Centre to promote hi-tech growth vital

HCM CITY — A centre that co-ordinates work between universities, research institutes and companies can speed up development of hi-tech products in the country, according to a workshop yesterday.

Dr Nguyen Thanh Nam of the Viet Nam National University, HCM City (VNU-HCM City), said the centre would be a place to conduct research as well as train human resources for companies producing hi-tech products. The centre could be a highly profitable venture, he said.

Through the centre, companies could help universities and research institutes know of their demand as well as invest in hi-tech research, he added.

Dr Dang Van Nghin, deputy head of the Viet Nam Mechatronic Association, presented other solutions to speed up development of hi-tech products in Viet Nam.

Universities, research institutes and companies should develop hi-tech products at many levels, he said. They should import highly sophisticated products and study them, he added.

Priority should be given to developing hi-tech that meet important socio-economic needs as well as enhance national security, he said.

The production of hi-tech products that were likely to have a large consumer base should also receive due attention, Nghin said, adding that constant attention needed to be paid to world developments in this field in order to adopt the latest technological advances.

With the State issuing regulations as well as incentive policies for developing the hi-tech industry in Viet Nam, it was a good time to invest in the field, he said.

Several workshop participants mentioned the need for developing hi-tech products such as robots to find and destroy unexploded ordnance (UXO) because more than 66,000sq.km of Viet Nam's land surface area was affected by it. It would take more than 300 years to locate and destroy rogue explosives in Viet Nam without producing these robots, said Dr. Bui Huu Phu of HCM City Natural Sciences University. — VNS

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Aid for thousands in four poor provinces

Nearly 5,000 poor households in four provinces will be given a helping hand to increase income and job opportunities during the next two years.

This is one of the main targets of a joint programme on green production and trade in Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Hoa Binh and Phu Tho provinces.

The 4.1 million USD scheme has been organised by the Trade Promotion Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade and five United Nations organisations.

More than 40 percent of the beneficiaries have a monthly income of less than 200,000 VND (10 USD).

"The four provinces were selected due to the high incidence of poverty, especially among ethnic minorities, the concentration of raw materials and local production of craft," said Do Kim Lang, deputy director of the department.

The programme will focus on boosting five crafts based on bamboo ware, producing and weaving silk, sea grass, lacquer ware and handmade paper.

"We want to help poor growers, collectors and producers to improve their products and link them to more profitable markets," said Lang.

Under the programme, raw bamboo and rattan material will be managed, exploited and developed in a sustainable way.

"Green here means that we will ensure environmental protection when exploiting raw materials, and ensure safe working condition for farmers," said Lang.

A total of 400ha of bamboo belonging to 150 households have been zoned in Chau Thang district in central Nghe An province.

More than 460ha of rattan have also been planted in the four provinces. Local farmers have received training on planting, harvesting and processing.

More than 500 people in the four provinces have already received basic training in making bamboo products. And more than 740 others have received advanced training to enable them to make complicated and fine art bamboo products. They have been provided with splitting machines and storage facilities.

The export value of bamboo and rattan products in the targeted provinces is expected to rise significantly if there is a well developed understanding of markets, marketing and design.

Service providers will also help run advanced training in business development and invite foreign designers to develop new product ranges for bamboo and rattan.

Handicraft enterprises will be invited on study tours in Vietnam , China and the Philippines . They will also be involved in domestic and international trade fairs./.

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Fair celebrates local products

An exhibition that honours locally made products opened on Nov. 3 in HCM City Ton vinh hang Vietnam (Honour Vietnamese products) , attracted the participation of 200 businesses with more than 250 booths.

The five-day fair showcases foodstuff, textiles, electronics, leather shoes and furniture.

Huynh Van Minh, chairman of HCM City Business Association, said the event would help local businesses advertise their goods and exchange experiences, as well as seek partners and gauge customer tastes.

The event is expected to be held annually. The fair is held as part of the Politburo's programme that encourages people to buy Vietnamese-made products.

Phan The Hao, head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade's southern office, said that businesses must begin to use high-tech production methods to increase their competitiveness in the domestic and international markets.

High quality products that had beautiful designs at reasonable prices were needed, he said.

The exhibition, organised by the HCM City Business Association, will end on Nov. 7 at the Tan Binh District's exhibition and fair centre./.

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More counterfeit products flood Vietnamese market

Officers of the northern province of Son La's Market Watch team inspect seized counterfeit products. — VNA/VNS Photo Tran Viet

HA NOI — The production and trade of fake products was becoming increasingly common, said Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Cam Tu.

