Vietnamese Ambassador to Cuba Le Thanh Tung (L) and Secretary of the provincial Party Committee Yamilé Ramos Cordero at a ribbon-cutting ceremony to open a photo exhibition of Vietnam nowadays(Photo: VNA)– Vietnamese Ambassador to Cuba Le Thanh Tung on July 29 paid a working visit to the western province of Pinar del Río, attending a series of activities that promoted the countries’ special friendship.At a meeting with Yamilé Ramos Cordero, First Secretary of the provincial Party Committee, Tung underlined the special nature of the Vietnam-Cuba solidarity as well as their leaders’ determination to promote relations in all fields.He also highlighted the Cuban province's potential in hosting projects with capital from Vietnamese enterprises, especially in the agricultural sector.With an area of nearly 8,900 square kilometres and a population of more than 570,000, Pinar del Río is renowned as the largest producer of cigars with the highest quality. It also has strengths in tourism, agriculture and mining.As part of his trip, Tung attended a seminar on Vietnamese revolution and challenges to socialism in Asia, which gathered more than 200 participants. The Vietnamese diplomat also joined Secretary of the provincial Party Committee Yamilé Ramos Cordero at a ribbon-cutting ceremony to open a photo exhibition of Vietnam nowadays.Talking to the local reporters after the ceremony, Tung stressed that Vietnam and Cuba have established cooperation mechanisms and exchange channels to beef up relations in all fields.In addition to the current cooperation in rice cultivation, he believed that Pinar del Río has potential for joint projects with Vietnamese partners in other agricultural fields such as beef, poultry, and citrus fruit production.On the occasion, Pinar del Río screened a documentary film and kicked off a photo exhibition about the local medical expert Elena Fernández Castro, who witnessed the fiercest period of Vietnam's resistance war against the US for national salvation before she died of illness on July 27, 1972 in Hanoi at the age of 46./.

Officials at the meeting between the Vietnamese delegation and the US House of Representatives’ Armed Services Committee (Photo: VNA)Chairman of the NA’s Committee for National Defence and Security Maj. Gen. Le Tan Toi (L) and UN Under-Secretary-General for Operational Support Atul Khare (Photo: VNA)– A delegation of the National Assembly (NA)’s Committee for National Defence and Security paid a working visit to the United States and the United Nations from July 26 to 30.The delegation, led by Chairman of the committee Maj. Gen. Le Tan Toi, held talks with Chairman Adam Smith and Ranking Member Mike Rogers of the US House of Representatives ’ Armed Services Committee.The Vietnamese lawmakers also met with Congressman Joaquin Castro, Co-Chair of the Congressional Caucus on ASEAN and member of the US House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence; Senator Tammy Duckworth, member of the Senate Committee on Armed Services; Senator Bill Hagerty, member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and Committee on Appropriations; Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security John Tien; Assistant Secretary of State Jessica Lewis; and Assistant Secretary of Defence Ely Ratner.The delegation had meetings with the assistants to President Pro Tempore of the Senate and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations Patrick Leahy, Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee Jack Reed, and Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee Jim Inhofe.Speaking at the events, Toi affirmed that Vietnam consistently views the US as a leading partner and highly values the US’s support for an independent and prosperous Vietnam.Vietnam always wishes to develop the comprehensive partnership with the US in an increasingly substantive, stable, and long-term manner on the basis of respect for each other’s independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, and political regimes.The US officials said the Southeast Asian nation is an important partner of their country, and that the US parliament strongly supports the two countries’ relations and hopes bilateral ties will record new strides.They pledged to continue supporting Vietnam’s economic development and enhance defence and security cooperation, with a focus on helping Vietnam address war consequences, including environmental remediation of dioxin contamination and unexploded ordnance clearance, assist the disabled, search for Vietnamese soldiers’ remains, and improve maritime capacity.The US side also expressed their readiness to assist Vietnam in UN peacekeeping operations and other fields that suit both sides’ conditions and demand.The Vietnamese and US officials also discussed measures for further reinforcing parliamentary ties, shared information and experience in legislative and supervisory activities and transnational crime fight, and exchanged views on international and regional issues of common concern.At the meeting with UN Under-Secretary-General for Operational Support Atul Khare, Toi thanked his host and the UN for actively assisting Vietnam to engage in UN peacekeeping operations and improve the country’s stature and capacity in the settlement of international affairs.He called on the UN and the Under-Secretary-General to continue helping Vietnam contribute more to the UN’s noble goal of resolving conflicts and maintaining peace and stability for all people around the world.The official asked the UN to create conditions for Vietnam to further take part in peacekeeping operations, help with training for Vietnamese forces, and pay attention to compensation for Vietnam’s contributions and losses when performing peacekeeping duties. He also suggested stronger trilateral cooperation and that the UN consider organising training courses for countries’ peacekeeping forces in Vietnam.For his part, Khare highly valued Vietnam’s active support, participation and contributions to UN peacekeeping operations, affirming continued assistance for the country in training.He also voiced his hope that Vietnam will share its experience in training peacekeeping personnel with other countries, especially those in its region./.

