The 42nd Universal Postal Union (UPU) International Letter Writing Competition for Young People 2013 with the theme "Write someone a letter explaining why water is a precious resource” was launched in Hanoi on November 1.

The event was jointly held by the Ministries of Information and Communications, Education and Training, Natural Resources and Environment, in conjunction with the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, the Vietnam Post and Telecommunications Corporation and the Thieu nien Tien phong (Youth Pioneers) newspaper.

The annual competition is designed to raise awareness of young people of a global-scaled social issue, while strengthening the solidarity and friendship among nations, promoting the participants’ linguistic capability as well as deepening their understanding on the role that post and telecommunication sector plays in daily life and the development of the society.

Nguyen Quoc Vinh, Deputy General-Director of the Vietnam Post and Telecommunications Corporation, said the previous competitions had attracted more than one million letters annually. This year, contestants send under 800 word hand written letters in English and France with a Vietnamese version attached from November 5 to March 8, 2013.

This is the 23 rd time that Vietnam has joint the competition.

The organisation board will also launch the competition in various localities nationwide.-VNA