Inside an ambulance that transports a Covid-19 patient in Hanoi, December 2021. Photo: VnExpress

Vietnam records another 23,181 Covid-19 cases

Health authorities confirmed 23,181 Covid-19 cases in 60 cities and provinces Sunday, including 7,402 cases in the southern province of Binh Phuoc added to the national database.

The three localities with the highest numbers of new cases are Hanoi with 2,811 cases, Hai Phong with 836 cases and Khanh Hoa with 790 cases.

On the same day, 202 deaths were recorded, raising the death toll since the pandemic started to 34,319, or 1.8 percent of all infections, cited VnExpress.

The number of cases since the fourth wave starting in April is over 1.8 million, of which 1.49 million have recovered.

Vietnam has recorded 30 Covid-19 cases infected with the Omicron variant so far, all imported cases.

Over 70.9 million have received two Covid-19 vaccine shots, and 10.8 have received three doses of vaccine.

Vietnam-Laos trade value surges over 30 percent in 2021

Two-way trade between Vietnam and Laos is estimated at US$1.3 billion in 2021, a year-on-year rise of 30.3 percent, according to Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Phuong.

Phuong made the statement on January 9 while co-chairing a senior official meeting within the framework of the 44th session of the Vietnam-Laos Intergovernmental Committee on Bilateral Cooperation with Vice Chairman of the Laos-Vietnam Cooperation Committee Viengsavanh Vilayphone, according to VNA.

Currently, Vietnam has 209 valid investment projects in Laos, with a total registered capital of about US$5.18 billion. Last year, there were five newly-registered projects and four seeing capital adjustments, with a total combined capital of US$112.84 million, an increase of 27 percent compared to 2020.

Many projects continued to operate well, fulfill financial obligations to Lao state agencies, create stable jobs for tens of thousands of Lao workers, and make important contributions to the process of economic regulation of Laos. As a result, Vietnamese enterprises contributed more than US$1 billion to the Laos budget, and donated about US$80 million for social welfare activities in the past 5 years.

Garment - one of Vietnam's key exports to Laos. Photo: VNA

Viengsavanh Vilayphone acknowledged the results of economic cooperation between the two sides in 2021.

He and Deputy Minister Phuong discussed cooperative measures to be submitted to the two Prime Ministers at the 44th session of the Vietnam-Laos Intergovernmental Committee on Bilateral Cooperation.

They focused discussions on measures to address difficulties facing enterprises, particularly those related to capital, taxation, import-export, and land lease, while agreeing to coordinate in creating a stable and transparent legal corridor, and a favorable business environment.

Regarding trade and investment promotion, the two sides agreed to focus on promoting the growth of trade turnover, striving to achieve a stable increase of 10 percent or higher compared to 2021.

Hanoi F1 track to host first national motorsport competition

The Motorkhana Vietnam 2022 tournament, the first-ever car racing contest in the country, will take place January 15 on My Dinh National Sports Complex's F1 track.

The racers will compete in two rounds in the knockout format on an 800-m track. After the qualifiers, the top 16 will advance to the next round. The tournament will also have female participants who will compete with the male racers.

Some of the vehicles that will be used in the Motorkhana Vietnam 2022. Photo: VnExpress

Motorkhana involves controlling a car through obstacles and surfaces. It requires maneuvering the car accurately while maintaining speed through the course. The vehicles used for Motorkhana include everyday cars like sedans, hatchbacks, CUVs and SUVs. It’s considered the most approachable form of auto racing and one that is suitable for development in Vietnam, where car racing competitions are a novelty.

This is the first Motorkhana tournament ever held in Vietnam. It’s a national competition, approved by the General Department of Physical Education and Sports of Vietnam and licensed by the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports.

Through Motorkhana Vietnam 2022, the organizers will select the best racers to represent the country at the FIA World Motorsport Games set to take place in Europe in October, reported VnExpress.

Construction of the 5607 meters long F1 track in Hanoi began in March 2019. However, after it was completed, Hanoi couldn’t host the first F1 race in Vietnam as planned due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Dinh Van Luyen, head of the sports management division of the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports, said a final decision is yet to be taken on the track, but it will only be used for sporting purposes.

Vietnamese futsal goalie nominated for Best Goalkeeper 2021 globally

Ho Van Y of Vietnamese futsal club Thai Son Nam has been nominated for the Best Goalkeeper in the World in 2021 by futsalplanet.com.

Futsalplanet.com recently published a list of top 10 nominees for its annual UMBRO Futsal Awards, including Vietnamese goalkeeper Ho Van Y of Thai Son Nam club.

Goalie Ho Van Y (in yellow jersey) has been nominated for the Best Goalkeeper in the World UMBRO Futsal Awards in 2021 by futsalplanet.com. Photo: Getty

Van Y, 24, is the only Southeast Asian goalkeeper and one of only two Asian goalkeepers on this year’s list that also features world-famous names such as Thiago Mendes Rocha Guitta (Brazil), Nicolas Sarmiento (Argentina), Dmitri Putilov (Russia).

In 2021, goalkeeper Van Y made an impressive performance at the FIFA Futsal World Cup. He helped the Vietnamese team cruise into the Round of 16 and only lose 2-3 to powerhouses Russia. In Vietnam, Van Y and his club Thai Son Nam won the National Futsal Championship for the sixth time in a row, cited VOV.

This is the second time in his career that goalkeeper Van Y has entered the top 10 nominees list for the Best Goalkeeper in the World. In 2018 the Vietnamese goalkeeper was also nominated in the top 10 by futsalplanet.com, but he failed to finish in the top 5.

In 2018, Van Y and his club Thai Son Nam finished runners-up at the Asian Football Confederation Futsal Championship. He scored a goal against Nagoya Oceans of Japan to help Thai Son Nam win 3-2 in the dramatic quarter-finals.

Vietnam to attend ASEAN Tourism Forum in Cambodia

Vietnam will attend the ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) 2022, themed “a Community of Peace and Shared Future” in Sihanoukville, Cambodia, from January 16 – 20.

It is the largest event within the ASEAN tourism cooperation framework.

The forum will feature a series of major events, such as the 25th ASEAN Tourism Ministers Meeting, the Tourism Ministers Meetings between ASEAN and partner countries (China, the Republic of Korea, Japan, India and Russia), the International Travel Expo TRAVEX, and the ASEAN Tourism Award Ceremony.

People wear face masks to avoid Covid-19 infection in Phnom Penh in May 2020. Photo: AFP/VNA

In this year’s ASEAN Tourism Award, Vietnam has won four out of the five categories, namely ASEAN Green Hotel Awards, ASEAN MICE Venue Awards, ASEAN Clean Tourist City Awards, and ASEAN Sustainable Tourism Awards.

Vietnam’s pavilion at TRAVEX 2022 will be themed “Live Fully in Vietnam”, with the participation of popular tourist destinations, tour operators and luxurious hotels and resorts from the country.

The ATF was first organized in Kuala Lumpur in 1981. The event was hosted by Vietnam twice, in Hanoi in 2009 and in Quang Ninh in 2019, VOV reported.

According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, ASEAN is one of Vietnam’s major source of tourists. In 2019, tourist arrivals from ASEAN totaled nearly 2.1 million, mostly from Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Cambodia. The figure accounted for about 11.6% of Vietnam’s foreign visitors.

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