Naval officers of Vietnam and Indonesia. Photo: VNA

Vietnam, Indonesia launch naval exercise

The Vietnam People's Navy and the Indonesian Navy on August 30 launched a joint naval exercise (CODEX 22B-I) in Batam, Indonesia, with the event taking place within the framework of the exchange visit and joint naval exercises of both sides.

The exercise opening ceremony was co-chaired by Col. Nguyen Van Ngan, deputy chief of Staff of Vietnam’s Naval Region 4 , and Rear Admiral Kemas M. Ikhwan Madani, commander of Indonesia’s Naval Base IV, cited VOV.

Col. Ngan said the first joint exercise between Ship HQ 012 - Ly Thai To of the Vietnam People’s Navy and Ship KRI Bung Tom - 357 of the Indonesian Navy represents an important milestone in the development of both sides’ agreement on the standard process of joint training, signed in December, 2021. This aims to to enhance the friendship, understanding, and trust between the two militaries, including their navies.

Rear Admiral Madani emphasized that CODEX 22B-I will contribute to promoting the two navies’ capacity, experience, and mutual understanding, thereby helping to guarantee maritime security and develop mutual trust.

CODEX 22B-I is the first of its kind held between the Vietnamese and Indonesian navies and is taking place in the Batam and Bitan waters of Indonesia from August 29 to September 3.

Vietnam logs over 1.44 million int’l arrivals in first eight months

Asian visitors made up the majority with nearly 997,000 arrivals, accounting for 69.18 per cent of the total in the eight months.

Vietnam welcomed more than 1.44 million international arrivals in the first eight months of 2022, a 13.7-fold rise from a year earlier when border lockdown was still in effect, thanks to the reopening to foreign tourists and the resumption of international air routes.

However, the figure still nosedived 87.3 per cent compared to the same period of 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic broke out, the General Statistics Office (GSO) said in the eight-month data report.

Of the international arrivals, 88.2 per cent came to Vietnam by air, up 18.5 times, while 11.8 per cent by road and 0.03 per cent by sea.

Asian visitors made up the majority with nearly 997,000 arrivals, accounting for 69.18 per cent of the total in the eight months. Notably, South Korean visitors surged 17.61-fold yearly, making this Northeast Asian country the biggest source of international arrivals in Vietnam.

South Korea was followed by the United States with 139,000 arrivals, Cambodia (82,000), Japan (71,000), and Singapore (67,000), with China, Australia, Thailand, Malaysia, and Taiwan (China) rounding out the top 10.

There were 208,000 arrivals and 165,300 from Europe and North America, up 22.4 times and 47.6 times compared to the same period last year.

65,700 visitors in the first eight months were from Oceania, up 79 times year-on-year, while there were 5,000 visitors from African nations.

The GSO noted in August alone, international arrivals numbered 486,400, increasing 38 per cent from July and 52.3-fold year on year.

Foreign visitors at a tourism fair held in the Hoan Kiem Lake area in downtown Hanoi. Photo: VNA

The eight-month tourism revenue is estimated at VND15.4 trillion (US$657.4 million), 3.4 times as high as in the same period last year, due to solid tourism recovery, especially domestic tourism. But the takings are equivalent to just 47.7 per cent of the figure in the same period of 2019.

Vietnam still targets welcoming 5 million international arrivals in 2022. However, the peak international arrivals season is in the latter months instead of in the summertime for domestic tourism, according to VNS.

The country has fully reopened to international tourism, with pre-pandemic visa procedures reinstated, no requirements of Covid-19 vaccination/recovery proofs, mandatory quarantine, or health declaration.

As per the strategy of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, in the short term, the tourism industry needs to capitalize on the markets that have reopened, allowing citizens to travel abroad and overseas Vietnamese returning home after the pandemic.

In particular, the focus should be on markets like South Korea, Japan, Western Europe, Australia, and ASEAN, with attention on potential new markets such as India, the United States, and the Middle East.

Vietnam logs 3,241 new Covid-19 cases on August 30

The national Covid-19 caseload rose to 11,408,952 with 3,241 new cases recorded on the past 24 hours to 4pm August 30, according to the Ministry of Health.

Illustrative image. Photo: VNA

With 13,142 patients given the all clear during the day, the number of recoveries rose to 10,170,271. Meanwhile, there are 137 patients needing breathing support.

Four deaths from Covid-19 were recorded in the past 24 hours. The total fatalities stood at 43,117, reported VNA.

On August 29, an additional 300,913 doses of vaccines were administered, raising the total number of doses of Covid-19 vaccines injected to 256,291,765.

Vietnamese, Japanese businesses cooperate in biomass

Japan’s Electric Power Development Co (J-Power) has inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Vietnam Forestry Corporation (Vinafor) to jointly explore opportunities for biomass business in the Southeast Asian country.

Under the MoU, the companies will study the potential collaboration in areas such as power generation and fuel production, J-Power said in a press release.

J-Power has experience in the biomass sector, both in and outside Japan, cited VNA.

Rice husks can be turned into energy. Photo: VNA

Meanwhile, state-owned Vinafor with its 43,000 hectares of forests brings to the partnership its expertise in managing, harvesting and processing plantation wood in Vietnam.

HCM City leads the nation in FDI attraction

Ho Chi Minh City attracted roughly US$2.71 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) during the first eight months of the year, representing a rise of 24.4% compared to the same period from last year, according to details given by the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

Throughout the reviewed period, 479 new projects were granted investment certificates with a total registered capital of US$309.4 million, marking a rise of 24.1% in terms of the number of newly-licensed projects, despite being an annual fall of 17.6%.

Furthermore, some 96 existing projects adjusted their investment capital, representing a decline of 17.9% in terms of the number of projects, but an increase of 127.3% in adjusted capital against last year’s corresponding period.

Since the beginning of the year, there were a total of 1,632 approved transactions made in the form of capital contribution and share purchases by foreign investors with a total value of contributed capital reaching US$925.68 million, a fall of 19.7% in capital on-year.

Photo: VOV

Moreover, the information and communication sector received the majority of investment capital, accounting for 39.91%, followed by the wholesale and retail sector, automobiles, motorcycles, and motorbikes, professional activities, science and technology, along with banking and insurance.

Singapore was the largest foreign investor in the southern city with the proportion of capital making up 37.68%, followed by Japan with 17.19% and the Republic of Korea (RoK) with 13.45%.

Ho Chi Minh City therefore leads the country in attracting FDI, accounting for 16.1% of total registered investment capital, representing a rise of 24.4% on-year, cited VOV.

Most notably, foreign financiers have invested heavily in several major cities nationwide due to their convenient infrastructure, including Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.

With regard to the implementation of FDI projects throughout the city, the RoK’s Lotte Properties, a real estate arm of Lotte Group, is expected to kick start a smart complex project named Thu Thiem Eco Smart City in the Thu Thiem New Urban Area with total investment capital of VND12,000 billion on September 2.

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