Former CEO of FPT ‘calls Vietnamese birds back’VietNamNet Bridge - Nguyen Thanh Nam, former CEO of FPT, the largest domestic information technology group, now chair of Funix Online University, is calling on overseas Vietnamese talents to come back to Vietnam to do business. “It is a pity that many Vietnamese talents have left the country,” he explained. “We have successfully called some Vietnamese talents to return to Vietnam. In Vietnam, business opportunities are numerous,” he said. Vu said there are problems in Vietnam which affect the investment environment, but there are always two sides of the coin.

HCM City leader asks apartment fire checks after Carina Plaza visitSecretary of Ho Chi Minh City’s Party Committee Nguyen Thien Nhan on March 23 requested screening all firefighting plans in all apartment buildings in the city while inspecting Carina Plaza apartment complex where a fire broke out, killing 13 people and injuring 28 others early on the day. Secretary of Ho Chi Minh City’s Party Committee Nguyen Thien Nhan inspects Carina Plaza apartment complexThe blaze broke out at 0:30 am from the parking basement, and its smokes suffocated 11 out of the 13 victims. Stressing the serious consequences of the fire, Nhan asked for drastic measures to tackle the consequences, as well as further investigations on firefighting work at Carina Plaza and other apartment complexes in the city. Visiting the victims and their families at Nguyen Tri Phuong hospital, he expressed his deepest condolences to families of the deceased. Carina Plaza is a high-end apartment complex including three buildings with 15-21 storeys and 736 apartments.

Ceremony held to welcome RoK President in HanoiPresident Tran Dai Quang and his spouse hosted the official welcome ceremony for the Republic of Korea (RoK)’s President Moon Jae-in and his spouse in Hanoi on March 23 morning. Meanwhile, the Vietnamese Ministry of Transport and the RoK Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport signed a MoU on cooperation in infrastructure, transport and transport technology development. The RoK Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport also signed another MoU on cooperation in urban construction and development with the Vietnamese Ministry of Construction. Also on March 23 morning, President Tran Dai Quang and Moon Jae-in visited the President Ho Chi Minh relic site. President Moon Jae-in is paying the first-ever State visit to Vietnam from March 22 to 24.

Commercial banks still ailing from bad debts curseDespite significant efforts to resolve bad debts over the course of 2017, commercial banks will likely carry a total VND60 trillion ($2.64 billion) of bad debts into 2018. On December 31, 2017, collective bad debts at 13 randomly-surveyed commercial banks, including Vietinbank, Saigon Hanoi Commercial Bank (SHB), VPBank, Techcombank, and TPBank, mounted up to VND60.533 trillion ($2.66 billion), which was a 0.7 per cent rise against early 2017. Several market analysts asserted that, "Despite the favourable conditions provided by Resolution No.42/2017/QH14 on handling bad debts in credit institutions, commercial banks will likely carry a huge volume of unresolved bad debts from 2017 into 2018." 42/2017/QH14 on handling bad debts in credit institutions, commercial banks will likely carry a huge volume of unresolved bad debts from 2017 into 2018. Until the end of 2017, Asia Commercial Bank (HNX: ACB) was reported to have the lowest proportion of bad debts (0.7 per cent) among the randomly surveyed commercial banks.

Trump replaces National Security Adviser HR McMaster with John BoltonPresident Donald Trump is replacing US National Security Adviser HR McMaster with Bush-era defence hawk and former United Nations ambassador John Bolton. Mr Trump tweeted to thank Gen McMaster, saying he had done an "outstanding job & will always remain my friend". Who is John Bolton? A strident neo-conservative, Mr Bolton helped build the case that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction, which turned out to be wrong. Known for his walrus moustache, Mr Bolton does not appear to have greatly moderated his views since his last spell in government.

Thrills and chills at Broadway's Frozen musicalAs the musical version of Disney's hit film Frozen opens on Broadway, reporter Elysa Gardner takes a trip to Arendelle with some excited fans. Their destination, technically speaking, was Times Square, where Disney's latest stage outing, an adaptation of its 2013 screen musical Frozen - the highest-grossing animated film of all time - was in previews. "I want to see what the characters look like in real life," said nine-year-old Margaux Knepper, from suburban Long Island. Other audience members got a kick out of Mattea Conforti, the super-perky actress who played Anna as a young girl at Saturday night's performance. There was also praise for the graceful Ayla Schwartz, who played young Elsa.

Vietnam reaps fruits of 30 years of FDIVietNamNet Bridge - Thirty years have elapsed since Vietnam ratified the Foreign Investment Law in 1987. The chair of the Vietnam Association of Foreign Invested Enterprises Association (VAFIEs), Nguyen Mai, commented that foreign invested enterprises (FIEs) have made great contributions to Vietnam’s export turnover by exporting valuable processed and manufactured products. Bac Ninh province, for example, has shifted from an agricultural to an industrial province with industry and service value now accounting for 92 percent. Hi-tech manufacturingLe Hoai Quoc, head of HCMC Hi-tech Park (SHTP) Management Board, said that SHTP attracted $7 billion worth of investment in the last 15 years, including $5.3 billion worth of FDI. Experts from Standard Chartered Bank have predicted that Vietnam will continue seeing strong FDI inflow this year, especially in the manufacturing sector.

