Party, State leader sends message to 75th UNGA session's High-level General Debate
Party General Secretary and State President Nguyen Phu Trong on September 25 (Vietnam time) sent an important message to the High-level General Debate of the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly, which is taking place from September 22-29 in New York, USA.
In his message, the Vietnamese Party and State leader welcomed the theme of the session: “The Future We Want, the UN We Need: Reaffirming our Collective Commitment to Multilateralism – confronting COVID-19 through effective multilateral action”.
On behalf of the Vietnamese people, he took the occasion to express the deepest gratitude to countries and international friends for their generous support towards Vietnam’s past righteous struggle for national independence and present national development.
He also briefed the attendants on Vietnam’s remarkable achievements after thirty-five years of Doi Moi reform, while affirming that Vietnam will work harder to contribute to peace, friendship and cooperation in the region and the work, particularly when the country is assuming the dual role of non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and rotating Chair of ASEAN in 2020.
Hanoi has new Chairman
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Former Minister of Science and Technology Chu Ngoc Anh is elected as new chairman of Hanoi.
Vice Secretary of Hanoi’s Party Committee Chu Ngoc Anh was elected Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee for the 2016-2021 tenure with 95 out of 96 votes at the 16th session of the 15th Hanoi People’s Council on September 25.
In assuming his new position, Anh vowed to, together with People’s Committee staff, promote the spirit of solidarity and consensus and direct municipal authorities to continue following instructions of the municipal Party Committee and People’s Council.
Attention will be given to main missions to achieve comprehensive and sustainable development targets, promote the values of the capital city, and increase the city’s position and role, he added.
Earlier at the session, members of Hanoi People's Council voted and agreed to dismiss Nguyen Duc Chung from the post as the municipal People’s Committee chair. On August 11, Chung was suspended from work under Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc’s decision, which said that the suspension has been made to serve the investigation into Chung’s involvement in some legal cases.
Vietnam enjoys US$3.78 billion in exports to EU since bilateral FTA taking effect
Vietnam enjoyed exports worth US$3.78 billion to the European Union (EU) in only one month since the EU - Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) took effect at the beginning of August.
The latest statistics from the General Department of Vietnam Customs showed that by the end of August, total export turnover from Vietnam to the EU had reached US$25.92 billion. In August alone, the figure reached US$3.78 billion.
Compared with the average of the first seven months this year, the export value to the EU in August was about US$600 million higher, thanks to the positive effects of the EVFTA.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the effective EVFTA has created a great opportunity for Vietnam's exports, helping to diversify markets and products for Vietnam export activities, with some key Vietnamese products enjoying high tax cuts, such as agricultural products, fish, furniture, textiles, footwear and electronics. The EU has been the third largest market for Vietnamese exports for the past eight months.
Vietnam’s first commercial flight lands in Hanoi since border closure
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Passengers perform entry procedures at the Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi on September 25.
Operated by national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines, a return commercial flight from Seoul, the Republic of Korea (RoK), landed at Hanoi’s Noi Bai International Airport at noon on September 25, marking a milestone in the restoration of the country’s air transport after months of disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Using an Airbus A350 airliner, flight No VN417 took off from Incheon International Airport in the RoK, bringing back about 100 passengers, mostly returning Vietnamese and Korean investors and experts.
Earlier in the morning, the outbound flight carried 164 passengers from Hanoi to Seoul.
The RoK is among the six destinations in Asia with which the Vietnamese Government has decided to resume international flights since the country sealed off its borders on March 22. The other destinations include Japan, China, Taiwan (China), Laos and Cambodia, which have the COVID-19 situation well under control.
Vietnam wins gold at 32nd International Olympiad in Informatics
All four candidates of the Vietnamese team participating in the 32nd International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) competition, which was held online on September 13-23, seized medals, including one gold medal, two silvers and one bronze.
The gold medal went to Bui Hong Duc, a 12th grader at the High School for Gifted Students under Hanoi National University. Duc was also the youngest member of the Vietnamese team, having also won a gold medal at the competition in 2019.
Vu Hoang Kien, a 12th grader, and Le Quang Huy, a 11th grader, from the High School for Gifted Students under Hanoi National University won silver medals at the competition. The bronze medal belonged to Tran Quang Thanh, a 12th grader at the High School for Gifted Students under the Hanoi National University of Education.
MIC introduces Vietnamese virtual assistant platform
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MIC introduces Vietnamese virtual assistant platform
The Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) on September 25 introduced a Vietnamese virtual assistant platform as developed by the Army Telecommunication Industry Corporation (Viettel).
Named the Viettel Cyberbot, the platform applies artificial intelligence technology (AI) in order to be able to understand the message customers want to convey and automatically improve the system continuously from real situations.
The virtual assistant has outstanding ability in language processing and can help Callbot's voice reach a natural level, similar to 95% that of a real human voice. The platform also helps businesses build an automatic switchboard system through interacting with customers by message (Chatbot) or by voice (Callbot).
The distinctive feature of Viettel Cyberbot is the combination of speech processing technologies with Vietnamese natural language processing technology at the same time.
Video-making programme launched to advertise Vietnam’s land and people
Facebook, in partnership with popular Vietnamese artists, launched a video-making programme to advertise Vietnam’s land and people.
Entitled ‘Video for Vietnam’, the programme will run from September 20 to October 15, encouraging participants to film short videos on three topics of Vietnamese cuisine (indigenous meals and specialties), people (cultures of ethnic groups, and Vietnamese personalities), and land (natural landscapes across the country).
The videos should be made public on the entrant’s personal Facebook and Instagram accounts with the hashtag #VideoforVietNamChallenge.
The best entries will be screened at a closing ceremony which will be livestreamed on October 15.
Vietnam among best holiday destinations for 2021: CNTraveller
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Vietnam ranks 13th among CNTraveller's 21 best holiday destinations for 2021. (Photo: CNTraveller)
Vietnam’s effective control of COVID-19 has impressed prestigious US travel magazine Condé Nast Traveler (CNTraveler), as the magazine has listed the Southeast Asian country as among the best holiday destinations after the pandemic ends and for 2021 in its latest US and UK publications,.
Meanwhile, CNTraveller (CNTraveler’s publication in the UK) ranked Vietnam at 13th among its selection of the 21 best holiday destinations for 2021.
Some attractive points of Vietnamese tourism were highlighted in the CNTraveller article, such as high-end resorts, the North-South railway and community-based tourism.
AFC endorses full membership of Elite Youth Scheme to VFF
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has conferred the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) with full membership status in the AFC Elite Youth Scheme.
The AFC has also given the three-star status to the PVF Football Academy.
The AFC Elite Youth Scheme is an integral part of AFC’s Vision and Mission that is to improve playing standards and increase the possibility of success at the top level.
The development of aspiring young talents is at the core of these objectives, and AFC recognises and supports the Member Associations (MAs) in their efforts to further develop their elite youth programmes, including the grading of academies, in line with the criteria set by AFC.
