Japanese students keen on Vietnamese study

HCM City (VNA) – Some 480 students from central Japan’s Hyogo province have landed at the Saigon port, Ho Chi Minh City , their first stopover during a three-week at-sea training tour of Vietnam, Singapore and China .

During their journey starting in Osaka on August 18, the students attended a number of seminars and lectures on Vietnam ’s history, culture, language and socio-economic development.

Many of them showed deep interest in Vietnam’s contemporary history with revolutions for national liberation in the 20th century.

Eighteen Vietnamese students invited for the training course organised a cultural exchange, which included dramatic plays introducing Vietnamese history and talks of the country’s culture.

During their two-day stay in HCM City on August 24-25, 100 out of the Japanese students are scheduled to visit historical relics sites mentioned in the lectures like the Cu Chi tunnel, the Museum of War Remnants and the Thong Nhat (Reunification) Palace.

Other Japanese students are to tour famous landscape of the city and neighbouring localities.

On the occasion, authorities of Hyogo and HCM City signed a memorandum of understanding to boost the bilateral cooperation in various fields. The MoU was seen a preparatory step towards a long-term comprehensive relations, particularly in culture and economy, in the future.

In September, HCM City will host a performance of 50 Japanese young mandolinists from the Meiji Conservatoire together with Vietnamese players on traditional instruments.-

Gov’t leader urges poor highland province to tap forest potential

Lai Chau (VNA)- Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has called on Lai Chau province to tap all its potential such as forest land and border gate economy to lift itself out of poverty.

The Government leader was critical of the northwestern mountainous province leaders for wasting rich forestry resources to leave 43.5 percent of local households in poverty, during his working visit on August 24.

He was so concerned at a report on the province’s high poverty rate, especially in Muong Te district where the rate stood at 70 percent.

Dung suggested the provincial administration expand areas under rubber and industrial crops to another 20,000 ha. Meadows intercropped inside these forests would be useful to develop local cattle and goat stocks, he said.

The Prime Minister also advised the province to develop its border-gate economy through increasing trade and tourism ties with China’s Yunnan province.

He listened to Lai Chau’s proposals for the Government assistance in rubber planting, establishing new settlements for residents displaced by hydro-power projects, policies in favour of forest tending and protection as well as investments in major infrastructure projects including roads, urban and border gate construction, and a provincial hospital.

Despite its low profile, Lai Chau has managed to record a gross domestic product growth rate above 10 percent and reduce the poverty rate down to 43.5 percent in 2007 from 60 percent in 2003.

The Government leader also praised the provincial administration and people for its great efforts in ensuring a stable and strong political system and constantly improving relations with neighbouring China’s Yunnan province.–

Localities in Vietnam, Japan boost cooperation

– President of the Vietnam-Japan Parliamentary Union Ho Duc Viet welcomed a delegation from Japan’s Nagasaki province and the Japan-Vietnam Parliamentary Union on August 22, saying that the visit will help boost the Vietnam-Japan relationship.

He said he wanted Nagasaki province to strengthen its relations with Vietnamese localities, especially central Quang Nam province where Japanese merchants had done business four centuries ago, and assist Vietnam in areas such as nuclear energy, training and healthcare.

Nagasaki Mayor Kaneko Genjiro said the relationship between his province and Vietnam has been expanded to many fields, especially education and healthcare. The Nagasaki University has recently cooperated with the Central Institute of Epidemiology in treating infectious diseases.

The province has also received a large number of Vietnamese students to attend refresher courses, he added.

The Japanese delegation was on a visit to Vietnam to further strengthen the relationship between Nagasaki and Vietnamese localities in the context that the two countries are actively celebrating the 35th anniversary of diplomatic ties.-

MobiFone welcomes 21 millionth subscriber

Hanoi (VNA) – MobiFone has welcomd its 21 millionth subscriber to the Vietnam network operator with rewards valued at 100 million VND.

The programme will apply to both pre-and post-paid subscribers. Under the programme, the winning subscribers will receive 76 million VND in cash and 24 million VND in telecom charges.

Dinh Viet Hung, head of the pricing and marketing division of MobiFone, said his company wanted the 21 millionth subscriber to help show the significance of the company’s stance as a leading mobifone operator-

Vietnam, Venezuela sign eight cooperation deals

Buenos Aires (VNA) – Vietnam and Venezuela signed eight agreements on economic, cultural, tourism, scientific, technological and communication cooperation after their first meeting of the Inter-governmental Commission in Caracas on August 22.

Under an agreement, Vietnam will build a factory to produce energy-saving lamps in Venezuela to meet the local demand and other markets in the Caribbean and Latin American regions.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez announced that the country’s national petroleum group Petroleos de Venezuela S.A (PDVSA) will open its representative office in Hanoi to boost cooperation with the Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam).

President Hugo Chavez further said at the end of the meeting that PetroVietnam is identifying the size of Junin field in the Orinoco range, which is reportedly contain largest reserve of petroleum in the world.

The two countries plan to jointly build a plant in Vietnam to refine crude oil, which will be pumped up from Junin field by PDVSA and PetroVietnam. In addition, the two companies also plan to set up a sea transport joint venture, which will develop its own fleet to transport oil to the refinery.-

PM asks Dien Bien to tap forest potential

Dien Bien (VNA) – Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung suggested northwestern mountainous Dien Bien province develop 600,000 ha of forest effectively, which is the province’s advantage, in order to escape poverty.

Meeting with the provincial authorities on August 23, the PM also requested the province to deploy hydro power and tourism projects.

Dien Bien needs to zone off land for the plantation of protective forest and forest for special purpose, develop agriculture, industry, tourism and mining industry, he said.

The PM appointed the Ministry of Construction to help make Dien Bien city a city of tourism.

The Government pledged to support Dien Bien in building infrastructure facilities, especially transportation infrastructure, he said.

PM Dung also asked the province to ensure the process of the resettlement of local people for the construction of Son La hydro power plant as scheduled.

From the beginning of the year, Dien Bien posted an economic growth rate of 9.2 percent, helping improve local people’s life.

However, the province still faces numerous difficulties including poor infrastructure and human resources and high rate of poor households. -

Military court officers visit South Africa

Hanoi (VNA) – A delegation of the Central Military Court headed by Judge Major-General Tran Van Do paid a working visit to South Africa from August 18-23.

During their visit, the Vietnamese officers exchanged working experiences and discussed future cooperation projects with their colleagues from South Africa’s military court.

The delegates were received by Chief of the South African National Defence Force Gen. G. N Ngwenya, who described the visit as more evidence of expanded cooperative relations between the two Ministries of National Defence.

They also called at several historical and cultural sites and landscapes in South Africa.-