November 11-17: Kazakhstan’s lower house leader pays official visit to Vietnam

Nhan Dan Online reviews the notable events that made headlines over the past week.

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) and Chairman of the Mazhilis (lower house) of the Parliament of Kazakhstan Nurlan Nigmatulin.
PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) and Chairman of the Mazhilis (lower house) of the Parliament of Kazakhstan Nurlan Nigmatulin.

Kazakhstan’s lower house leader pays official visit to Vietnam

Chairman of the Mazhilis (lower house) of the Parliament of Kazakhstan Nurlan Nigmatulin, leading a delegation of the Parliament of Kazakhstan, began an official visit to Vietnam on November 13 at the invitation of Chairwoman of the National Assembly (NA) Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.

Kazakhstan’s lower house leader held talks with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan in Hanoi on November 14. The two sides highlighted the fruitful bilateral relationship and shared the views that apart from the growing strength of political and diplomatic relations, economic and trade links between Vietnam and Kazakhstan have also been stepped up.

Vietnamese peacekeepers in South Sudan honoured with UN peacekeeping medals

November 11-17: Kazakhstan’s lower house leader pays official visit to Vietnam ảnh 1

Staff of Vietnam’s Level-2 field Hospital No. 1 receive medals of honour for their dedication to the United Nations Peacekeeping Career. (Photo: qdnd.vn)

Staff under the Vietnam’s Level-2 field Hospital No. 1 in South Sudan have been honoured with the United Nations Peacekeeping medals for their dedication to the career.

On the afternoon of November 14 (Vietnam time), the Vietnamese Ministry of Defence in collaboration with the UN Mission in South Sudan held a medal parade ceremony in Bentiu to grant medals to Vietnamese peacekeepers in recognition of their dedicated service and contribution to the mission.

The hospital and its four outstanding members also received Certificates of Commendation from the commander of the UN Mission in South Sudan.

National Assembly adopts important resolutions

The National Assembly adopted a resolution on State budget allocation in 2020 on the morning of November 14, with 90.48 percent of approval votes.

Previously, the NA adopted a resolution on the State budget estimate in 2020 at a plenary sitting on the afternoon of November 12.

The NA also approved a resolution on the socio-economic development plan for the year 2020, targeting 6.8% GDP growth and improvements to national competitiveness.

Vietnam’s jasmine rice crowned best in world

November 11-17: Kazakhstan’s lower house leader pays official visit to Vietnam ảnh 2

ST24 rice features long grains with a clear white colour and typical fragrance producing a sticky cooked rice.

The Soc Trang-based organic rice ST24 was honoured as the best in the world for flavour for the first time ever, as it was granted the World’s Best Rice 2019 award at the 11th Annual World’s Best Rice Contest in Manila, the Philippines, on November 12.

Vietnam’s rice competed with strong rivals from Thailand and Cambodia in the contest, in which the jury and international chefs inspected the visual aspects of the rice submitted, as well as performed a sensory evaluation of the rice (pre-cooked and cooked), before unanimously announcing Vietnam's ST24 as the winner of this year’s contest.

This is the first time ever that a Vietnamese rice variety has been honoured as the best in the world after 10 seasons of the annual contest in the last decade. Previously, ST24 ranked third at the 9th World's Best Rice event in Macau, China, in 2017.

Voice-to-text software wins first prize at Vietnam Talent Awards 2019

A speech to text software application with accuracy of up to 93.6% was among the top winners announced at an award ceremony for the Vietnamese Talent Awards 2019 in Hanoi on the evening of November 15.

The speech to text software – namely Origin-STT – won top prize in the IT category for its capability to recognise different Vietnamese accents and about 7,000 Vietnamese words so that users no longer have to transcribe audio files manually.

Over the past 15 years, from an annual IT awards, the Vietnamese Talent Awards have expanded to other fields and attracted the participation of many entries from both at home and abroad.

Nguyen Tien Linh scores as Vietnam edge past 10-man UAE

November 11-17: Kazakhstan’s lower house leader pays official visit to Vietnam ảnh 3

Tien Linh celebrates with teammates after scoring against the UAE. (Photo: NDO/Tran Hai)

Forward Nguyen Tien Linh scored a solitary goal for Vietnam as they edged past the United Arab Emirates (UAE) 1-0 on matchday five of the second round of the 2022 World Cup Asian qualifiers on November 14, thus climbing to top of Group G with three points clear.

The convincing victory not only helps the Golden Dragons extend their unbeaten run to four games but also places them on top of the group with ten points, three clear of Thailand, who were defeated 1-2 away by Malaysia in another match on the same day.

The 1-0 score remained unchanged until the final whistle, but it was enough to send Park’s side to the top of Group G after matchday five, thus making a great stride towards booking a place in the final round of the 2022 World Cup Asian qualifiers.

US magazine names Vietnam in top 10 Best Countries

Vietnam was voted the 10th best country in the world this year by readers of the New York-based magazine Condé Nast Traveler. A record 600,000 voters participated in the magazine’s 32nd annual Readers’ Choice Awards survey.

“The over 2,000 miles of coastline holds some of the best beaches in the world, while a countryside of undulating rice terraces and hills provides serenity away from the crowded, chaotic cities,” it described.

“Here, you’ll find architectural wonders as well – ancient imperial temples, forts, and tombs, which are in direct contrast to the hive-like buzz of scooters in the metropolis of Hanoi.”