Minister calls for survey on asthma; Website on poverty reduction makes debut; Water site checks aim to reduce drownings; Foreign embassies celebrate victory over fascism; Illegal crossings cause deaths

Minister calls for survey on asthma

A national epidemiological survey on asthma should be carried out in Viet Nam in order to propose better intervention measures for the community, said Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Xuyen at a meeting held yesterday on the occasion of World Asthma Day.

“Asthma can be treated and controlled with the effect of reaching up to 90 per cent, according to recent scientific research. However, though some good results have been achieved in Ha Noi and HCM City, asthma is still a big problem, with only about 1 per cent of patients being treated properly,” said Xuyen.

“Better health communication and education on asthma control will help patients be more aware of the disease and better protect themselves,” she added.

Health experts said that asthma had been a big burden in Viet Nam and required more financial investments and efforts to handle it effectively.

Asthma had spread in Viet Nam because communication, along with consultantcy and management activities in the community, weren’t effective enough.

On the occasion of World Asthma Day, which annually takes place on the first Tuesday of May, the health sector pledged that more priorities would be given to training human resources, upgrading facilities and improving people’s knowledge on asthma prevention.

According to statistics of the health ministry, Viet Nam had about 4 million asthma patients, accounting for 5 per cent of the total population. Of which, between 8-12 per cent were children. WHO says there are 300 million asthma patients worldwide, of which 250,000 die from the disease each year.

Website on poverty reduction makes debut

A website providing information about poverty reduction in the country’s 62 poorest districts officially made its debut in Hanoi on May 6.

Ngo Truong Thi, Vice Director of the Department of Social Protection under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA), said the website is designed to provide official, timely and comprehensive information about the implementation of the government’s Resolution 30A regarding rapid and sustainable poverty reduction in the targeted districts.

Along with introducing concerned documents, the website, at http://giamngheo.molisa.gov.vn, will keep readers updated on the progress in implementing the programme as well as experiences of outstanding individuals who have successfully escaped from poverty.

According to MoLISA, after one year of performing the resolution, the rate of poor households in these districts dropped from 47 percent in 2008 to 43 percent in late 2009.

The government earmarked almost VND5.43 trillion for the poor districts to carry out Resolution 30A in 2009 and 2010, reported the ministry.

Forty-two State-owned groups, corporations and businesses pledged to grant more than VND2.1 trillion to support the districts in the 2009-2020 period, of which VND723 billion was doled out in 2009.

By the end of the first quarter of 2010, the beneficiary districts had built over 73,000 houses for poor families, 167 district-level infrastructure projects and 520 commune-level works.

As part of the programme, a total of 180,000 poor households were provided with free-of-charge saplings and animals for farming and rice as cooking.

Enterprises joined hands with local authorities to send almost 1,700 poor workers to Libya, Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates, where they have earned a stable income of between VND4-6.5 million a month.

In terms of personnel, 14 provinces sent 240 young officials from provincial and district-level agencies to work in the poor districts.

The programme has set a target of reducing the number of poor households in the districts to 40 percent by the end of 2010 and to the regional average by 2020.

Water site checks aim to reduce drownings

The HCM City Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs plans to ask all city districts to inspect dam sluice gates, pond sites and construction projects in an aim to prevent drowning accidents.

Nguyen Thi Tuyet Nhung, the department deputy director, said the department would also require each Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs office in the districts to implement measures to set up fences and warning boards at these sites and disseminating information on drowning prevention to local residents.

On Monday, four girls aged between 9-12 drowned in a fish pond in Binh Tan District’s Binh Tri Dong A Commune after one girl fell into the pond and the other three tried to rescue her.

Cao Van Phan, deputy permanent chairman of the Binh Tan District People’s Committee, said financial support had been given to the families.

The Binh Tan District People’s Committee has also told communal people’s committees to review the status of ponds in their localities and encourage local residents to fill the ponds with earth and discontinue use.

Local residents who do not fill their ponds must set up fences and warning boards around the ponds.

Foreign embassies celebrate victory over fascism

The Embassies of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine in Vietnam jointly held a ceremony in Hanoi on May 6 to mark the 65th anniversary of the victory over fascism (May 9, 1945).

Among those in attendance were Deputy Prime Minister Truong Vinh Trong, former State President Tran Duc Luong and representatives from a number of ministries and agencies.

Recalling the long struggle against fascism, Russian Ambassador Kovtun said “We had to go through 1,418 difficult days to win that victory over the Nazis who began attacking the Soviet Union on June 22, 1941”.

Mr Kovtun declared that the great victory in 1945 fundamentally changed the world order and opened up a new chapter in the history of mankind.