A pineapple processing factoy (Photo: VNA)VNA– A strategy for developing agricultural mechanisation and agro-forestry-fishery processing has been approved, aiming to turn Vietnam into one of the top 10 agricultural processing centres in the world by 2030.The strategy, signed off by Deputy Prime Minister Le Van Thanh, looks to develop modern, efficient and sustainable agricultural processing to meet the demands and standards of the global market.Among its objectives, over 90% of work in the cultivation of key crops is to be mechanised by 2025 and over 70% of work in cultivation in general will be completely mechanised by 2030. The respective targets are more than 80% and 60% for animal husbandry, over 70% and 90% for aquaculture, 85% and over 95% for fishing and cold storage on fishing boats.The agricultural processing industry is expected to record an annual growth rate of over 8% in its added value by 2025 and 10% by 2030. Post-harvest loss of key crops is to be curtailed by 0.5% - 1% annually. Processed products will make up 60% of the export value of key farm produce.In this strategy, Vietnam plans to develop modern agricultural processing enterprises whose financial strength and governance are in line with global firms. It is also set to develop industrial clusters for farm produce processing that are linked with concentrated and mechanised material production zones./.

Recently, the Hanoi Department of Industry and Trade held a cashless payment event with a view to helping fuel e-commerce, technology application and digital transformation. Therefore, suppliers are working hard to improve the quality, convenience and safety of cashless payment methods. Cashless payment is present in all sectors. Cashless payment benefits all parties involved including the State, businesses and people. Therefore, in the future, cashless payment is expected to dominate not only in large retail distribution systems, commercial centers but in small grocery stores and traditional markets./.

Illustrative image (Source: VNA)– It would not surprise if monkeypox was reported in Vietnam since the country has reopened its borders. A readiness plan is in order, stated an official of the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Vietnam.As of the morning July 29, 21,148 monkeypox cases had been recorded in 78 countries, with the US seeing the most infections, followed by countries in Europe and Africa. It is also working with the World Health Organisation ( WHO ) to help Vietnam and other countries acquire monkeypox test kits as soon as possible, he said.Noting symptoms of this disease, Dziuban said some countries are carrying out monkeypox vaccinations. The US Government and others in the world are coordinating to promote the development and production of new-generation vaccine so that this outbreak could be soon contained globally.He also highlighted the importance of communications to raise public awareness of the disease and prevention measures. The appropriate warnings should be given to member groups to increase effectiveness and prevent discrimination, he said./.

The Vietnamese official affirmed that the Vietnamese Defence Ministry attaches great importance to cooperation with the UN, UNDP and partners in dealing with war consequences. For UN peacekeeping activities, the Vietnamese official affirmed that Vietnam has made significant achievements after eight years of participating in the UN peacekeeping mission. Wignaraja spoke highly of Vietnam's commitment and achievements in participating in UN peacekeeping activities, saying she was impressed at the percentage of Vietnamese female soldiers participating in UN peacekeeping activities that is higher than the UN’s proposal. She affirmed that UNDP will continue to support Vietnam in overcoming consequences of war-time bombs, mines and UXO consequences, and strengthening Vietnam’s role in UN peacekeeping operation. UNDP wishes to work closely with Vietnam and its Defence Ministry in these works, and share Vietnam's good experience with the world, she said./.

Hanoi, (VNA) - The following is a list of selected news summaries last night by the Vietnam News Agency. The non-state sector had 660,100 businesses in 2020, accounting for 96.4% of Vietnam’s total, up 35.1% from 2016. The sector attracted 8.6 million workers, or 58.6% of the country’s workforce, increasing by 0.4% compared to 2016. The National Science Conference on Policies on Industrialisation and Modernisation of the Nation by 2030, with a Vision to 2045 was co-held by the Party Central Committee’s Economic Commission, HCM City Party Committee and the Vietnam National University HCM City (VNU-HCM). The service is available to individuals and legal entities, according to the bank's message.

