Day: November 30, 2021

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attended and delivered a keynote speech at the opening of the ASEAN High-Level Forum on Sub-Regional Cooperation for Sustainable Development and Inclusive Growth on November 30.

The forum, the first of its kind, provided ASEAN member states and their partners, regional and international organisations, and business community with a chance to discuss opportunities, challenges, potentials and orientations to promoting sub-regional development cooperation.

Speaking at the event, PM Chinh stressed that due to ASEAN’s diversity, the development of sub-regions, which are all in important geographical locations, needs the bloc’s attention.

Together with stepping up regional connectivity, it is important to connect areas and zones and ensure that they catch up with the common development of the region, he said.

He also called for strengthened solidarity and close cooperation among regional countries, which he said is a prerequisite to ensure inclusive and sustainable growth.

The Vietnamese leader pointed out three priorities that need to be promoted in sub-regional cooperation, including making the people the centre, goal and driver of development, enhancing regional and global coordination to improve capacity for sustainable sub-regional development, and strengthening infrastructure, economic and cultural connectivity to narrow development gap, thus facilitating sub-regional economic development.

Participants at the event suggested accelerating connectivity, promoting global integration and green growth, sustainably using and managing natural resources, responding to disasters and climate change, pushing digital transformation, developing human resources and bolstering tourism.

They underscored the reciprocal complementarity between sub-regions’ development efforts and ASEAN’s connectivity process, thus agreeing on a need to effectively capitalise on cooperation potential of sub-regions to offer more opportunities to enterprises in and outside the region.

Delegates spoke highly of Vietnam’s role and contributions to promoting sub-regional development cooperation for the goal of even and sustainable growth in the region.

Ideas and recommendations at the event will be submitted to ASEAN leaders for consideration.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

A forum to promote investment in information and communications technology (ICT) in the central city of Da Nang from the Republic of Korea (RoK) was held virtually on November 30, bringing together representatives from over 200 enterprises and investors from the two countries.

The event aims to introduce potential, advantages, preferential and investment support policies of Da Nang to RoK businesses and investors, especially in ICT, and high technology.

Addressing the event, Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Phan Tam said the RoK is the largest foreign investor in Vietnam with over 9,000 valid projects worth over 71.5 billion USD, including nearly 500 investment projects in the ICT field with the presence of the world’s leading technology corporations such as Samsung and LG.

To welcome more investments from the RoK, the Vietnamese Government has been perfecting models, mechanisms and policies to create breakthrough development for concentrated IT parks in key economic centres, he said.

Da Nang is likened to a “silicon valley of Southeast Asia”. The municipal authority is working with the central agencies to build a digital ecosystem, giving priority to attracting foreign-invested projects in IT and high technology, towards developing the central city into a destination for global digital technology corporations, Tam said.

Participants discussed the development of Vietnam’s ICT industry, investment of Korean firms in general and Korean ICT enterprises in particular in Vietnam.

Korean investors also shared their investment experience in Da Nang.

Consul General of the RoK in Da Nang Ahn Min-sik said this is the right time to strengthen cooperation in IT in order to connect other sectors, expressing his hope that RoK corporations and Da Nang city will promote stronger ICT cooperation as well as in other fields for sustainable development.

According to Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Tran Phuoc Son, the city considers the RoK one of its key partners, and wishes to promote connectivity and investment from Korean companies in its ICT sector.

Da Nang pledges to create favourable conditions for RoK investors to set up and operate effectively projects in Da Nang, he affirmed.

The RoK is one of the strategic markets that Da Nang is calling for investment. The RoK is one of the five countries and territories having the highest number of projects and investment capital in Da Nang, with 233 projects worth 378.14 million USD as of this November.

Information technology is one of the key areas that Da Nang city is focusing on calling for Korean investors. The city has set a target of earning 2.34 billion USD from the ICT sector by 2025.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Dinh Tien Dung has requested thorough preparations for school reopening with students’ health safety given the top priority.

The official said on November 29 that the Party Committee’s standing members agreed on the necessity to quickly reopen high and secondary schools, but since the COVID-19 situation remains complex in the capital city and nationwide, the move needs thorough preparations and put students’ health safety above all.

In the short term, the city will resume in-person teaching at high schools and centres of vocational training and continuing education in the communes, wards, and townships that are at Pandemic Level 1 or 2 (the two lowest levels) and did not record any new community infections of COVID-19 in 14 days prior to November 30.

The reopening can begin in early December, possibly on December 6, Dung noted.

He pointed out that the number of new COVID-19 cases has been on the rise in Hanoi, which saw more than 5,600 cases, over 35 percent of which were in the community, between October 11 and November 28.

Since November 23, Hanoi has carried out COVID-19 vaccination for people aged 15 – 17, mostly high school students, and over 90 percent of those in this age group have been inoculated.

After a long period of school shutdowns and online learning, over 36,000 ninth graders in 18 outlying districts have returned to school since November 22, and absolute safety has been guaranteed when no infections in schools were reported.

The Secretary said this outcome is a precious experience for the city to expand school reopening, adding that the timely and safe vaccination for children aged 15 – 17 will create a basis for high schools to resume in-person activities soon.

Meanwhile, education authorities was also asked to work closely with the health sector to ensure the progress and quality of vaccination for those aged 12 – 15 and make a plan to reopen secondary schools as soon and safe as possible.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

A Vietnamese delegation led by Chairman of the National Assembly (NA)’s Committee for External Relations Vu Hai Ha attended the 143rd General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU-143) and related meetings in Madrid, Spain, from November 27-30.

Speaking at the plenary debate, the head of the Vietnamese delegation affirmed that Vietnam is fully aware that the building of democracy must be based on the will of the people and the strength of the national great solidarity, in order to build a law-governed socialist state of the people, by the people and for the people.

In the fight against COVID-19, the country follows the policy of combating the pandemic and protecting people’s health while maintaining socio-economic development, carrying out policies that support firms and people to surmount difficulties and ensuring social welfare.

The NA has promptly approved proposals of the Government regarding budget and COVID-19 prevention and control measures, he added.

The Vietnamese head delegate put forward recommendations on bolstering cooperation and mitigating risks triggered by current challenges, such as consolidating peace, security, stability and cooperation at the global, regional and national levels, and strengthening cooperation on digital transformation and information technology application.

He called on countries’ parliaments to step up law building and keep a close watch on policy implementation; support the development of parliamentary diplomacy and enhancement of the role and mission of the IPU; and promote cooperation mechanisms between the IPU, the United Nations, international organisations, and regional parliamentary organisations and members.

Members of the Vietnamese delegations attended and contributed opinions at meetings of the Committees on Peace and International Security, Sustainable Development, Democracy and Human Rights, and UN Affairs; the Forum of Women Parliamentarians; and the Association of Secretaries General of Parliaments (ASGP).

On the occasion, Ha discussed Vietnam’s cooperation in the IPU with the President and Secretary General of the IPU, and engaged in meetings with leaders of delegations from Peru, South Sudan, Russia, the UK, Cuba, Cambodia, India and Italy.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Some experts and officials have voiced their support for the date September 8 to be selected as the day in honour of the Vietnamese language in the overseas Vietnamese community.

Speaking at a workshop held in Hanoi on November 30, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Quang Hieu, who is also Chairman of the Foreign Ministry’s State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, said to the 5.3 million Vietnamese living in over 130 countries and territories, the Vietnamese language is a national pride and also a “solid fulcrum” for the country’s culture.

The maintenance and promotion of the language, which is a tool for spreading cultural values of the nation, is an important task holding practical, scientific, and human significance, he noted.

Other participants in the event underlined the necessity for a day in honour of the Vietnamese language so as to enhance the love for and pride in the mother language and encourage expatriates to maintain and bring into play the homeland’s cultural identity.

Dr. Nguyen Thien Nam, former dean of the faculty for Vietnamese studies and language at the University of Social Sciences and Humanity (Vietnam National University, Hanoi), said September 8 should be chosen as the day in honour of the language among overseas Vietnamese.

He explained that this was the day when the Provisional Government of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (now the Socialist Republic of Vietnam) launched the “Binh dan hoc vu” (mass education) campaign in 1945. On that day in 1962, then President Ho Chi Minh delivered a speech on the Vietnamese language at the third congress of the Vietnam Journalists’ Association.

Echoing the view, an official from the Continuing Education Department of the Ministry of Education and Training supported the date September 8 to be chosen for the purpose. He also recommended organising a competition on books and documents teaching the language for overseas Vietnamese, and developing a language teaching website for the expatriates.

Meanwhile, a representative of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism suggested commending the individuals, organisations, and communities with substantial contributions to popularising the Vietnamese language abroad.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Vietnam Economic Forum 2021 is scheduled to take place on December 5 to help the Government design a package of fiscal and monetary solutions to shore up the economy.

Chairman of the National Assembly (NA) Vuong Dinh Hue presided over a meeting in Hanoi on November 30 with standing members of the NA’s Committee for Economic Affairs and a group of experts and researchers on financial and monetary policies assisting the implementation of the socio-economic recovery and development programme.

He said the forum will be organised by the NA’s Committee for Economic Affairs, the Party Central Committee’s Economic Commission, and the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences.

The event will take place both in person and via videoconference and gather domestic and foreign scholars, experts, and researchers. It aims to help clarify scientific and practical grounds to help the Government design a package of fiscal and monetary solutions.

