Day: September 24, 2021

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) held a teleconference in Hanoi on September 24 to announce a report assessing COVID-19’s socio-economic impacts on vulnerable households in Vietnam, and another on the design and implementation of the Government’s second support package for those hit by the pandemic.

The survey polled 498 households and found out that 88 percent of them had jobs affected in July and 63.5 percent had income reduced by 30 percent and above compared to December 2019.

Those working in the tourism, hospitality and transportation sectors were the hardest hit.

Mental health is an emerging urgent issue because the lockdown situation is commonplace and prolonged. Up to 66.4 percent of respondents expressed their concern over the pandemic’s impacts.

Cutting expenditure is the most common response employed by 79.4 percent of the households. As many as 71 percent cut food costs so that food security is also a problem.

A majority of respondents said they have yet to receive assistance from the Government’s second support package.

As the pandemic impacts in Vietnam are significant, the reports recommended that the Government should issue a new cash support programme with greater financial resources.

Pham Minh Thu, a researcher from the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs’ Institute of Labour Science and Social Affairs, said in the short-term, it is necessary to increase cash budget to meet people’s minimum living standards and use advanced technologies to offer timely support to individuals.

UNDP Resident Representative in Vietnam Terence D. Jones talked about several trends that were mentioned in the two reports and hailed the Vietnamese Government for taking comprehensive health and social measures to mitigate the spread and impacts of the pandemic.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The General Department of State Reserves under the Ministry of Finance has issued a document on the provision of over 56,555 tonnes of rice from national reserve to Ho Chi Minh City to support pandemic-hit residents.

The department has signed contracts with the Phat Tai Company Limited in Dong Thap province, Thuan Minh Import-Export JSC in HCM City and Trung An High-Tech Agriculture JSC in Can Tho city to buy enough rice to supply to HCM City.

The HCM City State Reserve Department is tasked to work with local authorities to distribute fee rice to people in need.

Earlier, the General Department has given 14,500 tonnes of rice to the city. The distribution was completed on September 9.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of Ho Chi Minh City on September 24 held a ceremony to receive medical supplies and equipment worth 352,000 USD donated by the American Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (AmCham Vietnam) and its member firms to support hospitals in the city in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

The supplies and equipment include four ventilators, 55 electric syringe pumps and 10 portable ventilators.

Speaking at the event, chairwoman of the committee To Thi Bich Chau thanked Amcham Vietnam for its donation and shared her sympathy with the enterprises as they have overcome difficulties in production and business due to the pandemic.

She said their donation will be sent to front-liners promptly, helping to improve the efficiency of treatment for COVID-19 patients and drive back the pandemic soon.

Chau expected that the enterprises would continue supporting and accompanying Vietnam’s and HCM City’s policies, and “living safely with the pandemic” to help the city to push back COVID-19, re-open and recover the economy, towards returning to new normal

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Vietnam always welcomes US investors and gives high priority to efforts to sustainably develop the energy sector with the goal of maintaining national energy security and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, President Nguyen Xuan Phuc has affirmed.

President Phuc made the statement while receiving leaders of the US’s leading energy enterprises on September 23 (local time), as part of his activities in New York to attend the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly. Receiving leaders of Exxon Mobil Corporation (ExxonMobil), Phuc suggested the corporation continue to work with Vietnamese partners and authorities to develop projects that it is interested in.

The activities of major US oil and gas companies, including Exxon Mobil, in Vietnam’s waters, especially in deep-water and high-potential areas, not only bring economic benefits to both sides, but also have important strategic significance, serving the two countries’ common goal of contributing to the maintenance of peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region. At his meeting with leading officials of NextDecade Corporation, the President stated that Vietnam wishes to import liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the US, contributing to the harmonious and sustainable development of two-way trade.

He welcomed NextDecade’s proposals in ensuring sustainable economic development, and suggested NextDecade consider expanding investment and business cooperation and providing solutions to reduce carbon dioxide emissions for production and business establishments in Vietnam.

Hosting leaders of Blackrock, a leading multinational investment management corporation, President Phuc welcomed Blackrock’s interest in investing in energy development in Vietnam, and suggested the company continue working with Binh Son Refinery and Petrochemical Company and relevant Vietnamese agencies to realise this idea.

