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Intellectual property helps develop agriculture
Hanoi (VNA) – Introducing intellectual property rights for farm produce has helped to raise the value of products, develop agricultural production and increase farmers’ incomes.
Reports from around the country indicate that most registered farm products, including Luc Ngan litchi and Hai Hau rice, are selling well at prices between 1.5-3 times higher and farmers have poured more investment into growing and producing these products.
In some areas, the protection of intellectual property has had a positive influence on socio-economic development in rural areas by generating jobs for local people and providing them with stable incomes.
However, intellectual property rights for Vietnamese farm products have not attracted much attention as among the 964 specialities nationwide, only 19 geographical indications, seven trademarks and 20 collective trademarks have been recognised.
Vietnam has a lot of potential in its agricultural exports with many products having a big impact on the global market.
At present, Vietnam ranks second for its exports of rice, coffee and cashew nuts and first for pepper, supplying up to 50 percent of global demands.
Nevertheless, most exported Vietnamese agricultural produce is not processed and lack established trademarks, therefore their prices are lower than others in the world market. Some countries such as Indonesia , Malaysia , India and China import pepper from Vietnam to process and then export it at a much higher price.
However analysts say that with established trademarks, Vietnamese farm produce will be able to compete with overseas products but there needs to be more cooperation between farmers, scientists, businesses and the State in order to promote intellectual property protection.
In the 2005-2010 period, the Ministry of Science and Technology’s Department for Intellectual Property carried out a programme to support the development of intellectual property rights.
Under the programme, 53 projects have been undertaken to help with the procedures to register for intellectual property rights as well as designing programmes to promote products, building new models of management models and developing property rights.-Enditem
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UNESCO honours 21 more world heritage sites
Buenos Aires (VNA) – The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has recognised 21 sites as world heritages at its regular meeting in Brasilia , Brazil from July 25-August 3.
These additional 15 cultural heritages, five natural heritages and one cultural-natural heritage have raised the number of UNESCO recognised world heritages to 911.
Director of the World Heritage Centre Francesco Bandarin said that this session had recognised the most world heritages in UNESCO’s history.
The central sector of the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long-Hanoi became the 900 th site listed as a world heritage.-Enditem
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Petrolimex opens representative office in Cambodia
Phnom Penh (VNA) – The Vietnam National Petroleum Corporation (Petrolimex) officially opened a representative office in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh on August 2.
Addressing the ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem said that Petrolimex opening a representative office in Cambodia is evidence of the strong development of trade ties and friendship between the two nations.
He said that he hoped the office will soon expand into a company to increase the corporation’s operations overseas.
Khiem took the occasion to thank the Cambodian Government for facilitating the investments made by Vietnamese enterprises.
Cambodia ’s Trade Minister Cham Prasit hailed Petrolimex’s office in Phnom Penh , saying that this will help to facilitate the trade of oil and gas between Cambodian companies and Pertolimex, traditionally an important partner for Cambodia .
Petrolimex is a trusted supplier due to their high quality products, said the Minister, saying that he hoped Petrolimex will continue to be a good partner and a major and stable supplier of petrol to the country.
Petrolimex currently supplies half of Cambodia ’s petrol demands.-Enditem
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US-ASEAN business council’s first mission to Brunei
Washington (VNA) - The US-ASEAN Business Council brought its first business mission to Brunei on August 2 to meet with the country’s government officials on developing future avenues of cooperation.
Marc Mealy, Vice President of the US-ASEAN Business Council, noted that the Brunei visit by the delegation, which included executives from two of America’s leading energy companies, ConocoPhillips and the Chevron Corporation, reflects US businesses’ strong desire to explore opportunities to strengthen bilateral economic ties between the United States and Brunei.
“This visit is a way for us to continue to build on Second Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Pehin Dato Lim Jock Seng’s highly successful visit to the United States in May where he met with executives from American companies, including several members of the US-ASEAN Business Council in Seattle, Washington and Washington DC."
On the first day of their stay in Brunei , Aug. 2, the delegation had discussions with Minister of Energy Pehin Yasmin, Permanent Secretary Dato Lim Jock Hoi of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Acting CEO of Brunei Petroleum Azren bin Taib, and CEO Vincent Cheong of the Brunei Economic Development Board.
The Council said in its August 2 press release that although US-Brunei bilateral trade is relatively small, with only 140 million USD total trade in 2009, Brunei’s role in ASEAN and other regional organizations make it an important partner for US business. Council members have particular interest in Brunei ’s central role in the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), a Trade Agreement that could potentially help serve as the building block of a Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific.-Enditem
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Website on Hanoi launches Japanese version
Hanoi (VNA) – The Thang Long-Hanoi website of the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) officially launched its Japanese language version on August 3.
The website now has information in five languages - Vietnamese, English, French, Spanish and Japanese, just four months after inauguration.
The version, available at http://jp.hanoi.vietnamplus.vn will provide details of activities to mark the 1,000 th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi as well as information about Hanoi .
It will also include useful information on Vietnam for Japanese readers.
As Japanese people love Hanoi and want to learn more about the capital city of Vietnam , a website in the Japanese language is the most effective way to bring them to Hanoi , Japanese Ambassador Sakaba Mitsuo said at the function.
He also spoke highly of the efforts of VNA and VietnamPlus, VNA’s e-newspaper, in building the website.
Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Nguyen The Thao said he believed the multilingual website would make a difference, helping to enrich forms of information access on Thang Long-Hanoi and attract more readers to the site.
According to VNA Vice General Director Ha Minh Hue, despite difficulties with a Japanese language editor shortage, the agency has worked hard to launch the site, considering it an initial step for future media products in the Japanese language.
VNA’s Vietnam Pictorial website currently runs a Japanese version.-Enditem
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Nation responds to war-era victims’ day
Hanoi (VNA)- The Vietnam News Agency (VNA) was among the earliest donors to respond to the “Day for Agent Orange/dioxin Victims in Vietnam ”, which falls on August 10.
The nation’s only newswire on August 3 handed over 20 scholarships and three wheelchairs for victims in the northern port city of Hai Phong . The beneficiaries are war veterans now leading a hard life, either nursing deformed children or suffering a number of child deaths.
Take Dinh Dang Luu for instance. The former soldier at the Quang Tri battlefield had all three children die at less than six years of age.