Foreigner admits fault in conflict with HCM City restaurant staffAn Irish man who was attacked by three security guards at a restaurant in HCM City has made his apology for his bad behaviour after getting drunk. Patrick Mullen (right) apologised to the restaurant owner (left) for his behaviour at the police stationPatrick Mullen said that on March 17 which fell on St. Patrick’s Day, he drank until the early morning of the next day. After that Mullen came to the restaurant. Mullen immediately insulted them and hit a security guard in his face, so the three security guards of the restaurant attacked Mullen. At the police station on March 21, Mullen apologised to the restaurant owner for his behaviour and hoped that the security guards will be allowed to continue working at the restaurant.

VN actively joins multi-lateral parliamentary diplomatic activitiesNational Assembly (NA) Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan will attend the 138th Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly (IPU-138) and related meetings in Geneva, Switzerland, from March 24-25. Through the IPU, the bilateral relations between the Vietnamese NA and other nations’ Parliaments were set up and strengthened. In October 2007 at the 117th IPU Assembly also in Geneva, Switzerland, for the first time Viet Nam’s NA was elected to the IPU Executive Committee - the forum’s highest agency. In April 2015, the country hosted the 132nd IPU Assembly, where the Ha Noi Declaration was adopted, contributing to devising the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development. Viet Nam’s presence at the IPU-138 aims to assert commitments to actively joining in multi-lateral parliamentary diplomatic activities and uphold the role and status of the Vietnamese NA at the IPU, contributing to enhance the State’s joint diplomatic efforts for national benefits in line with the regional benefits.

Ha Long Bay’s water under threatsVietNamNet Bridge – The water environment in the world-renowned Ha Long Bay has been under tremendous pressure from the growing socio-economic activities in the area. Cruiseships operating in the Ha Long Bay, the UNESCO-recognised heritage site in the northern province of Quang Ninh. Wastewater discharge from these cruiships has been identified as a serious threat to the bay’s water environment. Ha Long Bay is not just a purely tourist site. When Vietnam is preparing documents to seek the third recognition of Ha Long Bay as the world heritage site from UNESCO, it’s highly important that the water resources in the area is put under tigher control.

Water pollution alert sounded nationwideVietNamNet Bridge – Water found in some 71 per cent of Hanoi’s wells is contaminated with higher than permitted levels of phosphate. The overexploitation of water nationwide increases the level of arsenic in groundwater, exceeding the permitted level of 10mg per litre. The research by the institute also showed that in many cities, lakes contain waste water, blocking the water flow. Researchers said that until now, the damage caused to human health and livelihoods due to water pollution has not been assessed. Therefore, financial compensation on losses caused by water pollution and the subject of compensation have not been regulated.

Dung expressed his delight at the rapid and effective development of economic-trade and political relations between the two countries. Regarding economic ties, Vietnam’s interest in Italian enterprises has encouraged Italy to share its economic and trade-related experience, she said. The European Union – Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), which takes effect this year, will further facilitate bilateral economic and trade links. He said that economic ties between the two countries have grown sharply, with trade exceeding 390 million USD. He noted that the growing economic, trade and investment cooperation served as a foundation for the two countries’ long-term ties.

Hanoi earns $349 million in land auctionsVietNamNet Bridge – Hanoi earned VND7.955 trillion (US$349 million) from auctioning land-use rights last year, pushing the total revenue it earned from land up to VND37 trillion ($1.62 billion). — VNA/VNS PhotoLand-related revenue, including land leases, land fees and land auctions, accounted for 15 per cent of the city’s total budget last year. This indicates land users have provided information about the origins and use of the land, which authorities have reviewed and approved. Certifications were granted to land users of over 196,000 land plots, the usage of which was declared for the first time last year. Last year, the city authorities approved over 2,000 projects on land eviction, land allocation, land lease or changes in land-use purpose.

Hanoi to build wholesale market for vegetablesVietNamNet Bridge – Hanoi’s People’s Committee has assigned the provincial authority and sector of Me Linh District to conduct a survey and suggest a location for the construction of a wholesale market. So far, as many as 2,000 tonnes of turnips have been harvested from 20 hectares of farmland. The Department of Industry and Trade was asked to support farmers in building their own brand and tracking the origin of their vegetables. He has assigned the Departments of Natural Resources and Environment and Planning and Architecture to select the location for a wholesale market in Me Linh District. The city, together with the investors, will build a wholesale market for vegetables and flowers for the local people to bring their agricultural products for consumption, he said.

Devotion Award 2018 winners announcedPop and soul sensation My Tam was announced as the winner in two significant categories at the Cong Hien (Devotion) Music Awards – Singer of the Year and Album of the Year – during a gala night held in Hanoi Opera House on March 22. My Tam wins Singer of the Year and Album of the Year titlesThe singer’s win follows the huge success of her recently-released album, Tam 9, which sold over 12,000 copies. “It has been 13 years since I stood at a prestigious music awards ceremony. The gala dazzled fans with performances by artists including singers Thanh Lam, Dang Duong, My Tam and Duong Hoang Yen. The annual Devotion Music Awards began in 2004 to promote Vietnamese music and honour artists who have made significant contributions to the industry.