As Blackrock has just established a climate fund with a priority to support developing markets to shift to clean energy, the Vietnamese leader shared that Vietnam advocates energy diversification and makes the most use of renewable energy sources. He asked Blackrock to study investment prospects in Vietnam.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Vietnam hopes to become a food innovation hub in the region, President Nguyen Xuan Phuc said in his message sent to the United Nations (UN) Food Systems Summit held in New York on September 23 (local time).

In his remarks, President Phuc noted “cooperation among countries, partners, and actors within the food systems must serve the interest of the people”. He stressed that food security lays the groundwork for Vietnam’s efforts in eradicating poverty, improving the people’s living standards, promoting the “transparent, responsible and sustainable” development of the Vietnamese agriculture.

In that spirit, the Vietnamese State leader made several proposals to ensure food security in the context of climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Vietnamese President highlighted the necessity to pursue a “multi-value” agricultural development model, encompassing socio-economic-cultural issues, landscapes and the environment.

It is necessary to develop a green, low-emission and “nature-based” agriculture that is climate resilient and responsive to the complicated evolution of COVID-19, he stated, adding that priority should be given to promoting rural economic development, ensuring food supplies, reducing food loss and food waste, effectively managing natural resources, and biodiversity conservation.

He called for investment in agricultural infrastructure conducive to agricultural production and rural economic development, noting that private sectors should be encouraged to make responsible investment. , and we should also better expand public-private partnership models.

He suggested formulating and frequently updating a National Nutrition-Balanced Plan as the basis for production and distribution, adding that it is also essential that we step up education and information dissemination to create a healthy food system, appropriate and nutrition-balanced diets, and green and responsible consumption trends, while preventing wastefulness.

President Phuc also said digitalisation needs to be accompanied by policy and institutional reforms that revolve around farmers and consumers. It is also necessary to form sustainable agricultural value chains, focusing on food safety and standardisation of procedures and qualities.

At the same time, to sustainably develop the food systems, it is essential to expand international cooperation in conducting studies and forecasts, and building early warning systems for natural disasters and diseases; and to ensure the sustainable management of land and water resources, biodiversity, cross-border water and marine resources, he said.

The President affirmed that Vietnam stands ready to participate in cooperation arrangements led by the UN.

“If we all work together, nothing is impossible, including the realisation of the SDGs – 2030,” concluded the Vietnamese leader.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Free trade agreements to which both Vietnam and Chile are signatories have given a boost to their bilateral trade ties, heard a virtual conference on September 23-24.

The event is jointly held by the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency (Vietrade) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), the Trade Office and the Vietnamese Embassy in Chile, and the Chilean Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam.

With the participation of more than 50 enterprises from the two countries, the conference aims to help Vietnamese enterprises step up exports to Chile.

Statistics by the MoIT reveal that by the end of August, the two-way trade reached 1.27 billion USD despite impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, with Vietnam’s exports to Chile up 44 percent and imports, up 15 percent year-on-year.

Vietnam mainly ships phones, components, machinery, equipment, footwear, and garment-textiles to Chile, while importing seafood, fruit and production materials from the South American country.

Le Hoang Tai, deputy head of Vietrade, said the conference gave businesses of both countries an insight into each other’s markets, towards sustainable cooperation.

He said the Vietnamese Government has taken various measures to recover the economy like removing barriers in administrative procedures, promoting digitalisation, and creating optimal conditions for enterprises to join the global business network. Vietnamese Ambassador to Chile Pham Truong Giang said since the Vietnam-Chile Free Trade Agreement took effect in 2014, the two-way trade has expanded rapidly.

The deal has enabled Vietnamese firms to access quality and affordable materials such as wood pulp and fish paste, and other products like salmon and champagne, he added.

Giang suggested Vietnamese enterprises increase exports to Vietnam in health care, fibers of all kinds, biodegradable bags, and ropes for salmon farming. Meanwhile, Chile should step up the export of sawn timber and wood pulp to Vietnam.

There is still ample room for Vietnamese exporters in Chile – an open market with import tax among the lowest in the world, at below 2 percent, he said, adding that through Chile, Vietnamese enterprises could also expand their operation in other South American nations.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Vietnamese Embassy in Thailand, in collaboration with the Thai Embassy in Hanoi, co-organised a webinar themed “Vietnam-Thailand economic cooperation in response to the COVID-19 pandemic” on September 23.