Tran Van Binh is another example. The army man, once fighting at the Central Highlands battlefields during the war, has two of his three daughters suffering from schizophrenia. His entire five-member family is living on his allowances, totalling just 2.1 million VND (roughly 100 USD).
For many years, the fund “For the Agent Orange Pain” run by VNA has made regular donations to the target population in Hai Phong, home to some 17,000 Agent Orange victims.
The fund also provided financial support for 20 Agent Orange victims in Tien Giang, making it the fifth consecutive year VNA has contributed to alleviating the plight of AO victims in this Mekong Delta province.
In 2009, the news agency built a charity home at a cost of 15 million VND for a victim in My Loi A village, Cai Be district, Tien Giang province.
The province, home to almost 7,000 AO victims, has so far this year raised almost 650 million VND for 2,660 gifts, 72 wheelchairs and construction of eight charity homes.
Also on August 3, the Red Cross Association of the Red River Delta province of Ha Nam launched a month of action for AO victims.
After the launching ceremony the Vietnam Red Cross Association handed over gifts to 25 children affected by the toxic chemical and 50 wheelchairs for the provincial fund in support of AO victims.
Many donors such as Hanoi Garment and Textile Corporation (Hanoisimex), the Ha Nam Garment and Textile Company and the Korean Copper Technology Company have joined hands in the charity movement, donating over 500 million VND and 30 industrial sewing machines.
Ha Nam has almost 29,200 locals exposed to toxic chemicals, including almost 19,000 of the first generation, almost 9,736 of the second generation and 557 of the third generation.--Enditem
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Border operations top health talks with Cambodia
Phnom Penh (VNA)- Border quarantine, controlling epidemics and humanitarian medical care were the major topics at a meeting of senior health officials from Vietnam and Cambodia in Phnom Penh in early August.
The Vietnamese delegation was led by Health Minister Nguyen Quoc Trieu, who began a week-long visit to Cambodia on August 1.
The meeting shared the view that major progress has been made in carrying out the border quarantine agreement signed by the two countries on March 6, 2006, which has helped to control epidemics in the border region.
The host expressed thanks to Vietnam ’s health centres, especially those along the border, for providing medical checks and treatment to Cambodians, including senior Cambodian officials.
They also praised the regular trips made by Vietnamese health workers to a number of Cambodian provinces and cities to provide free medical checks and treatment for poor people.
Trieu pledged to continue assisting Cambodia in healthcare, especially in charity work, and send more experienced medical doctors to help.
Both parties showed their determination to speed up the construction of the Cho Ray-Phnom Penh hospital, which broke ground in the Cambodian capital in May.
They also mulled over an option to start a joint venture ophthalmology hospital in Phnom Penh and steps to strengthen joint epidemic control.
Also high on the agenda were measures to enhance cooperation in the fight against fake cosmetics being trafficked across the border.
The talks also called for a regular exchange of experiences in supervising the quality of drugs, controlling the circulation of fake medicines or poor quality medicines that endanger human health.
During his stay, Trieu was received by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen. The Vietnamese Health Minister and his delegation also visited the Cambodian Royal Military Hospital , the Khmer-Soviet Friendship Hospital and the Cambodian Medical College , where they discussed their experiences in public healthcare.
The Medical and Pharmaceutical University and the Odonto-Maxillo Facial Surgery Hospital from Ho Chi Minh City also took the opportunity to sign a memorandum of understanding on professional cooperation with the Cambodian Medical College and the Khmer-Soviet Friendship Hospital.--Enditem
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Fidel Castro introduces new memoir
Havana (VNA) – Cuba ’s revolutionary leader Fidel Castro has published his latest edition of memoirs called "The Strategic Victory," which describes the struggles of Cuban guerrillas in the Sierra Maestra.
The 900-page book tells readers about the guerrillas and their battles against Fulgencio Batista’s troops and the following victorious revolution led by Commander Fidel Castro in January 1959, that opened up a new era for Cuba – the new era of independence, freedom and socialism.
At the debut in Havana on August 2, Castro read several extracts and commented on events written about in the book. He said he is currently writing a second volume.
50,000 copies of the book were published in the initial run.
China ’s Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi was among the first to be presented with the book, which included a dedication by Fidel Castro.
Before ending his official visit to Cuba , FM Yang Jiechi was received by Fidel Castro on August 1. They discussed international issues and ties between both countries.
On this occasion, Fidel Castro also presented the Chinese Foreign Minister with the book “One hundred hours with Fidel” in Chinese.-Enditem
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Service trade unions discuss role in ASEAN integration
Hanoi (VNA) – A seminar in Hanoi on August 3 provided valuable orientation for trade unions on their role in the Vietnamese service industry during its integration into the ASEAN economy.
The seminar was launched by the ASEAN Services Employees Trade Unions Council (ASETUC) and jointly held by the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL), the Vietnam Post Trade Union and the Friedrich Ebert Institute (FES).
It touched upon topics on opportunities and challenges for the economic integration process and its impact on Vietnam ’s labourers.
The participants shared the view that labour issues are not only the Government’s responsibility but also an issue of mutual concern for employers, trade unions and relevant partners.
All concerned partners should work together to build a harmonious labour relationship during the economic integration, they said.
The seminar is expected to help raise awareness of Vietnamese trade unions about the ASEAN integration process and the role of trade unionists in building a sustainable and sharing ASEAN community.-Enditem
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Vietnam’s corporate bond market heats up
Hanoi (VNA) - The Song Da and Hoa Phat Corporations’ successful issuing of thousands of billions of VND worth of bonds in July is continuing to heat up the corporate bond market.
The Song Da Corporation issued bonds worth a total of 1.5 trillion VND, or 79 million USD with a five year maturity and an interest rate of 15 percent for the first year while the Hoa Phat Corporation raised 800 billion VND, equivalent to 42 million USD, from bonds that mature in three years.
Several larger companies have raised capital this way, such as Vietnam Electricity, the Vietnam Construction and Export Import Joint Stock Company, which issued two trillion VND worth of bonds each and the Vincom Joint Stock Company which issued one trillion VND in bonds.
These moves showed that the corporate bond market is thriving and that investor’s confidence has improved. In this way, businesses can access middle and long-term capital at a stable interest rate and there is less pressure on the banks to supply capital.
