Day: May 5, 2022

Vietnam is currently a potential and attractive market to Monaco entrepreneurs, especially the more than 60 companies and investors of Monaco participating in an economic conference hosted by the Vietnamese Embassy in Monaco in collaboration with the Monaco Economic Board (MEB) on May 4.

Ambassador Dinh Toan Thang briefed participants on Vietnam’s potential, saying that the Southeast Asian country is one of the fastest growing and most dynamic economies in the region, with a coastline stretching more than 3,200 km, many seaports and major international trade routes passing through.

Vietnam wants to attract Monaco businesses, especially in seaports, healthcare – pharmaceuticals, tourism, sustainable development and creativity, he said. The diplomat expressed his belief that the economic cooperation between the two countries will have strong breakthroughs in the future and more and more Monaco businesses will choose Vietnam as their investment destination.

Monaco entrepreneurs expressed their deep impression of Vietnam’s socio-economic development achievements, especially institutional breakthroughs and preferential policies for foreign businesses.

They said they hope the Vietnamese Government will support and create favourable condition for them to cooperate and do business successfully in Vietnam, and through Vietnam to enter the ASEAN market./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Ministry of Transport has issued a set of badges for identifying the vehicles serving the upcoming 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31).

It said on May 4 that it has asked the Traffic Police Department under the Ministry of Public Security to inform its relevant units about the badges so as to guarantee smooth traffic during the regional sports event.

Meanwhile, its Directorate for Roads was ordered to notify the Vietnam Expressway Corporation, investors of the build-operate-transfer transport projects, and relevant businesses in the localities hosting competitions in order to open toll booths and control traffic for the priority vehicles. Themed “For a stronger Southeast Asia”, SEA Games 31 is scheduled to take place in Hanoi and 11 nearby localities from May 12 to 23. It will feature 40 sports with 526 events and attract 10,000 participants.

This is the second time Vietnam has hosted a SEA Games, following the 22nd edition in 2003./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

There are promising signs for Vietnam and its economic recovery this year, Caitlin Wiesen, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) representative in Vietnam has said.

In an interview granted to Vietnam Investment Review, the official also spoke highly of the Vietnamese Government’s efforts to put the security and safety of the people as a priority during the pandemic, especially the government’s leadership in the rapid and equitable deployment of COVID-19 vaccines. The vaccination campaign has enabled the government to open up further for business and tourism, she said.

Wiesen noted that last year, Vietnam introduced two support packages for those affected by lockdowns and social distancing, the first worth 2.7 billion USD and the second, 1.13 billion USD.

She highlighted that growth will accelerate this year, as tourism, transport, and other services are open. However, it is unrealistic to think that there will be an immediate return to the growth path experienced before the pandemic. The official pointed to multiple challenges including a climate crisis; rising fuel prices; supply chain disruption due to prolonged lockdowns; and the knock-on effects of the war in Ukraine.

The government, therefore, plays an important role in ensuring growth is sustainable beyond this year. This will include an increasing supply of long-term finance, facilitating growth among domestic firms through technology upgrades and public investment, and increasing climate finance, among others, she said.

To meet the objective of achieving high-income status by 2045, Vietnam needs to invest a larger share of national output into national competitiveness, increasing value in domestic industries, and upgrading technological and innovation capabilities, the official suggested.

Regarding the UNDP’s commitments to Vietnam in realising its goals of becoming a high-income economy by 2045 and reaching net-zero emissions by 2050, Wiesen said that to support the development of strong domestic productive capabilities, the UNDP is conducting research with the Ministry of Planning and Investment on linking public investment to development outcomes, strengthening the domestic capital market, and restructuring national development banks.

To support Vietnam’s commitment to reaching net zero emissions by 2050, the UNDP is undertaking several actions for a just climate transition. Last December, the UNDP and other partners reaffirmed our commitment to Vietnam and the country’s efforts to achieve the new climate targets, she noted.

The UNDP is ready to work collectively with the like-minded donor group on the nationally determined contributions to support the government to mobilise international resources, including a combination of increased public and private investment, drawing on official development assistance and concessional loans to reduce costs to Vietnam, and providing needed expertise, knowledge, and technology to accelerate the green transition and improving the regulatory environment for a just energy transition.

