Urban indicators and urban management in Vietnam were the main theme of an UN Habitat - seminar in the northern province of Ninh Binh on Nov. 7.

The seminar, held by the Association of Cities of Vietnam (ACVN) and the UN Human Settlements Programme (UN Habitat), is intended to develop an urban observatory system and a data system to assess small and medium-sized urban activities.

Vietnam is home to more than 700 cities and towns whose population represents 30 percent of the country’s total. However, the country hasn’t got the urban observatory system to monitor the implementation of millennium development goals (MDGs).

Under the urban observatory system project which is being carried out by the ACVN with the funding of the UN Habitat, a pilot urban observatory system will be set up to collect the latest datas on 96 urban areas in Vietnam according to draft urban indicators./.