Ben Tre Province is home to many enterprises which process products of different kinds from coconut, including coconut milk powder, coconut candy, coconut oil and activated carbon. However, the coconut production and processing is mainly carried out on a small scale, with old technology and outdated equipment. That is why a project on extracting coconut oil with non-heating technology was implemented as part of the national program on technology renovation. That is why a project on extracting coconut oil with non-heating technology was implemented as part of the national program on technology renovation. According to the Ben Tre Coconut Association, in 2016 Vietnam exported 193 tons of VCO (cold pressing technology).

Lawmakers look into coast guard, national defence lawsThe draft law on Vietnamese coast guard force and the draft revised law on national defence were among issues National Assembly (NA) deputies discussed on May 22, the second day of the ongoing fifth session of the 14th tenure parliament. Minister of National Defence Ngo Xuan Lich, on behalf of the Prime Minister, presented the draft law on Vietnamese coast guard force. After that, Vo Trong Viet delivered another report on revisions to the draft revised law on national defence, which later continued to be scrutinised by legislators at the discussion. A draft law amending some articles of the laws relating to the Law on Planning and a verification report on this draft is set to be submitted to the NA. Later, lawmakers will work in groups to discuss the draft law amending some articles of the laws relating to the Law on Planning and the draft law on crop production.-VNA

President Tran Dai Quang to pay state visit to JapanVietnamese President Tran Dai Quang and his spouse will pay a state visit to Japan from May 29 to June 2 at the invitation of the State of Japan. President Tran Dai QuangJapanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko are scheduled to meet with and hold a state banquet in honour of President Tran Dai Quang and his spouse. During the visit, President Quang will also hold talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Vietnam and Japan have closely and effectively coordinated in multilateral forums such as the UN, ASEAN, APEC and ASEM. Japan was also the largest ODA provider for Vietnam, and the fourth biggest trade partner of the country, with bilateral trade hitting 33.4 billion USD last year.-VNA

Vietnamese currency security faces big challenges from technologyModern technology remains a challenge for Vietnamese authorities in managing currency security as recently the northern province of Quang Ninh discovered illegal money transferring activities via Chinese points of sale (POS) installed in a local store. Chinese tourists used their domestic bank cards or e-wallets such as Alipay and WeChat Pay to pay. These POS devices directly connecting to AliPay, WeChat Pay, and Chinese banks are released by some Chinese banks, but have been illegally installed in Vietnam. Afterwards, Vi Mo Technology JSC’s e-wallet VIMO announced becoming the first intermediate payment unit allowing Chinese tourists to pay in VND via the WeChat Pay application. Many financial experts warned that the illegal payment method is quite common and affect the country’s currency security.

Vietnamese students win prizes at int’l science contest in the USVietnamese students won one third prize and one consolation prize at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF) 2018 which was held in Pennsylvania, the US, from May 13-18. This year, the contest attracted 1,793 students from 79 countries and territories with 1,401 projects. The Vietnamese delegation brought eight projects to the competition and was one of 43 countries and territories that won prizes. Deputy Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Huu Do lauded the achievements of Vietnamese students and hoped they will promote their creativity in scientific research. Vietnamese students have engaged in the contest since 2012 and have won prizes at every event since then.

Islanders face limited fresh water in early dry seasonVietNamNet Bridge – Half of the farming area on Ly Son Island, 30km off the coast of Quang Ngai Province, has been salinised in the early dry season this year, reducing coverage of the key crop purple onion from 170ha to 50ha. A farmer waters for a farm of onion and garlic in Ly Son Island, off the coast of Quang Ngai Province. Farmers on the island have been facing limited sources of water in early dry season of 2018. “We have called for saving daily fresh water use among 22,000 residents and tourists, while dredging wells to seek deeper water,” Huong said. “Water for farming will face a serious deficiency if local farmers do not cut farming area in the summer-autumn onion crop.

Sony buys controlling stake in EMI Music PublishingSony says it has agreed to buy a controlling stake in EMI Music Publishing for $2.3bn (£1.71bn) as it looks to boost its music portfolio. It is one of the world's biggest music publishing firms. Mubadala's private equity arm has controlled and managed EMI Music Publishing on behalf of Mubadala and other third-party investors since 2012, Sony said on Tuesday. "We are thrilled to bring EMI Music Publishing into the Sony family and maintain our number one position in the music publishing industry," Sony's president and chief executive Kenichiro Yoshida said on Tuesday. The deal to buy up a controlling stake in EMI is very much part of Sony's plans to realign its business, analysts said.