Illustrative image (Photo: VNA)– Vietnam must move forward unless it wants to be saddled with the status of the “ world’s factory ”, heard a conference in Ho Chi Minh City on July 28.The National Science Conference on Policies on Industrialisation and Modernisation of the Nation by 2030, with a Vision to 2045 was co-held by the Party Central Committee’s Economic Commission, HCM City Party Committee and the Vietnam National University HCM City (VNU-HCM).In his opening remarks, VNU-HCM Director Assoc. Vu Hai Quan said that Vietnam has made major achievements during the Party-led industrialisation and modernisation era. The industry sector has contributed an increasing share to the economy, he said, adding that there has been a more substantial approach to promoting industrial restructuring in association with growth model innovation in Vietnam.Industry has been the fastest growing sector in Vietnam, and contributed 28.5% to the economy in 2019 from 26.6% in 2011, he said.Nguyen Xuan Thang, President of Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics, highlighted that industrialization and modernization have allow Vietnam to maintain relatively high GDP growth, transforming from an underdeveloped to a developing country.However, Vietnam’s industrialization was mainly reliant on harnessing natural resources, capital intensity, and under-skilled workers, Thang said, noting that industrial production largely depends on assembly and use of imported machinery and input materials.As a result, these factors have impacted on the environment, and national industrial capacity remained weak. If the situation continues, Vietnam will eventually fall into the trap of being an assembly manufacturer and involved in only low value chains.Speakers agreed that the national industrialization and modernization strategy from 2021 – 2030, with a vision to 2045, must stay relevant to the changing situation both domestically and internationally.Speaking at the event, Chairman of the Central Economic Commission Tran Tuan Anh underscored that science, technology and innovation act as the main engine driving national industrialization and modernization. Coupled with skilled human resources, they are breakthrough factors for the acceleration of the process, he noted.It is critical to improve the regulatory framework and develop exclusive policies and mechanisms to boost technology use and transfer and innovation, he emphasised.Vietnam must reduce independence on foreign resources while enhancing internal strengths, mastering core and digital technologies, and strengthening its resilience, he added./.

Business Vietnam Cashew Association lowers export target amid weak demand As cashew exports in the first half of 2022 fell by 9.2% against the same period last year, the Vietnam Cashew Association (VCA) has to adjust down its annual export target to 3.2 billion USD. Business Reference exchange rate down 25 VND on July 29 The State Bank of Vietnam set the daily reference exchange rate for the US dollar at 23,176 VND/USD on July 29, down 25 VND from the previous day. Business Numbers of firms, employees in FDI, non-state sectors soar: census The numbers of enterprises and employees working in the non-state and FDI sectors increased rapidly, but reduced markedly in the state-owned sector during 2016-2020, according to the General Statistics Office of Vietnam (GSO)’s freshly released 2021 economic census. Business Banking sector’s digital transformation to take place next month The digital transformation day of the banking sector will be held on August 3, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) announced at a press conference in Hanoi on July 28.

A factory of Samsung in Vietnam (Photo: congthuong.vn)– Many investors from the Republic of Korea (RoK) hold that Vietnam is an attractive destination, but it still needs clearer policies to attract a new investment wave from the Northeast Asian country, reported Dau tu (Vietnam Investment Review).With fast digital transformation and a young population, Vietnam is currently an attractive destination for Korean businesses, Vice Chairman of the Korea & Vietnam Economic and Cultural Association (KOVECA) Kwon Seung-taek told a recent conference promoting Korean investment in Ho Chi Minh City and other southern localities.This event attracted 30 businesses and 50 enterprises of the RoK who came to explore investment chances in many areas, including infrastructure, urban development, health care, education, renewable energy, high technology and vocational training.He said Korean firms boast technology, technique, experience and large capital while Vietnam has a diverse market and a young and abundant workforce.If the two countries enhance investment cooperation, bilateral trade will grow correspondingly. Amid global trade uncertainties, if they can capitalise on opportunities, the bilateral trade targets of 100 billion USD by 2023 and 150 billion USD by 2030 are completely achievable, Kwon emphasised.Many Korean investors believe that the two countries still have much room for cooperation in multiple spheres.In the past, Korean investments mostly concentrated in big cities like Hanoi, HCM City and neighbouring provinces, but now they have expanded to many other localities. They are also shifting from labour-intensive industries to manufacturing and high technology sectors.However, they also hope Vietnam to have clearer investment policies.CEO of JP Investment Choi Jeong-pil recommended the country elaborate on the projects it is inviting investment to so that investors and investment funds can make consideration.He also suggested favourable conditions for investment funds to engage in the equitisation of State-owned enterprises, noting that their presence will help improve those firms’ capacity and participation in global supply chains.Meanwhile, a business in the environmental sector underlined the need for the Government’s assistance since waste treatment projects are long-term investments that last for 20 - 30 years.The company added it is important that the Vietnamese Government has transparent and consistent policies in order to attract Korean investment./.

