Day: May 23, 2022

Cambodia’s Ministry of Economy and Finance has forecast that the country’s economy will expand 5.1 percent this year and 6.2 percent in 2023.

The forecast followed the preliminary assessment of the macroeconomic situation of Cambodia by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission in the country, reported Cambodia’s Khmer Times.

Regarding the assessment of the economic and financial situation in the country, Alasdair Scott, the IMF’s mission chief for Cambodia said that the growth will be assisted by the socio-economic recovery, despite some risks such as high inflation, ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war, a slowdown of the Chinese economy, and faster-than-expected tightening monetary policy in developed countries.

At the same time, the Cambodian economy in 2023 is expected to grow higher than the previous forecast at 6.2 percent, mainly thanks to the growth of the tourism sector.

The IMF also urged the government of Cambodia to take timely steps to address the social and economic challenges and prevent the spread of COVID-19. In particular, Cambodia’s successful vaccination campaign should continue.

The working group of the mission also expressed a strong will to support Cambodia in hosting the upcoming ASEAN Summit 2022 and provide further support to the government of Cambodia in terms of technical assistance and policy guidelines.

The Cambodian Government launched a 150 million USD support package to help with the tourism sector’s recovery.

In 2019 before the outbreak of COVID-19, tourism contributed about 4.9 billion USD to Cambodia’s total income, accounting for 4.4 percent of the country’s GDP.

In the first four months of 2022, the country saw a 180-percent year on year rise in the number of foreign arrivals to 230,000.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Thailand will allow nightclubs and karaoke bars to resume regular hours starting next month, ending most of its remaining pandemic restrictions as daily infection declines, according to the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA).

Entertainment venues such as bars, pubs, karaoke clubs and other services may open until midnight after June, but these facilities should take a universal preventive approach, the CCSA said in an announcement on May 20.

It said that their staff must have received booster shots and taken antigen tests every seven days.

Starting on June 1, Thailand will also drop a requirement for unvaccinated travelers to quarantine. They will have to either take a test on arrival or show a negative COVID-19 test before departure.

Thailand’s nightlife is a major attraction for tourists, but most entertainment venues have been shut down or faced a strict curfew since the pandemic began, with some bars forced to convert to restaurants to stay in business.

The Thai government hopes the latest easing of restrictions will help revive the country’s tourism sector, a key growth engine that accounted for about 12 percent of the economy before the pandemic. Thailand aims to attract 5-15 million arrivals this year.

The country received 427,000 tourists last year and 1.01 million visitors from January to mid-May this year.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The World Records Union (WorldKings) and the Vietnam Records Organisation (Vietkings) have recognised the first Dong Thap Lotus Festival 2022 as the world’s largest event of processing and presentation of 200 lotus-based dishes.

A WorldKings decision on the recognition has been presented to the People’s Committee of the Mekong Delta province.

Boasting large lotus growing areas and a rich culinary culture, Dong Thap province organised the processing and presentation of 200 lotus-based dishes with the aim of promoting the local specialties and introducing domestic and foreign friends to the culinary quintessence of Vietnam in general and the locality in particular.

At the first Dong Thap Lotus Festival 2022 themed “Lotus of a new day”, 10 culinary experts and 50 chefs were on hand to process and present 200 delicacies made from various parts of the lotus plant, such as lotus root, lotus flower stem, lotus leaf, lotus seeds and lotus seed heart.

After completion, 200 dishes were presented in the shape of a 10-petal blooming lotus

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Cargo throughput across seaports nationwide hit 241 million tonnes in the first four months of 2022, rising 2 percent year-on-year, according to the Vietnam Maritime Administration.

The volume, excluding transited goods not unloaded at seaports, included 61.95 million tonnes of exports (up 2 percent), 67.49 million tonnes of imports (down 9 percent), and 110.99 million tonnes of domestic goods (up 10 percent).

Container throughput also increased 2 percent to over 8.3 million TEUs during the period.

The administration said 2 percent is the slowest growth in recent years though Vietnam has entered the post-pandemic new normal.

Seaports in many localities have recorded a sharp decline in volume, such as Binh Thuan down 28 percent from a year earlier, Can Tho 25 percent, and Kien Giang 12 percent.

Major ports also witnessed drops from 0.5 – 4 percent, including Hai Phong down 0.5 percent, Ho Chi Minh City 2.8 percent, and Vung Tau 4 percent.

The growth slowdown has been attributed to different factors, mainly that production, export and import activities by domestic enterprises have yet to fully recover.

Besides, China’s zero-COVID policy has also impacted firms doing business with Vietnam’s largest export and import market, according to the administration

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Vietnam Red Cross Society (VRCS) and its Canadian counterpart have agreed to support each other in humanitarian activities and look towards a long-term cooperation agreement in the time ahead.

