Nem nuong Cai Rang, a specialty of Can ThoVietNamNet Bridge – Each city and province in Vietnam is known for its local produce and specialities – Hanoi is famous for its pho, bun bo from the central city of Hue and original nem nuong Cai Rang from the southern province of Can Tho. Ready to roll: A flat basket of nem nuong Cai Rang. In years gone by, only gourmets and foodies knew to go to Cai Rang to enjoy the best nem nuong, produced by Ba Loc or later Tu Khem. Nem nuong Cai Rang, a tasty and delicious dish, came into being hundreds of years ago. Delicious: Tasty and aromatic nem nuong Cai Rang should become a national dish to welcome international visitors.

Vietnam to use satellite data to monitor forests, water resourcesVietNamNet Bridge - Scientists and natural resource management agencies will no longer have to pay for optical images for forest inventory and surveys after the Vietnam DataCube, a satellite database, is put into operation. FIPl is carrying out a forest inventory projectFIPl is carrying out a forest inventory project in 2016-2020 and has to release reports on changes in the forests. With access to image sources of Vietnam DataCube, the task can be implemented properly. In 2017, the Forest Inventory and Planning Department (FIPl) in 2017 signed an MOU with the Vietnam Space Center on using satellite data in forest inventory.FIPl is one of the institutes which use satellite images regularly in their work. However, many problems existed.As these were optical images, their quality could not meet standards and they were also very costly.

Big challenges await Spotify in VietnamVietNamNet Bridge - Spotify has officially joined the Vietnamese market. The world’s largest digital music service, Spotify has been warned about challenges it could face in Vietnam where people are used to free music services. However, it still has not become popular in Vietnam, because the majority of people want free music service. Analysts commented that the monthly fee of VND59,000 set by Spotify is the same as Apple Music in Vietnam. The VIP service fee set by Nhaccuatui and Zing Mp3 is around VND30,000 a month and VND80,000 for three months.

Late PM leaves imprint on Ho Chi Minh CityFormer Prime Minister Phan Van Khai passed away on March 17 but he lives in the heart of the people, especially those in Ho Chi Minh City, as a child of Cu Chi who made great contributions to the development of the city and the country. The late Prime Minister left a deep imprint on the process of building and developing Ho Chi Minh City - a dynamic, warm city that pioneers in innovation. The new face of Cu Chi and other suburban areas in Ho Chi Minh City has been attributed to the efforts and determination of the Party, the government and people of Ho Chi Minh City. Since the start of the doi moi (renewal) process, Ho Chi Minh City has been the role model in innovation. Policies boosting the development of the private sector have contributed to the strong growth of Ho Chi Minh City's business community, helping Ho Chi Minh City maintain its role as the economic locomotive of the country.-VNA

Central bank enhances supervisionThe State Bank of Viet Nam (SBV) can take early intervention measures against weak credit institutions in the supervision process from July this year, according to a new SBV regulation. Central bank can take early intervention measures against weak credit institutions from July. — Photo tapchitaichinh.vnUnder Circular 04/2018/NHNN-TT, which will replace Circular 08/2017/TT-NHNN from July 1 this year, the SBV Governor stipulated orders and procedures for banking supervision, aimed at minimising the weakness of credit institutions and contributing to restricting risks to the banking system. The new circular is also expected to help Viet Nam’s regulations in the banking industry to gradually match international rules. SBV inspection bodies will also be permitted to conduct extraordinary inspections on these credit institutions during the supervision process.

Miss International Transgender to fight for LGBT rights in VNFending off 26 competitors from different parts of the world, Nguyen Huong Giang from Hanoi was crowned this year’s “Miss International Queen” in Thailand at one of the world’s top beauty pageants for transgender women. Bo Xuan Hiep speaks to Giang in Bangkok about her plan to fight for the LGBT community in Viet Nam. What inspired you to participate in the Miss International Queen competition this year? In addition, I also plan to bring Miss International Queen or Miss Tiffany to Viet Nam to help transgender people in the country to shine. As a transgender woman and the winner of Miss International Queen, what message about LGBT people would you like to spread?

Is leaving Facebook the only way to protect your data? How else can you protect your Facebook data? "The incentive Facebook will have to protect people more will only come if people start leaving. But in a world where Facebook information is shared more widely with third parties, making such a request gets harder. Data protection laws in Europe suggest that firms should only keep user data "as long as necessary" but the interpretation of this can be very flexible.

Wildlife trafficker gets 13 months in prisonThe People’s Court of Ha Dong district in Hanoi on March 20 handed down a jail sentence of 13 months on Nguyen Mau Chien for smuggling 36kg of rhino horn, according to the Education for Nature Vietnam (ENV). Chien was suspected to be the mastermind of a ring trafficking rhino horns, elephant tusks and products of wild animals from Africa to Vietnam. Bui Thi Ha, Director of Policy and Legislative Campaigns at ENV, acknowledged Vietnam’s breakthrough efforts in the fight against wildlife trafficking when Chien was brought to trial. The centre has expected a higher prison term to be issued for the defendant which will be a deterrent to wildlife traffickers, she said. Chien, who was arrested in April, 2017, was allegedly the head of a wild animal trafficking ring from Africa to Vietnam.

