Day: July 30, 2021

Pushing ahead with vaccine diplomacy is among the tasks Vietnam’s overseas representative bodies have been asked to perform so as to help achieve the “twin targets” in the last half of 2021.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) held a teleconference on July 29 to discuss measures for stepping up economic diplomacy to serve the COVID-19 combat and efforts to achieve this year’s socio-economic development targets.

Addressing the event, which gathered all the 96 ambassadors and heads of overseas representative agencies of Vietnam, Minister Bui Thanh Son said the brightest spot of economic diplomacy in the first six months was vaccine diplomacy, which has helped persuade partners to provide the country with over 14 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine.

The MoFA has made proactive moves and coordinated with relevant parties to deal with issues emerging in Vietnam’s economic relations with other countries and to connect many foreign investors with Vietnamese localities and enterprises, he noted.

He held that the pandemic will not end soon but develop more complicatedly, and that it will ease thanks to vaccination, which will create conditions for the economy to reopen.

Asking diplomats to take proactive and creative action to perform their duties, Son said apart from promoting vaccine diplomacy, they also need to keep a close watch to discover new trends during and after the pandemic so as to advise the Government about national development strategies and orientations; further expand and intensify Vietnam’s economic ties with important partners and capitalise on free trade agreements; step up locality and business matching activities, adapt external economic activities to the COVID-19 pandemic; and proactively propose plans and road maps for resuming economic activities and travel between Vietnam and other countries.

To carry out these tasks, the minister called on the entire diplomatic sector to exert every effort and resource for the realisation of national development goals.

For their part, the heads of Vietnam’s overseas representative bodies said they are aware of the their responsibility towards the homeland and the people amid the entire nation striving to obtain the “twin targets” of curbing the pandemic and recovering and boosting socio-economic development.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Vietnam attaches importance to its traditional friendship with Romania, which has been nurtured by generations of leaders and people of both countries over the past more than seven decades, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has said.

Receiving Romanian Ambassador to Vietnam Cristina Romila in Hanoi on July 30, PM Chinh spoke highly of positive development steps in the Vietnam-Romania relations over the past years, reflected through the exchange of delegations at all levels, especially the high-level ones, as well as between ministries, agencies and localities of the two countries

He thanked the Romanian Government for its donation of 100,800 doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to Vietnam, which, he said, demonstrates the time-honored friendship between the two countries, as well as the wholehearted and close-knit ties between the two peoples.

The PM expressed his belief that the timely and valuable support will practically contribute to Vietnam’s COVID-19 fight, and suggested the Romanian side consider transferring its abundant vaccines to Vietnam as much and as soon as possible.

The ambassador promised to convey the Vietnamese Government’s proposal to Romania’s high-ranking leaders for consideration.

PM Chinh also thanked Romania for its support in accelerating the signing of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) when the country held the rotating EU Presidency in June 2019. Romania was also one of the first three EU countries to ratify the EVIPA, he added.

The PM urged the ambassador to coordinate with Vietnamese and Romanian ministries and agencies to effectively implement a number of orientations and measures to strengthen the traditional friendship and multifaceted cooperation in potential spheres between the two countries, especially in economy, trade, investment, education-training and labour.

Regarding bilateral trade ties, PM Chinh said the two countries’ exports are reciprocal, suggesting the two sides maximise advantages presented by the EVFTA.

At the same time, the two sides should coordinate to seek flexible and suitable forms of sea, rail and air transportation to facilitate the exchange of goods, especially the export of Vietnamese coffee, seasonal fruits and aquatic products to Romania, he said.

Vietnam also stands ready to work as a gateway for Romania to bring its products to the ASEAN market, the government leader added.

Regarding regional and international cooperation, PM Chinh and Romila shared the view that Vietnam and Romania need to step up cooperation at multilateral and regional forums.

