Day: February 10, 2022

The Mekong Delta region is forecast to suffer more severe saltwater intrusion than the average in many years from the start of February, but not as hard as the 2019-2020 dry season, according to Phung Tien Dung, head of the Hydrological Forecasting Department for the Central, Central Highlands and Southern Regions under the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting.

The highest salinity level is expected to be in February and March in Mekong River estuary and in March and April in Vam Co and Cai Lon rivers, he said, adding the situation will depend much on the water flows from upstream on the Mekong River and tides, with changes expected in the coming times.

The official warned that the situation will change greatly in the time to come, advising regional localities to keep updated on hydro-meteorology forecasts and actively carry out measures to ease saltwater intrusion.

The localities were also recommended to apply measures to stock up freshwater to serve agricultural production and daily activities of locals.

They should strengthen communications to raise public awareness of salinity prevention and response, as well as water saving, and advise local farmers to change their crop structure to adapt to the situation, he said.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Protecting and caring for health of nearly 23 million Vietnamese children and students is the responsibility of not only their families but also the community, the society and the entire political system, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said on February 10.

The PM made the statement at a ceremony announcing the 2021-25 National School Health Programme, which was held online at the International Convention Centre in Hanoi with the participation of representatives from 63 cities and provinces.

The programme was launched at a time when Vietnam is taking steps to reopen schools after after closure for months to help contain COVID-19 spread.

It demonstrates the Party’s and the State’s resolve to better care for children and students and give them the best possible, the PM said, stressing that the Party and State always pay attention to education, training, protecting and caring for health of the public and school health in particular.

The COVID-19 pandemic has seriously impacted physical and mental health of tens of millions of students, both directly and indirectly, Chinh said, noting that thousands of them have been orphaned by the pandemic.

The PM on October 2, 2021 issued a decision approving the National School Health Programme, and assigned tasks to ministries, agencies and localities in order to provide comprehensive and synchronous care for physical and mental health of children and students.

He urged ministries, agencies and localities to closely coordinate in implementing the programme, and called for the response of each school, family, student and individual.

Strong messages should be made, and bold actions are needed as there remain children without care and protection, and facing threats to their life and physical and spiritual health, Chinh emphasised.

He also ordered quick and drastic actions to improve school infrastructure, especially in remote, border and island areas, noting students should be equipped with living skills.

The PM stressed the need to improve child nutrition, especially in the areas hit hard by the pandemic, and cut course load, firstly at the primary level, to help students find joys at schools.

Apart from school reopening, ministries, agencies and localities will continue with the vaccination rollout for children aged from 5-12 safely, scientifically, suitably and effectively to control the pandemic, he requested.

The Government welcomes and creates optimal conditions for domestic and international organisations, businesses and individuals to play a part in the programme, and other relevant programmes and projects.

Chinh noted his belief that with the sound leadership of the Party, the close and effective management of the State, the engagement of the entire political system, the support of people nationwide as well as international friends, and the response of schools, the National School Health Programme will be rolled out successfully, creating breakthroughs in child health protection and care. At the ceremony, the Ministry of Education and Training (MoIT) and the Ministry of Health signed a programme on coordination in school health work in 2022-2026. The MoIT and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism also reached another coordination programme for the period.

Ensuring all-round development of children

The 2021-25 National School Health Programme focuses on promoting education, care, protection and management of students’ health.

Its target is to ensure the comprehensive physical and mental development for children at preschools, special education schools, and students at primary and high schools.

The national programme has set goals for 80 percent of schools to have adequate medicines and equipment as regulated by the Ministry of Health, 75 percent of schools to provide enough drinking water and clean water for students’ activities.

It also sets targets for physical education and sports activities in schools.

According to the programme, 80 percent of schools will have at least one area to ensure necessary equipment and tools for physical education and sports activities as prescribed by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

All schools will periodically organise sports competitions in accordance with the law on physical sports; 100 percent of primary and high schools have enough qualified physical teachers who were trained in professional skills.

Targets were set for school meals, ensuring proper nutrition for children, including 100 percent of schools organising lunch at canteens, ensuring hygiene and food safety according to regulations of the Ministry of Health.

Sixty percent of schools will have milk and dairy products in standard school meals according to regulations of the Ministry of Health.

School health education must also be a focus. According to the programme, 100 percent of students must be educated about health and improve knowledge about disease prevention and mental health.

Students must be taught about proper nutrition, healthy and safe food.

Fifty percent of high school students must receive information and counselling on mental health and psychology. Education on the care of children will also be expanded to include teachers, students and parents.

The 2021-25 National School Health Programme also clearly outlines the tasks and solutions for the future. One of the important solutions is to upgrade the healthcare facilities and equipment in schools.

Specifically, schools need to be equipped with medical equipment and medicine to ensure the effective implementation of school healthcare work, meeting the requirements of disease prevention and control especially amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

In which, schools will install tables and chairs suitable for students’ height, especially children with disabilities; building or repairing clean water works, and sanitation facilities in schools.