According to financial experts, the recovery in the economy, a stable inflation rate and a prime interest rate of 8 percent have had a positive impact on businesses and investors.
It is forecast that the corporate bond market will be more vibrant when limited liability companies are allowed to issue bonds under a new draft decree.-Enditem
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Ties with Africa possess great potential
Hanoi (VNA)- Vietnam is expected to release a roadmap of cooperation with African countries for the next decade, including steps to work out legal agreements and project priorities, at a three-day workshop scheduled to open in Hanoi on August 17.
Deputy Foreign Minister Doan Xuan Hung told reporters on August 3 that priorities would be given to food security, agriculture, trade, investment and human resource development.
The host Vietnam and African countries are also expected to sign a number of important documents related to immigration procedures and cooperation in economics, culture, science and technology.
Hung said the workshop, entitled “Vietnam-Africa: cooperation for mutual sustainable development”, would provide a forum for partners to develop a mechanism for regular dialogue and discuss measures for a huge leap forward in key sectors such as agriculture, mining, trade, expert and labour cooperation, infrastructure construction and human resource development.
On the sidelines of the workshop, international delegates will meet leaders of the host Vietnam , visit an exhibition of Vietnamese exports and visit manufacturers of products which the African continent is interested in importing. They include food and foodstuffs, tractors, electric appliances and apparel.
The organising board has so far received participation confirmation from 41 foreign delegations.
The workshop is to take place at a point when the host country is to wrap up a national programme of action to enhance Vietnam-Africa cooperation in the 2004-2010 period.--Enditem
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Workshop on constitutional implementation held
Da Nang (VNA) – A workshop on developing criteria and reviewing methods on implementation of the 1992 Constitution was held in Da Nang on August 3 by the National Assembly Standing Committee’s Legislative Research Institute and the Vietnam Union of Science-Technology Associations.
The Vietnam Constitution institutionalises the Party’s policies and views, and identifies tasks of the State and society of Vietnam in each stage of development.
The 1992 Constitution was approved in the context that the country was on the road to implementation of the comprehensive renewal policy set by the sixth National Party Congress in 1986 and obtained initial achievements in aspects and areas of social life.
After about 25 years of implementing the renewal process and 18 years of implementing the Constitution, has developed a system of law and legal documents in order to regulate social relations in economic, civil, political, cultural, scientific-technological, diplomatic and security-defence areas, serving the country’s renewal process and contributing to the country’s international integration.
The documents institutionalising regulations on the human rights, rights and obligations of citizens in the 1992 Constitution have been also improved, creating an important legal basis for protecting and promoting rights and freedom of fundamental democracy of citizens.
But implementation of the Constitution over the past 18 years has shown that regulations on human rights and the rights and obligations of citizens stipulated in the 1992 Constitution have shortcomings which require studies and assessment for revision and supplements, in line with Vietnam ’s reality and ensuring the country’s ongoing regional and international integration.-Enditem
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Vietnamese, Indian auditing agencies sign deal
Hanoi (VNA) – General Auditor of Vietnam Vuong Dinh Hue and Comptroller and Auditor General of India Vinod Rai signed a cooperation agreement between the state auditing agencies of the two countries in Hanoi on August 3.
This is part of activities on the sidelines of the 42 nd meeting of the Asian Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (ASOSAI) Governing Board to be held in Hanoi from August 4-5.
Under the agreement, the two state agencies will share experiences, exchange high-ranking delegations and experts and organise joint conferences and seminars.
The same day, General Auditor Vuong Dinh Hue held separate talks with leaders of delegations from the Republic of Korea , Turkey and Pakistan and received the Japanese delegation.
At the meetings, Hue expressed his hope for closer cooperation in training, and audits in environment and information technology with ASOSAI members.
Vietnam also wants to exchange high-ranking delegations to expand relations with other members of ASOSAI, he said.-Enditem
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ASEAN steps up biodiversity preservation
Hanoi (VNA) – Deputy Secretary-General of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Dato Misran Karmain has stressed on the need to improve awareness of biodiversity-related values and the significance to preserve the values among ASEAN residents.
On addressing the opening ceremony of the ASEAN exhibition on biodiversity which took place in Hanoi on August 3, Dato Misran Karmain said ASEAN is well known as one of the most ecologically diverse regions in the world, and renowned for its rich biological heritage.
However, the region is at risk with hundreds of species in ASEAN being categorised as threatened from internal and external socio-economic stresses, especially from climate change, he said.
“Thus, the exhibition not only promotes public awareness and the need for people’s participation on biodiversity conservation but also strengthens cooperation among countries, within the region and beyond,” he added.
Bui Cach Tuyen, Director-General of the Vietnam Environment Administration under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, said raising public awareness is of significance to fully fill people’s responsibilities for natural resources, including biodiversity.
The exhibition, organised following the Vietnam ’s initiatives as the ASEAN Chairman on the sidelines of the 21th ASEAN Senior Officials’ Meeting on Environment from August 2-7, is also one of activities in response to the International Year of Biodiversity 2010 with the slogan “ Biodiversity is life. Biodiversity is our life”.
The exhibition focuses on natural and biodiversity preservation and threats facing biodiversity.
Among 28 national protected areas listed in the ASEAN Heritage Parks, Vietnam contributes four, including BaBe, Chu Mom Ray, Hoang Lien and Kon Ka Kinh.-Enditem
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Cambodian legislators welcomed in Hanoi
Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam attaches importance to developing the relationship of fine neighbourliness, traditional friendship, comprehensive cooperation and long-term stability with Cambodia .
So said National Assembly Vice Chairman Nguyen Duc Kien while receiving a delegation from the Cambodian National Assembly’s Commission on Planning, Investment, Agriculture, Rural Development, Environment and Water Resources (Commission 3) led by its head, Try Chheang Huot, in Hanoi on August 3.
Kien said he was pleased with fine developments in bilateral ties, both bilaterally and multilaterally, especially between big cities and border provinces.
The legislative bodies of the two countries have maintained regular visits to share experiences and increase cooperation in line with signed agreements, he added.
The NA Vice Chairman expressed his belief that bilateral relations will further develop in the future, bringing practical benefits to the two nations.
He also spoke highly of Cambodia ’s policy to facilitate Vietnamese businesses’ operations in the country and thanked the Cambodia NA and government for creating favourable conditions for Vietnamese nationals and seeking the remains of volunteer Vietnamese soldiers in Cambodia to be repatriated to Vietnam .
