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Long Tong festival opens in Tuyen Quang
Tuyen Quang (VNA)- The Long Tong (Going to the field) festival opened in Chiem Hoa district, the northern mountainous province of Tuyen Quang on Feb. 10, the eighth day of the first lunar month.
As a cultural trait of the Tay ethnic group, the annual festival is a chance to show peoples’ respect to nature and ancestors, expressing their wishes for favourable weather conditions, bumper crops and happiness.
The festival also included various traditional folk games such as con throwing, wrestling, walking on stilts and many other cultural and sports activities./.
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Prime Minister approves AECID, ADB-funded projects
Hanoi (VNA) – The Prime Minister has approved some projects funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Spanish International Cooperation and Development Agency (AECID).
According to the official letters No. 148 and 152/TTg-QHQT, AECID will provide capital for the project on socio-economic development integrated with gender issues in Cambodia , Timor Leste and Vietnam .
The Quang Nam People’s Committee will sign the project document with the sponsor and deploy the project.
Meanwhile ADB will provide the 1.15-million-USD project on technical assistance, institutional enhancement, financial arrangement and management in the transport sector with 1 million USD as non-refundable aid./.
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Cao Dai followers hold great feast of Supreme
Tay Ninh (VNA) – As many as 30,000 followers of Cao Dai sects have enjoyed a great feast of the Supreme merrily at the Tay Ninh Holly See in the southern province of Tay Ninh on Feb. 10.
At the one of their most important rituals, Cao Dai followers sent prayers for peace and favourable weather for the country to their Supreme during the feast which is annually held on the eighth day of the first lunar month.
The first part of the feast reserved for festive performances of lion and dragon dances which saw the participation of hundreds of performers, processions of girls in unique costumes of the region, and performance of traditional musical instruments.
Later, Cao Dai followers in their traditional long white dress carried out rites in honour of their Supreme.
Vietnam is a multi-religious country, with 80 percent of its population having beliefs, of whom 22.3 million people are followers of different religions, and 25,000 religious establishments and places of worship.
More than 2.4 million people are followers of various Cao Dai sects./.
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Top badminton player to take part in All England tourney
Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam's top badminton player Nguyen Tien Minh will take part in the 350,000 USD Yonex All England Championships in Birmingham from March 8-13.
The tournament, which is part of the Super Series Premier circuit, is one of the world's oldest and most prestigious badminton events. It attracts top players from around the world including Lee Chong Wei, Taufik Hidayat and Lin Dan.
After the event, Minh will move to Basel in Switzerland to compete in the 125,000 USD Swiss Open and then to the Asian Championships in April in Sichuan, China.
The Olympian is currently ranked seventh in the world./.
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Hoang Thien progresses at world junior tennis event
Hanoi (VNA) - Nguyen Hoang Thien entered the semi-finals of the 2011 Tennis Central 18&U ITF Summer Championships after beating Australian 14th seed Jacob Sullivan on Feb. 10 in New Zealand.
In Wellington City, the fifth seed Thien, 16, dropped in the first set before recovering to win 3-6, 7-5, 6-0. He faces another Australian, the third-seeded Jack Schipanski, in the semi-final match on Feb. 11.
Earlier, Thien defeated New Zealand's Pratt Keerasuntonpong 6-3, 6-3 in the first round and Brafley Mousley of Australia 6-3, 6-1 in the next round before eliminating local Cameron Norrie 6-1, 7-6 in the third.
The six-day tournament is scheduled to finish on Feb. 12 in Wellington.
Thien was ranked 241 in the world according to the latest world ranking table released on Feb. 7 by the International Tennis Federation. He attended training courses in the US in 2005, just two years after he took up the sport at the age of eight./.
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National cycling team to race at Asian Championships
Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam will send a team of 12 cyclists to participate in the Asian Cycling Championships in Thailand from February 17-20.
The team includes eight veteran and four young cyclists. The competition will provide the athletes with a chance to hone their skills in preparation for the 26th Southeast Asian Games.
They are trained by coach Tran Van Quyt at the HCM City-based National Sports Training Centre
Last year, youngster Nguyen Thi That won a silver medal at the Asian event./.
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RoK’s football star to play in VN charity match
HA NOI (VNA) — The Republic of Korea (RoK)’s football star Park Ji-sung is planning to play in a charity match in Vietnam.
Park, who plays for Manchester United, will line up alongside fellow teammates Patrice Evra and Edwin Van de Sar along with former Juventus hitman Pavel Nedved and Manchester City's Carlos Tevez.
The match, which is scheduled for June 15, has received support from the Vietnam Football Federation who also said they were making detailed plans in preparation for the event.
