Day: December 10, 2022

Nguyen Tat Thanh Square in Tuyen Quang city of the northern province of Tuyen Quang has been ranked fifth among 11 outstanding landscape projects winning the Asian Townscape Awards 2022.

 

Covering an area of over 8.5 ha, Nguyen Tat Thanh Square is an impressive work in both landscape and urban architecture. It also serves as a place for organising cultural, political and historical events.

 

The construction of the square started in 2012 and  was completed on the occasion of the 125th birthday of President Ho Chi Minh (May 19, 2015). It is a typical cultural and architectural work that shows the love of ethnic groups in Tuyen Quang for their beloved Uncle Ho.

 

The Asian Townscape Awards was initiated by the UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, Asian Settlement Commission, Asian Landscape Design Organisation and the Fukuoka Asian Urban Research Centre of Japan in 2010, aiming to honour cities, regions, projects that have played a significant role as models in landscape construction, thus materialising a living environment that is happy and fulfilling to the people of Asia.

 

Winning works and projects are evaluated basing on five criteria of harmonious coexistence with regional environment; Safety, convenience and sustainability; respect for regional culture and history; high artistic quality; contributions to local development, capabilities of becoming models for other cities.

 

The honour of the project is expected to contribute to introducing the beauty of Tuyen Quang to international tourists and friends, thus promoting tourism development in the locality./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

 

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visited the European Investment Bank (EIB) on December 10 as part of his trip to Luxembourg.

 

The EIB has maintained its cooperation with Vietnam since 1997, and it is running seven projects in the Southeast Asian nation with total investment of 561 million EUR (591.37 million USD), according to EIB Vice President Kris Peeters.

 

Peeters noted his hope that following the PM’s visit, the bilateral cooperation will be enhanced and more successful.

 

PM Chinh spoke highly of the close financial cooperation between the EIB and Vietnam over the past more than two decades.

 

However, he said, the collaboration has yet to match their potential, pledging that Vietnam will make greater efforts to boost the ties.

 

As Vietnam is implementing three strategic breakthroughs on institutions, human resources and infrastructure, the country needs resources, especially financial resources, the leader said.

 

PM visits European Investment Bank in Luxembourg hinh anh 2

 

At the meeting (Photo: VNA)

 

Therefore, Vietnam wishes to foster cooperation with the EIB, in a more effective fashion and with a larger scale, in such spheres as green development, climate change response, digital economy and circular economy, he continued.

 

Chinh suggested the two sides re-sign the framework agreement on finance, which was signed in 1997, making it match the current situation, and review and remove limitations in cooperation to make the best us of EIB capital in Vietnam.

 

He also urged the bank to closely coordinate with the Vietnamese Ministry of Finance and relevant sides to facilitate the construction of Metro Line No. 3 in Hanoi and Metro Line No. 2 in Ho Chi Minh City.

 

The bank should continue to select suitable projects in Vietnam in such areas as green development, digital economy, circular economy and climate change response, he said, calling on the bank to offer a more equal and balanced approach during project implementation in the country with consideration of Vietnam’s status as a developing country with low starting point.

 

The PM pledged that Vietnam will make efforts to improve its procedures and management so that cooperation agreements with the EIB are rolled out in a faster and more effective way.

 

Peeters promised that after the meeting, the EIB will review the cooperation process to remove obstacles and limitations so that the EIB and Vietnam would engage in more cooperation projects.

 

On this occasion, Chinh witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the EIB and the Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) on financial support in energy transition, towards the target of achieving net zero emissions by 2050 as set by the Vietnamese Government./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

A ceremony to celebrate the the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (December 3) was held in Hanoi on December 10 in response to the Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities (2023-2032).

 

Hosted by the Vietnam Blind Association (VBA)’s Central Committee, the event is part of a series of activities to promote equality, progress and integration of the blind in ASEAN.

 

Addressing the event, Head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Mass Mobilisation Bui Thi Minh Hoai emphasised Vietnam’s commitment to care for and create conditions for people with disabilities in general and the blind in particular to exercise their right to equality, develop their abilities and integrate into the community.

 

Since 1992, the United Nations has designated December 3 as the International Day of Persons with Disabilities in order to raise public awareness of issues related to persons with disabilities, and mobilize support for actions for the rights, dignity and happiness of people with disabilities.

 

With the goal of realising the rights of people with disabilities, in October this year, 53 member countries and nine associate members of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) adopted the Jakarta Declaration on the ensuring of rights of persons with disabilities at a summit in Jakarta, Indonesia to review the Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities 2013-2022.

 

The governments of ASEAN member countries have also committed to implement the ASEAN Enabling Masterplan 2025 on mainstreaming the rights of people with disabilities.

 

According to the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, on December 6, a document on Vietnam’s participation in the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled was handed over to Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) Daren Tang for legal copyrighting.

 

At the ceremony, Chairwoman of the Trade Union of the Ministry of Planning and Investment Le Thi Tuong Thu presented 400 white canes to the Vietnam Blind Association in response to the journey “White canes for the blind in Vietnam”./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

 

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh had a meeting with the Grand Duke of  Luxembourg, Henri, at the Grand Ducal Palace on December 10 (local time) as part of his official visit to Luxembourg.

 

PM Chinh took the occasion to affirm that Vietnam attaches importance to and wants to strengthen its comprehensive cooperation with Luxembourg, a founding member of the European Union (EU).

 

The Grand Duke shared his good impression from his visit to Vietnam 10 years ago, and voiced support for the will of the two countries’ Government to take their bilateral relationship into a new period of development.

 

The two sides took note with pleasures the development of bilateral cooperation, especially in investment, since the two countries established diplomatic ties nearly 50 years ago.

 

PM Chinh conveyed an invitation from Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and President Nguyen Xuan Phuc to the Grand Duke of Luxembourg to visit Vietnam in 2023 on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries.

 

The Grand Duke expressed his wish to early visit Vietnam again to witness the Southeast Asian country’s socio-economic achievements and further deepen the Luxembourg-Vietnam cooperation, first of all in green finance and education-training.

 

The Vietnamese government leader shared with the Grand Duke the resolve of the two governments to promote cooperation in potential fields such as green finance, renewable energy, logistics connectivity and the early formation of a strategic partnership on green finance, with the aim of optimizing Luxembourg’s strengths and helping Vietnam implement its green growth strategy in 20021-2030 with a vision to 2050, and deliver on its commitments on climate change at the 26th United Nations Climate Change conference (COP26).

 

Regarding economy-trade, the two leaders agreed on the need to effectively implement the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA). PM Chinh asked the Luxembourg side to push for the early ratification of the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) by other EU members.

 

Vietnam also hoped to receive Luxembourg’s support in finance and technology during the transition to and development of renewable energy, and in the establishment of a just energy transition partnership (JETP) with G7 and international partners on the basis of ensuring harmonious interests of all parties so as to together respond to global issues, Chinh said.

 

Grand Duke Henri spoke highly of Vietnam’s role in the region and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). He noted his concern about climate change in the Mekong Delta, which he considered a key issue in the bilateral relations between the two countries. He also pledged to support Vietnam in realising green growth targets.

 

The Grand Duke said he supports and encourages Luxembourg firms to increase investment in Vietnam in such fields as digital transformation, renewable energy, strategic infrastructure. He also advocated stronger cooperation in education-training, culture, sports and tourism, people-to-people exchanges, and especially the provision of more scholarships for Vietnamese students to receive education in Luxembourg.

 

PM Chinh thanked the Grand Duke for the support, and suggested that he continue to create favourable conditions for the Vietnamese community in Luxembourg in their integration into the host society./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency