Day: October 4, 2022

A poetry collection from five female translators based in Hanoi, entitled Ngu Sac Anh Sang (5 Sights of Light), has been introduced to Canadian readers by Ukiyoto Publishing.

 

The collection is released through the publisher’s channel, Amazon and Google Play as e-books.

 

The five writers are members of the Hanoi Female Translators Group, also known as Hong Ha Women’s Group, established in 2020. They include writer-poet Kieu Bich Hau, poet Do Mai Hoa, writer-poet Khanh Phuong, poet Vo Thi Mai, and writer-poet Pham Van Anh. All of them can write in both Vietnamese and English.

 

5 Sights of Light has been published on the occasion of the 2nd anniversary of the group’s establishment.

 

Out of 120 poems included in the collection, about 24 works were written in English and the rest were in Vietnamese and then translated into English.

 

Written in the past five years, each of the poems in 5 Sights of Light is an appraisal of the love of life, love of people, pride in the country and the people of Vietnam./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

Three more people, including two former diplomatic officials, have been arrested for their involvement in a bribery case at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Consular Department,  Lieut. Gen. To An Xo, Chief of the Office and Spokesperson of the Ministry of Public Security, said on October 4.

 

Xo said that legal proceedings have been launched against Nguyen Hong Ha, born 1964, a former official at the Vietnamese Consulate General in Osaka, Japan, on the charge of “taking bribes” in line with Article 354 of the Penal Code, and Nguyen Le Ngoc Anh, born 1988, a former official of the Vietnamese Embassy in Malaysia, for “abusing position and power while performing duties” under Article 356 of the Penal Code.

 

The third one is Hoang Anh Kiem, born in 1978, who is accused of “giving bribes” following Article 365 of the Penal Code. Their private homes were also raided, Xo said.

 

It is the latest move by the Ministry of Public Security’s Investigation Security Agency as part of the ongoing probe into the case of “giving and taking bribes; abusing position and power while performing duties, and obtaining property by false pretenses” at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

 

Earlier, several officials were also arrested during the investigation of the case, including Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs To Anh Dung; Nguyen Quang Linh, Assistant to Standing Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh; Nguyen Tien Than, an official at the Government Office’s department of international relations for allegedly taking bribes when organising repatriation flights for Vietnamese citizens during the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

A number of other people from agencies, ministries and localities have also been detained for investigation of the case.

 

Vietnam had operated around 2,000 repatriation flights to bring home residents stranded overseas due to the COVID-19 pandemic./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

 

The northern province of Bac Ninh has been working to improve local governance indicators, including the provincial competitiveness index (PCI), the provincial Public Administration Performance Index (PAPI), the Satisfaction Index of Public Administration Services (SIPAS), the Public Administration Reform (PAR) Index, and the Digital Transformation Index (DTI).

 

According to Chairwoman of the provincial People’s Commitee Nguyen Huong Giang, Bac Ninh with 69.45 points ranked seventh in the 2021 PCI rankings, up three places compared to that in 2020. Meanwhile, in terms of DTI, it ranked fourth among the 63 cities and provinces in the year. Most other indexes also increased compared to 2021.

 

Giang said the results not only recognise the efforts of authorities at all levels and civil servants, but also affirm the important role and position of investors, small and medium-sized enterprises and people in assessing the service of the province’s state agencies at all levels.

 

Bac Ninh considers administrative reform to improve the business environment and local governance indexes a regular task and one of the key driving forces for development, she stressed.

 

Tran Van Sy, a representative of Goertek Vina Co., Ltd in the Que Vo Industrial Park, said in difficult times, the firm has always received attention and support from provincial leaders to ease difficulties and stabilise production.

 

With open and favourable policies and support from local authorities, Goertek Vina has recorded strong development, surpassing its targets.

 

According to Dau Anh Tuan, Vice Secretary General of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), although nearly 98% of businesses in Bac Ninh were severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, the province still maintained its gross regional domestic product (GRDP) growth of 6.9%, ranking 13th in the country.

 

Tuan suggested local authorities review the business environment by sector based on the PCI 2021 results, especially the areas that need to be improved.

 

In addition, local authorities should strengthen transparency on their websites, especially those related to planning, public investment projects, and bidding, Tuan added.

 

Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Vuong Quoc Tuan asked localities to focus on speeding up the progress of projects, and the disbursement of policy support packages for employees and employers that have faced difficulties due to COVID-19./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

Outgoing Ambassador of the Republic of Korea (RoK) to Vietnam Park Noh-wa has been honoured with the “For peace and friendship among nations” insignia for his contributions to promoting friendship between the two countries.

 

President of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations (VUFO) Ambassador Nguyen Phuong Nga presented the insignia to the diplomat at a ceremony in Hanoi on October 4.

 

Nga praised Ambassador Park’s great contributions to promoting cooperation in politics, diplomacy, economics, culture, and people-to-people exchanges.

 

During the three-year term in Vietnam, the two countries have organised high-level delegation exchanges, and reached important agreements which serve as a basis for deepening their strategic partnership, she said.

 

Nga expressed her hope that in his new position, Ambassador Park will continues to promote the friendship between Vietnam and the RoK.

 

For his part, Ambassador Park thanked the VUFO and Ambassador Nga for their close cooperation, especially in people-to-people diplomacy.