Park's agent company is looking into a suitable venue for the game and money raised through ticket sales will be given to the VFF to develop the nation's junior football movement.
Park, who played a key role in RoK’s World Cup 2010 campaign, also introduced his JS Foundation that focuses on charitable activities in Southeast Asia on Feb. 9.
Park said goodbye to the national team in January after winning his 100th cap in a match against Japan during the Asian Cup.
Park has played in three World Cups, scoring in each tournament, and is one of the greatest Asian players ever to put on a football shirt./.
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Poetry Day set for next week
HA NOI (VNA) — The annual Poetry Day will take place on Feb. 17 in Ha Noi, Nghe An and HCM City.
Huu Thinh, chairman of the Vietnam Writers Association, said the occasion would also be used to mark the 100th anniversary of Ho Chi Minh who left the country in 1911 to seek ways for national salvation from the French colonists.
"There will be a soil and water procession at Hanoi's Temple of Literature," Thinh said. "A delegation of writers from the central region will bring some soil from President Ho's home in Sen Village to the temple."
They will also bring some water from the source of the historical Pac Bo Cave's Lenin Stream, where the president lived and worked in the 1940s, in the northern province of Cao Bang to the temple.
The soil and water will be housed at the association's museum in Hanoi.
Poetry readings will take place in President Ho's homeland, Nghe An province, and at Nha Rong Wharf in HCM City.
At Hanoi's Temple of Literature the busts of 30 famed writers will be displayed.
Lanterns bearing 100 verses will also adorn the temple.
The first Poetry Day was held in 2003 at the Temple of Literature./.
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Poetry Day set for next week
HA NOI (VNA) — The annual Poetry Day will take place on Feb. 17 in Ha Noi, Nghe An and HCM City.
Huu Thinh, chairman of the Vietnam Writers Association, said the occasion would also be used to mark the 100th anniversary of Ho Chi Minh who left the country in 1911 to seek ways for national salvation from the French colonists.
"There will be a soil and water procession at Hanoi's Temple of Literature," Thinh said. "A delegation of writers from the central region will bring some soil from President Ho's home in Sen Village to the temple."
They will also bring some water from the source of the historical Pac Bo Cave's Lenin Stream, where the president lived and worked in the 1940s, in the northern province of Cao Bang to the temple.
The soil and water will be housed at the association's museum in Hanoi.
Poetry readings will take place in President Ho's homeland, Nghe An province, and at Nha Rong Wharf in HCM City.
At Hanoi's Temple of Literature the busts of 30 famed writers will be displayed.
Lanterns bearing 100 verses will also adorn the temple.
The first Poetry Day was held in 2003 at the Temple of Literature./.
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Profit-taking depresses shares
Hanoi (VNA) — Profit hunters cut into the value of shares at mid-session on Feb. 10 on the HCM Stock Exchange, sending the VN-Index to a close of 520.23 points, a decline of 0.45 percent from the previous day's level.
About 130 stocks and fund certificates lost ground, with wood products producer Duc Long Gia Lai Group (DLG) and fund certificate Vietnam Fund Management/Vietnam Active Fund (VFMVFA) each declining by 5 percent to 26,600 VND and 7,600 VND, respectively.
Lu Gia Mechanical Electric Co (LGC) also lost 4.92 percent of its value to close at 30,900 VND per share.
The performance of blue chips was particularly discouraging to the VN-Index, with stocks having a heavy influence on the Index seeing significant losses. Insurer Bao Viet Holdings (BVH) dropped by 2.1 percent while conglomerate Masan Group (MSN) declined by 1.7 percent.
Banking stocks decline by 0.8 percent overall after soaring for the previous two sessions.
Foreign investors turned net sellers on the HCM City market on Feb. 10, unloading a net of 300,000 shares worth a combined 12.2 billion VND (580,952 USD).
Their sell-off of BVH shares accounted for fully 44 percent of the share's total volume during the session.
Tan Tao Industrial Park (ITA) was the most-active stock on the HCM City market on the day, with 4.6 million traded. ITA closed up 4.27 percent, driven by a 2010 profit reported at 859 billion VND (41 million USD), double 2009's figure.
A number of penny stocks managed gains. Vietnam-Italy Steel (VIS) rose 4.9 percent, while Imexpharm Pharmaceutical (IMP), Binh Duong Trade and Development (TDC) and Petroleum Equipment Assembly and Metal Structure (PXS) each closed up by over 4.75 percent.
Overall, trading volume remained low in HCM City at 31.6 million shares, worth only 796.4 billion VND (38 million USD).