The event, part of activities to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the two countries’ diplomatic ties, attracted the participation of 15 speakers who are leading economic experts, business managers of Thailand and Vietnam and international organisations, together with more than 200 delegates from the two countries’ ministries, agencies, localities and businesses.

In his opening remarks, Vietnamese Ambassador to Thailand Phan Chi Thanh highlighted achievements in bilateral economic cooperation. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, two-way trade hit nearly 13 billion USD in the first 8 months of 2021, up nearly 30 percent year-on-year, thus helping Thailand maintain its position as Vietnam’s leading trading partner in ASEAN. Thai investors continue committing to invest in Vietnam with more than 600 projects, with a total capital of more than 13 billion USD.

Thanh thanked Thai businesses for actively joining hands with the Vietnamese government and people in fighting the pandemic, including donations to the vaccine fund and provision of medical equipment for Vietnamese hospitals. He affirmed that the Vietnamese Government is making efforts to implement measures to contain the pandemic and create favourable conditions for economic, production and business activities in the “new normal”.

Thai Ambassador to Vietnam Nikorndej Balankura affirmed that the COVID-19 epidemic has caused unprecedented challenges, but also brought new development opportunities for businesses, so the private sector needs to adapt to the new normal, including digital transformation, and transition to green and sustainable economic sectors.

Nguyen Anh Duong from the Central Institute for Economic Management and expert Siwat Luangsomboon from Kasikorn Bank said that Vietnam has many advantages in economic recovery, with an open economy and opportunities brought about by new-generation free trade agreements (FTAs).

Sanan Angubolkul, Chairman of the Thai-Vietnamese Business Council and Nguyen Quang Vinh, General Secretary of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, proposed carrying out a clear roadmap and safety measures to soon reopen the countries, in which the key is to accelerate vaccinations against COVID-19 and improve the capacity of enterprises in self-response to the pandemic.

Meanwhile, Audsitti Sroithong, Director of the Thai Investment Promotion Centre in Vietnam, said that the bio-circular-green (BCG) economic model will be a future trend to help countries recover. It will open up big opportunities for countries in the CLMV region (including Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam) to invest in Thailand and vice versa in the fields of smart agriculture, smart infrastructure, and electric vehicles.

Speaker Johnathan Wong, an economist at UNESCAP, proposed countries promote inclusive economic activities, create opportunities and equal access for vulnerable groups, and improve the capacity of the private sector.

At the second session on trade and investment amidst COVID-19, enterprises recommended the two Governments soon have roadmaps to reopen their countries, promptly propose consistent measures so that businesses can be well prepared, limit the impacts on production and business activities, ease financial burdens, and overcome labour shortages.

Businesses pledged to join hands with the Vietnamese Government in controlling the pandemic and recovering the economy.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

A virtual workplace platform named VCCI-Workplace was launched on September 24 by the Business Cooperation Council in Response to COVID-19 under the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) to help enterprises in the fight against COVID-19 and resume production and business.

According to VCCI, given complicated developments of the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses will have to live with the pandemic in the long run. Thus, it set up the Business Cooperation Council in Response to COVID-19 and coordinated with Facebook to build the virtual platform.

The council aims to promptly update and reflect arising issues and difficulties facing the business community and to collect the community’s recommendations and suggest related policies and solutions to coping with COVID-19 to the Government and relevant agencies. It will create links among business leaders for cooperation, and information and experience exchanges to combat COVID-19 and sustain production and business operations.

The platform works round the clock to collect enterprises’ feedback on their issues and proposals to the government and to provide them with consultancy. It will also help connect participating enterprises for experience sharing, mutual support, and trade promotion.

All businesses can participate but only those who are chairmen, general directors, and directors of the businesses are eligible to interact on the platform. Interested representatives from enterprises can register on the council’s website at: https://covid19.vcci.vn.

According to Nguyen Quang Vinh, General Secretary of VCCI and head of the council’s secretariat, the VCCI-Workplace platform will allow fast and multi-dimensional information sharing and support making timely decisions as well as more effective teamwork, helping to improve the cooperation between the council and members who are business representatives.

Source: Vietnam News Agency