Media Highlights

Vietnam Bans All Acts of Illegal Animal Trade

Administrator — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:37:25 +0800

Vietnam’s consistent position is to actively engage in the preservation of wild animals and to strictly prohibit all acts of illegal trade in wild animals, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
The ministry made the remark on November 19 in reply to correspondents’ questions about Vietnam’s reaction to information that a video recording broadcast on a South African television station shows a Vietnamese Embassy staff buying rhino horn
“The Ministry has asked the Vietnamese Embassy in South Africa to verify information and has decided to recall Vu Moc Anh to explain the issue,” it said.

World Bank Provides US$200 Million for Better Access to Rural Finance

Administrator — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 09:57:01 +0800

The World Bank has pledged to provide US$200 million to help improve Vietnamese farmers' access to finance. An agreement to the effect, the Vietnam Third Rural Finance Project, was signed in Hanoi on November 14 by State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) governor Nguyen Van Giau and Martin Rama, the World Bank Acting Country Director for Vietnam.
The total cost of this project is US $279.29 million. The remaining US $79.29 million will be provided by the Vietnamese government as the counterpart fund (including contribution capital of the participating credit institutions and the end borrowers).

Disease Outbreaks Strike Ha Tinh City

Administrator — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:36:27 +0800

As many as 35 people in Ha Tinh City have been stricken with acute diarrhoea, while 54 others have contracted dengue fever.
The latest information from the province’s Preventive Healthcare Centre said that of those affected by acute diarrhoea, 11 have tested positive for the vibrio cholera bacteria.
Thach Kim Commune in Loc Ha District is the hardest hit with 30 people hospitalised as of yesterday morning due to the epidemic. Two household wells in the commune were tested by the centre and found to contain the bacteria.

Vietnam Sees Worldwide Highest Growth Rate of Diabetes

Administrator — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:31:34 +0800

Vietnam currently has 4.5 million diabetes patients and 65% of them don't know about their disease, said Director of the Endocrinology Institute, Ta Van Binh.
Binh also said that Vietnam is among countries that have the highest growth rate of diabetes patients in the world.
Binh warned that up to 95% of Vietnamese diabetes patients belonging to the type 2 and the number of kids and teenagers getting diabetes is on the rise.
A research work by the institute shows that by the end of October 2008, the diabetes patient ratio in Vietnam nearly doubled that of five years ago, especially in big cities and industrial zones, where the rate is 7.2% compared to 4.4% in 2003.

Mekong Delta to Need Over 11,000 Health Workers in Next Five Years

Administrator — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:25:36 +0800

The Mekong Delta region of Vietnam is estimated to need an addition of 11,393 health professionals during the 2009-2013 period, said a conference held by the Ministry of Health Nov 7.

Of the sum, 3,398 will be doctors, 1,670 pharmacists of university level, 4,173 health technicians and 2,152 postgraduate experts.

The region has only 4.65 doctors and 0.24 pharmacists per 10,000 residents - far lower than the national average of 5.2 doctors and 0.36 pharmacists, said the conference.

Addressing the event, deputy Health Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien said that it was not just the Mekong Delta but the country as a whole that is faced with a lack of human resources in the health sector, both in terms of quality and quantity.

Over 9,000 Girls to be Vaccinated Against Cervical Cancer by 2010

Administrator — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:18:45 +0800

Around 9,200 11-year-old girls in Vietnam will receive a free vaccine to prevent cervical cancer by 2010, a representative from the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE) has said.
Under the project sponsored by the non-profit international health organization PATH, girls from several districts in central Thanh Hoa Province and the Mekong Delta's Can Tho City will be given three shots of Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine.
The vaccine series costs around US$300.

Dengue Fever Claims 69 Lives in Southern Region

Administrator — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 11:34:49 +0800

Twenty southern cities and provinces have seen a total of 69 deaths from 58,635 dengue fever cases this year, the Ho Chi Minh City Pasteur Institute said yesterday.
HCMC has seen 11,648 cases, followed by Ca Mau Province with 6,655 and Dong Nai Province with 5,744.
Binh Duong Province has seen 10 fatalities, the highest in the country, from a total of 3,916 dengue fever patients.
The number of cases and deaths is smaller compared to the same period last year, but figures are expected to rise in the remaining months of the year.

Bird Flu Outbreak Occurs in Central Vietnam

Administrator — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 11:32:59 +0800

A bird flu outbreak has been confirmed in Nghe An, a central province of Vietnam, the local newspaper Liberty Saigon reported on Wednesday, citing a statement from the provincial People's Committee.
The outbreak was spotted at the Dien Hong commune, causing the death of nearly 1,000 poultry. Specimens from the dead poultry have recently been tested positive to the bird flu virus strain H5N1, according to the statement.
The local authority has established a zone covering the outbreak to prevent the virus from spreading. Consumption and sale of birds and bird-related products within the zone are banned.
Bird flu outbreaks in Vietnam, starting in December 2003, have killed and led to the forced culling of dozens of millions of fowls in the country.

Asia-Pacific Conference Issues Statement on Injury Prevention

Administrator — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 11:04:10 +0800

The second Asia-Pacific Conference on Injury Prevention concluded in Hanoi on November 6, with the release of the Hanoi Statement on Injury and Violence Prevention in the Asia-Pacific region.
Participants agreed that injuries and violence are the leading precursors to deaths and disabilities.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Asia-Pacific region accounts for the largest proportion of the world’s accidents, with 65 percent of burns, 64 percent of suicides, 62 percent of cases of drowning and 50 percent of road traffic accidents occurring in the region.

German Organisation Receives Friendship Order

Administrator — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 10:25:55 +0800

State Vice President Nguyen Thi Doan has presented the Friendship Order to Christoffel Blindenmision (CBM) and an insignia for the cause of people’s health to Margreet Hogeweg.
CBM is a German non-governmental organization, which has provided significant help for the Vietnamese ophthalmologic sector since 1982. CBM has funded eye care projects in Vietnam with around 3.8 million DM from 1982 to 1999 and more than 3.15 million euro from 2000 to 2008. It has also helped train Vietnamese doctors and nurses, and offered medicines and equipment as well as free eye surgery to poor people.