On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index also closed down by 0.66 percent to 107.67 points. Volume was low at 17.5 million shares, worth a combined 340.5 billion VND (16.2 million USD). VNDirect Securities (VND) was again the most-active share on the northern market, with 2.3 million traded./.
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ASEAN chair to attend UNSC meeting on Thai-Cambodian dispute
Hanoi (VNA)- Indonesia, as ASEAN Chair, has been invited to attend the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting on Thai-Cambodian border dispute in New York on Feb. 14.
This reflects the global community’s trust in ASEAN as a viable regional instrument to facilitate peaceful means for dispute settlement, said a press release of the Secretariat of the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Feb. 10.
“ASEAN Chair’s attendance at the UNSC meeting represents an evolution of ASEAN’s effort to resolve bilateral disputes amongst its member states as provided for by the ASEAN Charter,” said ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan.
“This is particularly important as it will set precedence for future ASEAN dispute settlement mechanisms,” he stressed.
He also added that both sides welcome Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa to help in their search for an amicable and peaceful solution to their differences, as ASEAN continues to strengthen its dispute settlement mechanism, in line with the ASEAN Charter./.
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Prime Minister asks for healthy festivals
Hanoi (VNA) — Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has called for stricter management of festivals organised around the country during the lunar new year festival period so that they do not become overly commercialised.
In an official letter sent to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the People's Committees of provinces and cities, the Prime Minister said the organisation of large-scale festivals was common throughout many localities, but there was a lack of awareness among organisers of the cultural significance of the festivals, a problem compounded by ignorant festival visitors.
Dung urged organisers to show more responsibility in deciding the scale of the events and programme content for the festivals. Invitations to guests from the Government to attend festivals needed to be approved by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, he said.
The Prime Minister also called for regular monitoring to prevent illegal price hikes of goods and services, and to curb superstitious practices including the burning of votive offerings and use of unofficial donation boxes.
The first months of the year typically sees many major festivals including the Huong Pagoda Festival in Hanoi 's My Duc District, the Yen Tu Festival in northern Quang Ninh Province , the Phu Day Festival in northern Nam Dinh Province and the Ba Chua Xu Festival in the Mekong Delta Province of An Giang.
The Prime Minister told the People's Committees of the host provinces that they should take measures to maintain order and security for the people and ensure that no fires, explosions or other untoward incidents took place.
Vu Xuan Thanh, chief inspector of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said that local authorities must focus on dividing traffic lanes for vehicles and pedestrians to avoid congestion and unexpected incidents during major festivals.
Thanh said the recent fatal stampede in Cambodia was a lesson for the management of large-scale festivals in Vietnam . More than 800 festivals take place in Vietnam each year, attracting thousands of international and domestic visitors every year.
People's Committee of cities and provinces would have to take the main responsibility for any violations, Thanh said.
In a related move, the Ministry of Health has required health departments and clinics in localities to assure food hygiene and safety of festival food stalls.
The ministry asked local health departments to guide food service providers to sign up to commitments on food safety while providing clean water, stalls and other equipment to ensure food safety.
Local health departments were asked to provide rubbish collection services to stall owners. Food sellers were requested to wear gloves while working during the festivals and street food vendors selling goods of unclear origin were banned.
Nguyen Viet Cuong, chief inspector of the Hanoi 's Department of Health, said that local authorities in areas where festivals would be organised must take responsibility of inspecting food safety.
Figures from the ministry showed that there were 132 cases of food poisoning nationwide, killing 41 and hospitalising more than 3,280 people./.
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Tame elephants face extinction
Dak Lak (VNA) — Central Highlands Dak Lak Province 's famed tame elephants may become extinct in the next 20-25 years unless conservation project receives Government funding, experts said.
The population of existing tame elephants is being overexploited for tourism and is under threat from poachers.
Elephants are also not being encouraged to breed, according to a study on tamed elephants in the province by Central Highlands University , which showed that the number of tame elephants in the province had declined sharply from 502 in 1985 to 84 in 2000 and fewer than 60 last year.
Of those, three elephants were under 15 years of ages, 43 are aged between 15-45 while 14 are over 45. The life expectancy of an elephant is 50-70 years.
Moreover, over the last 30 years, just seven out of 37 female elephants have given birth.
Meanwhile, the province's 61 billion VND (3.1 million USD) project to conserve its elephants that was approved last November, has yet to receive funding from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to kick off, said Tran Hieu, vice chairman of the provincial people's committee.
Under the four-year project, due to start this year, a healthcare, research facility on elephant reproduction and conservation are to be established.
Nguyen Thi Ly, from the Central Highlands University , said elephant owners were overexploiting their animals and paying little attention to their welfare.