On behalf of the Vietnamese Party, State and people, Deputy PM Trong extended warmest congratulations to the people of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. He said the Vietnamese people and progressive mankind will always remember the heroic sacrifices and glorious feats of arms of the army and people of the Soviet Union during their fierce struggle against fascism.

He added that although the world is changing the Soviet Union’s great victory in World War II and the decisive role of its Red Army in saving humankind from fascist domination will remain an eternal truth in the history of mankind that no one can ever deny.

German NGO provides legal aid for VN’s labour union

Germany’s Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) on May 6 said that the foundation is willing to continue its support for the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL) to create laws and policies relating to the construction industry.

FES chairperson Anke Fuchs stated this during a meeting the same day in Hanoi with VGCL Chairman Dang Ngoc Tung.

She also said that the FES would continue to develop its legal advisory system to provide support for the lead agency in defending workers’ rights and training on preparing and negotiating collective labour agreements for VGCL’s senior officials.

Chairman Tung thanked the FES and the FES Office in Hanoi for cooperatiing with the VFCL and its provincial chapters and for their assistance in building the capacity of Vietnamese labour union workers.

With this training, the FES has helped to improve knowledge and skills of labour union officers from central to provincial levels, which is particularly important as the local economy is shifting to a market-based economy, which consists of many new, fast-growing sectors such as non-state and foreign-invested sectors, Tung added.

He also praised the FES for its assistance in setting up a network of legal advisory centres and offices in Vietnam and providing training in negotiating skills for local labour union officers.

The FES, he added, had fulfilled its function as the link that connects union movements in Vietnam with those in Germany and the rest of the world.

The FES Chairperson is attending the 20th anniversary of the FES Office in Vietnam .

The FES is a non-governmental organisation that works to promote political participation, social justice and democracy. It was named after Friedrich Ebert, the first democratically elected president of Germany and established in 1925, the year that he died.

Lyon helps light up Hanoi during celebrations

France’s city of Lyon and the French Development Agency (AFD) will provide Hanoi with €340,000 in non-refundable aid to help the capital city light up major locations to herald its millennial birthday.

An agreement to this effect was signed in Hanoi on May 6 between Nguyen Van Khoi, Vice Chairman of the Hanoi City People’s Committee, and Jacques Fournier, Director of the Lyon lighting department.

26 structures and locations in Hanoi will be decoratively brighter thanks to equipment to be purchased by the French aid. Among these are the Government’s Guest House, the statue of King Ly Thai To, the octagonal building in Ly Thai To garden, and a fountain in Dien Hong garden.

As the project is estimated to cost €480,000 in total, the rest of €140,000 will be covered by Hanoi, which is responsible for the installation of a power network to support the lighting work.

Khoi highlighted the French aid as a significant gift to Hanoi in preparation for its 1,000th birth anniversary.

The French official expressed his city’s honour to contribute its part to the capital city’s millennial birthday celebration, describing it as a practical deed to foster the traditional friendship between Vietnam and France as well as between Lyon and Hanoi.

Child labour blamed on apathy of local authorities

Eliminating child labour remains a challenge because authorities in many provinces and cities do not keep track of the local children’s situation, according to the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs.

They do not know how many children in their localities have been sent by their families to work in big cities like HCM City and Hanoi, the ministry said.

HCM City’s Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Department reports that 90 percent of children working in the city-based food production units and stalls and the textile and garment industry come from other provinces.

According to the Department for Child Protection, nearly 27,000 children work in hazardous conditions in the city. A study by the Research Centre for Women Labour and Gender on 300 children in eight provinces last year showed that children work eight or nine hours a day in some sectors, including textile and footwear, and even 12 hours before the Lunar New Year and during peak seasons. But their salaries are very low, at just VND509,000 a month on average.

Inept civil servants face dismissal

Civil servants who do not fulfil their duties properly for two consecutive years as regulated by the Law on Cadres and Civil Servants will be dismissed.

This follows Decree No 46 issued recently by the Government.

The decree also regulates severance allowances, with the lowest rates equivalent to a month’s salary.

PM says Veterans Association, Government must join forces

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung yesterday highlighted the importance of collaboration between the Government and the Viet Nam Veterans Association in achieving the nation’s socio-economic goals.

Dung was speaking at the signing of a joint resolution on collaboration between the Government and the association. It was signed by himself and Tran Hanh, chairman of the Veterans Association’s central committee.

Dung said that despite the success of collaboration between the Veterans Association and the Government, until now there had been no legal document setting out the ties.

He said the association was an important organisation in the national political system. Since its foundation, its central committee had made major contributions to national achievements. Veterans had set up economic development models in every province.

The Prime Minister asked the association to keep developing its traditional role in the national political system.

The new regulations consist of 13 points for developing the Party, central government and socialism, improving vocational training, carrying out socio-economic development; assessing the activities of government officials and staff - and solving any complaints by veterans.

