Ton Thi Ngoc Huong, the new ambassador and permanent representative of Vietnam presents her credentials to ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn.

Vietnamese ambassador presents letter of credence to ASEAN Secretary General

Ton Thi Ngoc Huong, the new ambassador and permanent representative of Vietnam presented her credentials to the Secretary-General of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Kao Kim Hourn at the ASEAN Secretariat’s headquarters in Jakarta, Indonesia on May 13.

Secretary-General of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Kao Kim Hourn has praised Vietnam's contributions to building the ASEAN Community at a meeting with Ton Thi Ngoc Huong, the new ambassador and permanent representative of Vietnam to the bloc in Jakarta on May 13.

At a reception following the credentials presentation ceremony, Secretary General Kao Kim Hourn congratulated Ambassador Ton Thi Ngoc Huong on taking on her assignment and affirmed that the ASEAN Secretariat is ready to cooperate closely with the Ambassador personally as well as the Permanent Mission of Vietnam to support the regional bloc’s activities towards achieving the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and beyond.

He also praised Vietnam’s proactive and coordinating role in ASEAN's foreign relations, particularly the dialogue relations between ASEAN and the Republic of Korea (RoK), cited VOV.

The ASEAN chief expressed gratitude for Vietnam's facilitation of his recent working visit to the country, during which he attended and delivered a speech at the ASEAN Future Forum (AFF), a significant initiative of Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh. He applauded the initiative and showed his appreciation of Vietnam's leading role in shaping the future of the bloc.

In response, Huong said she hopes that the Secretariat and Secretary-General would further make greater efforts to assist member countries in completing and effectively implementing goals set by the ASEAN Community Vision 2045, particularly bringing the community closer to the people and delivering tangible benefits to citizens and businesses.

She thanked the Secretariat and Secretary-General for their cooperation with and support for the Permanent Mission of Vietnam, especially during its tenure of coordinating ASEAN-RoK relations.

She said she is looking forward to more assistance to Vietnam in its forthcoming rotating tasks within ASEAN.

Vietnamese, Chinese Party officials pledge stronger cooperation

Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee and Chairman of the CPV Central Committee's Commission for External Relations Le Hoai Trung received Assistant Minister of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee’s International Department Zhao Shitong in Hanoi on May 13.

The officials highly evaluated positive development steps in the bilateral relations since the two historic visits made by the top leaders of the two Parties, according to VNA.

Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee and Chairman of the CPV Central Committee's Commission for External Relations Le Hoai Trung (R) and Assistant Minister of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee’s International Department Zhao Shitong at their meeting in Hanoi on May 13. (Photo: VNA)

They agreed that the two strategic advisory bodies on foreign affairs of the CPV and CPC will step up their coordination and will work with relevant agencies and localities in a bid to effectively implement the two countries’ high-level common perceptions, joint statements, and bilateral cooperation documents.

Trung highlighted the sound and practical development in the bilateral relations and expressed his appreciation for the Chinese people’s assistance to Vietnam's revolutionary cause and socialist construction and development process through various periods, including the historic Dien Bien Phu Victory. He went on noting that the Vietnam-China relationship is a top priority of the Vietnamese Party and State.

For his part, Zhao congratulated Vietnam on its great achievements under the leadership of the CPV Central Committee, with General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong at the helm.

Zhao led a delegation from the CPC Central Committee’s International Department to pay a working visit to Vietnam on May 12 and 13. Earlier, he held talks with Vice Chairman of the CPV Central Committee's Commission for External Relations Ngo Le Van, during which the two sides discussed cooperation orientations between the two agencies and the promotion of exchanges through the Party channel in the time to come.

Vietnam keen for WHO support to improve preventive healthcare system

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha expressed the country’s wish to get further support from the World Health Organization (WHO) to restructure and solidify its preventive healthcare system during a reception for Dr. Saia Ma’u Piukala, regional director of the WHO for the Western Pacific, on May 13 in Hanoi.

At the meeting, Deputy PM Ha underlined the significance of the system in providing initial healthcare and detecting diseases early on, asking the Ministry of Health to cooperate, share its plans, programmes, and activities that need consultations from the international health organization.

As one of 15 recipients of mRNA technology from the WHO, the nation needs more practical assistance to improve its research and production of vaccines, help in combating both emerging diseases and re-emerging ones like measles and tuberculosis, whilst developing other products to serve locals’ demand for disease prevention and treatment, the Deputy PM emphasized.

The nation remains highly interested in the production, purchase, and distribution of items such as medicine, vaccines, and biologicals, he said. The Deputy PM went on to suggest that the WHO dispatch experts to help the country finalize purchasing and bidding mechanisms, regulations, and procedures to ensure long-term and stable supply of pharmaceuticals, VOV reported.