"The use of tamed elephants for the tourism is out of authority's control. People do not consider elephants to be culturally significant any more. They are simply a mean to boost earnings from tourism," Ly said.
On average, each tamed elephant serves 5-7 groups of tourists daily.
Y Thiem Bya, a resident in Krong Ana commune, Buon Don district said his elephant died in 2001 from exhaustion.
"The elephant was exhausted after carrying timber at night and tourists during day," he said.
Bao Huy, the university's associate professor, said half of the province's 60 tamed elephants were raised by local residents, with the rest belonging to tourist companies.
He said just two of 31 experienced mahouts and tamers owned elephants due to the cost involved.
Adding to the population decline, male and female elephants are permitted to spend little time together, he said.
Female elephants become fertile at 11 years of age and are capable of giving birth into their fifties. They can give birth to one calf every five years. Older and larger males dominate the breeding, winning the acceptance of females in heat. After a 22 month pregnancy, the female gives birth to a single calf which weighs more than 200 pounds and nurses for as long as four years.
Owners of male elephants do not benefit directly from allowing their animals to breed, and also have to pay compensation if their elephants injure the females during mating.
Meanwhile, poachers hunt elephants for tusks, skin and tail hairs.
In the middle last year, Dak Lak provincial police arrested four poachers for cutting elephant tail and stealing tail hairs.
Early last month, an elephant owned by Buon Don-based Thanh Ha Tourism Ltd Co died after being attacked and burnt two months before.
Ea Sup District's Ia R've communal People's Committee Chairman Le Thanh Hai, reported that within last month, local residents found the bodies of three elephants.
Meanwhile, in middle of last month, seven wild elephants went on rampage in Ia To Mot Commune, Ea Sup District, destroying local garden./.
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HCM City spends 15mln USD on poor during Tet
HCM City (VNA) - The city spent more than 300 billion VND (15 million USD) on this year's Tet (Lunar New Year), caring for the poor families, officials say.
The funds were sourced from the city budget, several sectors and sponsors, they said.
Of the amount, over 121 billion VND (6.1 million USD) was spent on preparing Tet for 242,657 people who'd made wartime contributions to the nation. The city also delivered Tet gifts worth 16.6 billion VND (830,000 USD) to 31,366 poor households.
The Fatherland Front chapters in 24 districts and other organisations financially supported 361,000 poor households to celebrate the festival, while the HCM City Labour Federation offered gifts and bus tickets for 14,519 workers to go back home.
The HCM City Youth Union organised a bus free of charge for students to return home in central and northern provinces for Tet, and hosted a number of activities for around 1,000 needy children.
Meanwhile, the HCM City Women Union gave Tet presents to female workers staying in rented accommodations as well as to families of soldiers stationed on the Truong Sa (Spratly) Archipelago.
The city also hosted several cultural programmes to welcome about 400,000 Viet kieu (Vietnamese Overseas) back to their homeland to celebrate the Lunar New Year festival.
The city's price stabilisation programme before and after Tet gave out 380 billion VND (19 million USD) in interest-free loans to 14 participant businesses, ensuring sufficient supply of essential goods at stable prices before, during and after the festival.
The volume of essential items sold on the market, including rice, sugar, meat, poultry, processed food, vegetables and fruits, increased by as much as 30-40 percent.
For this Tet, the city set up 2,165 points selling goods under the programme, an increase of 620 compared to last year. It also set up 300 mobile sales points in remote areas as well as industrial parks and export processing zones.
With product reserves surpassing the target by 30-40 percent, sales were considerably boosted as well, with some estimates of pre and post Tet sales showing an increase of 40-50 percent over the previous year.
Most participating businesses resumed sales on February 6 (the fourth day of the lunar calendar), while the Co-op Mart reopened its outlets two days earlier to meet increasing demand for essential food items at prices more reasonable than at traditional markets where festive season prices are usually high./.
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Fuel wholesale traders to get more money
Hanoi/HCM City (VNA) — The Ministry of Finance has agreed that from Feb. 11, petrol wholesale traders would receive more money from the fuel price stabilisation fund to retain stability on the domestic petrol market as the world price of oil has increased to around 105 USD per barrel.
According to official letter 1786/BTC-QLG issued on Feb. 10, the new rate increased by 450 VND per litre to 1,650 VND for petrol, by 700 VND per litre to 2,300 VND for diesel and to 1,400 VND for fuel oil and by 950 VND per litre to 2,150 VND for kerosene.
The Ministry of Finance has clarified that the fuel price stabilisation fund has not run out of money.
It said 1.97 trillion VND remained in the fund and would help keep fuel prices stable until the end of February.