Drawbacks of urbanisation to be focus of Red Cross Day

The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Day this year will be greeted with a call for action against the negative impacts of urbanisation.

In HCM City, more than 5,000 people are expected to attend a ceremony organised on Saturday by the local Viet Nam Red Cross chapter to mark the day.

The association has called for all citizens to co-operate with each other to minimise the adverse impacts of urbanisation.

The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Society estimates more than 3 billion people the world over currently live in urban areas, and expects the number to increase to 4.9 billion in 2030.

Among them, 1 billion people live in slums or in unhygienic conditions and environments, with 680 million lacking clean water and 850 million having no access to proper toilets.

Urban environmental pollution, poverty and hunger, social evils, shortage of houses and jobs as well as epidemics caused by urbanisation are huge problems facing countries despite efforts taken to tackle them, the society says.

This year, the Viet Nam Red Cross had focused on key activities including the Tet (Lunar New Year) for poor people and Agent Orange/Dioxin victims and cow banks for poor families, said Doan Van Thai, deputy chairman of the association.

The association had encouraged enterprises in the city to provide vocational training and create jobs for people of working age, especially those with disabilities.

It had also been co-operating with other relevant agencies to work out preferential policies for people living in areas affected by urbanisation, Thai said.

The association had mobilised money and essential goods worth VND190 billion (US$200 million) to support 832,460 families and Agent Orange/Dioxin victims since the beginning of this year, he added.

It had also upgraded and built 424 houses for poor people, presented 2,080 milch cows and provided livestock breeding know-how to families in 18 poor districts to help them climb out of poverty, he added.

Illegal crossings cause deaths

Railway accidents, particularly at level crossings, have risen alarmingly this year, according to Pham Van Binh, head of the Viet Nam Railway Corporation’s Traffic Safety Committee.

In the first four months of this year, there were 184 accidents involving trains that resulted in 81 deaths and 112 injuries, Binh said.

Part of the reason is the failure by local officials to stop people and vehicles crossing railway tracks at the wrong place, he said.

The committee said there were 4,572 illegal level crossings on the country’s rail network.

He said Thanh Khe District People Committee in central Da Nang City had even unlawfully issued land-use certificates for local people to build their houses too close to railway tracks.

However, Nguyen Thuong, chairman of Thanh Khe District People’s Committee, said the Government had belatedly issued rules prohibiting the building of houses in railway safety zones in 2006.

“We granted the building licences before that time,” he said.

To enhance railway safety, people’s committees should offer safety advice to members of the public who live close to railway tracks, Binh said.

He added that if local authorities could not immediately shut all illegal crossing points, they should instead put up warning signs and ban motor vehicles from using theme.

City checks electricity safety in public places

HCM City’s Department of Industry and Trade has urged power companies and districts and communes to check the safety of electrical equipment in public places to avoid electrical accidents.

Owners of electronic equipment at public places, such as entertainment areas, commercial centres and markets, will be required to check electricity safety conditions and install equipment to prevent electricity leaks.

The State Bank of Viet Nam branch in HCM City was asked to guide local banks to check and install equipment to prevent electricity leaks at ATM booths in the city.

Delta farmers receive internet training

Nearly 1,000 farmers in Mekong Delta Tien Giang Province will receive training on the internet to help them update information and apply latest production technology and techniques.

As many as 38 training classes will be held for farmers from now until August by the provincial Farmers’ Association and Department of Information and Communications.

A website will also be set up to help them apply advanced science and technology to their production as well as to introduce and promote their farm produce.

City urges limitations on business to reduce traffic

The HCM City Transport Department has urged local authorities to limit the number of businesses on the city’s 115 most crowded streets to curb traffic congestion.

These streets, which contain a high density of high-rise buildings and buildings under construction, are lined with foreign language schools, supermarkets and restaurants.

For example, many high-rises are located on Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street, where eight buildings are under construction.

Four high-rises are located on Hai Ba Trung Street, between Nguyen Van Thu to Nguyen Du streets, and four more will open soon.

On the department’s proposal, representatives from the Planning and Investment Department said there could be other reasons why the roads were congested.

“There is no regulation to stop giving business permission because of traffic congestion. The Transport Department should first create a project and then ask for approval from the Government,” said Ung Thi Xuan Huong, deputy director of the Justice Department.

Huong also noted that the city had a master plan regarding businesses that attract many people, including markets, trade centres, schools, hospitals, restaurants, bars and karaoke establishments.

“Based on the master plan, relevant authorities can refuse to grant permits to businesses that want to locate in these areas,” Huong added.

Architect Nguyen Tan said the municipal authorities should review and analyse the situation and come up with a plan. “Trade centres should be located in the outskirts to reduce traffic density going into the downtown,” he said.

PV