Vietnam Morning News For December 24

Reforms are insufficient for small-scale companies in Vietnam
Previous reforms are only related to less cumbersome business registration instead of a comprehensive support to the private sector, especially the small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
— Hanoi Times

Agricultural firms improve standards to satisfy new Chinese regulations
Exports of agricultural products to the vast Chinese market are expected to increase if branding and quality of Vietnamese goods improve, speakers said at a meeting on Friday in HCM City.
— Viet Nam Net

Vietnam labor costs highest among ASEAN comparators
Vietnam’s labor cost is the highest among comparator countries in Southeast Asia, a World Bank report says.
— VN Express

CLIMATE CHANGE FOCUS: Profiting from urban waste in Vietnam
Hoi An, a city of 120,000, has become a significant tourist destination with around 21 million visitors in 2016. Those tourists are producing around 75 tonnes of solid waste every single day – waste which a group of underprivileged women is turning into a profit.
— AEC News Today/ PR Newswire (media release)

Japan-funded oil refinery in Vietnam completed
A joint project involving Japan’s major oil wholesaler Idemitsu Kosan has celebrated the completion of a new oil refinery in Vietnam.
— NHK World

Vietnam must create breakthroughs in attracting quality FDI projects: Gov’t
The linkage and spillover effect between the FDI sector and the economy in overall have left much to be desired.
— Hanoi Times

Hanoi plans mega urban city
– Architect PhD Hoang Huu Phe, from the Viet Nam Urban Planning Development, speaks to the newspaper Kinh tế & Đô thị (Economics & Urban Affairs) on the Lang Hoa Lac mega urban city project.
— Viet Nam Net

Gov’t assurance leverages foreign investments in transport industry
Government guarantee for investment risks are considered the topmost concerns for foreign investors when they invest in the country’s transport projects under PPP model.
— Hanoi Times

Vietnamese e-commerce growing rapidly
The past four years have seen a busy journey for the e-commerce market in Southeast Asia and Vietnamese e-commerce growth rate ranked second, just behind Indonesia, in the region, according to Google and Temasek.
— Vietnam+

Best Vietnamese firms honoured with Gold Star Award
The Vietnam Gold Star Award 2018 was presented in Hanoi on December 23 to honour the 200 best businesses in the country.
— VNA NET

Vietnam scales up efforts against antibiotic resistance
The World Health Organization and Vietnamese Ministry of Health called for stronger commitments from all sectors to “Handle antibiotics with care” during a public advocacy event held yesterday in Ho Chi Minh City.
— Sggp News

Ha Tinh asks to close Thach Khe iron mine
The central province of Ha Tinh’s Department of Science and Technology (DoST) proposed shutting down Thach Khe iron mine – the largest of its kind in Southeast Asia – to protect the environment.
— Viet Nam Net

Where motorbikes double as trucks
Ho Chi Minh City, the country’s largest metropolis, is home to 13 million people including migrants. The city’s roads are packed with around eight million motorbikes, and most of the time, they are the ultimate means of delivery.
— VN Express

HCM City to resolve flooding problems by 2020
Ho Chi Minh City plans to complete flood-prevention work by 2020 on 15 streets, 28 alleys, and five streets flooded by tides, under a new plan approved by the city’s People’s Committee.
— VNA NET

Solid waste needs better treatment
– The amount of solid waste in Vietnam has kept surging with more complicated components as a result of increasing population and human activities, according to a report released.
— Viet Nam Net

Hanoi considers geo-positioning chips on dogs
The project, devised by the city’s Animal Health Department in collaboration with two unnamed foreign NGOs, is expected to be proposed to the city’s administration next year for approval.
— VN Express

The year 2018 in review: rice exports see strong growth in volume and value
Vietnam’s rice export volume is likely to reach around 6.15 million tonnes and be worth over US$3.15 billion in 2018, up 5.7% in volume and 19.6% in value over the previous year.
— Viet Nam Net

Consumer credit market grows 50-65 percent a year
With a population of 95 million and a high percentage of young people of working age, Vietnam is now in the ‘golden period’ to develop consumer credit.
— Viet Nam Net

Vietnam’s Miss Universe donates her cash prize to community activities
The popular beauty queen has given her entire cash prize to community activities, as announced through the official Instagram page of Miss Universe Vietnam on Wednesday.
— Vietnam Insider

Vietnam needs a master plan for development of shrimp farming on sandy land
Shrimp farming on sandy land has brought profits to the coastal central provinces over the years. But the unplanned and spontaneous expansion of this model is accompanied by the potential of severe negative impacts …
— Viet Nam Net

Central region to host diverse activities to celebrate New Year 2019
According to Ho An Phong, Director of Quang Binh provincial Department of Tourism, a tourism stimulus programme kicked off on December 20, providing international visitors with a 10% price discount on all tourist products and services in the locality for one month.
— Nhan Dan online

Long game played in real estate
Vietnam’s real estate market continues to be of major interest to foreign investors.
— Viet Nam Net

Where all villagers embrace brass culture
Enjoying a fine brass band performance by an all-female band in a church, you’d hardly think you were in a rural part of Nam Định Province.
— Viet Nam News

Vietnam’s Sad Hunt: 300,000 Missing Souls
Decades after the war with America ended, Vietnamese families continue to search for the remains of their kin who are still missing in action.
— New York Times

AI becoming a hot topic in Việt Nam: conference
Artificial intelligence is increasingly in the spotlight in Việt Nam, a conference heard in HCM City on December 22.
— Viet Nam News

Biggest wedding ever for people with disabilities at pagoda
Fifty couples with disabilities from HCM City were married in a group wedding at Giác Ngộ Pagoda in HCM City’s District 10 on Friday.
— Viet Nam Net

Vietnam Clean Air Day 2018 expects to draw about 1,000 people
The Vietnam Clean Air Day 2018 opened in Hanoi on December 22, expecting to draw about 1,000 people through different activities to spread information on air pollution and settlement solutions.
— Sggp News

Feature photo Nhan Dan

This week’s morning news photo features a defining moment, event, or situation from 2018 for each country as chosen by our editors.

Find our previous morning news feature photos in the AEC News Today Morning News Feature Photos gallery where you will find a pictorial display of daily life throughout the Asean Economic Community (AEC).

Vietnam morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Vietnam news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies, not politics.