For the East Sea issue, they emphasised the importance of ensuring security, safety and freedom of navigation and aviation in the sea, and settling disputes on sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction through peaceful solutions and measures in accordance with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Romila pledged to make efforts to contribute to consolidating and tightening the traditional friendship and multifaceted cooperation between the two countries, especially amidst the complex developments of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Vietnamese real estate developer Nam Long Group has partnered with Japan’s Nishi Nippon Railroad Co. Ltd in the EHome Southgate housing project in the Mekong Delta province of Long An.

In its announcement on July 29, Nam Long Group said that this is the first time the Japanese firm has teamed up with the company in developing an affordable housing project with the price of an apartment at about 1 billion VND (43,565 USD).

Tran Xuan Ngoc, General Director of the Nam Long Group, said that although the EHome products do not bring Nam Long as much profit as those belonging to other segments. The firm is delighted to share with Nishi Nippon Railroad a common mission and vision in creating the valuable living environment and products for the community.

Meanwhile, Fukumori, chief representative of Nishi Nippon Railroad, said that Nam Long and Nishi Nippon Railroad have jointly developed six projects from small to large scales.

EHome is a highly appreciated affordable apartment product line of Nam Long. This product line has an average price of about 1 billion VND with three core values: Economy (affordable), Ecology (green living environment), Efficiency (effective design).

Nam Long introduced the product line for the first time in 2007. Since then, EHome has realized the dream of having a house for 5,000 households with income of 10-15 million VND per month.

The EHome Southgate, which covers 4.5 hectares of land in the area, was designed to have seven apartment blocks, equivalent to more than 1,400 apartments. The project is expected to have a synchronous utility infrastructure system and easily connect to the infrastructure of the competed Waterpoint River area.

Online sales of the project will start in the third quarter this year.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) on July 30 announced that it will present some medical devices for COVID-19 treatment worth about 120 million JPY (1.1 million USD) to Ho Chi Minh City.

The aid, granted per request of the HCM City-based Cho Ray hospital, is in the framework of the agency’s activities to support Vietnam in the fight against the pandemic.

The medical devices include extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machines and ventilators, among others. They will be sent to a newly-established COVID-19 resuscitation centre at the city’s Oncology Hospital 2.

Meanwhile, testing equipment will be presented to Cho Ray hospital.

This is the second medical device aid package for Cho Ray hospital after the first one in July 2020.

JICA, along with the Japanese government, has pledged to further support Vietnam in battling COVID-19.

Cho Ray hospital has bolstered collaboration with Japan since the 1970s and JICA has conducted numerous activities to support the Vietnamese hospital.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

President Nguyen Xuan Phuc on July 30 asked the southern province of Binh Duong, one of the localities hardest hit by the ongoing fourth wave of COVID-19 infections, to ensure food and medical services for local people during the period of social distancing and lockdown.

Binh Duong holds an important role in the country’s goods supply chains, has high population density, houses many factories, and serves as a gateway between the southern largest economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City and Southeastern localities, the State leader said during his field trip to the province.

Therefore, he stressed, Binh Duong needs to take measures to complete the dual goal of pandemic containment and economic development, with ensuring public health being the top priority.

President Phuc agreed with the Health Ministry’s proposal to impose effective policies, which are being rolled out in HCM City, in Binh Duong to ease overload at local hospitals.

Binh Duong must observe the social distancing order seriously, the President requested, suggesting the province mobilise retired doctors and private hospitals in the pandemic fight, apart from temporary hospitals.

The Party and State always accompany HCM City, Binh Duong and other southern localities in the fight against COVID-19, he said.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The military-run telecom provider Viettel has put into operation a COVID-19 vaccination management platform capable of updating 5 million shots per day.

The platform, launched earlier this month, also links with nearly 7,500 cameras in quarantine facilities in cities and provinces nationwide.

The group also deployed mobile vehicles to 28 temporary hospitals, 68 others treating COVID-19 patients and 200 concentrated quarantine facilities. Earlier, it launched remote health check-up and treatment system Telehealth, Vietnam Health Declaration app, national communicable disease supervision system and the national drug supply system.

Regarding its business results, Viettel reported on July 29 that it earned 128.6 trillion VND (5.59 billion USD) in revenue in the first half of this year, up 6.8 percent annually.