 

He promised to continue making contributions to the two countries’ relationship./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Vietnam Meteorological and Hydrological Administration has applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) in hydrometeorology monitoring and forecasting, making typhoon and torrential rain prediction more accurate.

 

Hoang Duc Cuong, deputy director general of the Vietnam Meteorological and Hydrological Administration (VNMHA), said AI relates to computer science and information technology. Humans make the nature of AI. They build algorithms programmed with information technology software tools, helping computers to handle intelligent behaviours like humans automatically.

 

The application of historical data and AI has created products. For example, he said that the trend of AI applications created positive results in the field of hydrometeorology.

 

He said the AI application in hydrometeorology is a trend, helping improve the efficiency of weather forecasting.

 

The VNMHA has built a shared digital platform for the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, including a data integration system based on big data, especially the AI application in identification to solve specific problems for hydrometeorological monitoring and forecasting, he said.

 

He said that the department is researching AI applications in storm forecasting, heavy rain quantification and flood surge prediction.

 

Cuong affirmed that AI has been applied widely and replaced many manual jobs, saved labour, and limited some human errors.

 

He cited the COVID-19 social distancing period in July 2021 as an example.

 

Much of the time, hydrometeorological officers could not come to the office. Therefore, it was necessary to apply information technology, including AI, to monitor rain and flood level rain to accomplish the task. Thanks to AI, the weather prediction and monitoring work was completed despite the social distancing order.

 

Tran Quang Nang, deputy director of the Department of Hydrometeorological Forecasting Management, said the AI application helps improve the quality of forecast and hydrometeorological warnings, reducing disaster risks.

 

Mai Van Khiem, director of the National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting, said the centre used big data systems and AI in identifying upcoming tropical cyclones similar to the ones in the past to map out impact scenarios. AI has also been applied in forecasting extreme short-term rain and flash flood warnings.

 

Hydrometeorological sector modernized

 

In early 2021, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh issued the “National Strategy on Research, Development and Application of Artificial Intelligence towards 2030”.

 

The strategy aims to make artificial intelligence a spearhead technology of the country in the fourth industrial revolution, gradually turning Vietnam into a bright spot in AI research, development and application in the region and the world.

 

AI is also one of the focuses of the digital transformation programme developed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

 

The ministry sets a target by 2030 to bring Vietnam’s meteorology and hydrology industry to the advanced level of Asia.

 

The VNMHA has studied AI applications in forecasting dangerous weather conditions and disasters. In the future, a hydrometeorological virtual assistant system that can automatically provide weather information to users will be developed.

 

Deputy Director General Hoang Duc Cuong said the AI applications would bring significant value, save time in professional activities, and speed up automation and digitisation of the hydrometeorological industry./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

Over 100 Vietnamese citizens that stayed illegally in China were returned to Vietnamese authorities at the Ly Van Border Gate in the northern province of Cao Bang on October 4.

 

The citizens admitted they all illegally entered China from 2019-2020 to work.

 

Due to the complications cause by COVID-19, Chinese authorities have clamped down on illegal entries.

 

Among the returned citizens, Hoang Dinh Huong from Bac Giang province was wanted for gambling.

 

The citizens were asked to complete procedures in accordance with legal regulations, and  instructed to return to their localities.

 

The same day, police arrested Duong Van Huu from Cao Bang city who has been wanted for organising illegal immigration under Article 348 of the Penal Code. In December last year, Huu and two others arranged for four Chinese nationals to enter Vietnam illegally. After the Chinese nationals were detected and detained, Huu fled to the southern province of Binh Phuoc. He was arrested when returning home in Cao Bang city.

 

The provincial police is completing procedures to take the case to court./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

Australian Intellectual Property (IP Australia) has officially issued trademark protection certificates to three trademarks  of ST24 and ST24 rice produced by Ho Quang Tri Private Enterprise.

 

The decision was issued on September 27, 2022.

 

Speaking to Vietnam News Agency in Sydney, Ngan Tran, an IP expert from Maygust Trademark Attorneys said that the certificate will be valid for 10 years from June 7, 2021.

 

It can be extended by another 10 years providing criteria are met, she said.

 

On April 22, 2021, the office received an application from T&L Global Foods Supply PTY LTD regarding the trademark registration of ST24 and ST25 rice as “Rice; Best Rice of The World”.

 

In May 2021, the Vietnam Trade Office in Australia sent a dispatch to IP Australia objecting to T&L’s trademark registration of ST24 and ST25 rice.

 

The office was scheduled to announce its response to T&L on September 11, 2022.

 

Recently on its website, IP Australia changed the status of the case to “Lapsed/Not Protected”, which means it refused the firm’s application.

 

At the same time, IP Australia announced that three trademarks under Ho Quang Tri Private Enterprise are protected in Australia./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

The police in the northern province of Lang Son on October 3 launched legal proceeding against and detained two women for investigation into a criminal case of abusing the rights to democracy and freedom to infringe on the State’s interests and legitimate rights and interests of organisations and individuals.

 

The provincial People’s Procuracy approved those actions.

 

Accordingly, Vu Bich Van (born 1971) and Ong Thi Thuy (born 1963), both residing in Vinh Trai ward, Lang Son province, have posted on their personal Facebook accounts many video clips on the gathering of people to complain about a residential project in the ward. The video clips contained many remarks defaming State agencies and violating legitimate rights and interests of organisations and individuals. Those remarks kindled negative comments, smearing the prestige of the administration./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency