Quest for ‘national rice varieties’ lacks focus and results

VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnam’s rice has always been cheaper than Thailand’s. Lately the price gap has become wider and wider. This has been attributed to the fact that Vietnam still does not have good ‘national rice’ varieties.

Thai rice wins out in Vietnam

Tran Dinh Long, professor, academician, and Chairman of the Vietnam Plant Variety Association

Tran Dinh Long, a professor, academician, and Chairman of the Vietnam Plant Variety Association at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), said in a recent interview with Thoi bao Kinh te Vietnam that though MARD has spent billions of dong on scientific research, no ‘national rice’ variety has been found. A result is that Vietnam’s rice must always sell cheaply.

Thoi bao Kinh te Vietnam: Why don’t we have ‘national rice’ varieties?

Dr. Tran Dinh Long: In order to have high quality rice, the first thing we have to do is to create new rice varieties. Rice variety plays the decisive role in the quality of rice. Thailand is exporting rice to the world with just two high-quality varieties. Thai scientists have focussed solely on developing the two varieties in order to have the best quality rice. Therefore, Thailand’s rice exports always have high prices.

Meanwhile, Vietnamese scientists have been following a lot of scientific research paths. They have created dozens of varieties, but none of them has the standard of excellence we hope for.

In recent years, we have focused on developing technologies. However, Vietnam’s new varieties do not thrive on a large scale in rice fields.

We have not followed a well-reasoned procedure in researching for new rice varieties, from subject selection to project implementation.

In most cases, scientists suggest a theme for research and then they carry out the research when their proposals are approved by scientific councils. The suggested themes are just random ideas which do not originate from market forces.

Vietnam has not concentrated its efforts on the most promising scientists. The budget for scientific research is divided among so many research centres and institutes that each of them gets only one or two billion dong every year. The centres and institutes themselves say they only can create so-so varieties with such minimal funding.

TBKTVN: Do you mean that we have many research institutes that carry research about rice, but little focus?

Long: Yes, I do. Every research institute studies rice, from the Agricultural Genetics Institute to the Soils and Fertilisers Research Institute to the National Institute of Plant Protection. Therefore, our best human resources have been dispersed.

The biology laboratory is at the genetics institute has modern equipment but does not bring high efficiency. The same is true at other institutes. The finance mechanism remains rigid, so the heads of projects are not allowed to take initiatives in using money.

TBKTVN: Does that explain why a plant breeding programme that spends hundreds of billion dong still cannot produce national rice varieties?

Long: The scheme on reviewing plant and animal development programmes being followed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development remains irrational. It’s not public, objective nor scientific. At first, some scientists of the plant variety association were invited to join the review conferences. However, they are no longer invited any more. Therefore, scientific projects do not have independent critics from non-state organizations, which means that no one points out the shortcomings of the research. Therefore, though having spent a lot of money, Vietnam still does not have national rice varieties.

TBKTVN: Thailand is exporting well with just two rice varieties. Vietnam has dozens of varieties but our exports cannot compete with Thailand. . .

Long: When scientists announce new varieties, they always dignify their achievements, saying that the varieties can well replace the Khang Dan or Q5 strains. However, in fact, the new varieties still cannot do that. Unlike Vietnam, which has been following many projects at once, Thailand has been making deep and thorough research. I cannot understand why the Government does not check up on what our research institutes are doing.

The Vietnamese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (VAAS) was formed by gathering 12 smaller institutes with 2,000 scientists. How much do we have to pay for so many scientists? The problem is that the state does not clearly require scientists to create national rice varieties.

TBKTVN: Will Vietnamese scientists say ‘yes’ if the State agrees to spend 10-15 billion dong on a single project and orders them to find national rice varieties?

Long: I think some groups of scientists will take on the job. The problem lies in the financial scheme. I mean by that that the head of the project must be given the right to take initiative in spending money.

In other countries, the state just allocates two million dollars, for example, and requires a rice variety be developed with certain attributes. It does not care how the money is spent in detail. Meanwhile in Vietnam, money is scattered over administrative staff at many levels, while researchers – the ones who really create new varieties -- get just a little bit of money.

VAAS once hired an Australian Viet-kieu to work for it, but it had to stop because there was no mechanism to permit it to pay a salary to a foreigner.