For his part, Try Chheang Huot expressed the wish that his country will welcome more Vietnamese businesses and tourists.
He suggested that Vietnam share experiences and assist Cambodia in developing export-oriented agriculture and that both countries work closely to complete border demarcation and landmark planting as scheduled.
During their visit to Vietnam starting from August 2, the Cambodian delegation held talks with the Vietnamese NA’s Committee for Science, Technology and Environment and worked with the Ministries of Natural Resources and Environment, and Agriculture and Rural Development.-Enditem
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State Audit to host ASOSAI executive meeting
Hanoi (VNA) – The 42 nd meeting of the Asian Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (ASOSAI) Executive Board will open in Hanoi on August 4.
This is the first time State Audit of Vietnam (SAV) will organise such a meeting, said General Auditor Vuong Dinh Hue, adding that SAV wishes to run for the chairmanship and host the ASOSAI congress in 2015.
The two-day annual meeting is expected to draw 11 ASOSAI leaders and members from the General Auditing Bureau of Saudi Arabia , the State Audit and Inspection Committee of Mongolia and the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) Development Initiative (IDI).
The meeting will review ASOSAI’s activities, work out a future orientation for the organisation and recommend personnel and define topics to be discussed at the INTOSAI congress slated for November in South Africa .
The participants will discuss the cooperation between ASOSAI and the European Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (EUROSAI).
The ASOSAI environment audit working group will release its report at the meeting.-Enditem
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Miss Earth 2010 to be held in Khanh Hoa
Hanoi (VNA) – Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan has approved the proposal of the Khanh Hoa Province People’s Committee to host Miss Earth 2010 in the coastal city of Nha Trang .
Deputy PM Nhan asked the provincial People’s Committee to partner with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Foreign Ministry and other relevant agencies to ensure security for the event, contributing to promoting the image of Vietnamese land and people.
The final round of the competition is expected to take place at Vinpearl Land Resort on the Hon Tre Island , Nha Trang city in December.
Around 90 beauty queens from across the world will arrive in Vietnam in November and participate in a wide range of activities for charity and environmental protection.-Enditem
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Former PMU 18 chief gets three more years in jail
Hanoi (VNA) - The Hanoi People’s Court on August 3 sentenced former General Director of the Project Management Unit (PMU 18) Bui Tien Dung to three years in jail for ‘deliberately acting against the State’s regulations on economic management, causing serious consequences’.
According to the indictment, during his term of office from 1998-2005, Dung lent cars for wrongly-purposed uses, leading to the loss of almost 2.7 billion VND.
Dung is already serving a 13-year term, which was imposed in 2007, for illegal gambling and for bribery in his attempts to cover up the crime.
His accomplices Vu Manh Tien, vice chief of the PMU 18 office, got a two-year imprisonment, and Bui Thu Hanh, an official of the Finance and Accounting Department of PMU 18, was sentenced to 14 months and five days in prison for the same charge of ‘abusing positions and powers while performing official duties’ in pursuant to Article 281 of the Penal Code.
The duo will be prohibited from holding positions within three years after serving their sentences.
Of the two other defendants, Le Thi Thanh Hoa, deputy head of PID 6, received a three-year suspended sentence plus five years of probation, and Nguyen Thanh Son, also deputy head of PID 6, got a two-year suspended sentence and will be prohibited from holding positions within three years following his sentence for the same charge.
The court requested the defendants reimburse the sums of money they had misappropriated in the case.-Enditem
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VN, Cambodia in talks to boost border ties
Phnom Penh (VNA) – Officials from Vietnam and Cambodia gathered in a conference in Phnom Penh from August 2-3 to review the progress of cooperation between the two sides’ border provinces and discuss ways to enhance the relationship.
The conference, the sixth of its kind, was co-chaired by Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem and Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sar Kheng.
The two sides reviewed the implementation of agreements reached during the previous conference and noted that border trade ties have seen strong developments in the first months of 2010, making significant contributions to raising two-way trade between Vietnam and Cambodia to nearly 2 billion USD this year.
Cooperation in other sectors, including agro-forestry and fisheries, industry, mining, transport and construction, telecommunication, education and health has also been consolidated and enhanced along with positive results in border demarcation and landmark planting work.
The two sides agreed to strengthen political relations between the two countries in general and between border localities in particular through the exchange of delegations of all levels and people-to-people exchanges.
They will boost cooperation in trade, investment, tourism, agro-forestry and fisheries, industry and energy, education and training, health and culture, speed up border demarcation and landmark planting in order to complete the work by late 2010 and consolidate security along the borderline.
The two sides issued a joint statement at the end of the conference.
On the same day, Deputy PM Khiem paid a courtesy visit to Cambodia Prime Minister Hun Sen, who highly valued the results of the conference and suggested the two sides maintain this activity regularly to create a close cooperation mechanism between the two countries’ border localities.
He affirmed that Cambodia will allocate 100,000 hectares for Vietnam to implement its rubber planting project.
The Cambodian PM expressed his hope that the two countries will soon finalise feasibility studies of two hydro-power projects, namely Se San and Sre Pok.-Enditem
Phnom Penh (VNA) – Officials from Vietnam and Cambodia gathered in a conference in Phnom Penh from August 2-3 to review the progress of cooperation between the two sides’ border provinces and discuss ways to enhance the relationship.
The conference, the sixth of its kind, was co-chaired by Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem and Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sar Kheng.
The two sides reviewed the implementation of agreements reached during the previous conference and noted that border trade ties have seen strong developments in the first months of 2010, making significant contributions to raising two-way trade between Vietnam and Cambodia to nearly 2 billion USD this year.
Cooperation in other sectors, including agro-forestry and fisheries, industry, mining, transport and construction, telecommunication, education and health has also been consolidated and enhanced along with positive results in border demarcation and landmark planting work.
The two sides agreed to strengthen political relations between the two countries in general and between border localities in particular through the exchange of delegations of all levels and people-to-people exchanges.
They will boost cooperation in trade, investment, tourism, agro-forestry and fisheries, industry and energy, education and training, health and culture, speed up border demarcation and landmark planting in order to complete the work by late 2010 and consolidate security along the borderline.
The two sides issued a joint statement at the end of the conference.
