Mountainous population trained in power use

The event, held by the Sweden International Development Agency (SIDA) and the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade, introduced locals with power-efficient production models as results of a programme on power use for production in Vietnam ’s rural areas as well as foreign experiences in the field. 

The conference is part of the Vietnam-Sweden Rural Energy Programme (VSRE) built on an agreement signed by the two governments in 2003. 

The VSRE aimed to improve the capacity of central, provincial and district-level organisations in implementing policies on renewable energy in rural areas, set up appropriate technical standards and mechanism to supply safe power services, seek financial sources to accelerate rural electrification through the use of renewable energy, and provide knowledge of energy use in production in rural areas. 

The VSRE also built on a trial basis five small-scale hydro-power projects of between 5-100kW and a solar energy project in Ha Giang province and the central province of Quang Nam.

Ethnic women take to prenatal care

Gia Lai (VNA) – The number of ethnic pregnant women in Central Highland Gia Lai province having regular medical check-ups at clinics is increasing, but 58 percent of them still give birth at home. 

“Local health officials are making a great effort to urge expectant mothers to give birth at clinics or hospitals to reduce fatalities,” Nguyen Truong Tuyet, deputy director of the Gia Lai Health Department, said. 

Tuyet said home births were gradually decreasing. Two years ago 70 percent of ethnic pregnant women gave birth at home. 

“Many ethnic women in this central highlands province don’t pay attention to their health during pregnancy. Few expectant mothers visited clinics,” she said. 

Giving birth at home is still popular among 34 ethnic minority groups in Gia Lai. 

“The percentage of deaths occurring during home birth delivery in mountainous regions in Vietnam is high, at 27.5 percent,” Tuyet said. 

Many women died of haemorrhage after birth. 

Dr Ngo Thi Hong Lam, who has worked in Gia Lai for 10 years, said she and her colleagues were optimistic that an increasing number of ethnic pregnant women in several mountainous villages had visited clinics or hospitals for check-ups. 

Medical teams have toured mountainous villages in Gia Lai to talk with ethnic women about the importance of health care during pregnancy and after birth. 

Gai Lai was selected by the Ministry of Health in 2007 to receive funding from the European Commission (EC) project to help poor people in five provinces in northern mountainous region and the Central Highlands to access health care. 

With EC funding, Gia Lai invested in maternity clinics and hospitals. All 13 villages in K’s Bang district, the largest district in Gia Lai, now have maternity clinics staffed by midwives with professional training. 

In the last two years, over 800 pregnant women in Gia Lai’s 29 villages received check-ups and 121 midwives had received training to upgrade their skills that enable them to care for expectant mothers who decide to give birth at home. 

Over 400 ethnic women also received medical check-ups after birth. 

Ding Thi Hleng, an Ede ethnic woman in Gia Lai’s Kon Long Khong village, said she gave birth to her first son nine years ago. 

“I gave birth at home with help from my husband,” Hleng said. “He cut the umbilical cord with a knife from our kitchen.” 

Hleng decided to give birth to her second boy last month at the village clinic. “I got check-ups six times during pregnancy. My son and I are in good health.” 

“I persuaded my sister-in-law, who is three-month pregnant, to give birth at a clinic to have good health like me,” Hleng said.

Websites under scrutiny over pornography claims

Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has asked the Ministry of Information and Communications to conduct a comprehensive inspection of websites after local media sources ran stories featuring websites with large young readership that hosted violent and pornographic information. 

He asked the ministry to strictly punish the websites, and report their findings to him by December 15. 

Luu Vu Hai, head of the ministry’s Department of Broadcasting and Electronic Information, said that the contents of many websites licensed by the department differed from their registered aims in legal documents. 

Tran Thuy Son, a 43-year-old mother in Hanoi said: “When I by chance read a popular youth website, which is licensed by the ministry, I became extremely concerned by the sexual content and suggestive images.” 