VietNamNet/TP

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Hanoi amends personnel strategy

VietNamNet Bridge - After VietNamNet published articles about Hanoi’s new personnel strategy, Hanoi Department of Home Affairs’ deputy chief Le Quoc Cuong said on September 25 that the plan will be amended.

Hanoi looks to PhD’s for ‘breakthrough ideas’ in the future

The Hanoi Department of Home Affairs’ deputy chief Le Quoc Cuong.

Cuong told the media that the controversial strategy on personnel will be changed to one more appropriate to the actual situation and requirements.

He confirmed that strategy, which was approved by Hanoi’s Chairman Nguyen The Thao on August 24, 2009 and posted on the city’s website two days later, has not gone ahead as a result of a request from the Department of Home Affairs.

Cuong says that the Department of Home Affairs viewed the plan some as containing some “unsuitable points”, in particularly when judged alongside several by-law documents which are being compiled to guide government employees law.

Cuong adds: “Hanoi will reconsider this strategy because this is a long-term plan. Some goals will be changed.”

At present, the Hanoi Party Committee manages around 500 officials, with 8 percent of them holding doctor degrees and 26 percent with master degrees.

“We have had over 30 percent of the officials being masters and doctors so it is completely feasible to have 50 percent of officials being doctors by 2020,” said Cuong.

He adds that all provinces and cities have funding for personal training, which comes from the state budget.

It follows the new personnel strategy introduced recently which saw Hanoi aiming to have all officials managed by the local Party Committee holding PhDs by 2020.

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Australian Trade Minister to visit Vietnam

VietNamNet Bridge - Australian Minister for Trade Simon Crean (photo) will visit Vietnam on July 23-26 to enhance trade and economic ties, the Australian Embassy announced on July 20.

In Hanoi, Crean will co-chair the 8th Joint Trade and Economic Cooperation Committee (JTECC) with the Vietnamese Minister of Planning and Investment Vo Hong Phuc on July 24. The meeting will discuss key sectors in the two countries’ bilateral relationship: education and training, infrastructure and environmental management, financial services, energy, oil and gas, and agribusiness.

“As we progress towards implementation of the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement, I look forward to discussing its practical contribution to the bilateral trade and investment relationship with Vietnam,” Crean said.

The Australian Trade Minister will be accompanied to Vietnam by a business delegation, and will also visit Ho Chi Minh City on July 25-26. He is scheduled to visit two companies in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, which is next to the city.

The ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA), which was signed in February this year in Thailand, is the largest FTA Australia has concluded, according to Mr. Graeme Swift, Australian Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City.

By the time the agreement was signed, Australia had recognized Vietnam’s market economy status. The decision to grant this status was made in the context of the AANZFTA negotiations. The recognition means that, in any future anti-dumping investigations by Australia in relation to imports from Vietnam, Vietnam will be subject to the same assessment process as other WTO members.

It is expected that AANZFTA will enter into force no later than January 2010, once a number of AANZFTA parties have completed their national ratification processes. Vietnam has not ratified it yet.

Once in force, the FTA will reduce or eliminate tariffs across a region that is home to 600 million people, with an estimated GDP of US$2.7 trillion.

Australia and Vietnam stand to gain from the agreement across many sectors, including exports of agricultural products, industrial goods and services.

Under the agreement, almost 90 per cent of tariff lines covering 96 percent of Australia’s trade with Vietnam will be tariff-free by 2020.

Two-way trade between Australia and Vietnam grew an average of 22 per cent a year over the last five years, reaching A$8 billion in 2007-08, according to the Australian Consulate General. Two-way trade services in 2007-08 totaled A$1.05 billion.

VietNamNet/SGGP

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Vietnam’s impression spotlighted at “Future of Asia” Summit

VietNamNet Bridge - Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung’s speech delivered at the opening of the 15th “Future of Asia” Summit in Tokyo, Japan on May 21 captured the attention of more than 800 leaders, experts and economic researchers from Asian nations and international organisations.

On May 23, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung left Tokyo, successfully concluding his official visit to Japan for the 15th “Future of Asia” Summit.

In his speech delivered at the summit, Mr Dung talked about the six solutions for consolidating confidence based on sustainable development, undertaken by the government, taking joint action among regional countries to stem the financial crisis, enhancing Asia’s role in building a global trade framework and reforming the regional monetary and financial system.

Dr Tesuya from Tokyo University described Mr Dung’s speech as a good and engaging one because it put forth bold measures to narrow the development gap between developed and developing countries in the region.

Prior to the talks with PM Nguyen Tan Dung on May 22, Japanese PM Taro Aso said that his government’s target until 2020 is to speed up Asia’s growth to become a top economic power. Japan will mobilise all resources to meet this target which will take into account a plan to increase ODA funding to US$67 billion for five countries in the sub-Mekong region including Vietnam, said Mr Taro Aso.

The Japanese government is willing to increase ODA funds to Vietnam to implement major projects to build roads, a north-south high-speed railway, the Hoa Lac hi-tech zone and three transport projects in Hanoi, Hai Phong and HCM City.

Senior officials from the Japanese Diet and leaders from large economic organizations said that PM Dung’s visit to Japan have built on the achievements of Party General Secretary Nong Duc Manh’s visit to Japan in April, affirming that the strategic partnership between the two countries has developed well, contributing the cause of peace, stability and prosperity in Asia.

In response to Japanese correspondents before wrapping the visit, PM Dung emphasized that Vietnam is currently making great efforts towards national construction and defense under the leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam after a long struggle for independence and national unification in the 20th century.

With support from international communities, Vietnam has achieved huge and important successes in many fields, he added.

VietNamNet/VOV

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Students learn English while working

Ngoc Anh talks to a foreign customer at her working place. (Photo: SGGP)

VietNamNet Bridge - Some students go to foreign language training centers when they need their language skills improved. Others find jobs in backpacker districts, which not only help their speaking improved but help them financially.

“My speaking skills have improved a lot since I began working at backpacker district and I have been able to make a living without my parents’ support,” Dau Anh Thu, a souvenir shop assistant in Hue said.

Tran Thi Mai Huong said that she tried to improve her English through several books and documents but failed to make any progress. Her speaking has become more fluent after just one month working at Ngoc Anh restaurant.

Even some students who knew no English are able to talk to foreigners confidently after working here for sometime.

“It was hard for me to find a job in backpacker district because I didn’t know a single foreign word. Finally, a restaurant recruited me as a waitress,” Hoang Thi Tuyet recounted.

“My English restaurant vocabulary is great now and I feel more confident as I have to talk to foreigners everyday,” she said happily.

“The students’ eagerness in studying foreign languages has persuaded me to recruit even people speak no English” said Thu, Ngoc Anh restaurant’s owner, adding that they have made an obvious improvement through their jobs.

“I‘ve learnt a lot from real circumstances,” said Ngoc Anh, a junior of Hue Foreign Languages University’s Faculty of Chinese and Japanese.

“What I was taught at school sometimes is not really attached to reality. For example, I didn’t know tomato sauce is ketchup until a customer told me,” she added.

She also revealed that she recorded every conversation with customers and listened to them again to practice speaking.

“I’ve made an incredible advance in communicating with foreigners,” she proudly said.

VietNamNet//SGGP

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POLITICS IN BRIEF 17/4

Mr. Choummaly Sayasone

Lao top leader to visit Vietnam

General Secretary of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party Central Committee and President of Laos, Choummaly Sayasone, will soon pay an official visit to Vietnam.

The visit will be made at the invitations of the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee, Nong Duc Manh, and State President Nguyen Minh Triet.

PM Dung to deliver keynote speech at BFA

After attending the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA), PM Nguyen Tan Dung and his wife will visit Guangdong province, as well as Hong Kong and Macau special administrative regions.

PM Nguyen Tan Dung, his wife and the Vietnamese delegation left Hanoi on April 16 for Hainan, China to attend the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) 2009.

This is the first time the Vietnamese government leader has attended the BFA, showing his appreciation for the host country and Vietnam-China relations. Mr Dung will deliver a key-note speech at the BFA opening.

The BFA, taking place from April 16-19 in the midst of the current global economic crisis, is a chance for leaders from different countries and the world leading economic groups to share experiences and talk about measures to cope with the impact of the crisis as well as boosting international economic cooperation.

On the occasion, PM Dung is scheduled to meet with leaders from a number of countries attending the BFA.

After attending the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA), PM Nguyen Tan Dung and his wife will visit Guangdong province as well as Hong Kong and Macau special administrative regions.

His visit aims to promote economic, trade and investment cooperation between Vietnam and these regions.

Mr Dung is accompanied by Minister and Director of the Government Office Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang, Vietnamese Ambassador to China Nguyen Van Tho, assistant to the PM Nguyen Van Tung and Deputy Ministers of Transport, Planning and Investment, Finance, Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Vietnam, Germany strengthen legal and judicial ties

Deputy Minister of Justice Dinh Trung Tung and State Secretary of the German Justice Ministry Lutz Diwell signed a legal and judicial cooperation agreement in Hanoi on April 16.

The signing took place during their talks, part of the activities to implement the joint statement on law and judicial cooperation between Vietnam and Germany.

Under the cooperation agreement in the 2009-2011 period, Vietnam and Germany will deploy International Conventions to which the two sides are signatories or in which they will participate and propose measures to implement international commitments.

The two sides will continue to work together in the fields of civil procedures, trade, labour, penal procedures, anti-corruption, penal execution and legal assistance.

PM sends condolences on Poland’s deadly fires

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on April 16 shared sorrows with his Polish counterpart, Donald Tusk, on a fire that killed at least 21 with more than half being children.

The fire broke out in Kamien Pomorski on the night of April 13.

PV

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Real estate market not thawing, only prices pushed up

VietNamNet Bridge – The high quoted prices for houses and land plots have made people think that the real estate market is thawing. However, in fact, the market is still very quiet.

Cheap apartments turn out expensive

Real estate offices and real estate trading centres have been mushrooming in recent months.

After a long time of hibernation, the Hanoi real estate market has seen signs of warming up. Real estate prices have surged by 20-30% just in the past one or two months.

In the Van Khe new urban area, which now is getting special attention from people who want apartments for accommodations and investors, real estate offices and real estate trading centres have been mushrooming in recent months.

However, when VietNamNet’s reporters asked for information about low-cost apartments, all real estate offices and centres here said that the cheapest apartments were VND1bil.

One of the office staff advised the reporters to seek apartments at Xa La urban area, which were cheaper than in the Van Khe area.

A staff of My Dinh II Real Estate Centre told reporters that in fact, sometimes, buyers still can find apartments priced at VND700-800mil, but they need to wait for someone to sell.

However, the staff said that it is not advisable to hunt for cheap apartments, because the apartments here mostly belong to projects in which investors have the right to adjust sale prices any time.

The staff said that in some cases, people thought they could purchase apartments at low prices, but the apartments turned out to be expensive as the investors later adjusted the sale prices.

The reporters were advised to purchase apartments of projects in which investors had made contracts already and could not adjust sale prices. However, the prices of such apartments are relatively high. Besides the original price of VND12.5mil/sq m, buyers have to pay VND250mil more for every apartment. This means that even the smallest apartment would cost one billion VND.

Purchasing houses for accommodations? Wait

A real estate broker in the Van Khe new urban area, who asked to remain anonymous, related that since Tet, the prices of villas and land in the urban area have increased by VDN3-4mil/sq m, while the prices of apartments have surged by VND1.5-2mil/sq m.

He said that a lot of people have rushed here to seek to purchase real estate, but very few transactions have been successful so far, because the sale prices have been pushed up to overly high levels.

He added that many people think that it is now the best time to purchase real estate after a long time of the market’s hibernation, especially apartments in new urban areas, which are far from the centres, and thus have ‘soft’ prices.

However, seeing the high demand, speculators have been trying to push prices up.

The broker said that most people who seek houses now really want accommodations, and they mostly seek apartments priced between VND600mil and VND800mil.

Real estate prices have also been skyrocketing in Dich Vong new urban area in the last two months. Nguyen The Ngoc from Anh Duc Finance Investment Company, whose head office is on Nguyen Phong Sac road, said that the land price in the area has increased by VND5mil/sq m.

Ngoc said that before Tet, his centre had no visitors, while a lot of visitors are coming these days, 20 people per day. However, very few transactions are completed.

Nguyen Thi Hoa from Thang Long Finance Investment Company also said that the prices in Dich Vong area have been skyrocketing since Tet.

She related that before Tet, her company purchased three apartments in a project on Nguyen Phong Sac road at VND15mil/sq m. The price was considered very high at that moment, but it has surged to VND18mil now, though the project is still under construction.

Hoa said that those who really want to buy apartments for accommodations should wait for some more time. She believes that when more and more projects get support from the demand stimulus packages real estate prices will go down.