On the same day, Deputy PM Khiem paid a courtesy visit to Cambodia Prime Minister Hun Sen, who highly valued the results of the conference and suggested the two sides maintain this activity regularly to create a close cooperation mechanism between the two countries’ border localities.
He affirmed that Cambodia will allocate 100,000 hectares for Vietnam to implement its rubber planting project.
The Cambodian PM expressed his hope that the two countries will soon finalise feasibility studies of two hydro-power projects, namely Se San and Sre Pok.-Enditem
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Muslim fasting month celebrated in An Giang
An Giang (VNA) – The authorities and Cham people in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang held a solemn ceremony to celebrate the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which will last from August 11 to September 9.
Ramadan, the ninth month of the year in the Islamic calendar, aims to encourage Muslims to do good deeds and avoid bad actions such as drinking, gambling, prostitution and drug-related crimes.
During the month, Cham Muslims in An Giang province from 15 years of age will fast in the daytime and contribute four kilograms of rice and 2.5 percent of their yearly incomes to charitable work.
Speaking at the ceremony, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Vuong Binh Thanh praised local Cham Muslims’ efforts and expressed a wish that they will make more contributions to the country in the future.
An Giang is now home to over 12,500 Muslims, mainly living in the five districts of An Phu, Tan Chau, Chau Phu, Phu Tan and Chau Thanh.-Enditem
Da Nang aims to boost investment in tourism sector
Da Nang (VNA) — Da Nang will create new policies to encourage investors to develop key tourism areas, including Ba Na Tourist Site, Son Tra Peninsula and the beaches of My Khe and Non Nuoc.
The local government plans to focus on tourist safety and invest in improving infrastructure, transportation and flight schedules.
A travel promotion campaign via mass media, advertising and marketing will also occur locally and internationally this year.
The city will increase marketing activities by publishing tourism brochures and maintaining websites with travel information for domestic and foreign tourists, tour organisers and travel agencies.
As part of a media campaign, the authorities will support local agencies to co-operate with foreign partners in Japan , China and Singapore to produce promotions and create new tours.
A tourism programme between Da Nang and neighbouring provinces of Quang Nam and Thua Thien-Hue will be expanded.
" Da Nang is home to many beautiful landscapes, which creates business opportunities for local tourism. The city should be one of Vietnam 's most attractive destinations," Nguyen Manh Cuong, deputy director of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, said.
The agency said it would support Da Nang to develop stable, long-term tourism.
In recent years, many international-standard hotels have been built in Da Nang , including 4 – and 5-star luxury resorts Furama, Sandy Beach and eco-tourism resorts Ba Na and Son Tra.
Since 2001, Da Nang has reported a 15 percent annual visitor growth.
The city expects to attract 1.4 million visitors this year, including 350,000 foreigners, and earn more than 1 trillion VND (55 million USD) from tourism. - Enditem
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Agency launches website on laws for the disabled
HCM City (VNA) — Disability Resource and Development Vietnam has launched a website to provide people with disabilities information about laws related to them.
Vo Thi Hoang Yen, head of the HCM City-based non-profit organisation, said she hoped the site would of benefit to them and help protect them.
"When the DRD Vietnam was founded… a student sent me a letter saying he was seeking information about the disabled but could not find it anywhere."
Many disabled people did not know their rights or the benefits the Government offers.
The Government's websites published legal information related to many fields, meaning people with disabilities find it hard to get through the clutter and access the information related to them.
The DRD Vietnam has invited legal experts like Le Thi Bich Tho, Dang Thi Tuyet Mai and Dang Duc Tri to help update its website. They will also provide disabled people with legal advice and represent them if required.
The site will assist them with administrative tasks like obtaining birth and marriage certificates, licences, pensions, and others.
But www.luatvachinh-sach.drdvietnam.com will also be very helpful for people without disabilities seeking information about legal provisions.
According to the General Statistics Office, 15 percent of the population has disabilities. Of them, less than a fifth have a high school degree and less than 1 percent have gone to college or graduated.
The DRD Vietnam said the disabled faced not only attitudinal and infrastructure barriers in Vietnam but also often lacked confidence, basic education, working skills and knowledge of the law, which pose hurdles to their efforts to find work and climb out of poverty.
Since 2005, the DRD has been working to support and raise awareness of issues affecting people with disabilities.
It collaborates with other organisations that support such people in the south and is in touch with over 2,000 people with disabilities. — Enditem
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Biological fuel fails to attract consumers
Hanoi (VNA) — Biological E5 ethanol, produced by Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group, officially went on sale on August 1, but the environmentally friendly fuel has yet to be embraced by motorists.
The fuel, a mixture of 95 percent A92 petrol and 5 percent bio-ethanol produced from cassava, tobacco and sugar cane, is now available at 20 filling stations in Hanoi , HCM City , southern Ba Ria-Vung Tau province and northern Hai Phong and Hai Duong provinces.
However, demand is limited.
At Hanoi-based Thai Thinh filling station, there were typically long queues of drivers waiting for A92 petrol on August 2, but few callers for E5.
Nguyen Van Duc, a petrol pump attendant, said few motorist wanted E5 petrol, even though it was cheaper than other kinds of fuel.
E5 costs 15,500 VND (0.8 USD) per litre, while regular A92 costs about 16,000 VND (8.4 USD) per litre.
"Many people do not know about this kind of petrol, while those that are familiar with it are hesitant to change their behaviour and are not sure about quality," Duc said.
However, he said the number of motorists using E5 had gradually increased partly because it was cheaper but also because it was "cleaner and safer."
He said motorists should be made fully aware of E5's benefits.
"I didn't know that E5 was already on sale," Tran Hoang Nam , a motorist from Hai Ba Trung district, said.
"I have no idea if the fuel is as good as regular petrol, so I will wait until it becomes more popular," he said.
Nguyen Xuan Son, director general of Viet Nam Petrol Oil Corporation, said E5 had been thoroughly tested to ensure it was suitable for all vehicles.
E5 petrol was launched as part of the Government's biofuel development master plan (up to 2015).
E5 petrol will next go on sale at three stations in central Da Nang city, three in central Thua Thien-Hue province and five in the Mekong Delta's Can Tho city.
It will be sold at more than 4,000 stations by the end of 2012. - Enditem
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Funds for student dormitories to be paid in advance
Hanoi (VNA) — The Government will provide money in advance for the building of student accommodation approved for 2010-11.