It is supporting the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to revise the National Climate Change Response Strategy to align with the net-zero carbon emissions target by 2050. The strategy will link Vietnam’s pledges on clean energy, methane reduction, coal phase-out and forest protection to reach the targets by 2050 and convert them into concrete actions.

Building on existing programmes with the Green Climate Fund and Global Environment Facility financed projects, the UNDP is working closely across key ministries to map out the necessary interventions in each sector and region and to mobilise the most up-to-date and reliable scientific information on current and forecasted impacts of climate change.

The UNDP is deepening its partnership with the Vietnamese government to protect vulnerable groups from the impacts of climate change with integrated storm and flood resilient programmes in coastal provinces, water management in the central highlands and environmental governance in the Mekong Delta region, to ensure that no-one is left behind in the process of adapting to climate change.

The agency is also developing a major new project that aims to build resilience for coastal communities and implement natural-based solutions in mangrove and coral protection while supporting local livelihoods and eco-tourism, Wiesen added./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Sixteen cultural and art programmes will be held in Hanoi’s districts from May 13 to 23 to celebrate the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31), praising the Party, late President Ho Chi Minh, the land and people of Vietnam and Hanoi.

The Hanoi Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union has also utilised social networks to promote the capital city’s image before, during and after the Games.

It has deployed volunteers to support domestic and foreign visitors and will organise the Southeast Asian Youth Festival on May 7-8 at the pedestrian zone around Hoan Kiem Lake.

Hanoi has encouraged local businesses to join efforts in product promotion, especially handicrafts and those that meet the OCOP (One Commune-One Product) standards, in line with regulations of the Organising Committee of SEA Games 31.

Apart from tourism events, including the Hanoi Tourism Festival, the Tourism Gift Festival and the Hanoi Food and Craft Village Tourism Festival, the city has decorated its streets and competition venues with banners and billboards to welcome the important regional sport event.

To implement tasks assigned by the municipal People’s Committee, the Department of Construction has asked agencies to work harder to ensure environmental hygiene, water supply and lighting for the Games.

SEA Games 31, themed “For a Stronger South East Asia”, will be held in Hanoi and 11 cities and provinces from May 12 to 23.

The capital city will be hosting the opening and closing ceremonies of SEA Games 31. Closely coordinating with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports is racing against time to rehearse for the ceremonies and to bring to the audience the most exciting art shows, he noted.

The opening will hopefully tell local and international audiences stories about the unique culture, tradition and people of Vietnam and promote the games’ slogan “For a stronger Southeast Asia”, Director of the department Do Dinh Hong told reporters.

Featuring 40 sports with 526 events, SEA Games 31 is expected to attract around 10,000 participants. The biennial event was initially slated for late 2021 but delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Government of Laos has agreed with contractors to conduct a feasibility study for the construction of an expressway from Houaphanh province to the border with Vietnam under an agreement signed recently, Vientiane Times reported.

Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) inked between the government, Daochaleun Construction and THB Group, the 80-km expressway would run from Huanmuang district in Houaphanh to the Nam Soi – Na Meo International Border Checkpoint at the border between Laos and Vietnam.

It would be constructed under a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model as part of the fourth phase of a larger expressway construction project linking Vientiane Capital with Houaphanh, for which a feasibility study is already underway.

It is expected that the construction of the section linking Houaphanh to Vietnam would take up to four years to complete./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang has great potential and advantages in marine aquaculture and breeding of diversified marine aquatic species of high economic value, experts have said.

With its coastline of more than 200km and 143 islands, it had 3,610 floating cages last year, the largest number in the delta. They yielded a harvest of 3,000 tonnes last year.

The province is rarely hit by storms and its coastal waters are of moderate depth, both advantageous for marine aquaculture.

The province farms species like cobia, grouper, yellow pomfret, and pearl oysters in near-shore areas, mostly in Kien Hai and Kien Luong districts and Phu Quoc and Ha Tien cities.

Speaking at a seminar last week, Le Quoc Anh, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, said however that breeding techniques are still outdated and infrastructure needs to be further developed for marine aquaculture.

But he said the marine economy would be the province’s key sector.