The health and education sectors will also be working to strengthen their inspection of school healthcare including food safety, dental care, optical care and first aid capabilities.

For disadvantaged, remote and mountainous, ethnic minority areas, the Government will give priority and promote the improvement of medical equipment to ensure conditions for teaching and learning, and school meals.

Another major solution is to improve the quality of school health workers.

According to the programme, schools are suggested to arrange full-time or part-time health staff, even if they are not on the school’s payroll, to carry out school health work in accordance with the specific conditions of each locality and each school.

In addition, schools need to renovate physical education and school sports activities, encourage the development of swimming, football and ethnic sports suitable to the characteristics of each region.

They will effectively deploy school sports activities suitable to students’ interests and ages, as well as organising school-level sports tournaments.

Funding will come from the State budget, and lawful revenue of schools, as well as support from domestic and social organisations and individuals.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The two-way trade between Vietnam and Russia hit 6.3 billion USD in the first 11 months of 2021, up 21.7 percent year-on-year, according to Vietnamese Trade Counselor in Russia Duong Hoang Minh who cited statistics from the Federal Customs Service of Russia.

During the period, Vietnam exported 4.5 billion USD worth of goods to Russia, posting a yearly rise of 20.4 percent.

Vietnam’s plant-based exports to Russia fetched 282 million USD, up 21.6 percent over the same period last year.

Among the key agricultural exports to Russia that posted strong values in January – November last year were coffee with 153 million USD (up 20 percent); fruit and nuts, 75.5 million USD (up 38 percent).

Dried mango is a noteworthy export as it raked in 9.1 million USD, 10 percent higher than that reported in the same period of 2020, and accounting for over 92 percent of Russia’s total import value of this commodity.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Mekong Delta, the largest agricultural hub of Vietnam, should be confident to surmount difficulties and become a role model in climate change adaptation in the world, said Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan.

Agriculture will remain a pillar of the economy in the coming years, so it needs to grow in a new direction which is shifting from separate development within each locality to inter-locality and inter-regional connectivity to boost common development, he told a meeting with agriculture officials of the 13 Mekong Delta localities in Bac Lieu province on February 9.

Hoan said the local agriculture sector should adopt the production models generating high economic values and enriching farmers.

Highlighting the tasks for 2022, the minister asked the localities to boost eco-farming to meet the global consumption demand, noting that agriculture should not be developed at the expense of the environment or people’s health. They need to stay dynamic, flexible, and adaptive to the new normal context while effectively developing the rural economy, creating jobs, and raising locals’ income, which can be done by setting up cooperatives and improving their operations, he recommended.

Local agriculture officials said since the Government issued a resolution on sustainably developing the Mekong Delta in adaptation to climate change in November 2017, the localities have been making efforts to weather difficulties and challenges and carry out agricultural promotion solutions, thus achieving fruitful outcomes.

International organisations and development partners have also highly valued and actively assisted the region to expand farming, they noted.

They also pointed out certain problems such as the imbalance in food security, environmental pollution, land subsidence, the depletion of underground water and water from the upstream Mekong River, riverbank and coastal erosion, along with human resources and infrastructure issues, calling for support from the ministry to address those problems in the time ahead.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

About 200,000 hectares of shrimp-rice farms will be developed in 2022 with total output of 120,000 tonnes, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD)’s Directorate of Fisheries.

Shrimp-rice farming (one shrimp crop and one rice crop in the same farming area) is an effective model in the Mekong Delta region with high economic efficiency, reaching 60-70 million VND (2,643-3,000 USD) per hectare each year on average.

Rice cultivation in shrimp raising areas is a way to remove salt from the rice fields during the rainy season, limit salt intrusion, and prolong the life-span of land use.

In order to deal with problems hindering the expansion of the model, the Directorate of Fisheries asked regional localities to develop the irrigation system to meet the water supply demand, while improving farmers’ cultivation techniques.

Alongside, the directorate also underlined the need to study rice varieties that are more resilient to saltwater as well as shrimp and rice farming technologies to enhance products’ quality and reduce negative impacts on the environment. It is necessary to prioritise application of the VietGAP standard to small-scale farms.

Last year, total shrimp-rice farming area in the Mekong Delta region was nearly 189,000 hectares, accounting for 26.8 percent of total shrimp breeding area of eight regional localities, producing about 105,000 tonnes of shrimps.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Since the beginning of July 2021, Hanoi has provided assistance using COVID-19 support packages for over 5.57 million people, with the total amount topping 7 trillion VND (308.5 million USD).

Of the total, over 2.46 trillion VND was sourced from budgets supporting employers and employees affected by the pandemic, 4.09 trillion VND came from the Unemployment Insurance Fund, and 438 billion VND from socialised sources.

Among the beneficiaries, there are over 608,000 freelancers receiving 1.5 million VND each, with a combined amount of over 900 billion VND.

The implementation of support packages has helped people, labourers and employers overcome difficulties, stabilise their lives, and revitalise the labour market.

Source: Vietnam News Agency