Passengers undergo security check at an airport. (Photo: VNA)– Ho Chi Minh City has proposed the Ministry of Health permit it to impose health declaration on arrivals in local ports of entry to early detect suspected cases of monkeypox.The proposal was submitted on July 27, following the World Health Organisation (WHO)’s declaration of monkeypox as a global health emergency on July 23.The municipal People’s Committee said in the current context, it is an urgent need to proactively monitor and early detect suspected infections in order to make timely response to prevent the disease from spreading.It noted that the local health sector is stepping up monitoring at ports of entry and health establishments while intensifying communications in the community to early discover monkeypox cases, which is one of the sector’s urgent tasks at present.As of July 25, HCM City hadn’t record any monkeypox infections. Its Health Department has demanded all medical establishments to promptly take measures against this disease./.

Foreign tourists at a hotel in downtown HCM City (Photo: VNA)- Despite improvement seen in the first quarter of the year, the pace of international travel recovery remains slow since mid-March when Vietnam reopened its borders to international tourism, according to the Vietnam Tourism Association The number of international tourist arrivals reached more than 600,000 in the first half of 2022, making the target of welcoming five million foreign visitors this year more challenging, said Vu The Binh , chairman of the association.In the first six months of this year, domestic travel saw a strong performance, with tourist arrivals jumping to 60.8 million, a 1.9-fold increase compared to the same period last year, he said at a press briefing held on July 25 in Ho Chi Minh City.Domestic visitor arrivals are expected to reach pre-COVID-19 levels of 85 million in October, he said.But domestic travel accounted for only 30% of the tourism sector, which covers inbound, outbound and domestic travel.Government agencies and tourism stakeholders will identify challenges and discuss measures to quicken the recovery of international tourism and the sustainable growth of the tourism sector at a national forum held on August 8, he said.The forum with the theme “New products, new markets” and a national workshop on training tourism human resources are part of a range of activities during the two-day programme entitled “Lien Ket Suc Manh Du Lich Vietnam năm 2022” (Power of Vietnam Tourism Linkages) held August 8-9 at the Independence Palace.The programme will feature an exhibition with 120 booths showing tour packages, travel products and services, and B2B interaction.Organised by the HCM City Tourism Association, the event offers opportunities for tourism businesses to network and take advantage of opportunities for cooperation to accelerate the tourism sector’s recovery from COVID-19.Free entrance to the Independence Palace is offered for visitors during the event./.

Vietnam Airlines now operates three regular direct flights connecting Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City with Bangkok. As scheduled, the number of flights will increase to four flights per day from October this year, and will rise to six flights per day in the second quarter of 2023. Vietnam Airlines is considering restoring two routes, namely Da Nang - Bangkok and HCM City - Phuke, from early 2023. Since Vietnam and Thailand removed most of the travel restrictions, the number of air passengers has increased rapidly. Thailand is also one of the prioritised markets among 15 international destinations where Vietnam Airlines has resumed its regular flights./.

The logo and mascot of the SEA Games and ASEAN Para Games 2023 to be hosted by Cambodia. (Source: baotintuc.vn)- Cambodia will need to increase the number of flights between the country and Singapore during the SEA Games 2023 to meet expected demands to and from the city-state.Local media reported that the during their meeting, Cambodia ’s Acting Minister of Tourism Tith Chantha and Singaporean Minister of Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong discussed the need to increase flights between the two countries.The increased flights will attract more international tourists to Cambodia, especially to prepare to transport passengers and receive tourists when the SEA Games 2023 is held in Cambodia.Both sides mentioned the connection of Cambodia-Singapore direct flights through Singapore Airlines and other airlines, which is an important factor in promoting international tourists to Cambodia./.

Illustrative photo (Source: aitech.vn)The 2022 Vietnam Artificial Intelligence Day (AI4VN), with its theme spotlighting economic recovery and future shaping, is scheduled to take place in Hanoi on September 22.AI4VN is an annual programme of the Ministry of Science and Technology ( MOST ) since 2018. Its series of events pull together a wide range of stakeholders in the AI community, from policy makers and technology corporations to researchers and university students.A press conference on its 2022 edition held in Hanoi on July 27 informed that the Vietnamese online newspaper VnExpress will coordinate with the Aus4Innovation programme to implement the series. Aus4Innovation is a 10 million AUD development assistance programme being enacted under the Vietnam-Australia innovation partnership.Three discussion sessions on AI solutions in banking-finance, human resources, and production will be held before a plenary one. The sponsorship for AI4VN 2022 aims to help promote and strengthen the development of the country’s AI ecosystem, he added.Bui Thanh Van from VnExpress, who is head of the AI4VN 2022 organising board emphasised the AI Awards 2022 as a highlight of this year.Van said the awards honour outstanding AI products and solutions in business and life. It is open for submissions from July to September.The AI Tech Matching will connect and support the development of potential AI products from the awards and competitions held within the AI4VN 2022’s framework, with total investment amounting to 60,000 AUD./.