Trong Tuyen

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Vietnam takes ‘note’ of DPRK satellite launch

Vietnam takes ‘note’ of DPRK satellite launch

Vietnam has “taken note” of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s launch of communications satellite "Kwangmyongsong-2" into orbit Sunday, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Le Dzung said.

Replying to correspondents’ questions, Dzung said Vietnam hopes the concerned parties would come up with cautious reactions and rational solutions without complicating the situation and affecting peace and stability in Northeast Asia. Source: VNA

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Veteran searches high and low for talent

09:04' 05/04/2009 (GMT+7)

VietNamNet Bridge - Major General Nguyen An Thuyen, rector of the Military College of Arts and Culture, discusses the school’s tradition of finding and training talented ethnic minority artists.

Why does your college care about discovering and training ethnic students?

I was born and grew up in a poor commune in Quynh Luu District, in the central province of Nghe An. That region is filled with traditional music and culture. Afternoons spent grazing buffalo, the whistle of flute-kites and the sound of ethnic minority gongs left a lasting impression in my mind. The environment full of unique folk music held a magical attraction has been a part of me ever since my youth. The music world urged me to find way to preserve the nation’s invaluable traditional music and bring it to the attention of the people.

My college is a military institution, where everyone considers love between the army as the same as the love fish have for water. During our struggle for national independence, our bases for the revolutionary cause were in rural and remote areas. Inhabitants withstood sacrifice and hardship for the success of our mission. They are very worthy of enjoying the achievements of the revolution. I want to do something to prove our commitment, to show that they weren’t forgotten after the revolution. Acknowlegement of their beliefs helps to uphold our people, our nation and sustainable development.

What did your college in general, and you in particular, do to scout for talented students?

My colleagues and I often arrange scouting trips to mountainous provinces in search of young people with artistic talent. We have visited several highland villages. Sometimes it takes us several days to travel on foot to reach our destination because of bad roads and weather.

What prodded you to overcome the difficulties that occur when enrolling ethnic students?

I think that if we want students with talent for natural sciences, we should search for them in big cities. And if we want people with artistic talent, we would find them in rural and mountainous areas where cultural traditions are clearly present. Talents in those areas are often as hidden as coal and mineral ore deposits. We should seek them out and provide them with education.

I was born into a family of travelling performers, singing xam (folk music, often sung by blind musicians), which was handed down from generation to generation. When I was 14, I failed the Ha Noi Academy of Music entrance test because examiners said that I did not have an aptitude for music. Disappointed, I did my best to improve my music ability. Sixteen years later at the age of 30, I passed the exam. By that time I had composed some well-known songs including Em Chon Loi Nay (I Chose This Way) and Chin Bac Tinh Yeu (Nine Steps of Love).

We have squandered a number of talents, not only artistic ones, because of our hasty appraisal during aptitude tests. In my current position as principal, I always remind myself that I must be prudent. I hope that I will not miss out on any great talents. Although we cannot transform good talents into great talents, our curriculum can help provide them a better life for their family and their homeland, and make a small contribution to implementing the Government’s policies for the poor.

Do you have any profound memories from your scouting trips?

Once on a trip to Gia Lai Province in the Central Highlands we found three sisters, Dinh Thi Hoi, Dinh Thi Ngon and Dinh Thi Bay, in Stor Village, To Tung Commune, Kbang District. The ethnic Ba Na girls are the granddaughters of our Hero Nup, who made great contributions to the revolution in the Central Highlands. They all have a fine sense for music and a high spirit for studying. I chose the T’rung for them to learn, a traditional musical instrument of the Highlands people. Playing such works as Vu Khuc Tay Nguyen (Dance of the Central Highlands), Suoi Dan To rung (T’rung’s Stream of Music), Mua Hai Qua (Harvest Season), Bong Cay Ko nia (Ko nia Tree’s Shadow), the trio express perfect co-ordination, and leave domestic and international audiences satisfied.

How many students have studied at your school? Which ethnic groups do they come from?

Thousands of ethnic students from 44 ethnic minority groups have studied at my school. At present, 500 students, mostly from the Central Highlands provinces, are being trained.

Considering that they come from remote areas, do they face any special difficulties? What do you and other teachers do to help them?