Billionaire: a 'national brand'VietNamNet Bridge - Today, the position of each nation does not only depend on the richness of its historical and cultural traditions. Forbes has just published the 2018 billionaire list, of which Vietnam has four billionaires included. Lawyer Duc shares his views on Vietnamese billionaires. Therefore, in my opinion, the true billionaire is not only a personal title, but also a national brand, and also a kind of talent which can be compared to national resources. For a rich country like the US, it does not want its billionaires to bring money to other places.

Designer Minh Hanh named Knight of the Order of the Star of ItalyOne of the Vietnamese leading fashion designers, Ms. Minh Hanh was conferred with the medal of Knight of the Order of the Star of Italy at the celebrations of the 45th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Italia held by the Embassy of Italy in Vietnam on March 16 in Hanoi. Cecilia Piccioni pins the medal of Knight of the Order of the Star of Italy for designer Minh Hanh. The Order of the Star of Italy designated by Italian president Sergio Mattarella is awarded for individuals who promote Italian prestige, excellence, culture and good relations internationally. In 2006, fashion designer Minh Hanh was given the French honorary title “Knighthood of Arts and Literature” by the French Ministry of Culture and Communication. The award was conferred on designer Minh Hanh in recognition of her efforts to promote fashion industry between Viet Nam and France, especially in signing a contract with the French Fashion Design Institute.

VN’s Ambassador to RoK talks about VN-RoK relationsVietnamese Ambassador to the Republic of Korea (RoK) Nguyen Vu Tu granted an interview to a reporter from the Viet Nam News Agency about Viet Nam-RoK relations on the occasion of the RoK’s President Moon Jae-in’s State visit to Viet Nam from March 22-24. The RoK is the largest investor in Viet Nam with the total capital of US$57.6 billion (as of the end of 2017) and ranks second in trade relations (US$61.5 billion in 2017). In 2017, a total number of 2.4 million visitors from the RoK travelled to Viet Nam. The Ambassador highlighted that this is the first official visit made by President Moon Jae-in to Viet Nam and the second visit to Viet Nam after the APEC Economic Leaders' Week in November last year. He proposed creating favorable conditions for Vietnamese students to receive more scholarships to the RoK and more Korean students to study in Viet Nam.

Cold wave from China to grip northern VNCold air from China is approaching Viet Nam and is likely to have a direct impact on the northern and central provinces, the Central Hydro-Meteorological Forecast Centre has reported. According to the centre, the cold air will have relatively strong intensity, causing the weather to turn chilly with widespread rainfall. Influenced by the onset of the cold air, rainfall and thunderstorms occurred on Monday evening in the north. The cold air has also caused bad weather on the sea. The strong winds are expected to persist tonight.

Former NA official urges support of wealthy people who can help VN’s developmentVietNamNet Bridge – “Let’s support the rich who are talented and whole-hearted, who can help the country’s development,” said Dr. Nguyen Sy Dung, former vice chairman of the National Assembly Office, about Vingroup, the largest private economic group in Vietnam. We can also talk about infrastructure works developed by Vingroup like Royal City, Times City, Vinhomes Riverside, etc. For example, I can watch free music in Times City even though I own no apartment there. I think Vingroup has the right strategy because the middle class is developing very fast in Vietnam. Except for a free water music show in the Times City, I do not owe them any debt of gratitude.

State funeral held for former PM Phan Van KhaiThe funeral for former Prime Minister Phan Van Khai who passed away in Ho Chi Minh City on March 17 started at 8am on March 20 at the city’s Thong Nhat Hall. A similar ceremony was also held in Hanoi to pay last homage to former PM Phan Van Khai. Phan Van Khai was born on December 25, 1933 in Cu Chi district, Ho Chi Minh City. Memorial services for former PM Khai in Laos, JapanVietnamese Embassy in Japan h​olds a memorial service for former Prime Minister Phan Van Khai on March 20Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith led a high-level delegation to pay tribute to former Prime Minister Phan Van Khai at the Vietnamese Embassy in Laos in Vientiane on March 20. The same day, the Vietnamese Embassy in Japan held a memorial service for former Prime Minister Phan Van Khai and placed funeral books that will remain until March 22.

Sabeco rebuffs State Audit’s allegationSaigon Beer, Alcohol and Beverage Corporation (Sabeco) refuted the state audit’s allegations about its violations in the management of its operations and investing activities before it sold a stake for the foreign partner, while simultaneously affirming that its operation complies with regulations, according to newswire Vnexpress. Sabeco negates the state audit’s assessmentRecently, the State Audit Office proposed collecting VND2.5 trillion ($109.8 million) in tax arrears from Sabeco. Sabeco has issued a document explaining the state audit’s allegations, especially the more than VND2.8 trillion ($122.99 million) in profit after which it had not declared tax. Accordingly, Sabeco explained that the undeclared profit was one of the problems that Sabeco could not solve before conducting the equitisation. Besides, it affirmed that it published information relating to the state audit’s assessment before it sold the stake for the foreign partner.