She also found similar things on the other sites. “I wonder that effect these websites have on our young,” Son said. 

Son’s daughter, 15-year-old Nguyen Dieu Thu, said: “I go to the websites every day for information and gossip about things I’m interested in.” 

Hai said that if the department discovered violations, it would be responsible for reporting them to ministry inspectors and local departments of information and communications to mete out punishments. 

According to Government regulations, websites publishing untruthful information will have their operation stopped. If violations contain criminal elements they will be investigated and taken to court.

Flag-raising ceremony held at SEA Games

Vientiane (VNA) – National flags of participating countries to the 25 th Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 25) were raised at a ceremony in the Athlete Villages in Vientiane on Dec. 8.

After the ceremony, celebration of the 50 th anniversary of SEA Games took place.

More than 4,000 athletes, coaches and officials from Brunei , Cambodia , Indonesia , Laos , Malaysia , Myanmar , the Philippines , Singapore , Thailand , Timor Leste and Vietnam will participate in the Games, which will be held from Dec. 9-18.

Vietnam sent 394 athletes to the Games to compete in 24 of 25 events with a hope to gain 70 gold medals and rank third in the medal tally. 

Vietnam came out third with 64 gold medals at the previous SEA Games in Thailand in 2007. 
The host country participates in the Games with some 650 athletes, aiming for 25 gold medals.

Vietnam gives high priority to drug prevention and control

New York (VNA) – “Fully aware of the challenges posed by drug trafficking, Vietnam gives high priority to drug prevention and control,” said a Vietnamese representative at the UN Security Council’s open debate on drug trafficking in New York on Dec. 8. 

The First Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Vietnam, Pham Binh Minh, noted Vietnam has adopted the Law on Drug Prevention and Control, established the National Committee on Drug Prevention and Control, and endorsed the Master Plan and National Target Programme on Drug Prevention and Control until 2010. 

He also said the country ratified the three UN conventions on drug control and expanded cooperation with the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and regional countries, especially those in the Mekong-sub region. Vietnam has signed 8 bilateral agreements on drug control with Cambodia , Laos , China , Russia , Thailand , Myanmar , Hungary and the US . 

The Vietnamese official expressed his concern about the complicated developments of drug crimes with more sophisticated means and advanced technology and underlined the need for international community’s joint efforts in the prevention and suppression of such dangerous crimes, with the UN entities, particularly the UNODC, playing the leading role in the fight. 

“We hold that bilateral and multilateral cooperation play a critical role in the fight against drug trafficking,” the Deputy Foreign Minister said.

Asia Parliamentary Assembly opens plenary session

Jakarta (VNA) – The Asia Parliamentary Assembly (APA) opened a plenary session in Bandung , Indonesia , on Dec. 8 under the theme “Roles of Asia Parliaments in Promoting Democracy towards Peace, Prosperity and Justice in Asia ”.

A Vietnamese delegation joins over 190 delegates from 26 APA member countries, four observers and three Asian parliamentary organisations in the event.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono expressed his belief in values of democracy, which put an end to discrimination and helped improve human rights and freedom for mankind.

Yudhoyono expressed his hope that as Asia’s representative, APA would support the on-going UN conference on climate change in Copenhagen , Demark as well as the agreement at the conference to replace the Kyoto Protocol, which will end in 2012.

Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives Marzuki Alie said he hoped APA would help find solution to serious and complicated problems, including violence and terrorism
APA plenary session will close on Dec. 10.

National film festival starts in HCM City

HCM City (VNA) – The 16th Vietnam Film Festival opened in the White Palace Convention Centre, Ho Chi Minh City on December 8 in an impressive ceremony. 

The event, jointly held by the Department of Cinematography and the municipal Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, has lured the participation of 99 films of all kinds from 29 film studios across the country. 