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha (R) hosts WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific Dr. Saia Ma’u Piukala (Photo: VGP)

He noted the country’s appreciation for the WHO’s role in coordinating and connecting the whole world in the healthcare industry. Indeed, the country’s medical and healthcare policies have been backed by the consultation and assistance from the WHO specialists, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, Deputy PM Ha told his guest.

Describing healthcare security as a non-traditional security issue, he stated that the policies must go alongside the issue of environmental protection.

Regarding e-cigarettes, he assigned the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Health to evaluate their impact on public health, especially adolescents, whilst considering the WHO’s recommendations to work out suitable management solutions.

In response, Dr. Piukala highlighted several priorities in the WHO's support for Vietnam, with a focus on improving the preventive healthcare system’s capacity, improving the environment, ensuring healthcare security, and controlling e-cigarettes.

The healthier the people, the more sustainable socio-economic development the country secures, he said, therefore pledging even greater support for the nation in public healthcare work that contributes to both regional and global sustainable development.

High-speed boat service linking HCM City, Con Dao island launched

A high-speed boat service linking Ho Chi Minh City and Con Dao island off the coast of the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau was launched on May 13.

The over-77-m-long and 9.49-m-wide vessel can carry 1,017 passengers, cited VNA.

Representatives from agencies and companies at the launching ceremony of the high-speed boat service linking HCM City and Con Dao island. (Photo: plo.vn)

With the service, it takes about four hours and 30 minutes to travel between Saigon - Hiep Phuoc port in HCM City and Con Dao, said Bui Hoa An, Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Transport.

One-way ticket prices range between 615,000 VND and 1.1 million VND (24-43 USD), depending on passenger categories and departure time. The service, available three days weekly, is expected to help strengthen the connectivity between HCM City and southeastern provinces.

Currently, it takes about 50 minutes to travel by air between the southern metropolis and Con Dao.

Vietnam’s data center sector is attractive to foreign investors

Vietnam's data center market is attracting foreign investors due to high demand, according to JLL's comprehensive market report on Vietnam's data center sector.

The report released recently by JLL, stated that the Vietnamese data center market is currently dominated by local telecom players such as VNPT, Viettel IDC, FPT Telecom, and CMC Telecom, with significant growth noted in cloud service demands and big data analytics.

However, international developers and operators are beginning to enter the market, including notable projects like the 20MW facility by Gaw Capital in Saigon Hi-Tech Park, a 30MW project by Singapore-based Worldwide DC Solution, and a partnership between Japanese telecom giant NTT with DQ Tek, the report noted​.

Notably, Alibaba has announced its plans to establish a data center in Vietnam, indicating a trend that more global cloud services providers, particularly from the US, are expected to follow, thereby enhancing market competition and diversifying offerings, cited VNS.

Celina Chua, Data Center Client Solutions Director (APAC) at JLL, emphasized, “Vietnam has recently climbed the priority list of countries investors and operators are looking to understand as they work out their market entry."

"This interest is driven by Vietnam’s strategic geographical location, dynamic economic policies, a young tech-savvy population, and the need for data localization, positioning it as an important hub for data centers in Asia."

"Our report illustrates the readiness of Vietnam to capitalize on these opportunities, with increasing support from the government and an ever-growing demand for digital services shaping a promising future for the sector here,” she said.

According to the JLL report, development costs for data centers in Vietnam typically span from US$6 million to $13 million per megawatt, a range that reflects the bespoke agreements that characterize data center constructions and the variable local construction expenses.

This variance is also reflective of the broader Asia-Pacific region where countries like Japan, Singapore, and South Korea are experiencing escalating build costs, in contrast to China and India, which continue to present more cost-effective alternatives for data center developments.

The Telecommunications Law 2023, which will take effect in January 2025, is set to provide a more structured regulatory framework with clearer definitions and guidelines for data center and cloud computing services as telecommunications services.

This legislation, with a light-touch governance approach, is expected to provide a conducive regulatory framework for the sector's development, potentially attracting more foreign investment due to the liberalization of market access conditions.

The Telecommunications Law 2023 allows 100 percent foreign investment in data center services.

Vietnam's recently ratified Power Development Plan VIII sets forth an aggressive strategy to boost the nation’s total power generation capacity from approximately 80 GW to 155 GW by diversifying the energy mix away from coal toward more sustainable sources.

This transition is critical for ensuring a reliable and stable energy supply to meet the escalating demands of the rapidly growing, energy-intensive data center sector in Vietnam, the report added.

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