Because my school is a military institution, all students have scholarships. They also have accommodation and free uniforms. The school is willing to train them until they master their skills, however long it takes.

At the time of enrolment, some students have only completed primary school to grade three or four. Some of them do not know how to read and write. When necessary we provide them with the standard national education. We do it no matter how hard the challenge. Thanks to our efforts, we continue to help preserve ethnic cultural identity and learn for ourselves more about ethnic minorities.

Do students study general or special programmes at the school? Does the teaching staff teach them specific kinds of music?

We do not impose our will on them, and let them express their own talent, abilities and cultural identity. They choose the instrument they want to learn according to their preference. However, we often encourage them to study musical instruments from their own ethnic groups, such as T’rung, flute and pan-pipe, because eventually they would play for the entertainment of people in their native region. We also encourage them to study western musical instruments, including the organ and guitar.

Are many students from your school successful in the music industry? Do they follow the school’s cultural orientation? For example, do they continue to preserve and develop their traditional music?

Many of my students have become well-known singers, such as Kasim Hoang Vu, Ploong Thiet and the two brothers Y Von and Y Garia. They all express their ability through songs that contain characteristics from the Central Highlands.

Which student has let you with the most profound impression?

I still remember the student I found on a trip to the northern province of Hoa Binh. In a cultural exchange session, I heard a young girl named Luong Thu Ha sing a Muong folk song. Her voice was strong, clear and beautiful. After asking local residents, I discovered that she was from a remote village. It took several days of travel on foot to reach her home. At school she learned very well and studied hard. She graduated and is now the lead singer for an army ensemble.

VietNamNet/VNS

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Admin reform project aims to improve business climate

VietNamNet Bridge - The Government will compile a list of procedures, examine and remove those that are unnecessary as it seeks to provide fresh impetus to the administrative reform process, a senior official said last Friday.

This would be the first stage of the project, said Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (photo), head of the Government Office and chairman of the Consulting Council for Administrative Reform.

He told a meeting between the council and representatives of foreign-invested enterprises in HCM City that the project was evidence of the Government’s commitment to creating a more liberal investment and business environment in the country.

The implementation of the project was being monitored by the Prime Minister, ministers and heads of provincial administrations, Phuc said.

Phuc is also the head of a taskforce specialising in administrative reforms which is advising the council on ways to speed up the project.

VietNamNet/VNS

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Delta farmers cash in on rice prices

Traders buy products from farmers in southern Cai Be District of Tien Giang Province.

VietNamNet Bridge - The Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta is entering the peak harvest season for the winter-spring rice crop, with the price of rice continuing to increase as demand for exports remains high.

Tran Van Hai, a farmer in Can Tho City’s Thoi Lai District, said he had harvested two hectares of long-grain rice OM 1490 with a total output of 13.6 tonnes.

"At the current price, I can earn a profit of about VND55 million (US$3,200) for my two hectares of rice, but I will wait for rice prices to go up," Hai said.

Hoang Kim Cuong, head of the Thoi Lai District Agriculture and Rural Development Department, said farmers were harvesting a bumper winter-spring crop and earning high profits as production costs fall and rice prices increase.

Cuong said all harvested rice in the district had been bought by the district-based food companies.

"My family and other farmers here are very glad about the harvest of the winter-spring crop as we can sell all of our rice at a high price," said Luong Hong Thien, a farmer in Dong Thap Province’s Tan Hong District.

With the lower production costs and increase in rice prices, farmers can earn profits of VND2,000-2,100 a kg on the winter-spring crop, according to local authorities.

The delta, the country’s ricebowl, has harvested more than 30 per cent of the total of 1.54 million hectares of the winter-spring crop.

High demand

Huynh Minh Hue, acting general secretary of the Viet Nam Food Association (VFA), said under the instruction of the Government to increase the number of rice export contracts earlier this year, more contracts had been signed in the first three months of the year.

However, some food companies have lost $10-15 for a tonne of exported rice since the beginning of the month as they failed to predict the increase of rice prices when they signed export contracts at low prices early this year, said Hue.

He said food companies suffered losses because they lacked warehouses to buy rice for stock before they signed export contracts.

Nguyen Thanh Bien, deputy minister of Industry and Trade, said the rice quantity of export contracts signed in the first two months of the year was very large.

The quantity of rice that must be delivered under signed export contracts from now to the end of June would be about 2.7 million tonnes, Bien said.