40 primary pupils hospitalized due to milk tea poisoningAround 40 pupils of class 3B in Tran Phu Primary School (in the central city of Quang Ngai) were hospitalized in the Maternity – Children Hospital of the city at around 10:00am on May 21, 2018. Each was delivered one box of milk tea, bought by the parental association of the class from a milk tea shop on Ngo Quyen Street of Quang Ngai City. After using the tea, the pupils had signals of abdominal cramps and those who drank much tea vomited and had high fever. Related agencies have collected samples of the supposedly poisonous milk tea from six boxes with the brand ‘U.CC’. Before using this tea, those pupils also ate coconut jelly cubes.

Dozens of taxes, fees burden VN car usersVietNamNet Bridge - Vietnam is among the countries with the highest selling price of cars in the world. As for road maintenance fees, car owners have to pay twice, when they register as owners of the vehicles and when going through BOT fee collection stations. The car prices in Vietnam are among the highest in the world because of too many kinds of taxes and fees. The car prices in Vietnam are among the highest in the world because of too many kinds of taxes and fees. Decree 116, with its strict regulations, restricts car imports.

$100m programme to train teachersVietNamNet Bridge – Nearly 28,000 high school teachers around the country are set to benefit from a programme meant for continuous professional development of teachers and principals to improve their capacity to teach the new curriculum. Nearly 28,000 high school teachers around the country will benefit from the Enhancing Teacher Education Program. The HCM City University of Education will be in charge of training 7,489 teachers in the 19 southern provinces and cities. The programme will also train the 70,000 school managers around the country. Nguyen Van Phuoc, deputy head of the Education Division of HCM City’s District 3, said the programme should also focus on English training.

HCM City triumph at national swimming eventVietNamNet Bridge – HCM City topped the medal tally at the National Age Groups Swimming Championship, which concluded in Da Nang yesterday. HCM City swimmers perform at the National Age Groups Swimming Championship in Da Nang. — Photo trungtamthethaotuoitre.comThe squad brought home 64 medals -- 30 golds, 20 silvers and 14 bronzes. The National Defence Sports Centre 5 finished second with 25 golds, 11 silvers and 15 bronzes. The four-day event saw the participation of 230 swimmers from 29 teams across the country.

Land erosion wreak havoc in Ca MauVietNamNet Bridge – Land erosions have caused major damage to property in Ca Mau Province’s Nam Can District, the Vietnam News Agency reported on May 20. Reprentatives of the local authority visit the location of land erosion in Nam Can District of Ca Mau Province. — Photo tienphong.vnThe erosion wreaked continuous havoc for three days in the riverside communes of Lam Hai, Hiep Tung, and Nam Can Township, causing a number of houses to fall into the river. Previously, 24 households in Nam Can Township were also affected by a major land erosion. “The landslides in the district have become more and more complicated,” To Hoai Phuong, chairman of the Nam Can District, said.

Missing investors’ projects face official terminationThe investors have disappeared at a string of foreign investment projects, prompting authorities to officially terminate the projects in the forthcoming period. Besides Ho Chi Minh City, many localities have started looking for investors whose projects have seen virtually no progress for years now. Czech Brewery once dominated the local press as it was the largest foreign investment project in Hoa Binh province at the time. Then, BTG Holding will begin the construction of a thermal power plant valued at EUR100 million ($118 million) and an auto component manufacturing plant valued at EUR200 million ($236 million). In reality, compared to more than 25,500 on-going FDI projects at present, the number of foreign invested projects where investors have absconded is not large.

Da Nang: Nursery shut down after child abuse accusationA nursery school in Danang City has been shut down after two video clips showing the children being hit by teachers were uploaded onto the internet. Cong confirmed the abuse accusation and said they were waiting for the parents to calm down to ask for information. The video clips were only posted onto Facebook on May 21 with many photos showing the abuse. Two women took two boys' shirts off and made them lay down on the ground while forcing food down their mouth. It's unclear who took the video, Cong said.

Lotte Mart rejects loss reportsLotte Vietnam Shopping Joint Stock Company (Lotte Mart Vietnam) has written to the Ministries of Information and Communications and Finance and the media dismissing the false reports in some newspapers that it has made losses of VND2.3 trillion (US$100.87 million) in its 11 years in Viet Nam. A Lotte Mart store in HCM City. Viet Nam is the most promising Asian retail market, and therefore it had come to Viet Nam for long-term investment and opened malls around the country, it said. Jeong Seong Won, chief financial officer of Lotte Mart Vietnam, said: “We expect that by 2020 we will start to make a profit. This is the strategic vision and long-term investment commitment of Lotte Group as well as Lotte Mart in Viet Nam.” — VNS