Day: October 10, 2021

In spite of the outbreaks of COVID-19 nationwide, the northern province of Quang Ninh has still maintained its position as one of the safe tourism destinations in the country.

Local authorities are actively implementing a mass vaccination drive against COVID-19 in the province with the aim of reaching herd immunity against COVID-19 as soon as possible, towards gradually resuming tourism activities in the locality.

With a coastline of 120km, the UNESCO heritage site Ha Long Bay of Quang Ninh is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Vietnam. It features thousands of islands, each topped with thick jungle vegetation, forming a spectacular seascape of limestone pillars.

The bay was ranked first in the 10 most beautiful bays on the planet in a voting by the world famous travel website Touropias in June this year.

Several of the islands are hollow, with enormous caves, other islands include lakes and some support floating villages of fishermen, Touropias said.

Previously, the jade-green bay won the hearts of international tourists and has been named in a series of rankings including the Top 10 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Asia, the top 29 best places to visit in Southeast Asia, and the top 50 most beautiful natural wonders on Earth.

Holiday-makers visiting the bay in autumn can immerse themselves in stunning seascapes. They can also explore a system of breathtaking stalactite caves and islands or the daily life in fishing villages in the bay.

Amidst the beautiful landscape, Sun World Ha Long Park complex in Ha Long Bay provides fun and tremendous excitement to visitors of all ages, as they can take part in exciting and adventurous games at Dragon Park and Typhoon Water Park.

They can also take sightseeing trips to Bao Hai Linh Thong Tu cultural and spiritual complex or experience their journey across Ha Long Bay and admire the beautiful heritage city scene at night from above by Queen Cable Car in the complex.

Like a Japanese peaceful village in Quang Hanh valley, Yoko Onsen Quang Hanh is also an attractive destination to tourists. It offers Japanese-style healthcare tourism service with hot spring baths.

Yoko Onsen Quang Hanh is a perfect choice for health and beauty care.

As a magnet of tourism in the northern region, Quang Ninh province offers all types of accommodation for tourists, from budget homestays to luxury resorts.

Alongside international standard hotels such as the Wyndham Legend Halong and Muong Thanh Grand Ha Long, or unique homestays, travellers can also spend their stay at Premier Village Halong Bay Resort, which offers the most breathtaking scenery of Ha Long Bay.

Premier Village Halong Bay Resort, which owns 67 high-class villas with a view embracing the amazing scenery of the world’s natural wonder, along with a series of five-star standard services, is the most luxurious resort in Ha Long and is an ideal option for holiday-makers.

Food experience is one of reasons why people love to visit Quang Ninh, where they can enjoy fresh and savoury seafood and great local delicacies.

Quang Ninh is home to majestic trekking routes, including the “dinosaur spine” in Binh Lieu border district, or the routes leading to sacred religious sites such as the Cai Bau Pagoda, Cua Ong Temple, Bao Hai Linh Thong Tu, and the Complex of Yen Tu Monuments and Landscape.

Infrastructural improvements in Quang Ninh in recent years make it easier for foreigners to visit the world-famous bay.

Van Don International Airport, 50 kilometers away from Ha Long Bay, on September 23 welcomed an international flight carrying 301 passengers from France, who were the first to come under the pilot “vaccine passport” programme of the Ministry of Health.

Van Don is the first airport in Vietnam to welcome international flights with seven-day medical quarantine scheme.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The People’s Committee of Hanoi has agreed with the Ministry of Transport on the reopening of air routes connecting the capital city with major cities of Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City.

Accordingly, commercial flights between Hanoi-HCM City and Hanoi-Da Nang were resumed on October 10 with one return flight per day at half of capacity until October 20.

Hanoi has proposed that the Ministry of Transport continue to suspend railway passenger transport to the capital city, as well as flights on other routes to the capital city’s Noi Bai airport.

The city will continue to evaluate the pandemic risks based on COVID-19 vaccine coverage in order to make further adjustment to transport plans.

In order to ensure safety, Hanoi also proposed a number of measures on passengers arriving in Noi Bai International Airport.

The passengers must show a certificate of full vaccination with the second dose taken at least 14 days and no more than 12 months before departure time, or a COVID-19 recovery certificate issued within 6 months before departure time.

