Ha Long – Cat Ba heritage management needs reformVietNamNet Bridge - Vietnam is making hectic preparations to submit an application for UNESCO recognition of Ha Long Bay – Cat Ba Archipelago as an expanded World Heritage Site. The Ha Long - Cat Ba heritage management needs reformCat Ba is one of the world’s natural biosphere reserves. And now Vietnam is seeking UNESCO’s recognition of Ha Long – Cat Ba as it believes this will ensure the integrity of biodiversity in the area. ChallengesTreating waste water is an important issue that Ha Long – Cat Ba will have to face. Under the Ha Long Bay Management Board, differences in the requirements about ship age are registered in Ha Long and Cat Ba.

Sugarcane prices a bitter pill in DeltaVietNamNet Bridge – Many farmers in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta have suffered losses in the 2017-18 sugarcane crop because of low prices. Farmers in Long Phu Township, Long Phu District of the southern province Soc Trang cut down their sugarcane as prices dipped. In Cu Lao Dung District, sugarcane on many fields has become over-mature but their owners cannot find buyers. SwitchingWith the low sugarcane prices and demand, many farmers in the Delta have begun to switch to other crops. Dang Quoc Huy, who has a 5,000sq.m sugarcane field in Cu Lao Dung District, said he harvested the 2017-18 sugarcane crop but suffered a big loss.

Pink salt no health panacea, despite claimsVietNamNet Bridge – A product called Himalayan pink salt has been gaining popularity in the health and beauty market in Vietnam, but experts have said there is no scientific evidence of its health benefits, Lao Dong (Labour) newspaper reported. The “Himalayan salt lamps” sold as heat lamps in Vietnam. Some advised customers to use it instead of regular salt for their daily meals, since this pink salt “increases the amount of calcium in the body” and helps with the treatment of blood pressure and other diseases. Several spa facilities in Hanoi are using Himalayan salt stones in their bath, massage and sauna services. Sold at VND450,000-800,000 (US$20-35) each depending on their sizes, the salt stones have become a new means of earning a living for several people.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc attends third MRC SummitPrime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has suggested the Mekong River Commission (MRC) give priority to fully and effectively implementing the 1995 Mekong Agreement and promoting its monitoring and coordinating role in performing the commitments of the MRC member countries. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and other delegates at the opening ceremony of the plenary session of the third MRC Summit. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and other delegates at the opening ceremony of the plenary session of the third MRC Summit. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and other delegates at the opening ceremony of the plenary session of the third MRC Summit. A farewell ceremony was held for Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc at Siem Reap International Airport, Cambodia, following his attendance at the third MRC Summit.

Plastic bag litter falls in UK seasA study of litter in UK seas shows the number of plastic bags has fallen, amid a rise in other types of plastic rubbish. Some of the plastic debris is likely to be coming from outside the UK. The reduced proportion of plastic bags in marine litter was found from 2010 onwards. A change in the composition of plastic bags, which may speed up the rate at which they decompose, could also be another factor. There was no significant trend over time in the percentage of seafloor trawls that contained any plastic litter or in the total plastic litter items found across the long-term datasets.

Vietnam among top 10 countries affected by Cambridge Analytica scandalVietnam is among top 10 countries in which information of Facebook users may have been improperly shared with Cambridge Analytica, according to Facebook chief technology officer Mike Schroepfer. Cambridge Analytica, a UK-based data collection and analysis company, was reported on March 19 to have wrongly collected information and data from about 50 million Facebook users around the world. Mike confirmed in his April 4 post on Facebook Newsroom the total number of Facebook users affected by the case has reached 87 million. In Mike’s post, Vietnam ranks ninth of the 10 countries in the list with more than 427,000 Facebook users that have unwillingly shared their personal data and information with Cambridge Analytica. The top country is the US with more than 70.6 million users, followed by the Philippines (nearly 1.2 million), Indonesia and the UK (nearly 1.1 million each).

Vietnam affirms consistent policy of ensuring human rightsEnsuring and promoting human rights is the consistent policy of the Vietnamese State, which has been implemented in line with Vietnam’s Constitution and law, as well as international conventions on human rights to which Vietnam is a member, said the Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang. Hang emphasised that Vietnam’s efforts and achievements in ensuring and promoting human rights over the past years have been widely acknowledged by the international community. The indictment said the defendants took advantage of fighting for “democracy, human rights” and “civil society” to conceal the purposes of “Hoi anh em dan chu”. According to the Supreme People’s Procuracy, Nguyen Van Dai was the mastermind and acted as the second Vice President of “Hoi anh em dan chu”. Meanwhile, Pham Van Troi founded and acted as President of “Hoi anh em dan chu”, held positions in charge of the organisation’s activities in the northern region, and built the platform.

