Vietnam is speeding up nationwide vaccination campaign to better protect its people from virus infection. Photo: VOV

Daily Covid-19 infections keep falling sharply to nearly 51,000

Vietnam recorded 50,730 coronavirus cases on April 3, representing a fall of nearly 15,000 cases compared to the previous day.

Official data from the Ministry of Health show an additional 65,616 cases were documented in 61 cities and provinces, including 27,307 cases diagnosed in the community.

Hanoi capital topped localities, registering 6,304 fresh cases, followed by Nghe An, Yen Bai, Phu Tho, Bac Giang, Quang Ninh and Lao Cai that reported between 2,000 – 3,0000 cases each.

Notably, Thai Binh and Bac Giang provinces registered to add more than 51,000 cases to the national Covid-19 database after reviewing statistics.

During the day, nearly 74,608 patients were discharged from hospital after making a full recovery from the disease, while an additional 37 patients died of the virus, cited VOV.

As of 06pm on April 3, Vietnam has confirmed 9,818,328 Covid-19 cases since the start of the outbreak, ranking 12th out of 227 countries and territories worldwide.

Of the infected patients, 7,787,962 have been discharged from hospital, and 42,600 patients have died of the virus.

More than 206 million vaccine doses have been administered nationwide.

Preparations completed for Vietnam’s first military engineer unit to a UN peacekeeping mission

Nearly 2,000 tonnes of equipment and supplies of Vietnam’s Military Engineer Unit No. 1, which is about to join the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA), are being delivered to Hai Phong Port so as to be transported the mission by sea.

This is the biggest shipment prepared for a Vietnamese unit to take part in UN peacekeeping operations.

Talking to the Vietnam News Agency, Colonel Mac Duc Trong, Chief Commander of the Vietnamese force at UNISFA and head of Military Engineer Unit No. 1, said it has taken the country a very long preparation, from personnel to equipment, so as to be selected and invited by the UN to participate in the peacekeeping force in Abyei, a border area between Sudan and South Sudan.

Preparations for the unit have been basically completed. The UN on March 30 sent a vessel to Hai Phong Port to receive the equipment and supplies, which are being delivered to this port from March 30 to April 4 and then will be sent to the mission, according to VNA.

Members of Military Engineer Unit No. 1 examine vehicles before departing for UNISFA. Photo: VNA

The equipment includes 147 vehicles and machines. Meanwhile, the military engineer unit consists of 184 members, and its advance team is scheduled to depart in late April to receive the equipment at a Sudanese port and UNISFA. The majority of the unit is expected to arrive in Abyei on May 10, according to Trong.

Vietnam has basically completed legal procedures and safety issues for the equipment, he said, noting that as problems may arise during the transportation, Vietnam and the UN have worked with Sudan to guarantee maximum safety for the equipment delivery on the 2,000km-long road journey from the Sudanese port to Abyei.

The officer added as this is a very long trip, the advance team is comprised of multifunctional personnel who are able to drive and operate all kinds of vehicles and machines as well as to unload supplies so that the main unit can get down to business as soon as they set foot in Abyei.

Anomalous natural disasters ravage central Vietnam

The central region of Vietnam has suffered from unseasonal rain on a large scale for the past few days, causing a great loss of life and property.

Due to the impact of a cold air and a low pressure area combined, central provinces from Thua Thien-Hue to Khanh Hoa have endured heavy rain of 100-200 mm. Heavy rain accompanied by thunderstorms, whirlwinds and big waves have struck coastal provinces from Thua Thien-Hue to Phu Yen.

The anomalous natural disasters have left two dead, five injured and one missing, the National Steering Committee for Natural Disasters Prevention and Control reported on April 2 evening.

A fishing boat has been damaged by rough seas in Phu Yen, a coastal province in central Vietnam. Photo: VOV

Hailstorms have ripped roofs of tens of homes, sank hundreds of fishing boats, and washed away or damaged thousands of fishing rafts.

The disasters have dealt a heavy blow to agricultural production in the region as more than 78,100ha of ripening rice and 13,500ha of subsidiary crops have been submerged in water, VOV reported.

Rain is ceasing and floods are receding, but weather experts say heavy rain are forecast to return and lash the central region, from Da Nang to Khanh Hoa and the Central Highlands between April 4 – 6.

Localities such as Da Nang, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai and Binh Dinh are anticipated to receive an excess of 200mm rainfall.

Weather experts warn about the possibility of hailstorms, whirlwinds, and lightning to occur in the coming days. Notably, flash floods and landslides may continue to strike the mountainous, and low-lying areas in the south-central region.