Government Office document 211/TB-VPCP says the pre-payment is primarily intended to ensure the projects are completed on schedule.
The Government has also agreed to transfer 59.5 billion VND (3 million USD) for 44 Construction Ministry-approved student-accommodation projects.
And Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has asked the municipal administrations of Hanoi and HCM City to provide scheduled moneys in advance for projects that he has approved.
The payments will be refunded from next year's State budget, says the document.
The document says Planning and Investment Minister Vo Hong Phuc has been asked to coordinate with the Construction and Finance Ministries to complete a list of student-accommodation projects for 2011-15 that have been given prime ministerial approval but which have not been included in capital allotments for 2010.
The list will go to the National Assembly Standing Committee.
The Construction Ministry has been asked to coordinate with the Education and Training, the Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, Planning and Investment and the Finance Ministries together with relevant agencies to complete a list of proposed projects that are to be financed from the sale of government bonds in 2011-15 for the prime minister's approval. - Enditem
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Slaughterhouse meets international standards
Quang Ngai (VNA) — The first international standard slaughterhouse in central Quang Ngai province will go into operation next July.
The slaughterhouse is expected to provide clean poultry for the province, particularly factories in the Dung Quat Economic Zone.
Construction kicked off last week in Binh Hiep ward, Binh Son district.
The nearly-one-ha slaughterhouse worth 28 billion VND (1.5 million USD) will be equipped with an advanced system that can process 300 fowls per hour. - Enditem
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Scholarship helps deepen Indonesia ties
HCM City (VNA) — The acting Indonesian consul general in HCM City, Dalton Sembiring, has hailed students returning after studying in his country for contributing greatly to strengthening ties between the two countries.
Speaking at an annual gathering of former students in Indonesia , he said 15 Vietnamese students had been awarded the Darmasiswa Scholarship this year, five more than last year.
In the last five years, 36 students in HCM City had received the scholarship, and Sembiring said the number would increase in future.
Vietnam and Indonesia were fraternal nations with many similarities but their trade remained low, he said, adding he hoped exchange students would help boost trade and cultural exchanges between the nations. — Enditem
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Inscription heritage status sought
HCM City (VNA) — Monument inscriptions in Han Chinese and Nom (old Vietnamese script based on Chinese characters) at the royal citadel in Hue will be submitted to UNESCO to be recognised as a World Document Heritage.
Phan Thanh Hai, deputy director of the Hue Monuments Conservation Centre, said the Han writing was used in official feudal correspondences.
The scripts are used for both verse and prose, including thousands of poems and celebratory eulogies carved on palaces, steles, mausoleums and other monuments.
The most notable are poems celebrating spring, which are carved on Ngo Mon (Noon gate) and on the roof of Thai Hoa Palace .
Other highlights are a series of gilded poems in the palace presumably written by a number of kings about the country's independence, sovereignty, peace and prosperity.
One of the poems is seen as a declaration of independence of the Nguyen dynasty, the country's last feudal regime.
The poem reads: The country has a civilisation of thousands of years/ Its territory stretches thousands of miles/ Ever since its establishment under Hong Bang Family/ The country is prosperous and mighty.
Historians and experts, who have praised the poem's value, said they were an important part of the soul of Hue when it was the royal capital of the country.
Hai said the compilation of the inscriptions and other necessary work will be completed by 2014, and submitted to UNESCO the following year.
Because of the small group of scholars in the country who understand the Nom script, the work of translation and other duties will take several years, according to the centre.
The Hoi An People's Committee approved using the city's budget to upgrade and restore degraded historical heritages in the town.
The town, recognised by the UNESCO as a World Heritage site, is a major tourism attraction in the country.
According to an announcement made on August 1 by the Hoi An Centre for Management and Preservation of Monuments, 61 historic heritage monuments in Hoi An are seriously degraded with 28 having a high risk of collapsing.
Town authorities have tasked the centre with making a list of degraded heritage monuments and restoring them.
The Netherlands-based Prince Claus Fund has donated 22,000 EUR (16,600 USD) to restore a historic monument on Nguyen Thai Hoc Street . - Enditem
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New technologies for fertilizer production in Cambodia
Phnom Penh (VNA)- The Cambodian International Five Star Fertilizer Company on August 2 signed an agreement with China’s Jiangsu Right Machinery Group to transfer technologies for fertilizer production in the Cambodia capital city of Phnom Penh.
Two production chains equipped with new liquefied urea technology will be installed for the 65 million fertilizer plant which is jointly invested by Vietnam’s Five Star Group (FSG) and the Cambodian Investment and Development company of Vietnam, a subsidy of the Bank for Investment and Development.
As the first modern plant in Cambodia, it expects to produce 500,000 tonnes of fertilizers per year with more than 40 kinds of high-quality products, including environmentally-friendly NHK, organic fertilizers which contribute to balancing the ecological environment and bring about high productivity. It is expected to be put into operation by the end of 2011.
With 20 years in operation, the FSG is working on various projects, including a fertilizer plant in the southern province of Long An which began operating in 2006 with a capacity of 300,000 tonnes per year.-Enditem
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VN, Indonesia together fight illegal wildlife trade
Hanoi (VNA)- The wildlife trade enforcement officials from Vietnam and Indonesia have committed to collaborate in the fight against illegal trade in timber and other wild species.
At the first bilateral dialogue in the northern port city of Hai Phong from August 1-3, the two sides shared information and experiences as well as discussed opportunities for tackling the illegal wildlife trade between the two countries, then seek a way to develop a common agreement upon which the two countries can operate.
Dr. Ha Cong Tuan, Vice Director of the Forestry Directorate of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said that the dialogue is under the framework of cooperation between Vietnam and the Southeast Asian countries in preventing timber trafficking and protecting animals on the verge of extinction.
The dialogue is also one of activities towards the 55 th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Vietnam and Indonesia.
In 2009 and early 2010, Hai Phong port had seized 15 tonnes of ivory, dozen tonnes of frozen pangolins and pangolin scales as well as a large quantity of turtle shells originated from Indonesia.-Enditem
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Speculators walk, market stalls
Hanoi (VNA) -- A modest rally in the final two days of July couldn't cheer markets in August's opening session on the HCM Stock Exchange, as the VN-Index fell back on August 2 by 0.47 percent to close at 491.61 points.