Hue said it is necessary to have in-depth assessment since the global economy has changed constantly amid the COVID-19 pandemic’s impacts; as well as to identify the extent of damage and recovery capacity of the economy, determine sectors needing more support to recover and develop, and find out potential areas for accelerating recovery to fuel growth of the economy.

Short-term solutions also need to take into account long-term issues, macro-economic stability, and sustainable development, the Chairman said, adding that the policies helping with economic recovery in the short term should not cause macro-economic instability in the long term, according to the top legislator.

The Government has built a plan to develop fiscal and monetary mechanisms and policies for assisting the implementation of the general socio-economic recovery and development programme.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The People’s Committee of southern Binh Duong province held an online conference on November 30 to call for investment from Japan, attracting representatives of about 100 Japanese enterprises.

Speaking at the event, Permanent Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Mai Hung Dung said by the end of October, Japan had invested in over 4,700 projects worth 64 billion USD in Vietnam, including 328 projects valued at 5.77 billion USD in Binh Duong alone.

So far, over 90 percent of local firms have resumed their operations while all residents aged above 18 have been vaccinated against COVID-19, Dung said.

He added that Binh Duong is focusing on building a smart city and a science and technology industrial park. In the next period, the province will continue investing in infrastructure, especially major roads connecting with airports and seaports to save time and costs.

According to the official, Binh Duong is also stepping up digital transformation and working to build 1 million affordable houses for workers during 2022-2025.

Chief Representative of the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) in Ho Chi Minh City Shinji Hirai spoke highly of Binh Duong’s investment environment, especially its advantages in terms of workforce, geographical location and infrastructure.

Japanese enterprises participating in the event also discussed the province’s measures against the pandemic in the near future.

Dung said local leaders always offer all possible support for foreign investors, including those from Japan.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Bac Giang city in the northern province of the same name will mobilise all resources to develop in the direction of green and smart urban area, Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Dang Dinh Hoan has said.

To realise the target, the city has set to basically fulfil criteria for the first-tier urban area by 2025 and be recognised as one by 2030.

It aims to raise per capita income of local residents to 8,500-9,000 USD a year and call for more than 100 trillion VND (4.41 trillion USD) in social sources for development.

Bac Giang city will invest in and build two or three green and smart urban areas, two to four three- and five-star hotels, two to three nightlife economy zones and a 100-ha park.

It aims to be among top 10 provincial cities of the country in terms of smart urban area index; and raise the digital economy’s share in the gross regional domestic product to about 30 percent and at least 20 percent in each sector.

The city will work to put power lines underground, build more parks, recreation sites and garbage depots in the city, and invest in a waste-to-energy plant.

It is set to bolster management and supervision over the quality of water in rivers and lakes, as well as the collection and treatment of wastewater at urban areas, industrial parks and clusters. Due attention will be paid to firms’ discharge activities and environmental pollution treatment at craft villages, and safety and order in urban areas.

The application of new technologies in agricultural production will be promoted and a smart urban management centre will be set up to help with management work.

A security camera system will be installed in the city’s central area, key traffic spots and public places. Digitalisation in archive is due to be carried out across all fields, together with e-government applications.

In the coming time, Bac Giang city will mobilise all resources to take the lead in digital transformation, particularly in information technology (IT) and communications to meet demand for the building of the digital government and the city’s socio-economic development.

Priorities will be given to investment in and development of sectors that generate high added value like production of hardware and software, and support services of IT and communication, with an aim to create a smart urban foundation for Bac Giang city.

The city, spanning 66.77 sq.m, has 16 administrative units of communal level. It is the political, economic and cultural hub of Bac Giang province.

Situated on an artery road linking Hanoi with Lang Son, and the Huu Nghi international border gate, the city has a favourable location on an economic corridor running through the four localities of Lang Son, Hanoi, Hai Phong and Quang Ninh.

Bac Giang city has made strides over the years, with an average annual economic growth rate in the 2011-20 period hitting 11.7 percent. Meanwhile, budget collection surged 38 percent against the estimates. Urban planning and management have improved as infrastructure has been upgraded and rural area given a facelift.

Many major constructions and projects have been completed and helped improve urban quality and landscape in the city, notably the Hanoi-Bac Giang and Bac Giang-Lang Son expressways, the Dong Son bridge and the southern urban area, among others.

A number of big investors such as Toyota, Honda and Hyundai have channeled investment into the city. Bac Giang is now home to about 100 cooperatives and more than 4,000 firms, of them 1,670 are newly established ones with registered capital worth 7.54 trillion VND. There are 40 foreign direct investment projects totalling over 236 million USD.

Bac Giang city has to date earned 71.27 out of 100 points to become first-tier urban area.

Source: Vietnam News Agency