Many officials agreed with the deputy minister that fake products were pervasive during a meeting held on Monday to review the Prime Minister's direction No 28/2008/CT-TTg to fight the production of counterfeit goods.

Fake products are available across the country in urban centres and in rural markets.

Counterfeit goods are produced with sophisticated methods and modern technology, which makes it hard for consumers to distinguish between fake and genuine products, reported the Viet Nam Fake Production Prevention and Trademark Protection Association.

Fake wine accounts for 20 to 50 per cent of the market share.

Popular methods of marketing fake products include producing counterfeit registered trademarks. Production can include the use of low-quality materials mixed with genuine products.

Modern technology gives producers of fake goods the opportunity to sell well-forged products, including official-looking wrapping and labelling.

However, the lack of a legal framework and technology to evaluate products, and ineffective co-operation between relevant ministries and agencies makes it difficult for authorised agencies to stamp out the production and trade of counterfeit products, according to the association.

"The lack of comprehensive co-operation by relevant agencies and essential tools to conduct their work hinders the fight against counterfeit products," said Chairman of the Viet Nam Anti-Fake Production and Trademark Protection Association Le The Bao.

Meanwhile, businesses themselves paid little attention to protecting their products with registered trademarks, he said.

The association proposed the Ministry of Justice to give Market Watch groups the power to punish violators to help improve the situation rather than keeping that capacity solely with chairmen of local People's Committees which is currently the case, he said.

"Businesses should actively work with authorised agencies to protect their trademarks," Bao added.

Deputy Minister Tu proposed the establishment of a decree on punishing producers and traders of fake products.

It was also essential to review and finalise all legal regulations against counterfeit and low-quality products and supplement the regulations on prosecuting violators, he said.

"Increasing information dissemination to raise public and business awareness about protecting their legal rights is also important," he added.

During the first six months of the year, market watch forces nationwide handled nearly 41,000 violation cases, according to the Ministry of Industryand Trade. — VNS

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City factory fakes imported cosmetic brands

Police in Ho Chi Minh City on Friday found a lot of fake imported cosmetics, shampoos and shower creams made with chemicals bought at a wholesale market in the city.

A factory raid found some people mixing chemicals to pour into used empty bottles of shampoo, creams and other cosmetic products.

Investigators said the factory bought material from the Kim Bien Market, a major chemical supplier in the city.

People at the factory also did the bottling, pasted an anti-fake stamp and the label of Thanh Truc Cosmetics Production and Commerce, Ltd. on each bottle before they were sold as imported items.

The police have sealed 2,200 cosmetics bottles of different brands such as Young One, Mena, See Na, hundreds of shampoo and shower cream bottles, besides dozens of thousands of empty bottles waiting to be filled.

According to a local police officer, the factory, owned by Tran Dinh Ngoc, had been licensed to distribute several cosmetics products from Thailand and Malaysia.

But for the past one year, Ngoc had stopped importing products and had workers make the products with cheap chemicals at home, he said.

The products were mostly sold to workers at industrial zones, poor residential areas and newly-opened shops.

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Fighting fake make-up

Customers shop for cosmetics in Ha Noi. Fake products are sold widely alongside genuine ones, confusing customers, warn officials. – VNA/VNS Photo Tran Viet

HA NOI — Counterfeit cosmetic products worth a total VND570 million (US$29,200) were discovered in an investigation of 30 shops in Ha Noi last week, reported the official interdisciplinary investigation team for cosmetics market after its annual investigation.

The discoveries led to VND130 million (US$6,700) in fines.

A significant batch of the counterfeits, valued at VND200 million (US$10,250), were confiscated from one shop on Pham Ngoc Thach Street.

"Fake cosmetics are spreading widely and mixed among genuine products," said Hoang Dai Nghia, deputy head of the Market Watch Office.

Products labelled with brands such as Gucci, Clinique and Lancome were being offered for much lower prices compared to their authentic counterparts in official outlets. For example, a tube of "Clinique Happy Heart Body Cream" was offered for VND220,000 (US$11.3) at one shop, much lower than the VND560,000 (US$28.7) price in the official store.

One shopowner explained that she could offer the lower prices because her products were imported duty-free.

Nghia said the cheap price alone was clear evidence that the product was not genuine as prices could never be that low.

"Modified products, such as those marked ‘Guci' instead of ‘Gucci', or ‘Varsace' instead of ‘Versace' and sold for super low prices, are obviously fake. Otherwise, it is very hard to tell the difference between genuine products and counterfeit ones."