The value of trades also proved anaemic, reaching just 1.12 trillion VND (57.4 million USD) on a volume of 37 million shares.
Thanh Cong Textile and Garment (TCM) was the most-active share on the HCM City market, responsible for 2.5 million trades and accounted for 7.37 percent of total market volume.
On the Hanoi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index declined by an even more substantial 1.27 percent on the first trading day in August, closing at just 151.38 points. Volume reached only 25.9 million shares for a combined value of less than 740 billion VND (38 million USD).
Weak capital inflows continued to stall the markets, said the head of analysis for VNDirect Securities Co, Nguyen Dinh Do.
The stock exchanges have also been greatly impacted by a monetary market in which interest rates have remained high and credit growth slow, Do said. In this context, he said, investors were creating their own opportunities to earn quick profits by pumping money into penny stocks.-Enditem
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Foreign gang prosecuted for theft of property
HCM City (VNA) – The People’s Procuracy of Ho Chi Minh City has completed indictment of six defendants of Indonesian nationality prosecuted on charges of property theft.
They included Allen Fredy, 51, Edy Hasan, 41, Ahmad Dahlan, 35, Wahyu Kurniawan, 38, Ahmad Syarib, 46, and Ibrahim Hasyim, 43.
They will be brought to court in the coming time by the municipal People’s Court.
According to the indictment and investigation records, the gang followed customers leaving banks in Ho Chi Minh City , punctured their cars’ tyres and took their money away when the customers were replacing new tyres.
Entering Vietnam in June 2009, the gang had stolen billions of Vietnamese dongs from banks’ customers.
On July 14, 2009, Ho Chi Minh City Police caught the gang in the act of stealing 22,900 USD of Taiwanese customer Chao Pao Liang at Tran Hung Dao-Ho Hao Hon intersection in District 1, when Chao just left the bank in the district.
The city police also asked Indonesian police and the Interpol to hunt for two other persons, Indra Jaya and Yaris Rintan, who were also involved in the case.-Enditem
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Thailand to depoliticize border problem with Cambodia
Hanoi (VNA) - Thailand will try to depoliticize the ongoing border conflict with Cambodia and to solve the problem through negotiation, Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said.
Speaking at a press briefing in Bangkok on Aug. 2, the FM stressed that Bangkok did not want to have any political problem with the neighboring country. The border was still open. And, all agreements they had with Cambodia were still in place.
Thailand will proceed with the Thai-Cambodia memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the overlapping continental shelf area signed in June, 2000, Kasit said.
Kasit's remark was made after the World Heritage Committee (WHC) decided on July 29 to reschedule its discussion on Cambodia 's management plan for the Hindu Preah Vihear Temple to its annual meeting in Bahrain in 2011.
On July 30, the Thai PM affirmed determination that border conflict would not affect bilateral ties and call on relevant agencies of Thailand to take the advantages of the WHC decision to postpone Cambodia ’s plan on management of the temple to study Phnom Penh ’s proposal to protect national benefits at the dispute area.-Enditem
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Local investors eye overseas projects
HCM City (VNA) -- Vietnamese investors spent a total of 400 million USD for 60 new and existing overseas projects during the first half of the year, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment's Foreign Investment Agency.
Although the total amount declined compared to the same period last year, investment in overseas industry and retail sectors increased.
Vu Van Chung, deputy head of the Foreign Investment Agency's Foreign Investment Division, said the quality and effectiveness of overseas-investment projects were more important than the total number of projects or total investment volume.
Overseas investment projects also help to promote domestic production and exports, Chung added.
The agency is currently reviewing the implementation of 500 overseas projects worth more than 8 billion USD.
The department is reviewing all of the projects that have received investment licences, especially those that used funds from the State budget.
Under the review, about 200 projects have submitted results of their operations.
The ministry is also collecting information and opinion from Vietnamese investors to amend Decree 78 on direct overseas investment.
The amendment aims to strengthen inspections of overseas projects and to simplify administrative procedures.
Most Vietnamese overseas projects are in industry, construction, agro-forestry, fisheries, oil exploration or services.-Enditem
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Seafood export values to increase
Hanoi (VNA) -- The total export value of seafood is expected to increase by 13.4 percent to 4.8 billion USD this year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development's Centre of Informatics and Statistics has announced.
World prices for many types of seafood had increased sharply since early this year due to a short supply, the centre said. The shrimp price jumped by 40 percent to 14 USD per kilo in the US while tra fish fillet saw a 20 percent price jump to 3.5 USD per kilo against April prices.
The shrimp price in Japan also surged by 18 percent over the early months of the year.
The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and crop failures in shrimp exporting countries, including Thailand and India , resulted in advantages for Vietnam 's seafood export enterprises, said the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).
In the first seven months of this year, shrimp overtook tra for first place in export value among Vietnam 's key seafood export products, the ministry said.
The export value of shrimp in the first seven months had a year-on-year increase of 22 percent to 717 million USD, accounting for 35.5 percent of the country's total seafood export value.
The value of tra exports and tuna exports jumped by 7.9 percent and 88 percent, respectively, in the first seven months.
In that period, the total national seafood export value increased by 11.6 percent to 2.45 billion USD over the same period last year.
Vietnam has exported seafood to 143 countries and territories, with the European Union being the largest export market so far. Seafood exports to the EU reached 164,000 tonnes for 502 million USD in earnings, accounting for 24.5 percent of the country's total.
Other major export markets included the US , Russia , Ukraine , Japan , China and ASEAN countries.-Enditem
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Remittances from abroad rise sharply in 2010
HCM City (VNA) -- Many companies offering money-transfer services are expected to easily fulfill their business targets for this year since inward remittances have increased significantly over the past few months.
Industry observers say that the trend is likely to continue in the remaining months of the year.
Trinh Hoai Nam , deputy director of Dong A Money Transfer, said overseas remittances through his company reached 600 million USD in the first seven months of the year, meeting 55 percent of its annual target of 1.1 billion USD.
His company will continue to improve quality of remittance payment and customer care services to better serve its customers, especially in the last few months of the year when inward remittances increase strongly, Nam said.
First half overseas remittances via Sacomrex, which belongs to the Sai Gon Thuong Tin Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Sacombank), topped 600 million USD for a 35 percent increase over the same period last year. It expects to see the annual figures exceed 1.2 billion USD.