However, oil companies have been claiming that just 551 billion VND was left in the fund.
Launched in 2009 by collecting a 400 VND surtax on every litre of petrol sold, the fund has been governed by the Ordinance on Price.
The mechanism limits the number of times oil prices may be raised in a year.
Oil companies can increase retail prices by 7 percent if world prices rise by a similar amount within 30 days. If global prices rise by 7-12 percent, they are permitted to increase prices by 7 percent plus 60 percent of the surplus. The difference will be made up by using money from the fund.
If prices rise by more than 12 percent, the Government will cut the import tax.
Petrol wholesale traders have been complaining recently that they incur a loss of 2,400 VND on every litre they sell.
The Vietnam National Petroleum Corporation (Petrolimex) said the price of a barrel of A92 petrol had surged to 105.4 USD.
After adding expenses, the domestic retail price should be set at 18,461 VND for a litre of petrol to break even but traders have to sell at 16,400 VND, a loss of more than 2,000 VND.
Claiming the subsidy from the fund fails to make up this loss, some companies have reduced commissions for retailers, causing petrol stations to stop or cut sales.
Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper quoted a Ministry official as admitting that some petrol stations had not reopened after the Lunar New Year Festival (Tet).
The ministry would instruct oil companies to persuade their agents to sell petrol, he said.
They could not stop selling just because of lower profits, he said, warning the Market Management Department would crack down on such violations, even cancelling licences if required./.
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Quality to lift sales of dragon fruit
HCM City (VNA) — Dragon fruit exports to quality-conscious markets like the US , Japan , and the Republic of Korea (RoK) are expected to double this year to 2,600 tonnes, according to exporters.
An Phu Irradiation Joint Stock Co (API) began exporting dragon fruits to the US immediately after the Lunar New Year Festival (Tet) last week.
Vuong Dinh Khoat, API's director, said dragon fruit exports to that market had been constantly increasing after Vietnamese exporters improved quality control and US consumers became familiar with it.
"In the past, dragon fruits exported to the US by sea suffered a lot of spoilage. Now, export companies control quality from orchard to port and so the spoilage rate is low."
Exporters are eyeing shipments of 1,500 tonnes this year against 856 tonnes last year.
They are also hoping to sell the fruit to markets and supermarkets other than just those in Vietnamese and Chinese neighbourhoods.
Exports to Japan are expected to pick up this year after the country lifted its ban on Vietnamese dragon fruit last year.
Nguyen Hong Hung, deputy director of Yasaka Fruit Processing Company based in southern Binh Duong province, said exports to Japan are likely to top 600 tonnes this year from 420 tonnes last year.
Yasaka is also promoting exports to the RoK which lifted its own ban last October.
RoK experts are expected to come next week to inspect his company's hot steam sterilisation facilities for dragon fruit, he said.
"At the end of this month or early March, Vietnam 's first container of dragon fruit will be sent to RoK."
RoK is a promising market which could buy 500 tonnes this year, Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper quoted an official from the Plant Protection Department as saying.
This month the US is likely to lift its ban on Vietnamese rambutan fruit, according to the Department.
Nguyen Huu Dat, director of the Post-Import Plant Quarantine Centre No 2, said fruits shipped to the US must have the growing area code and packing code and be irradiated.
Rambutan could be a better choice for export to the US than dragon fruit since Vietnam has experience in exporting it and irradiation facilities, he added.
Khoat of API said his company was set to apply for the growing area code and has worked with US partners to prepare for rambutan exports to the US when the ban would be lifted.
The country now has an X-ray irradiation facility in HCM City and Binh Duong Province .
The third with an annual capacity of 150 tonnes will open in the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long in May./.
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Work begins on 2bln USD entertainment complex
Long An (VNA) — Construction of Happy Land Entertainment Complex is scheduled to start on February 14 in the southern province of Long An with a total investment capital of 2 billion USD.
Happy Land is planned to be developed within 39 months and launched on April 24, 2014. The entertainment complex will feature international hotels, shopping centres, international exhibitions and art amusements. It aims to draw 14 million tourists a year./.
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First batch of tra fish fillets off to Mexico
Dong Thap (VNA) — A first batch of 66 tonnes of Tra fillets was exported to Mexico on Feb. 8, according to Hung Ca Ltd Co.
In addition, 100 tonnes of Tra fillets were also exported to Europe by the International Development and Investment Corporation (IDI Corporation) on Feb. 10.
Almost all the businesses in the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap have restarted operation following the Lunar New Year. IDI Corporation expects to attain an export value of 45 million USD, a 25-percent increase compared with 2010. The province has also set a target of 504 million USD in export turnover this year./.
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