Its before-tax profit reached 19.9 trillion VND, up 3.1 percent year-on-year.

Due to the complicated developments of COVID-19 pandemic, 95 percent of its points-of-sale in Ho Chi Minh City and 80 percent in Hanoi shut down or suspended operations.

To fulfill business targets, Viettel continued stepping up digital transformation in governance and fully using technological advances to care for customers via online platforms.

It also remained a key unit in building e-Government and smart urban areas, improving cyber security and creating digital society. It upgraded data infrastructure and began to build a new data centre in the southern province of Binh Duong.

The group expanded study on artificial intelligence in health care, remote sensing and industry. It also piloted “micro 5G” station to commercialise 5G network later this year.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

A group of 30 pharmaceutical production companies from India plans to build the first Pharma Park in Vietnam, and Da Nang city’s Hi-tech Park has been suggested as a prime location.

The Indian business group, which accounts for a 30 percent share of Indian exports, expects to build a pharmaceutical production centre and fill the shortage of material and medicines supplying Vietnam’s pharmaceutical production chains.

Vice-chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Ho Ky Minh said the city’s 1,184ha hi-tech park infrastructure has been flagged as a potential site for the first Pharma Park in Vietnam.

He said the park would be a magnet for Indian pharma firms and producers as it offers flexible land rent, land clearance, and favourable income tax and import tax policies including land rent exemption for the first three years of operation.

Under the Prime Minister’s decision signed in 2018, investors in traffic, technical infrastructure and public works, or special investment projects will enjoy a land-rent exemption for the entire duration of their investment period in the park.

Investors will be given incentives as they benefit from a 10 percent tax rate for 15 years, a four-year tax exemption and a 50 percent cut in income tax for the following nine years, he said.

He added that projects valued at more than 133 million USD will get a 10 percent tax rate for 30 years, while businesses will have to pay no import tax on materials and equipment that are not available in Vietnam for the first five years of operation.

Minh said the city’s education system with 106 universities, colleges and vocational centres supplies 25,000 students each year, while nearly 10,000 doctors, nurses and medical staff are working at 22 hospitals.

The Indian pharma producers group has its own manufacturing centre in Visakhapatnam, and a series of companies including Hospira healthcare, Hetero pharmaceutical company, Shasun pharmaceuticals, Natco Pharma and Eisai Pharmaceuticals.

Da Nang Hi-tech Park, which was designed as a ‘green’ hub in central Vietnam, offers a number of benefits to manufacturers.

This includes Lien Chieu seaport, Kim Lien railway station and logistics centre, an airport and national highway all within a radius of 20km.

It also smoothly connects with the Chan May Economic Zone in Thua Thien-Hue, the Chu Lai Economic Open Zone in Quang Nam and Dung Quat Economic Zone in Quang Ngai province, Minh said.

The park’s authorities have granted an investment licence to the local Danapha Pharmaceutical Joint Stock Company for developing the first nano-technology and biotech project with an investment capital of 1.5 trillion VND (67 million USD).

Up-to-date, Da Nang has attracted 905 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects worth 3.85 billion USD, with the hi-tech park alone a destination for 24 of those projects with a total of 815 million USD

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Deputy Minister of National Defence Sen. Lt. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien received the outgoing and new defence attachés of the Republic of Korea (RoK) in Hanoi on July 29.

He affirmed that the Vietnamese Government and Ministry of National Defence always attach importance to the strategic cooperative partnership with the RoK, considering this a foundation for enhancing bilateral defence ties in an increasingly substantive and effective manner in various fields.

Chien congratulated Col. Ryou Jae-guen on completing his term in Vietnam and highly valued Ryou’s considerable contributions to bilateral defence cooperation, which has been developing fruitfully and matches the demand and capacity of each nation.

Welcoming the newly-appointed Defence Attaché Col. Kim Dae-young, the Deputy Minister affirmed that the Vietnamese ministry will create the best possible conditions for Kim to fulfil his tasks so as to develop the Vietnam – RoK defence ties steadily, comprehensively, and effectively.

Source: Vietnam News Agency