Sacombank said it has implemented many measures like diversifying payment channels to facilitate remittances for both senders and receivers.
Besides traditional markets including the US , Australia and Canada , Eastern Europe and Asia have increasingly become important overseas remittance sources since many Vietnamese people are living and working in these regions, according to Sacombank.
Inward remittances through HCM City banks in the first seven months of the year topped 2.24 billion USD, an increase of nearly 28 percent compared to the same period last year, said Nguyen Hoang Minh, deputy director of the State Bank of Vietnam, HCM City chapter.
The figure is expected to reach 3.8 billion USD this year, up 18 percent over last year, Minh said.
The recovery of the world economy as well as better growth of Vietnam's economy have opened more business opportunities in Vietnam, and increasing numbers of overseas Vietnamese are transferring money to invest in their homeland, bankers said.
The increasing number of Vietnamese people going abroad for work has also helped increase the amount of overseas remittances.
Commercial banks have reported that the amount of dollars received through remittances and sold to them is higher than earlier because dollar prices at banks now equal prices on the open market.
They also expect that overseas remittances will increase in the last months of the year when many overseas Vietnamese send money home for the Lunar New Year.-Enditem
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FDI fails to meet quality target
HCM City (VNA) -- Foreign direct investment (FDI) has undoubtedly played a major role in the country's economic growth but it is a mixed blessing, according to economists.
It is the Government's hope that FDI will help develop the industrial and agricultural sectors by bringing in modern technologies but foreign investors have chosen to focus on services.
At a recent review of 20 years of FDI flows, economists pointed out that while the money invested has risen sharply, the quality of investments – based on criteria like technology transfer, improving workers' skills, and modernisation – has not made much progress.
Nguyen Mai, chairman of the Foreign Business Association, spoke about an unusual situation that is developing.
In the early years, foreign investors mostly entered into joint ventures with local businesses, investing just 70-75 percent of the capital. But now many of them are starting 100-percent-owned businesses.
"Although the situation has not been studied enough to understand the consequences, I think it is high time to consider this," he said.
Pham Chi Lan, a senior economist, pointed out that many foreign companies falsely report losses to evade tax.
She cited the example of the automobile industry. Last year, during the global financial crisis, 60 percent of foreign companies announced losses. The rates in 2007 and 2008 were 70 and 61.3 percent, respectively.
Another economist, Bui Kien Thanh, said many FDI enterprises set up factories and hire workers at very low cost in Vietnam , imported raw materials and produced goods for export at very competitive prices.
"For a pair of shoes, they cite a price of 10-15 USD on the invoice and pay little or no tax claiming very low profitability. But when the shoe reaches a third nation, they sell it at a much higher price," he said.
Since 1996, the Government has provided incentives for foreign investment in agriculture, forestry, and aquaculture. In 2005, the Government conferred special status on these sectors.
But all this has failed to attract foreign investors. While investment in these sectors declined, investment in services skyrocketed.
In 2008, almost a quarter of FDI was in real estate.
"Cash flows into services significantly increased but it did not have much impact on technology transfer and labour skills," Phung Xuan Nha, a researcher said.
Around 10 percent of businesses still use technology from the 1970s, 30 percent from the 1980s, and 50 percent from the 1990s, he said.
"Quality should be the first criterion for FDI in modernised economies," Mai said.
Tran Dinh Thien, head of the Vietnam Economics Institute, said: " Vietnam has for too long exported minerals. Foreign businesses are also allowed to do so. This must stop."
In the last three years, Da Nang has cancelled licences it issued for four FDI projects, including a golf course to be built at a cost of 12 million USD.
The central province of Quang Nam is completing the formalities to cancel the licence issued for a gigantic tourism project with an investment of 10 billion USD by two US-based companies, TANO Capital and Global C&D, because they did not pay the deposits despite getting a licence as long ago as September.-Enditem
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11 fatalities in Russian jet crash
Moscow (VNA)- A 24 seat passenger jet crashed in the Russian territory of Krasnoyarsk in Eastern Siberia on August 3, killing 11 out of 15 people on board.
The plane, departed from Krasnoyarsk City and crashed near the airport in the town of Igarka when making its approach to land, reported the Regional Emergencies Ministry.
The Federal Air Transport Agency said that three of the survivors were crew members and the fourth was a passenger, but all were hospitalised.
"Before landing, the plane veered to the right and collided with the ground in front of the runway," said the agency.-Enditem
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One more document on Hoang Sa’s sovereignty discovered
Thua Thien-Hue (VNA) – The People’s Committee of Thua Thien-Hue province has handed over a document detailing Vietnam ’s sovereignty over the Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago to the Foreign Ministry.
The document, entitled “Meteorological Agency on the Hoang Sa Islands in 1955”, had been kept at the provincial archives agency, said Deputy Chairman of Thua Thien-Hue People’s Committee Phan Ngoc Tho on August 2.
The document comprises 10 pages, six written in French and four in Vietnamese, by the Construction Agency (of the former regime) on the sovereignty of the Hoang Sa Archipelago during the 1897-1960 period.
The document was typed, signed and stamped with all the available information at the time describing the upgrading of the Hoang Sa Meteorological Agency.
The file was found and preserved by Nguyen Tat Thang, head of the provincial Archives Agency.
Earlier, three documents concerning the country’s sovereignty over the Hoang Sa Archipelago were also discovered in Thua Thien-Hue.
They included two official documents written separately in Vietnamese and French that testify to Vietnam ’s sovereignty over the Hoang Sa archipelago.
Both papers were submitted to King Bao Dai, asking him for approval to confer a posthumous medal on Louis Fontan, head of a Vietnamese working party based in the Hoang Sa Archipelago, who died of malaria there.
They were submitted by Pham Quynh, chief of the Cabinet, on February 3, 1939 and marked chuan y (approved) by the country’s last King who signed his initials BD in red ink a day later.
Hue-based researcher Phan Thuan An, who presented the documents to the administration, recently found them along with 70 others from 1939 at the mansion of Princess Ngoc Son, his wife’s grandmother and Bao Dai’s aunt.
Though the papers are valuable and rare, An donated them because he wanted to contribute to proving Vietnam ’s sovereignty over the archipelago.
He also handed over to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs another royal document showing Nguyen dynasty kings had dispatched troops to guard Hoang Sa.-Enditem
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