They should have negative COVID-19 test certificate issued within 72 hours before departure time, while implementing the Ministry of Health’s 5K message.

These passengers will be subject to seven-day quarantine at designated sites or hotels in Hanoi and pay for all quarantine and testing fees.

After undergoing the mandatory quarantine period, these passengers will have to self-monitor their health at home for another week.

Similar requirements are also given to passengers from Da Nang. However, they are allowed to isolate themselves at home or place of residence for seven days and get tested for COVID-19 on the 1st and 6th day upon arrival.

They are requested to continue self-monitoring their health at home or place of residence for one subsequent week.

As of October 8, the capital city has injected over 8 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines to local residents (97.8 percent of the population over 18 years old and 70.9 percent of the overall population) with over 2.14 million people receiving full two shots.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Deputy Prime Minister and head of the National Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control Le Van Thanh has asked relevant agencies and localities to keep up caution and prepare for an upcoming storm.

He made the request at a meeting of the committee on October 10 to review the response to storm Lionrock, which has weakened into a depression, and preparation for storm Kompasu, which is forecast to enter the East Sea in the next several days.

The Deputy PM noted that prompt preparations have helped minimize losses from storm Lionrock, but vigilance is still needed as big rains in the storm’s aftermath will continue for some days.

Besides, storm Kompasu is on its way to the East Sea, expected to become the eighth storm to hit the country this year. Kompasu is forecast to be stronger and move faster than storm Lionrock, so careful preparation is needed, he said.

Deputy PM Thanh underlined the need to check and ensure the safety of reservoirs and dams as well as important dykes. He reminded local administrations to help farmers harvest crops, while still following pandemic prevention regulations.

Head of the Vietnam Disaster Management Authority Tran Quang Hoai asked localities to prepare food and essential goods for emergency situations, and have plans to give shelters to migrant workers who are travelling from the south to their hometown in the north after prolonged lockdowns.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Vietnamese children in Sydney have raised 7,532 AUD (5,505 USD) by holding a series of concerts to support COVID-19 prevention and control activities in Ho Chi Minh City and pandemic-hit people in Central Highlands province of Dak Lak.

Khoi Anh, the mother of two children who perform at the concert, said that her family has kept a close watch on COVID-19 developments in Vietnam and HCM City and wish to do something to ease difficulties facing pandemic-hit people, especially children.

Through the concerts, she hopes to nurture her children’s sense of sympathy with other people’s difficulties and willingness to support the needy, while becoming more closely to the homeland.

Earlier in June, the Vietnamese Embassy in Canberra and the Vietnamese General Consulates in Sydney and Perth called for support from the Vietnamese community in the country in COVID-19 prevention and control at home.

In response to the call, many Vietnamese associations, businesses, entrepreneurs, students and Vietnamese people in Australia have donate cash to the activities, while engaging in many activities to support pandemic fight in Vietnam and call for Australia’s assistance in COVID-19 vaccine to Vietnam.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Vietnam-Switzerland relationship has recorded remarkable progress across the fields, from politics-diplomacy, trade-investment, development cooperation, to culture, education-training and people-to-people exchange over the past half a century.

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the two countries’ diplomatic relations (October 11, 1971 – 2021), the Ambassador of Switzerland to Vietnam, Ivo Sieber, has written an article on the 50 years of Swiss-Vietnamese diplomatic relations.

The following is the full text of the article.

“With the formal establishment of diplomatic relations on the 11th October of 1971, prospects of how Viet Nam and Switzerland would henceforth cooperate were lifted to a new level. It is hardly an exaggeration to say that not even the most daring visionaries could have predicted the quality and intensity of our relations today.

Early Swiss-Vietnamese relations date back to the second half of the nineteenth century, with Swiss trading companies, such as Diethelm and Biedermann, laying the ground work for relations beyond business. While most Swiss then living in Viet Nam were engaged in trade, engineering or agriculture, the country also attracted travellers, adventurers and explorers. Clearly the best known among them is Swiss-born bacteriologist Alexandre Yersin. His curiosity and vigour opened new areas of science, healthcare and agriculture for Viet Nam and left a vivid legacy that still prevails today. Not least his discovery of the pest bacillus had lasting impacts beyond Viet Nam. In 1954, Switzerland hosted the Geneva Conference on Indochina. With its neutral status, Switzerland enabled the first foray by the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam into multilateral diplomacy.