Vice President and Secretary General of the VRCS Nguyen Hai Anh told visiting President and CEO of the Canadian Red Cross (CRC) Conrad Sauvé during their talks in Hanoi on May 21 that he is delighted at the fruitful cooperation between the two countries and the associations.

Anh spoke highly of the Canadian government and the CRC for their support to Vietnam, both material and spiritual, and in international activities.

The VRCS will further back the CRC to engage in the executive councils of the International Red Cross and the Red Crescent Movement, and support its Canadian counterpart in movements.

Sauvé said both Vietnam and Canada face such challenges as climate change and natural disasters, and possible risks relating to the COVID-19 and socio-economic impacts of armed conflicts.

The CRC has strength in the spheres like public health care, humanitarian aid, personnel training, technological application, and emergency aid, he said, affirming that Canada stands ready to help Vietnam in these areas.

Briefing the guest on the VRCS’s operations, Anh said his association is actively participating in the Government’s major programmes, including those on poverty reduction, new-style rural area building, and socio-economic development in ethnic minority-inhabited regions.

The VRCS is willing to cooperate with Canada to implement programmes on public health care given impacts of extreme heat, he stressed.

The two sides also concurred to cooperate in supporting their governments to address climate change impacts, improving the capacity for their workers, digital transformation, volunteer management and development, public health care and emergency aid

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Indonesia and Singapore plan to build an international container port in Kendal industrial park – a joint venture between the two countries – in Central Java of Indonesia, Singapore’s Finance Minister Lawrence Wong has said.

He made the suggestion during a visit to the park, as part of his four-day working trip to Indonesia.

Feasibility studies on potential sites for a port had been done by companies in Singapore and Indonesia, and a proposal has been made to the central government in Jakarta, Wong said at a joint press conference with Kendal Regent Dico Ganinduto.

The minister noted that with the growth of manufacturing activities in the province, companies would want to increase not only consumption within Indonesia but also exports to other countries.

Logistics and transportation costs are a factor in driving competitiveness, so they do see the need for a port, he said.

Meanwhile, Dico said the development of the port has been marked as a strategic national project, and discussions are underway in Jakarta to decide which company will be appointed as a local partner to Singapore to develop the port.

Director of the park Didik Purbadi said that the proposed port is expected to be finished by 2024. It will be capable of handling 400,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of containers initially, which will gradually rise to 1.5 million TEUs as demand grows.

Once completed, it will be the second international-standard port in Central Java, raising the profile of the province as a major industrial hub in the country, he added.

According to Dikik, major industrial regions like Jakarta, East Java have several sea ports, while Central Java has only one, that is, Port of Tanjung Emas in Semarang, about one hour from Kendal Industrial Park. Thus, the new port will make the province more competitive as the key to success is bringing production centres and distribution channels closer, he said

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Malaysian team concluded the SEA Games 31 hosted by Vietnam at the sixth place on the medal tally, winning a total of 174 medals, including 39 golds, 45 silvers and 90 bronzes.

Although the country has realised its set target of 36 golds, its ranking is considered the ‘worst performance in 40 years’.

Traditionally a regional sport power, Malaysia is usually in the regional top five and the last time it settled for sixth was in 1983, when only eight nations took part, compared to the current 11.

Malaysia made a strong start at the SEA Games 31, winning all eight golds in diving, with the rest of the medals scattered across other sports.

The exposure gained at the SEA Games is crucial for the country to achieve more success in other multi-sport Games like the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games, said Minister of Youth and Sports Ahmad Faizal Azumu.

The Malaysian government slashed sports spending in 2021 to 289 million MYR (about 67 million USD) from 940 million MYR the year before.

It also cut down its full-time number of athletes from 432 to 288, months after earning one silver and one bronze at the Tokyo Olympic Games.

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

It features 40 sports with 523 events, attracting around 10,000 participants. The biennial event was initially slated for late 2021 but delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The People’s Committee of Hue city in central Thua Thien-Hue province, and the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) on May 23 jointly kicked off a project to build Hue city of culture and smart tourism.

The project, which is funded by the Republic of Korea (RoK) Government, aims to build a smart tourism information system, develop an urban cultural tourism centre and expand walking zones in Hue city in order to boost tourism in the former imperial capital.

It will also cover the installation of smart lighting and surveillance camera systems along the banks of Huong (Perfume) River and building public administration capacity in tourism development and urban management.

Speaking at the event, Korean Consul General in Da Nang Ahn Min-sik said that the project will provide technical solutions to accumulate tourism-related data and increase access to necessary information for visitors, including improving the urban environment by installing smart lights, public Wifi network coverage and cultural integrated zones.

Nguyen Van Phuong, Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, highlighted the significance of the project, saying it does not only serve people’s lives but also enhances the quality of tourism services which has become a spearhead economic sector of the province.

Thua Thien-Hue is moving towards a knowledge-based economy and sustainable development with the goal of turning itself into a centrally-run city by 2025, he said.

Source: Vietnam News Agency