UNDP funds Vietnam’s development strategy

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) will provide 2 million USD in support for Vietnam to work out a socio-economic development strategy for the next decade.

The two-and-a-half year project, signed in Hanoi on July 30 between UNDP and the Government of Vietnam, aims to assist the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s Development Strategy Institute (DSI) in conducting necessary research and approaching international experiences.

As part of the joint cooperation plan between UNDP and the Vietnamese Government, the project is the second of its kind financed by the UN body after the first designed for the 2001-2010 period.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, DSI Director Ngo Doan Vinh pledged to carry out the project effectively. He also expressed his hope that the strategy will involve valuable reforms and the brainpower of many people, as well as encourage the whole society to realise the planned strategy.

UNDP Deputy Country Director in Vietnam Christophe Bahuet said along with achievements after 20 years of renewal, Vietnam is facing emerging challenges that require proper choices to further promote its socio-economic development.

Through the project, UNDP hopes to back Vietnam ’s access to high-quality expertise and practices to serve the formulation of the national development strategy.-

More Chinese students learn commercial Vietnamese

A training course on commercial Vietnamese language was opened by the National Economics University (NEU) on July 30 for 84 students from the Oriental Foreign Language Institute of Guangxi, China.

These students, who have completed two-year commercial Vietnamese language course in China, will follow an advanced-level curriculum on economics and trade.

They will study six subjects on Vietnamese language and four others on economics, and will have fact-finding tours of several Vietnamese economic establishments during the course.

At the opening ceremony, NEU Vice Rector Phan Cong Nghia and his Chinese counterpart from Guangxi’s institute appreciated the cooperation, saying that sending Chinese students to Vietnam for learning economics in Vietnamese language is a new potential direction for the two sides’ cooperation.

Earlier, the two schools organised the first course and granted 96 Chinese students with certificates on commercial Vietnamese language.

These students have been using well Vietnamese language in their work and many of them are working in Vietnam.-

Rare bird found at Kien Giang’s national park

Rare birds listed in Vietnam ’s Red Book of endangered plant and animal species have been found nesting at the U Minh Thuong National Park in the Mekong delta’s Kien Giang province.

The U Minh Thuong National Park Management Board said it is now feeding two precious birds, Gia day Java scientifically called Leptotiplos javanicus , with each weighing 1.5-2 kg. The birds are friendly with people and are aware of signals for food.

The appearance of the Gia day Java proves that the environment at the U Minh Thuong National Park has been improved markedly, the board added.

The U Minh Thuong National Park accommodates two bird sanctuaries, which are home to hundreds of thousands of birds belonging to more than 100 species, with the most crowded being wild ducks, storks and herons.-

East Meets West helps poor students in Quang Ngai

– US-based East Meets West Foundation will provide scholarships and gifts worth more than 800 million VND (47,000 USD) to poor children in the central province of Quang Ngai in the coming school year.

The donation to Binh Son, Son Tinh and Minh Long district pupils with difficulties includes cash, bicycles, books, clothes and school aids.

Since the 2004-05 school year, the organisation has provided over 3,200 scholarships and 488 bicycles totally worth 2.3 billion VND (135,300 USD) to the localities.

The East Meets West Foundation (EMWF) is a prominent US NGO operating in healthcare and community development in Vietnam.-

Vietnam, China meet for land-border demarcation

The 28th chair-level meeting of the Vietnam-China Joint Committee for Land-Border Demarcation and Marker Planting took place in Beijing from July 15-29.

The two sides affirmed their determination to finish the land border demarcation and border marker planting this year as agreed by the two countries’ leaders.

The two sides agreed to continue with discussions to find measures to solve remaining matters in the work of border demarcation and market planting.

They were unanimous in instructing border demarcation and marker planting teams to immediately implement the consensus reached at the joint committee’s meeting, while urgently complete other related work.

The two sides agreed to hold their 29th chair-level meeting of the joint committee in Vietnam in August 2008.-

Vice president urges closer ties with Chile

Vice State President Nguyen Thi Doan has called for closer cooperation between Vietnam and Chile to make the two nations’ ties match their potentials.

Doan made the appeal while receiving the visiting Vice President of Chamber of Deputies of Chile, Jorge Ulloa, in Hanoi on July 29.

Doan thanked the Chilean people for their assistance to Vietnam during its past national defence and current national construction. She said she hoped that her guest’s current visit to Vietnam will contribute to enhancing solidarity and mutual assistance between the two countries and two legislative bodies.

The Vietnamese Vice State President spoke highly of the achievements made by the Chilean people, including annual economic growths of 6 percent for many years, a good economic management at the macro level and numerous bilateral trade agreements.

Chilean Chamber of Deputies Vice President Jorge Ulloa expressed his pleasure at the fruitful cooperation and friendship between the two countries.

He said the visit will help him and his entourage better understand Vietnam and contribute to boosting bilateral ties between Vietnam and Chile.

Ulloa also said he hoped that in the future, Chile and Vietnam will be gates for their respective products to enter Southeast Asian and Latin American markets.

The same day, the Chilean Chamber of Deputies Vice President met with the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the President of the Vietnam-Latin America Parliamentarians Friendship Association, Ha Van Hien.-

Party leader welcomes French Senate President

Party General Secretary Nong Duc Manh spoke highly of French Senate President Christian Poncelet’s contributions to boosting Vietnam-France ties and positive development in relations between the legislative bodies of the two countries.

The Party leader was receiving the visiting French Senate President and his entourage in Hanoi on July 29.

General Secretary Manh briefed his guests of Vietnam’s major policies, stressing that Vietnam is bringing into play the whole nation’s concerted strength in order to promote the comprehensive renewal, taking the country out the status of underdevelopment to be an industrial country by 2020.

He affirmed that Vietnam pursues the policy to attach importance to promoting multifaceted cooperation with EU member countries, including France .

He expressed his hope that the two countries would make efforts to raise Vietnam-France traditional friendly, cooperative relations to a new height, commensurate with the two countries’ potentials and strengths.

He stressed the need to improve the efficiency of the high-level council for Vietnam-France economic cooperation development.

He believed that France, in its capacity as chair of the EU in the last six months of this year, would actively help accelerate multifaceted cooperation between Vietnam and the EU.

General Secretary Manh asked the French Senate President to convey his best regards to the President, the Prime Minister and other leaders of France and best wishes to the French people.

Senate President Poncelet expressed his delights to witness the great achievements of the Vietnamese people in their renovation process and national development.

He informed the Vietnamese Party leader of activities of the France-Vietnam Friendship Parliamentarians’ Group to promote the two countries’ friendship and cooperation, the fine results of his talks and working sessions with the Vietnam National Assembly leadership, and their agreements to boost cooperation between the legislative bodies of the two countries.

He praised the time-honoured friendly ties between France and Vietnam, stressing the solidarity, peace and friendship in the two peoples’ relations.

He affirmed that France places importance to boosting relations with Vietnam, saying that the two countries should enhance coordination of actions to solve issues of global challenges, such as energy and food security, join efforts to develop France-Vietnam ties into an exemplary relationship for peace, cooperation and development.-

Solution to Georgian-Abkhaz peace process urged

Vietnam supports the settlement of differences through peaceful means with the aim to achieving “a negotiated solution” to the Georgian-Abkhaz peace process in conformity with international law and the UN Charter, thus contributing to the maintenance of peace and security in the Caucasian region.

Deputy Representative of Vietnam to the UN Security Council, Ambassador Bui The Giang delivered the statement at a consultation meeting of the Security Council on the situation in Abkhazia and Georgia, held in New York on July 29.

Ambassador Giang called upon “all the parties concerned to exercise utmost restraint, refrain from acts which may further complicate the situation, promote mutual trust and show their political will to settle the differences.”

The diplomat expressed his concern over increased tension and worsening security in the zone of conflict, notably a series of bombings which led to a number of civilian deaths and injuries, including one staff of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG).

He also called upon UNOMIG in coordination with local authorities to urgently carry out an investigation and bring perpetrators to justice.

The Vietnamese representative urged the parties concerned to observe the terms of the Moscow Agreement and other concluded agreements to prevent the increased tension and clear the current stalemate of the Georgian-Abkhaz peace process.

He took the occasion to commend the UN Secretary General’s efforts to maintain regular contact with his Group of Friends to facilitate the resumption of good-faith dialogue between the Georgian and Abkhaz sides for moving the peace process forward.

The same day, Ambassador Bui The Giang also chaired the UNSC meeting to adopt the Resolution 1826 (2008) on the Ivory Coast and a consultation meeting of the UNSC on the situation in Zimbabwe after the UN Assistant Secretary General for political affairs Haile Menkerios briefed on the issue.-

Vietnam hails NAM members’ close cooperation

Vietnam praised the achievements of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) in implementation of decisions reached in the Havana summit, especially the close coordination among NAM members in many issues, Permanent Deputy Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh said.

Speaking at a ministerial meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement held in Tehran, Iran, from July 29-30, Deputy FM Minh said Vietnam hoped NAM member countries would persistently uphold NAM’s goals and principles, take concrete measures to promote solidarity and mutual assistance in the NAM and support efforts to promote international partners to carry out their commitments, including appropriate aid and priorities in economy and trade for developing countries.

Deputy FM Minh spoke about Vietnam’s activities related to matters of NAM countries’ concern in the UN Security Council, including its contributions to resolving regional tensions and conflicts, and bringing into play the role of NAM countries in the UNSC. Recently, Vietnam , which works as chair of the UNSC in July 2008, initiated holding open discussions on the Middle East situation.

Delegations from 118 members, many representatives of observer members and UN and international organisations attended the 15th Ministerial Conference of the Non-Aligned Movement.

The conference reviewed developments and implementation of decisions made in the 14th NAM Summit in Havana, Cuba, in 2006, evaluated the latest international developments, and discussed preparations for the 15 th NAM Summit, slated for Egypt in July 2009.-

Congratulations to Mexican Labour Party leader

General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nong Duc Manh has cabled his congratulations to Alberto Anaya Gutierrez over his re-election as General Secretary of the Labour Party (PT) of Mexico.-