VietNam Society

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Ninh Thuan wants nuclear plants relocated

Ninh Thuan Province has asked the government to relocate the country’s first two nuclear plants that are proposed to be built there for reasons it has declined to make public.

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai has asked the Ministry of Industry and Trade to study the request but a spokesman for the central province, Le Van Binh, refused to reveal details.

The National Assembly last year approved construction of two plants with a capacity of more than 4,000 MW each in Thuan Nam and Ninh Hai Districts.

Work on the first, initially estimated to cost $3.4 billion, will begin in 2014, with its first unit beginning operation in 2020, according to the Electricity of Vietnam.

But Russian State Nuclear Energy Corp Rosatom, which won the bid to build it, has increased the estimate to $8 billion.

The Russian group will also set up a center for training personnel and an atomic energy research institute, Vietnam News Agency quoted Rosatom chairman Sergey Kirienko as telling President Nguyen Minh Triet at a meeting in Hanoi last Wednesday.

It will also initially train around 70 Vietnamese, Kirienko added.

Vietnam has already sent 40 technicians and experts to Russia for training while seven Vietnamese universities have started courses in the field.

By 2030 the country hopes to have eight nuclear plants to meet its skyrocketing electricity needs, according to the government website.

Peace Trees Vietnam marks mine clearing milestone

Peace Trees Vietnam, the first US non-governmental organization licensed for operation in the then war-stricken country, marked its 15th year of clearing land mines in Quang Tri province on Thursday and Friday.

The Permanent Deputy Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, Nguyen Duc Chinh, said at the celebration that Peace Trees Vietnam, with funding of around US$2 million, had contributed to socio-economic recovery and development in several residential quarters suffering huge war damages and struggling against the aftermath of landmines.

He added that the US NGO had also contributed to promoting friendship between Vietnam and the US, whose diplomatic relations were resumed 15 years ago.

In addition to landmine clearance, Peace Trees Vietnam has also funded development projects for the province.

On Friday for example, the US Embassy and Peace Trees Vietnam, in association with the provincial Women’s Union, inaugurated a kindergarten and a library for the Van Kieu ethnic minority group in Khe Da commune, Lao Bao township, on the border with Laos.

The projects, valued at over $38,000 in total, were funded by Peace Trees Vietnam.

Hanoi ready for millennium anniversary in October

A series of important works to dress up and decorate Hanoi is basically complete with just 30 days left until the millennium anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi takes place.

The capital city has to date completed 33 major projects, making Hanoi greener, cleaner and more beautiful, according to Ngo Thi Thanh Hang, Vice Chairwoman of the Hanoi Municipal People’s Committee and deputy head of the National Steering Committee on the anniversary.

Prominent among the completed works are the Hanoi Museum, the Saint Giong statue, the Presidents Ho Chi Minh and Ton Duc Thang statues, the Hoa Binh (Peace) park, the Hanoi-Amsterdam Gifted High School , Beltway 3, Thang Long boulevard, the giant embroidered picture entitled “Coi Xua” (Old Origins) and the ceramic road along the Red River.

Besides, following the UNESCO’s recognition of the 82 doctor laureate steles under the Le-Mac dynasties in Van Mieu ( Temple of Literature), the Thang Long Imperial Citadel has been recently recognised as a world cultural heritage by the UNESCO, she said.

"They are invaluable presents on the threshold of the millennium anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi," said Hang.

The 10-day festival will bring together many politicians, cultural activists and scientists around the world as well as foreign visitors and overseas Vietnamese.

A solemn ceremony will open the festival in the morning of October 1 at the Ly Thai To Garden. The festival will include a meeting and a march and parade on October 10 at the Ba Dinh Square .

As many as 38 foreign and 20 local art troupes have to date registered to perform during the festival, Hang said.

Thousands of antiques have been selected for exhibition, helping visitors understand the world cultural heritages in Hanoi, she added.

The city has almost completed works on decorating and lighting streets as well as attractive lighting systems around lakes and stadiums and on bridges spanning the Red River./.