Viet Nam exported a total of 1.05 million tonnes of rice worth $479 million in the first two months of the year, an increase of 2.2 times in volume and 2.5 times in value over the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

VietNamNet/VNS

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Women get set for Austdoor Cup

VietNamNet Bridge – Thai Nguyen will host HCM City in the National Women’s Football Championship - Austdoor Cup opener on home turf at Thai Nguyen Stadium next Tuesday.

Doan Thi Kim Chi (No 14).

Defending champions Ha Noi will meet Hoa Hop Ha Noi one day later, while Phong Phu Ha Nam will take on Quang Ninh-based Viet Nam Coal and Minerals Group.

This year’s championship will see six teams from HCM City, Ha Noi, Ha Tay, Ha Nam, Coal and Thai Nguyen in a two-leg round robin.

The second leg will take place at Ha Dong Stadium, from April 18 to May 6.

It’s expected that the championship will be a tussle between Ha Noi, Hoa Hop Ha Noi and HCM City, who have all provided key players to the national teams over the years.

Hoa Hop Ha Noi, formerly the Ha Tay Province team, will have a strong showing with national squad members Dao Thi Mien, Nguyen Thi Minh Nguyet, Nguyen Thi Nga, Nguyen Thi Ly and goalkeeper Duong Thi Khanh Ly.

HCM City will welcome the return of three-time Golden Ball winner Doan Thi Kim Chi.

Defending champions Ha Noi are still in top form with goal seekers Do Thi Ngoc Cham, Bui Tuyet Mai and midfielder Vu Thi Huyen Linh. The capital team will also field their four 17-year-old players.

Luong Thi Xuyen, 16, of Thai Nguyen will be the youngest player competing in the tournament.

Ha Nam have its own squad stars with 2003 Golden Ball winner Van Thi Thanh and Do Thi Hai Anh to join the race to the top against powerhouses Ha Noi and HCM City.

The overall winners will win a cash prize of VND80 million (US$4,600). Second place will pocket VND60 million ($3,400) and third place will bring home VND30 million ($1,700).

At last week’s draw, the Viet Nam Football Federation (VFF) and the Hung Phat company inked a sponsorship contract for the championship.

At the signing ceremony, the Viet Nam Football Development Joint Stock Company (VFD) - the VFF’s exclusive marketer - signed an one-year tournament contract.

The women’s tournament has had more difficulty in the past finding championship sponsorship than the men’s.

"Although the Vietnamese women have succeeded in the Southeast Asian region. It’s very difficult to lure sponsorship for women’s football," said VFF’s vice chairman Vu Quang Vinh.

In the meantime, there are not many tournaments for Vietnamese female footballers to participate in. There are only 15 matches both in the national league and for the national team for them to put their skills to test.

Speaking at the sponsorship signing ceremony, deputy general director of Hung Phat company, Hoang Ngoc Tuan, said the company wishes to support the women’s tournament, which he hopes will allow the Vietnamese players to hone skills before the Southeast Asian Games in Laos this year.

At the end of the tournament the organising committee will present winners for the Best Player, Best Scorer, Best Goalkeeper and Fair-Play.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News

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Biological pools to aid water quality

VietNamNet Bridge – Enterprises in the city will soon have to build a bio-logical pool to take in effluents that have been treated and have a qualified independent company monitor its quality before discharging into a water source.

Each enterprise will also have to have an independent consulting company monitor the quality of sewage after treatment.

These new measures are included in a proposal submitted to the municipal administration by the HCM City Department of Natural Resources and Environment (DNRE) to reduce pollution and strengthen environmental protection.

Biological pools, such as fish pools which some enterprises are already using, will be used to determine the quality of effluents after treatment, department deputy director Nguyen Van Phuoc said.

The biological pools will prevent situations where enterprises that have built a sewage treatment system do not bother to use it, and will also help ensure that treated sewage meets set standards before it can be released into rivers or other water sources, Phuoc said.

According to Phuoc, a biological pool will not require much land. A pool of 5 sq.m is enough for an enterprise with a capacity of 50 cu.m per day and night, and a pool of 15 sq.m for enterprises with capacity of 100 cu.m.

Each enterprise will also have to have an independent consulting company monitor the quality of sewage after treatment, he said.