"Modern technology has given shopowners the opportunity to sell well-forged products, including official-looking wrapping and labelling. During our investigation, many products were suspected of being counterfeit but still needed to go through costly and time-consuming control experiments to be sure," said Nghia.

Shopowners had also started using more sophisticated tricks. They bought one or two batches of genuine products and held on to the valid licences for counterfeit batches later, said the Economic Police Department.

"Investigations are even more difficult for online cosmetics business. We tried to make online purchases but most of the owners only accepted face-to-face business so we could not identify the source of the goods," said Pham Bich Hang, a member of the team.

Under governmental Decree No 45, shopowners may be fined a minimum of VND7.5 million (US$385) for a batch of counterfeit products, which can vary depending on the product value. However, since many owners come from other provinces, they simply return to their hometown after they are fined and return to operate their business under a different name.

"This makes things more complicated and leaves the problems unsolved," said Nghia.

Most of the customers at these stores were teenagers with low incomes, his report said.

"I often buy lipstick and skin care products on Hang Buom Street. The price is reasonable and they sell brands with good reputations," said a Grade-11 student from Viet Duc High School as she showed off her new Lancome lip gloss.

"Brand outlets are much more expensive. Plus, I don't think mine is fake. It has a certified stamp," she said.

Nghia explained that shopowners could make fakes of genuine-looking certified stamps. Investigators were working hard to find a way to solve the problem, he said.

"Punishment represents the strict and clear side of relevant laws. However, a sole unit to monitor and manage the market is not enough. Comprehensive co-operation with police and local authorities is needed to get to the root of the problem," he said.

The interdisciplinary investigation is annually performed by the Ha Noi Market Watch Office, the Economic Police and the Department of Health. —VNS

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Handicraft workers use own trademarks

A foreign visitor shows her interest in Vietnamese handicraft products at an international fair on timber and handicraft products in HCM City. — VNA/VNS Photo The Anh

HCM CITY — Owners of handicraft shops in HCM City's Hoc Mon District are creating their own trademarks for their products instead of relying on middlemen or distributors.

Craft products made in the district's Trung Chanh Commune are well-known, but residents of the village sell them under other brandnames, usually those of the distributor.

Nguyen Van Tieu, chairman of the Farmers Association of the commune, says some 30 households in the commune earn a living by making handicraft products from animal horns, hooves and bones.

He says most handicraft workers learn through trial and error and open their own shop only after they feel their skills have reached a professional level.

Kim Van Tu, an owner of a handicraft shop in Moi Hamlet, once sold his products on consignment to traders at central markets and souvenir shops, but later set up his own business and created a website to promote his products.

Although his products are available abroad, they are sold under the distributor's brand, and profits are not high.

Many tourists from South Korea, Japan and China are fond of his products, especially the dragon and eagle statues.

After his products began having a stable outlet in 2008, Tu created his own company, Tu Duy Handicraft, this year.

He says he regularly conducts research and creates new products that satisfy customers' tastes.

Like Tu, many other handicraft companies do not earn high profits because they sell products under the brand of the importer.

Vu Hung Quang, owner of another handicraft facility, says he plans to work with importers to directly promote products in other countries.

"We have only focused on how to make our products perfect and haven't paid much attention to branding or marketing. But we must change so we can develop further," Quang says. — VNS

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Major retailer resumes sales of Vedan products

Local supermarket chain Saigon Co.op has announced it will resume sales of Vedan seasoning products on Monday after the environmental polluter agreed to pay compensation to affected farmers.

Nguyen Thanh Nhan, deputy general director of the Ho Chi Minh City-based retailer, said Saturday that the Taiwanese monosodium glutamate (MSG) maker has shown its “goodwill” by promising compensation to local farmers.

As a result, Saigon Co.op will give it another chance and resume sales of its products, he said.

Saigon Co.op owns 45 supermarkets nationwide and reportedly holds a market share of over 50 percent in the country’s modern retail sector.

Vedan products were pulled from shelves at all Saigon Co.op outlets on August 5.

Other supermarkets soon followed suit and the boycott campaign, the first ever in the country, eventually forced Vedan to accept responsibility for damages caused by its fourteen year pollution of the Thi Vai River.

The boycott by retailers was prompted by the fact that customers were refusing to buy Vedan products, unhappy with the company's stalling tactics in paying compensation to affected farmers. 

The river polluter has pledged to pay a total of VND219 billion in restitution to affected farmers in Dong Nai Province, Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province and Ho Chi Minh City.

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