Peace Trees Vietnam marks mine clearing milestone

Peace Trees Vietnam, the first US non-Government organisation licensed for operation in the then war-stricken country, marked its 15th year of clearing land mines in Quang Tri province on Sept. 9 and 10.

The Permanent Deputy Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, Nguyen Duc Chinh, said at the celebration that Peace Trees Vietnam, with funding of around 2 million USD, had contributed to socio-economic recovery and development in several residential quarters suffering huge war damages and struggling against the aftermath of landmines.

He added that the US NGO had also contributed to promoting friendship between Vietnam and the US, whose diplomatic relations were resumed 15 years ago.

In addition to landmine clearance, Peace Trees Vietnam has also funded development projects for the province.

On September 10 for example, the US Embassy and Peace Trees Vietnam, in association with the provincial Women’s Union, inaugurated a kindergarten and a library for the Van Kieu ethnic minority group in Khe Da commune, Lao Bao township, on the border with Laos .

The projects, valued at over 38,000 USD in total, were funded by Peace Trees Vietnam./.

Land management looks to int’l standards

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment held a symposium in Hanoi on Sept. 10 to listen to foreign land managers in an effort to catch up with developed economies in the region by 2020 as planned.

Experts from Sweden, Holland, the Republic of Korea, China and the World Bank shared experiences in land registry, land pricing, land information systems, digital land management, land fund development and land compensation.

Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Pham Khoi Nguyen emphasised three key points in the orientation on land management modernisation, based on a modern organisational mechanism, advanced technology and efficiency of land management.

“All this is necessary to contribute to poverty alleviation, democracy and social parity,” said the minister, revealing that the nation’s final goal was to reach international standards by 2030.

Acting Head of the Land Management Department Phung Van Nghe said land managers should no longer simply do an administrative job but should manage the business of national properties.

He explained that land management was geared towards providing administrative and legal procedures for land users and the community.

The Law of Land, promulgated in 2003, has opened up a new era where the Government has shifted land ownership or auctioned small parcels of land to enrich State coffers.

In 2009 alone, land auctions fetched 40 trillion VND (2.04 billion USD), representing a 10-fold increase over five years ago./.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

More funding to develop Hanoi’s craft villages

Hanoi will provide 3.6 trillion VND (189 million USD) to preserve and develop craft villages over 2010-2015 to preserve traditional craft villages, develop tourism and build new ones while ensuring the environment is protected.

The city will prioritise 25 traditional villages that are under threat of falling beyond repair and that need to be restored and preserved. They include Dong My lacquer village, Dai Ang conical hat village, Nghia Do “sac” paper village, Van Canh “do” paper village and Ngu Xa copper casting village.

The project will help to develop tourism at craft villages, assist family households to maintain their production for tourist purposes, provide finance for vocational training and encourage the production of high quality handicrafts.

The city is also paying more attention to developing new craft villages to help generate jobs and increase local residents incomes.

In order to attract investment to preserve craft villages, Hanoi will grant soft loans to businesses for a duration of 3-5 years, to help them to promote their trade marks and promote craft villages in the city.

Setting up and developing the sale of crafts in domestic and foreign markets with a focus on linking up with supermarkets and trade centres and assisting craft villages to boost exports will be also be conducted.

In order to avoid pollution, the city will encourage craft businesses to move to industrial complexes and help businesses to upgrade their equipment.

At present, Hanoi has almost 1,350 craft villages, making up 59 percent of the country’s total, that provide jobs for over 626,000 people, with an annual average income of 13.1 million VND per person.

In 2009, Hanoi ’s craft villages earned 7.65 trillion VND (402 million USD), equal to 8.4 percent of the city’s industrial production value.

According to the Hanoi Centre for Industrial Promotion and Consultancy, despite the assistance to help traditional craft villages in Hanoi , they have encountered many problems.

In order to promote Hanoi ’s craft villages, a festival “Thang Long-Hanoi craft villages and streets” will be held in Hanoi between September 16-21./.

Ninh Thuan wants nuclear plants relocated

Photo: Reuters