☕Afternoon briefing on October 11

Hanoi (VNA) – The following is a brief review of the day’s events as reported by the Vietnam News Agency on October 11.

- Vietnam appealed to countries to augment international efforts in disarmament and non-proliferation, during a general debate of the UN General Assembly’s Disarmament and International Security Committee on October 10.

Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, held that the current international security environment is the most complex in decades, which may adversely affect common efforts by the international community. Read full story
 
- Putting the people in the centre of development has been a strategic orientation and a thorough action philosophy of Vietnam. The documents of all National Party Congresses have so far affirmed that the people are the most precious resource and caring for people’s happiness is the highest target of the regime.

The document of the most recent 13th National Party Congress underlined the need to maximise the human factor, taking the people as the core, the subject, and the major resource and target of development; and building Vietnamese people with comprehensive development, strong connections and harmony between traditional and modern values. Read full story

- Lieutenant General Phung Si Tan, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People's Army, on October 10 hosted a reception for Matsuzawa Tomoko, Director for Defence Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific Region of the International Policy Division of the Defence Policy Bureau under the Japanese Ministry of Defence, who is also head of Japan’s experts' working group on peacekeeping.  
  
During the meeting, the Vietnamese official affirmed that the bilateral defence cooperation has been strongly promoted, including in the field of United Nations peacekeeping. Read full story

 

- Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha on October 11 worked with Finland’s Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Antti Kurvinen and Ambassador Keijo Norvanto to discuss measures to respond to climate change, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and manage water resources.

Ha said that as Vietnam is building a revised Law on Water Resources, it hopes to learn from Finland’s experience in water management. Read full story

- Vietnam always pays attention to implementing UN conventions on the protection of vulnerable groups, according to Professor Julie Nguyen, President of the Canada - ASEAN Initiatives at York University.

The country has worked to ensure interests of the groups, including women, children, the elderly, ethnic groups in remote areas, and people with disabilities, the professor who joined the compilation of the UN’s Human Development Report 2017-Vietnam told the Vietnam News Agency (VNA). Read full story

 

- The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has approved a plan to organise the Visit Vietnam Year 2023 by the south-central province of Binh Thuan, with the focus on promoting green tourism.

According to the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, a ceremony to announce the Visit Vietnam Year 2023 - Binh Thuan is scheduled to be organised in December. Read full story

- The Vietnamese Trade Office in Indonesia has been taking various measures to actively support Vietnamese enterprises in entering Indonesia, given that it is a protected market with many non-tariff barriers, according to Trade Counsellor Pham The Cuong.

With total population of more than 170 million, the world’s fourth largest, and GDP reaching nearly 1.19 trillion USD last year, the Indonesian market is viewed as promising for Vietnamese products, he told the Vietnam News Agency, adding Indonesia and Vietnam share cultural similarities and Vietnamese goods have gained a foothold in Indonesia with rising export turnover from the regional partner. Read full story

- Retail prices of oil and petrol increased starting from 3pm on October 11, following the latest adjustment by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and the Ministry of Finance.

Accordingly, the ceiling retail price of E5 RON92 rose by 560 VND (0.02 USD) to 21,290 VND per litre, and that of RON95 bio-fuel went up 560 VND to 22,000 per litre. Read full story

- Information of over 3.1 million health insurance cards had been looked up via chip-based citizen identification cards at more than 11,500 medical facilities, accounting for 90.2% of the total number, as of late September.

To date, the insurance sector has completed a database of more than 98 million people, corresponding to nearly 28 million households. Nearly 13,000 medical facilities are interconnected. Read full story

- Vietnam International Digital Week opened in Hanoi on October 11, with the theme of “Global Partnership for the suitable digital future.”

The opening ceremony saw the participation of more than 350 representatives from ministries, agencies, associations, organisations and digital firms from ASEAN member countries and their dialogue partners, among others./. Read full story