But the province has not taken measures to secure the supply of brood stock or manage their quality.

It lacks facilities to produce feed for aquatic creatures and process seafood for exports.

The linkages between various stakeholders in producing and consuming seafood products remain limited and so demand and prices are inconsistent.

The breeding of bivalve molusks near shore is affected by environmental pollution.

Nguyen Huu Dung, Chairman of the Vietnam Seaculture Association, said the province’s marine aquaculture is mostly manual and unplanned, of a small scale, and done mostly by individuals, making economic efficiency low.

The province should develop its marine aquaculture towards sustainability, use advanced techniques, breed marine species on a large scale, and switch from near – shore to off – shore aquaculture, he said.

It should diversify aquatic species to farm fish, bivalve molusks and seaweed together to increase their value and reduce pollution, he said.

Other participants suggested solutions for sustainable development such as using advanced techniques, developing links between various stakeholders and using hi-tech floating cages like high-density polyethylene ones based on the Norwegian model.

They too said the province should increase the production of high-quality brood stock, feed for aquatic creatures, modern floating cages and other facilities for aquaculture.

Kien Giang is implementing a plan to sustainably develop marine aquaculture in 2021 – 30, focusing on developing it on an industrial and modern scale.

It is supporting marine aquaculture by providing farmers with advanced breeding techniques and easy loans.

It is helping them establish co-operatives and co-operative groups that will link up with companies to increase production efficiency, secure outlets and steady prices and increase their incomes.

The province aims to have 3,890 floating cages and an output of 3,535 tonnes this year./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Metfone, the Cambodian affiliate of Vietnam’s military-run industry and telecoms group Viettel, has presented 700 roaming and internet-enabled SIM cards to athletes and members of the Cambodian delegation attending the 31st Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam.

The SIM cards were handed over to the National Olympics Committee of Cambodia (NOCC) by Metfone Deputy General Director Cao Manh Duc on May 4.

Metfone is a leading player in the telecom industry in Cambodia with the largest infrastructure serving some nine million Cambodians.

Also on May 4, more than 100 Cambodian athletes set to compete in the men’s football, Muay, kickboxing and canoeing departed from Phnom Penh International Airport for Vietnam on a flight operated by Cambodia Airways.

Cambodia has registered to participate in 33 sports at the Games.

SEA Games 31 is scheduled to officially take place from May 12 to 23 in Hanoi and 11 nearby localities, featuring 40 sports./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Vietnamese agricultural products are on display at Macfrut 2022: Fruit and Vegetable Professional Show held in the city of Rimini, Italy from May 4 – 6.

The Vietnamese pavilion called “Fruit Garden of Vietnam” exhibits fruit processed products, tea, coffee, spices and others, which have drawn the attention of quite many enterprises from not only Italy but also Europe.

It is the second time Vietnam has attended the show.

Speaking at the event, Vietnamese Ambassador to Italy Duong Hai Hung said Italy is one of Vietnam’s key importers of agricultural products which holds great potential for growth.

The Embassy of Vietnam has been helping Vietnamese exporters make the most of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) in order to boost sales of farm produce, especially fruits and vegetables, to Italy and other EU nations, he said.

He noted that the Macfrut provides an opportunity for Vietnamese firms to get updates about market demand and supply, access new technologies in Italy, explore ways to meet the EU’s high standards for imports and gain a foothold in the global supply and value chain.

The exhibition of Vietnamese agricultural products at Macfrut 2022 can enable the expansion of cooperation and exchange between the two countries and push bilateral investment activities, General Director of the Italian Trade Promotion Agency (ICE) Roberto Luongo told Vietnam News Agency. The two-way trade stood at around 4.5 billion EUR (4.75 billion USD) annually, he noted.

He revealed that ICE wants to promote the image of Italy in Vietnam and support companies from both sides to obtain more business opportunities.

ICE will support a working group of the Italian government, accompanied by enterprises, to visit Vietnam at the end of this year, he added.

Macfrut is the second largest annual fruit and vegetable show in Europe. This year’s event features some 800 pavilions and expects to welcome about 32,500 visitors.

Europe imported nearly 3.5 billion USD worth of agricultural products from Vietnam annually./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency