Japan to train Thais for nuclear-powered electricity plant

Hanoi (VNA) – The Japanese government is prepared to offer personnel training, research to help Thai people understand a need to construct a nuclear-powered electricity plant in Thailand, said a Thai high-ranking official.

Thai Energy Minister Poonpirom Liptapanlop was speaking on August 23 after holding separate talks with minister Toshihiro Nikai and senior vice minister Takamori Yoshikawa of Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

During the talks, both Japanese officials had pledged support and assistance for Thailand’s plan to build a nuclear-powered electricity generating reactor in future, Thailand’s news agency (TNA) said, adding that they also discussed Thailand’s plans for the use of alternative energy.

Thailand’s deputy permanent secretary for energy will be responsible for supervising follow-up details of the two countries’ cooperation, according to TNA.-

Int’l donors help Cambodia develop education, health care

Phnom Penh (VNA) – The United States’ government has pledged to give an aid package of 34.3 million USD to help Cambodia develop education and health care system.

An agreement to this effect was signed in Phnom Penh on August 23 witnessed by Cambodian Prime Minsiter Hun Sen and US ambassador to Cambodia Joseph Musomeli.

Most of the sum will be used to protect and improve children’s health as well as prevent and fight HIV/AIDS and bird flu. Meanwhile, the remaining will be spent on upgrading education system, improving teaching curriculum at the grassroots level, especially in ethnic minority-inhabited areas and regions where many children are living in difficult conditions.

Besides the US, Kuwait on August 22 decided to give Cambodia a loan with of 546 million USD with preferential rate of interest to carry out projects on infrastructure development, mainly in agriculture.-

Hanoi weather bureau warns of storm Nuri

– Fishermen out at sea have been warned to be wary of storm Nuri, which is moving towards China’s province of Guangdong but still poses a considerable threat to parts of Vietnam.

The national centre for hydro-meteorological forecasting warned that Nuri was near the Philippines’ Luzon Island on Aug. 20 morning and would reach Guangdong on August 23. The eye of the storm is predicted to be 100 km from the coast of Guangdong on August 22.

The Central Steering Committee for Flood and Storm Control called on all provincial authorities, from northern Quang Ninh to central Binh Ding, to provide local fishing-boat owners with timely information on the storm so that they can avoid rough seas.

Local officials must keep an eye on the activities of offshore fishermen and maintain contact with any boat out at sea to ensure their safety.

Vu Anh Tuan, chief of the short-term forecasting bureau, said Nuri was very far from Vietnam, but forecasters could not be totally sure of the exact path the storm would take in the days to come.

Earlier this month, Storm Kammuri, which was predicted to pose only a minor threat to Vietnam, resulted in heavy rains, floods and landslides in the northern mountainous provinces.

This left 130 people dead and damage of about 1.4 trillion VND (82.3 million USD). More than 30 people are still missing and 90 others are injured.

The centre also said the water level in Mekong River was rising, and predicted it would reach a dangerous level.-

HCM City to step up battle against pollution

HCM City (VNA) – Ho Chi Minh City authorities plan to strengthen enforcement of environmental regulations on pollution, according to the municipal Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

The department, along with the city’s Union of Science and Technology Association, held a conference on August 20 on finding solutions to preserve the environment.

Speakers said the quality of the environment had deteriorated in recent years because of a lack of supervision of waste output.

City suburbs had suffered environmentally from sewage discharged from industrial zones without waste-water treatment.

In addition, the city’s rubbish treatment system is overloaded, requiring the processing of 6,000 tonnes of rubbish per day, while the waste classification programmes are not working efficiently.

Many canals in the city are severely polluted because of residents’ throwing garbage in waterways.

Loopholes in the country’s environmental law have also made it more difficult for local authorities to fine violators.

Dao Anh Kiet, director of the city’s environment department, said the environmental police would supervise industrial zones, residential areas and small producers more often, and would impose stiff penalties on violators.

Kiet sait the department has urged the HCM City People’s Committee to not grant licenses to potentially polluting factories or companies.-

Vietnam-made bird flu vaccine proves effective

– The first human testing stage has proven the effectiveness of a locally-produced H5N1 influenza vaccine.

The result was reported at a working session between the Health Ministry’s Science and Training Department and the Military Medical Institute 103 on August 21.

Head of the institute’s Epidemiology Department Doan Huy Hau said that 30 volunteer students from the institute reported no serious side effects three months after they received the second shot of Fluvax vaccine, made by the Vaccine and Bio-technology Products Company No. 1 (VABIOTECH).

The students have also developed good immunity, he added.

Fluvax vaccine is expected be put into mass production in late 2009 at a cost of around 30,000 VND per dose.

VABIOTECH has developed the vaccine using monkey kidney cells which, its Director Professor Nguyen Thu Van says, are cheaper and safer than similar vaccines using the culture on embryonic chicken eggs currently being developed by other countries.

VABIOTECH commenced its study in 2004 as avian flu began to spread throughout Vietnam. After the successful tests on animals in 2007, the company was permitted to conduct human tests in 2008.-

Local firms eye online gaming sites

- As the online game industry develops in Vietnam, more and more enterprises are turning to the Net to advertise their goods.

At present, there are more than 50 international electronic game publishers with a variety of products in Vietnam, according to the Department of Information and Technology under the Information and Communications Ministry.

Total revenue from the game industry reached 45 million USD in 2007, a year-on-year increase of 60 percent. It is expected to reach 83 million USD by 2010.

Phan Sao Nam, director of VTC Online Telecommunications Company, said advertising at online game sites is growing in attractiveness because it is a relatively cheap way of marketing goods. While companies must fork out 2,000 USD for 30 seconds of airtime on television, Samsung Co, pays just 200,000 USD for a year’s worth of advertising on VTC Online’s Audition site, said Nam.

Domestic IT firms are beginning to pay more attention to the advertising potential of online game sites.

At the beginning of this year, VTC Online signed an advertising deal with the website http://www.nhacvui.net/ and the maker of Bigbabol chewing gum. The company also plans to sign advertising deals in the near future with makers of consumer goods, mobile phones and mobile service providers.

Enterprises are looking to reach larger audiences and online games advertising meets that need, said Bui Ngoc Quoc Hung, director of Vinagame, one of the country’s largest game publishers.-

Vietnam to provide satellite services abroad

– Viet Nam has signed several MoUs on the provision of satellite services abroad, said the Deputy Director of Vietnam Telecom International VTI – a subsidiary of Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group – which was assigned to operate the country’s first satellite.

VTI Deputy Director Lam Quoc Cuong said on August 21 that VTI has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Asia Broadcast Satellite of Hong Kong, China, on business cooperation and the exchange of satellite capacity, and another with the Universal Telecom Services of the US on the sale of Vinasat-1 frequency bands.

VTI is also negotiating with foreign partners on cooperation to offer Vinasat-1-based services in the Asia-Pacific, including Thailand’s Thaicom and Singapore’s Protostar satellite exploitation firm.

Vinasat-1 was launched into orbit with help of an Ariane 5 rocket from the European Union Arianespace launching pad at Kourou, French Guyana, at 5:17 a.m ( Vietnam time) of April 19, 2008.-

Information technology key to surviving inflation

Hanoi (VNA) – Domestic enterprises have been urged to focus more on using information technology (IT) applications to make their businesses more efficient and competitive during the current period of high inflation.

Rising prices have led to Vietnamese enterprises becoming less competitive, as they grapple with increasing input expenses, according to Dao Tuan Dung from the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Speaking at a conference held early this week in the capital, Dung said high inflation would alert and motivate local firms to improve their use of IT, which he described as an effective tool to reduce business expenses.

Vietnam Communications Corp Deputy General Director Nguyen The Tan said good information and communication technology (ICT) application was a prerequisite for enterprises in the global context. A good website would help enterprises advertise themselves, build up their image and provide better contact with customers.

In the context of international integration, e-commerce and e-payment would help enterprises to minimise investment and management costs, expand markets and hone their competitive advantages. Thang said he was optimistic about the development of e-commerce and e-payment in Vietnam.

Peacesoft General Director Nguyen Hoa Binh said many Vietnamese enterprises sold their products through foreign intermediary companies, resulting in smaller profits and more expensive price tags on good when they reach consumers.

This reliance in foreign middlemen could be lessened if domestic enterprises sold more of their stock online.

However, conference participants heard that despite the advantages of online sales and a strong focus on IT, many Vietnamese enterprises kept IT use to a minimum.

According to a survey conducted by the VCCI, 98 percent of 526 surveyed firms in Hanoi and HCM City used computers only for office applications; 65 percent had their own websites but failed to update them often, while 85 percent had websites but neglected network security.-

Asia Microfinance Forum 2008 to take place in Hanoi

Hanoi (VNA) – The Asia Microfinance Forum 2008 will be held in Hanoi from Aug. 26-28 with the theme “Microfinance in the 21st centure: Future Trends and Opportunities,” according to Citibank Vietnam .

The forum will be the first regional microfinance conference and the biggest microfinance event to take place in Vietnam so far.

The Asia Microfiance Forum 2008 will be jointly organised by PlaNet Finance Group, the European Union and the State Bank of Vietnam .

Citibank Vietnam, the sponsor of the forum, said that t his milestone event will bring together nearly 500 leading microfinance workers, policymakers, financial officers, investors and researchers from more than 50 countries around the world.

The conference will include a plenary session on the future of Vietnam ’s microfinance besides a number of sideline events.

The Asia Microfinance Forum 2008 will focus on the challenges and innovations that will have the greatest impact on microfinance in the coming decades and provide a window to the future of microfinance, especially in Asia .-

Vietnam, Japan see progress in EPA negotiations

Tokyo (VNA) – Vietnam and Japan have made progress in their negotiations towards a bilateral Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), with agreements reached in services, investment and trade, a senior Vietnamese government official said.

Former Deputy Trade Minister Phan The Rue, who led a Vietnamese delegation to the eighth round of the EPA negotiations, which took place in Tokyo from August 20-22, was talking about his work in an interview with the Vietnam News Agency.

Differences remain in a number of areas, including opening markets for industrial and agricultural products and the origins of garments, Rue said, adding however that these problems are most likely to be resolved at the next round of talks, scheduled for September in Hanoi .

Rue also said both him and the head of the Japanese delegation, Ambassador for Economic and International Trade Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Jun Yokota, hoped that the EPA negotiations will wrap up in time for the 35th anniversary of the two countries’ diplomatic ties.

The signing of the EPA will create favourable conditions for Vietnam and Japan to boost economic, trade and investment cooperation, making bilateral relations more comprehensive, he said.-