Fifteen feature films will compete for the Golden Lotus prize, including Choi Voi (Adrift); Dung Dot (Don’t burn); Trang Noi Day Gieng (Moon at the Bottom of the Well); Trai Tim Be Bong (A Little Heart); Rung Den (Black Forest) and Cu va Chim Se Se (The Owl and the Sparrow). 

Adrift, Don’t Burn and Moon at the Bottom of the Well are seen as the leading competitors for the best picture award. All are art-house productions that were funded by the State as well as foreign organisations. They have all been screened abroad and won acclaim at international film festivals. 

The festival will conclude on December 12.

Vietnam suffers large consequences from extreme weather

Copenhagen (VNA) – Vietnam is one of the four countries hardest hit by extreme weather events from 1990 to 2008, according to the Global Climate Risk Index 2010 report. 

The report from the climate and development organisation Germanwatch was released on December 8 at a workshop on the sidelines of the UN climate change conference in Copenhagen , Denmark . 

Germanwatch ranked Bangladesh top of the index with natural disasters claiming 8,241 lives and damaging property worth 2.18 billion US dollars a year on average. Following are Myanmar , Honduras , Vietnam , Nicaragua , Haiti , India , the Dominican Republic , the Philippines and China . 

600,000 deaths and 1,700 billion USD economic loss are direct consequences from more than 11,000 extreme weather events in these countries in the period, Germanwatch said. In Vietnam alone, on yearly average, natural disasters claim the lives of more than 450 people and cause the loss of over 1.5 billion USD. 

No developed country is on the top 10 list of countries worst affected by extreme weather. On the top 20, there are only four developed countries: Italy , Portugal , Spain and the United States . 

"Weather extremes are an increasing threat for lives and economic values across the world, and their impacts will likely grow larger in the future due to climate change. Our analyses show that in particular poor countries are severely affected," Sven Harmeling, author of the report, remarked. 

Meanwhile, Christoph Bals, Political Director at Germanwatch, pointed out that it is first and foremost the duty of industrialised countries to implement an adaptation framework for the most vulnerable developing countries. 

The report analyses the impacts of weather-related events - mainly storms, floods and heat-waves - for all countries currently negotiating in Copenhagen .

BUSINESS

VN-Index dragged down by blue chips

Hanoi (VNA) – The fall of blue chips on the HCM Stock Exchange on December 8 dragged the VN-Index down 10.14 points, a decrease of 2.03 percent, after two days of gains. 

Trading volume increased by 22 percent to 32.16 million shares, worth a total of 1.39 trillion VND (74.6 million USD), up 21 percent from the previous session’s value. Losers outnumbered gainers by 158 to 14. 

Banking shares continued to be the most actively traded on the southern bourse with 2.4 million Eximbank (EIB) shares and nearly 2 million Sacombank (STB) shares changing hands. 

On the Hanoi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index lost 4.7 points to end the day at 155.39, down 2.94 percent. 

The volume of the day’s trading dropped to 13.71 million shares, worth a total of 474.07 billion VND (25.6 million USD), down 21.3 percent from the last trading session. 

Kim Long Securities (KLS) remained the most heavily traded on the northern bourse, with 1.7 million shares changing hands. 

“Rising stock indices for two days on sluggish trading volume was a sign of unstable development,” said Le Anh Thi, general director of Au Viet Securities Co. 

“Market liquidity is low showing hesitant investor sentiment. Sellers do not want to sell low, while buyers do not want to buy high,” Thi said. 

Improved trading volume at December 8’s session could be attributed to the bottom-catching psychology of investors. However, it was too early to forecast a rising trend in the markets, Thi said. 

They day continued to see mixed results among foreign investors. They finished the day as net buyers on the HCM City bourse with more than 1 million shares traded, worth a combined 47.5 billion VND (2.6 million USD). Meanwhile, on the Hanoi market they were net sellers of 275,300 shares, worth 17.38 billion VND (939,459 USD)

Hanoi sets 9-10 percent growth target

Hanoi (VNA) – The Hanoi People’s Council has decided to set a gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 9-10 percent for next year. 

