectively, it added. 

In these 11 months, although coffee export volume was 19.3 percent higher than in same period last year, export value dropped by 14.7 percent due to the world recession. 

“The world recession has strongly affected global coffee prices. The average price in the first 10 months of 2009 was only 1.478 per tonnes, a drop by 615 USD per tonne over the same period last year,” said the ministry. 

Recently, Belgium became the biggest market for the Vietnamese coffee industry. In 11 months, export volume to Belgium increased three-fold while export value doubled. 

The 2009-10 coffee harvest in Central Highlands provinces would drop by between 20 and 33 percent, said Nguyen Nam Hai, general secretary of the Vietnam Coffee Exporter’s Club. 

In Dak Lak, the coffee hub of Vietnam , total coffee yield is forecast to decline by 15,000 tonnes compared with the last crop. If the forecast comes true, the total yield of coffee harvested in the province will be around 400,000 tonnes. 

Not only Dak Lak but also other Central Highland provinces including Dak Nong, Lam Dong and Gia Lai have seen yield decline. 

Tough weather conditions were the main reason causing low output. Capital shortages were also a cause, he added. 

Recently, those provinces harvested more than 30 percent of the total coffee area. The farmers, however, have seen little profit because of higher prices for oil, fertilizer and labour.