The next key moment, which we commemorate today, happened 50 years ago. In 1971, Switzerland became one of the first Western countries to establish diplomatic relations with Viet Nam. While the Treaty concluded on 11 October 1971 initiated formal diplomatic relations, a first Swiss Embassy was opened at the Metropole Hotel in Ha Noi in 1973. A plaque where the Embassy offices were located serves as testimony, while accounts of former colleagues recall the challenges of operating a diplomatic mission at a time when Viet Nam was still embroiled in the troughs of war.

After 1975, numerous Swiss nationals and well established Swiss companies, such as Nestlé or Ciba-Geigy, international trading companies, the Federation of Swiss Watch Manufacturers and the Swiss Association of Machinery Manufacturers maintained their presence in Viet Nam, along with diplomatic and humanitarian activities.

The steady commitment and belief in Viet Nam set the basis for bilateral relations to broaden and intensify from 1990 onwards. Viet Nam’s economic reforms and rapid integration into the world economy from 2000 onward further facilitated the strengthening of Vietnamese-Swiss relations, leading to the opening of a Swiss Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City in 2015. On its side, Viet Nam inaugurated a Consulate in Geneva in 1984 and elevated it to the rank of a Consulate General and UN Mission 10 years later. In 2000, Viet Nam opened an Embassy in Berne; this diplomatic presence was further extended this year with a new honorary consulate covering the cantons of Zurich and Zug. High-level visits in both directions, including during this jubilee year, are another regular feature of the past decades of cooperation.

Over the past 50 years, relations evolved, broadened and deepened. Cooperation initially strongly focused on humanitarian and development assistance. Over the course of the past 3 decades, the Swiss government provided more than Swiss Francs 600 million (VND 15 trillion) to support Viet Nam’s socio-economic development. The Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation SDC had a permanent presence in Hanoi since 1991 and was joined 4 years later by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs SECO. While SDC’s engagement was phased out in 2016, SECO’s program was stepped up, with the latest four-year program 2021-2024 launched during the official visit to Hanoi of Swiss Vice-President Ignazio Cassis. Today, cooperation by private companies from both countries has taken the lead role and is now the main driver of economic development. Viet Nam also benefits from an annual trade surplus of over Swiss Francs 2 billion (VND 50 trillion). With over 100 Swiss companies present in Viet Nam and some 20’000 jobs created in Vietnam, Swiss direct investments in Viet Nam currently amount to around Swiss Francs 2 billion (VND 50 trillion). The potential for more Swiss investments is sizable, as Switzerland is ASEAN’s 9th largest foreign investor, but so far only ranks 19th in Viet Nam. With this positive outlook, both Viet Nam and Switzerland – together with partners of the European Free Trade Association EFTA – are redoubling efforts for the conclusion of a progressive Free Trade Agreement that will boost benefits for all parties. Last month’s meeting between Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Swiss President Guy Parmelin on the side-lines of the 76th UN General Assembly underscored this commitment.

Commemorating 50 years of diplomatic relations is an important moment for any two countries. Viet Nam’s and Switzerland’s accomplishments achieved over the past half century underscore the strength of this partnership as well as the trust and commitment for the future. Next month’s inauguration of the Swiss designed “Geneva Conference Room” at the Diplomatic Academy of Viet Nam bestowed by the Swiss government is not only a symbol of this year’s commemoration, but also a promise for the future. Our two countries’ history augurs well, and I am confident that the next 50 years of Vietnamese-Swiss relations will continue to be strong, mutually beneficial and successful.”/.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The 76 information, communication and technology (ICT) firms honoured in the TOP 10 Vietnam ICT Companies 2021 have total revenue of 186.6 trillion VND (8 billion USD), accounting for nearly 61 percent of the whole industry’s.

The information was revealed at a ceremony to honour the firms held in Hanoi on October 9. Launched by the Vietnam Software and IT Services Association (VINASA) in April, the awards received 194 nominations in 18 sectors from 167 businesses, increasing 14 percent and 67 percent in terms of the number of nominations and businesses respectively over last year.