It has also decided to raise the annual target for income per capita from 32 million VND (1,778 USD) to between 36.5-37.5 million VND (2,028-2,083 USD). 

The two targets were approved at the Council’s year-end meeting which opened on Dec. 8. The deputies also set some other important targets for the city’s economy, including the generation of 135,000 new jobs and the reduction of poor households by 1.6 percent. 

Pham Quang Nghi, secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee, said following last year’s decision to expand the city, things had gone smoothly, including preparations for the 1,000 th founding anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi in 2010. 

However, Nghi admitted that the city’s economic development had not been as dynamic as expected and that no major breakthroughs had been achieved - traffic congestion and food safety remained two thorny problems. 

“To achieve a GDP growth of 10 percent next year and an increase of 5 percent in budget collection (tax from all sources), the city must display determination to overcome difficulties and create a good environment to attract investors,” he said. 

He said celebrating the 1,000 th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi would be an important event for the capital city and the country as a whole. 

Phi Thai Binh, vice chairman of the Hanoi ’s Committee said that this year the city had overcome many difficulties created by the economic downturn. 

He said that as the year came to a close, high growth had been reported in many sectors. As a result, the city’s GDP increased by 6.7 percent - higher than the national average. 

“Thanks to the Government’s stimulus plan, the construction sector saw an increase of 9.9 percent against that of 2008 while trade activities also recorded an increase of 18 percent,” Binh said. 

He added that this year, Hanoi had felt the negative impacts of the world financial crisis. 

This had led to foreign direct investment (FDI) capital in the city dropping to a low 700 million USD from over 5 billion USD in 2008. 

And while the number of registered businesses had increased during the year, their registered capital had gone down. 

The four day meetings of the Hanoi People’s Council will last until Dec. 11.

Vietnam calls for Japanese investment in agriculture

Tokyo (VNA) – A conference was opened in Tokyo on Dec. 8 to call for Japanese investment in agricultural production and rural development in Vietnam .

The meeting was jointly held by Vietnam ’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), the ASEAN-Vietnam Centre and the Vietnamese Embassy in Japan .

Addressing the function, MARD Deputy Minister Vu Van Tam said the government of Vietnam has always attached great importance to drawing foreign direct investment for agricultural and rural development, thereby adopting a series of incentive investment policies for foreign investors in the field.

At present, Vietnam has 956 FDI projects in agriculture, forestry and fisheries and rural development, accounting for 10 percent of the total number of FDI projects but only 3.3 percent of the combine registered capital nationwide.

From a major food importer, Vietnam has become the world’s second largest rice exporter. Its products have been exported to more than 150 countries around the world.

Deputy Minister Tam promised prospective Japanese investors who attended the meeting that they would enjoy favourable conditions when choosing Vietnam , such as stable socio-political stability, convenient trade and transport and an abundant labour force.

Meanwhile, market analyst Nobuo Kato of the Policy Research Institute under the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries confirmed that Japan and Vietnam have a great potential to cooperate in agricultural, forestry and fisheries.

Kato, however, pointed out drawbacks to the full realisation of the cooperation potential, such as Vietnam ’s inadequate provision of information to and unprofessional manner of approaching Japanese enterprises. 

In addition, Vietnamese businesses lack information about Japan ’s customs and food safety standards, as well as financial and technical capacity to meet Japanese partners’ requirements.

The Japanese expert recommended several measures to boost the bilateral cooperation between Vietnam and Japan in the area, including improving trade promotion activities, speeding up modernisation and centralisation of agricultural production in Vietnam, improving the food safety and hygienic management capacity, developing new products and accelerating marketing campaigns and increasing cooperation between state agencies and investors.

The Kim Thanh Son company signed a memorandum of understanding with Japan ’s Maple Foods on future cooperation.