Vietnam ready to protect citizens involved in Bangkok fireThe Foreign Ministry’s spokeswoman Le Thi Thu Hang updated information about Vietnamese victims in a recent fire in Thailand during a regular press conference in Hanoi on April 5. The Vietnamese Embassy in Thailand immediately worked with local authorities to ask for verification and search for Vietnamese citizens, she stressed. The three dead victims were identified as not Vietnamese, Hang said, adding that among the wounded were 13 Vietnamese citizens. A number of victims had been discharged from hospitals by April 5 while the remainders are still undergoing treatment. The Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has asked the embassy to keep a close watch on the case, get regular updates from local authorities and hospitals, and take necessary steps to protect Vietnamese citizens, she said.-VNA

Banks swimming in profit despite sluggish first quarterOver the first quarter of 2018, scores of Vietnam-based commercial banks reported million dollar profits despite an overall sluggish market. Despite the first quarter usually being the "slow season," banks reported high profit figuresLuu Trung Thai, general director of Military Commercial Joint Stock Bank, asserted that, “In the first quarter of 2018, the bank’s pre-tax profit hit VND1.6 trillion ($70.08 million), which was a 44 per cent growth compared to the same period in 2017. Previously, the commercial bank posted the target of VND1.8 trillion ($78.84 million) in total pre-tax profit by the end of 2018. Likewise, over the same period, OCB’s total profit mounted up to VND600 billion ($26.28 million), a 240 per cent growth on-year and 30 per cent of the 2018 profit target. Another commercial bank reporting million-dollar profit was VIB, with VND500 billion ($21.9 million) in pre-tax profit.

Nguyen Manh Tuan, director of Quang Ninh’s economic zone management unit, said that Texhong Yinlong Technology Limited has complied with fire safety regulations. Texhong Yinlong Technology Limited was established in May 2012 with the total investment of $300 million on an area of 53-hectare and employing 5,000 workers. The representative of Texhong Yinlong Technology Limited is not available to answer at the time. It is a subsidiary of Hong Kong’s Texhong Textile Group. Texhong’s reports have not pointed out how much Texhong Yinlong Technology Limited’s facilities contributed to production, but they consistently stressed the important role of the facilities in Vietnam.

Remakes excluded from 2017 Kite Awards’ categoriesVietnamese remakes of foreign films and scripts will not be considered for the Kite Awards – the most prestigious cinematographic awards in the country. She said the current number of remakes is enormous, and the awards will not accept nominations for the category. In addition, the 2017 edition of the annual awards will include two more prize categories, which are cameramen of scientific documentaries, and animators. The entries include 13 feature films, 16 TV series, 13 animation films, 34 documentaries, 9 scientific films, and 32 short films. On the occasion, the Kite Awards organising board also runs a conference to review the creation of films and series last year at the headquarters of the Vietnam Cinema Association (No 51 Tran Hung Dao Street) on April 9.

International support for Vietnam in livestock waste treatmentVietnam has carried out a number of international cooperation programmes on animal waste treatment (with FAO, the Netherlands, Denmark, France, Belgium ...), with a noteworthy example being the Low Carbon Agricultural Support Project under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD). In the country, livestock waste is becoming a problem. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) supports Vietnam in the treatment of animal waste. In the context of climate change, Vietnam has adopted a number of policies and technologies for comprehensive management of animal waste. In addition, Vietnam needs support and technology transfer from developed countries such as Denmark, the Netherlands for large-scale treatment of animal waste into organic fertilizer.

Eight brands and designers to join Vietnam Junior Fashion WeekModel Xuan Lan has unveiled the list of eight brands and designers who will be taking part in the Vietnam Junior Fashion Week (VJFW) 2018. Designer Vo Cong KhanhThe designers include Lalababes, Ruby’s Midu, Huu La La, Rabity, Ao Dai Si Hoang, Tay Clothing, and Love Kids. The renowned fashion designer Vo Cong Khanh will participate in the event for the first time. This is the first time that local designer Vo Cong Khanh has partnered with model Xuan Lan in a fashion show for kids. Khanh has previously worked with Xuan Lan on the Star Make Over project.

Vietnam’s forest coverage ratio reaches over 41%Vietnam has over 14.41 million hectares of forest, of which, standardized area is over 13.71 million hectares, with forest coverage ratio of 41.45%, according to latest statistics announced by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD). Accordingly, as of December 31, 2017, the country had 10,236,415 hectares of natural forest, and 4,178,966 hectares of planted forest. After the announcement of statistics on forest situation, the MARD has asked the Vietnam Administration of Forestry to build a database on national forest resources. Localities nationwide are required to use data on forest conditions to review and adjust their forest planning and plans on forest conservation and development each year. The MARD also required localities where areas of natural forest shrank in 2017 to clarify the cause of the fall in natural forest and the responsibilities of relevant individuals and organisations.

HCM City tourism festival to kick off next weekThe Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Festival 2018 will get underway at 23/9 Park from April 12-15, offering nearly 60,000 domestic and foreign tour vouchers at 15-16% discount. HCM City promotes tourism links with other localitiesHo Chi Minh City is seeking to enhance connectivity with other localities nationwide to become more attractive to tourists. Director of the municipal Tourism Department Bui Ta Hoang Vu said HCM City is a hotspot for many outstanding tourism products nationwide like MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions), shopping-entertainment tourism and cultural-culinary tourism. Trinh Hang, Director of the Culture, Sports and Tourism Department of Ba Ria-Vung Tau province, said after years of tourism cooperation with HCM City, Ba Ria-Vung Tau has become a familiar destination for tourists visiting HCM City. More than 85% of visitors to Vung Tau city come from HCM City.