News highlights for April 5, 2023

Prime Minister arrives in Laos for the fourth Mekong River conference

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his senior delegation landed in Laos' capital Vientiane late on April 4 to attend the Fourth Mekong River Commission meeting. The event, scheduled for April 5, will bring together government leaders from Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, China and Myanmar, through which the Mekong River flows, and representatives from international organizations and societies. The event is an opportunity for the riparian countries to improve their implementation of the 1995 Mekong Agreement and to discuss challenges and opportunities in water management, sustainable development, environmental protection, and further activities for 2021-2030. The Mekong River Commission Conference was initiated in 2010 and is held every four years.

Concert night honors two Vietnamese musicians

Musician Do Bao speaks at the press conference introducing the night concert. Photo: Hoa Nguyen

The Hanoi Opera House will host a performance night on April 21 and 22 with the theme "Hanoi - Changing Season" to celebrate the musical prowess of Phu Quang and Do Bao. The two musicians are well-known figures in the Vietnamese music scene, and the four distinct seasons of Hanoi inspire their love tunes. The finest vocalists in Vietnam, including Thanh Lam, Tan Minh, and Tran Thu Ha, will perform at the event. The audience will also be treated to stunning visuals created and arranged by fine artist Le Thiet Cuong and influenced by the historic homes of the Old Quarter. The concert is expected to be a talented compilation that satisfies the demands and preferences of Hanoi's music fans.

New rule on land ownership issued to boost condotel and officetel market

A new decree allowing buyers and investors of condotels, officetels, resorts, and similar products to obtain their land use certificates has been signed and released by Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha. Decree 10/2023/ND-CP provides amendments to Decree 43, issued in 2014, to direct the implementation of the Land Law and will take effect on May 20. As a result, investors and homebuyers must submit the necessary documents to the authorities to obtain certificates for their land use rights, as required by the Land Law. The new decree is expected to remove the bottleneck for the growth of the officetel and condotel markets, which have remained sluggish since the robust period of 2016-2018 due to the inability of buyers and investors to legalize their land ownership.

Vietnamese students win the international environmental protection contest

In the final of the Young Environmentalists' Challenge (YEC) on April 4, students from Dinh Thien Ly High School in HCM City beat their counterparts from Malaysia and Sri Lanka to win the championship. The team, called Garyy Lee - Vietnam, impressed the judges with their environmentally friendly soundproofing materials made from agricultural waste such as coconut, sugarcane, and peanut shells. Sugarcane waste was processed and mixed with coconut and peanut waste in specific ratios of 3:7, 5:5 and 7:3. The result can absorb sound at least 10% better than other conventional materials. Co-hosted by the International University – HCM City National University and the Australian University of Deakin, the competition featured nine teams from Vietnam, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka.

Vietnamese authorities to inspect TikTok for falsified information

Short video platform TikTok will be inspected in May 2023 for spreading fake news, according to Le Quang Tu Do, director of the Department of Radio, Television and Electronic Information under the Ministry of Information and Communication. The upcoming inspection will focus on content direction, taxation, e-commerce, and advertising. Despite warnings from the Vietnamese government and ministry, TikTok has shown little improvement in content management, allowing fake information to spread. The Chinese-owned media platform deleted thousands of videos created by Vietnamese TikTok users in Q4 2002, of which nearly 95% were voluntarily deleted. The app is banned by the governments of the United States, Canada, Belgium, the United Kingdom, and the European Commission.

Thai caravan tourists accepted to enter Vietnam

The Ministry of Transport has recently approved a Thai caravan to travel to Vietnam for six days. The caravan of 10 tourists traveling in two cars and six motorcycles will enter and leave Vietnam at the Bo Y International Border Gate in Kon Tum Province. Viet Ha Travel Company, the organizer of the trip, is responsible for taking necessary measures to ensure the safety and lawfulness of the Thai caravan. In addition, cars and motorcycles must be stamped to pass through the tolls on the highways. Thai travelers must also follow Vietnamese rules to prevent the Covid-19 pandemic and other diseases. The travel company must submit a report to the Ministry of Transport after the tour.