In a telegram dated April 2, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh requested relevant ministries, agencies and localities to focus on overcoming the consequences of floods. The Government leader also extended condolences to the bereaved, and shared difficulties and losses suffered by local administrations and people.

Hanoi to translate UNESCO Creative Cities Network initiatives into reality

Hanoi plans to take various actions from now until 2025 to implement the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) initiatives to raise public awareness of the capital’s commitments to the network.

Municipal authorities will introduce three initiatives locally and three others internationally, cited VNA.

The local initiatives will include building the Hanoi creative design centre, developing and supporting creative spaces in Hanoi, and producing a TV show for creative talents. The creative design centre, to be located at the Hanoi Museum, aims to nurture talented creative designers, support potential creative projects, and promote international cooperation in the field.

The municipal Department of Culture and Sports will be tasked to organize a number of training and capacity building courses for young designers, and assist community projects and encourage the participation of women, children and vulnerable groups in creative design projects.

The fountain at Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc Square in downtown Hanoi. Photo: VNA

The city will also host the Hanoi creative design festival and a UCCN forum in Southeast Asia, and develop a network for young creative designers as part of the international initiatives.

The Hanoi creative design festival will become an annual event for honoring innovations in creative designs domestically and internationally.

Aiming to becoming a capital of creativity, Hanoi will try to engage local young people in various creative projects, particularly for preservation and restoration of cultural heritages and traditional craft villages and for supporting local creative spaces.

‘Golden era’ of Vietnamese start-ups

With the development potential and the ability to catch the technology wave, Vietnamese start-ups have attracted foreign venture capital funds as well as domestic investors.

Wavemaker Partners, a venture fund with headquarters in the US and Singapore, has poured capital into five start-ups, including Foodmap, DatBike, Vigo Retail, MindX and Medici.

Attractive market

In an interview with Bloomberg Asia earlier this year, Binh Tran, co-founder and representative of Ascend Vietnam Ventures Fund, said the "golden era" of Vietnamese start-ups has arrived.

According to experts, the technology startup ecosystem in Vietnam is only about five years old, but the market has grown strongly as it receives comprehensive support from the Government and human resources from abroad, and is supported by Vietnam’s steady economic growth.

Photo: VNN

With an accessible technology ecosystem, low cost of living, a safe and stable environment, and a team of talented software engineers with an affordable salary compared to other countries in the region, Vietnam is considered an ideal place for technology companies which are targeting at the emerging Asian market.

Binh Tran said that some leading foreign investment funds such as Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Goodwater, and Altos are very interested in opportunities in Vietnam, reported VNN.

Great opportunities are in start-ups applying new technologies, such as blockchain games, DeFi (blockchain based - financial applications) and cryptocurrencies. According to a report by Chainalysis, Vietnam tops the list of 154 countries and territories in terms of cryptocurrency adoption rate and ranks second for DeFi.

Rajan Anandan, Managing Director of Sequoia Capital India and Surge, told Investment Newspaper that Vietnam is emerging as an important hub for startups in Southeast Asia.

Many startups play a role of leverage for Vietnam's digital economy, which is expected to reach a value of about US$57 billion by 2025 and rank second in Southeast Asia by 2030 with a scale of about US$220 billion.

“We appreciate Vietnam’s potential to become a major innovation center in the region and we look forward to meeting local founders,” said Rajan Anandan.

Meanwhile, Tran Hoai Phuong, Investment Manager in Vietnam of Wavemaker Partners, a venture capital fund based in the US and Singapore, said that in Southeast Asia, Vietnam is second only to Indonesia in terms attractiveness for venture capital funds with the potential to have "unicorns" (start-ups with a valuation of over US$1 billion).

Cooperation between domestic and foreign funds

In Vietnam, Wavemaker Partners has invested into five start-ups, including Foodmap, DatBike, Vigo Retail, MindX and Medici. Hoai Phuong revealed that this year, the fund will invest in three to four startups in Vietnam this year.

At the same time, Sequoia Capital India and Surge have also sought cooperation opportunities in Vietnam, through investing in startups in various fields such as Rino, Trusting Social, Solscan, Galaxy Fight Club, Telio, Infina, Thuocsi, HelloMida, Virtual Internships and Epsilo.

Local experts said that foreign funds have strengths in capital and experience in doing business in the international market, but their resources in the domestic market are limited while this is the advantage of domestic investment funds. Founded by Vietnamese entrepreneurs, domestic funds have a deep understanding of the market, with a large network of partners and resources, so they can provide real support to local startups.

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