Statistics from the organisation board showed that more than 90 percent of participating firms have been implementing research and applying new technology in the development of new products and solutions.

Speaking at the awards ceremony, Deputy Minister of the Information and Communications (MIC) Pham Duc Long said: “Vietnamese IT enterprises have made great contributions to the prevention of the COVID-19 pandemic by quickly building and deploying many digital technology platforms and solutions, ensuring smooth communication, helping tens of millions of officials, employees, students, agencies, organisations, businesses, schools as well as people across the country maintain daily operations.”

The MIC highly valued big contributions from the IT business community and expects the TOP 10 leading ICT firms in Vietnam in 2021 would continue to enhance their pioneering role in making Vietnam a digital country with rapid and sustainable development, he added.

The awards this year still saw the participation of the country’s big IT firms such as Viettel, VNPT, MobiFone and FPT.

The Top 10 IT companies with impressive growth were announced for the first time to honour firms with high growth rates. Most of the companies have been providing ICT services to international markets. They have been flexible in finding growth opportunities despite difficulties caused by COVID-19.

Launched in 2014, the Top 10 ICT award aims to honour businesses with big contribution to the country’s ICT industry.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Vietnam Day in Switzerland 2021 took place virtually on October 9 as part of activities to celebrate the 50th founding anniversary of diplomatic relations and 30 years of development cooperation relation between Vietnam and Switzerland.

The programme was jointly organised by the Vietnamese Embassy in Switzerland, the Vietnamese permanent mission to the United Nations (UN), the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and other international organisations, and the Department of Cultural Affairs and UNESCO under the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

With five main parts themed “Hello Switzerland! Hello Europe!” “Original Culture,” “Miracle Vietnam,” “Future Generations,” and “See you in Vietnam,” the programme saw the presence of outstanding intellectuals, politicians, and representatives from the Vietnamese community in Switzerland and the Swiss community in Vietnam.

Addressing the event, Luu Vinh Toan, President of the Association of Vietnamese Intellectuals and Experts in Switzerland highlighted the potential for Vietnam-Switzerland cooperation in terms of science-technology, innovation, and digital transformation – a bright spot for the bilateral cooperation in the coming time. He suggested that the two nations can support each other in terms of human resources and practical applications.

Digital infrastructure and application of information technology in Vietnam is developing quickly, and Vietnam’s human resources are receiving more training and gaining more experience, while Switzerland has strengths in developing practical applications or processes, he noted.

Toan expressed his belief that Vietnam and Switzerland will become reliable strategic partners in the fields of science and technology, innovation and digital transformation, thus positively contributing to the diplomatic relations.

Honorary Consul of Vietnam in Switzerland Philipp Rosler pledged to serve as a bridge to promote the Vietnam – Switzerland – Germany relations, especially in economic, trade and investment cooperation between Vietnam and Europe.

From the perspective of foreign investors operating in Vietnam, besides the good relationship between the two countries and their similarities, Vietnam is always the best place for investment because of its industrious, skilled, well-trained workforce, according to Rosler.

Blaise Matthey, Director of the Federation of Enterprises of French-speaking Switzerland said in the context of many challenges such as climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic, Vietnam and Switzerland need to find new ways of cooperation to help promote economic recovery and sustainable growth.

Meanwhile, Felix Urech, a professor at the University of Geneva, spotlighted the change in Vietnam’s image in recent times, and mentioned a number of incentives from Vietnam that can make foreign companies decide to invest in the Southeast Asian nation.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Vietnam State Treasury (VST) has successfully purchased 150 million USD from 30 commercial banks, said Luu Hoang, head of the VST Department of Treasury Management.

The transactions completed on October 8, while the payment date is scheduled on October 11, said Hoang.

He said that earlier, the VST announced a public offering to 45 commercial banks licensed to trade foreign currency, aiming to buy 150 million USD.

The spot foreign currency offering is a new implementation which has just been approved by the Prime Minister to purchase foreign currencies from banks for foreign currency payments of the State budget

Source: Vietnam News Agency