The consulting company will have to take responsibility before government agencies if the quality of treated effluents is below standard, he added.

Besides these two measures, Phuoc said the department would continue to co-operate with the environment police to discover and punish violators; make a list of enterprises which cause pollution or are likely to cause pollution; identify seriously polluted areas to treat and control pollution; and improve the quality of environmental reports and assessments.

Concerning hospital waste, the department would co-operate with the Department of Health to control over building and operating sewage treatment systems in health centres and hospitals.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News

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Ex-PMU18 chief faces embezzlement charge

VietNamNet Bridge - Former director of project management unit (PMU) 18 Bui Tien Dung (photo), who was sentenced in 2007 to 13-year imprisonment for bribery and gambling, is now facing also embezzlement charges.

Dung and his 10 accomplices, who was involved in the Bai Chay bridge construction project, are also charged with “not disclosing criminal activities”.

The Supreme People’s Procuracy has accused Dung and other former PMU 18 officers of making fake documents and a list of non-existent consultants to embezzle the State money. Bui Tien Dung himself signed to approve 41 salary payment invoices worth more than 2.7 billion VND (155,100 USD).

According to the indictment, during Aug. 2003 – Feb. 2007, Bui Tien Dung and his subordinates, notably PID6 head Pham Tien Dung, illegally drawn 3.4 billion VND (195,400 USD) from public fund as salary payment for 26 non-existent consultants.

Pham Tien Dung and other accomplices are accused of embezzling almost 1.6 billion VND (91,900 USD).

Concerning the case, the Supreme People’s Procuracy also decided to exempt the criminal responsibility for former deputy director of PMU18 Doan Van Chiem and PID6 expert Nguyen Manh Hung concerning charges of lacking responsibility and causing serious consequences and embezzling public property.

The Bai Chay bridge project was implemented at a cost of over 1.3 trillion VND (74.7 million USD) on Highway 18 in the northern coastal Quang Ninh province. PMU 18 was assigned by the Ministry of Transport to manage the project

VietNamNet/VNA

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Obama plans to withdraw most U.S. troops from Iraq in 19 months

U.S. President Barack Obama plans to withdraw most of U.S. troops from Iraq in less than 19 months, pending a formal announcement later this week, officials said Tuesday.

U.S. President Barack Obama takes a question at the Fiscal Responsibility Summit at the White House in Washington February 23, 2009. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

Except a residual force between 30,000 to 50,000 to be left till December 2011, most of the 142,000 U.S. troops will be out of Iraq by August 2010, 19 months after Obama's swearing-in on Jan. 20, U.S. TV networks and wire services quoted administration officials as saying.

Obama is meeting with Secretary of Defense Robert Gates at the White House Tuesday afternoon and he is expected to make a formal announcement later this week, probably on Wednesday, they said.

The new withdrawal timetable will be three months later than Obama's original pledge to pull out most troops in 16 months after his inauguration.

Some 4,250 U.S. troops died and 650 billion U.S. dollars have been spent since the United States invaded Iraq in March 2003.

VietNamNet/Xinhuanet

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Struggling businesses not to pay interest: PM

VietNamNet Bridge - In his February 24 dispatch, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung instructed the Vietnam Development Bank to lend struggling businesses interest free loans.

The maximum period is 12 months. The loans are open to businesses unable to pay salaries, insurance or unemployment benefits and those that should reduce employees by 30 percent.

Along with such support, the PM decided to offer salaries to those workers who lost jobs due to their employers absconding.

The district people’s committees will take care of these particular payments.

In addition, Dung stated in his dispatch that unemployed workers who have returned from overseas could receive a loan to retrain or open a business.

Vietnam Bank for Social Policies will provide the loans.

The Ministry of Finance and relevant ministries are ordered to resolve entrepreneur’s questions in a bid to push trade and exports. The ministries must reduce unnecessary procedure.

The Central Bank’s governor should plan to adjust the rate exchange.

Banks should also contribute to universities and institutes to help create research on currency policy.

The Finance Minister must review regulations to provide loans and to facilitate business needs when they need capital.

The PM has decided to use money from government bonds to construct traffic projects and upgrade schools and medical centers.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment will submit proposals for urgent projects so that provincial leaders can use the capital.

The PM also said that some VND82 billion ($ 4,704,532) should be spent carrying out projects to promote trade.

VietNamNet/SGGP

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