Vietnam News Today (November 1): Vietnam Airline Announces Direct UK Flight Routes

A health worker prepares a Covid-19 vaccine shot in HCMC's District 1, October 27, 2021. Photo: VnExpress

Vietnam records 5,519 more local Covid cases

Vietnam on Sunday recorded 5,519 more local Covid-19 cases in 46 cities and provinces, bringing the total infection tally in the fourth wave to 916,287.

The three localities with the highest numbers of infection are Ho Chi Minh City with 1,041 cases, Dong Nai with 688 cases and Binh Duong with 672 cases.

53 deaths were added to the national database on Sunday, with 21 cases in HCMC, seven in Binh Duong, five in Can Tho, four each in Dong Nai and Soc Trang, three each in Bac Lieu and Long An, and one each in Vinh Long, Tay Ninh, Tra Vinh, Tien Giang, Kien Giang and Dak Lak.

The total number of deaths so far is 22,083, accounting for 2.4 percent of all infections, cited VnExpress.

1,998 Covid-19 patients were announced recovered on Sunday, bringing the total number of recovered cases to 820,334.

Vietnam has vaccinated 57 million people with at least one Covid-19 vaccine shots. 24.3 million people have been fully vaccinated.

Vietnam a role model in FDI attraction: Malaysian scholar

Vietnam has been an engaging contributor to ASEAN and a role model in FDI attraction in the region, Dr Oh Ei Sun, Principal Adviser for Pacific Research Centre of Malaysia, has told Vietnam News Agency in Malaysia.

Vietnam has demonstrated its activeness and sense of responsibility as the Chair of ASEAN last year and Vietnam’s contributions to ASEAN cooperation must be held in high regard, said Oh, who is also a Senior Fellow at Singapore Institute of International Affairs.

Dr Oh Ei Sun, Principal Adviser for Pacific Research Centre of Malaysia, speaks to Vietnam News Agency in Malaysia. Photo: VNA

Describing Vietnam as a rapidly emerging economy in the region and a success story in foreign investment attraction thanks to its effective one-stop-shop mechanism, he said regional countries are hoping to learn from Vietnam’s practices in this field, according to VNA.

He also spoke highly of Vietnam’s national strategy on the Fourth Industrial Revolution as the country is among those experiencing the fastest pace of industrialization and digitalization. Vietnam has truly played a leading role in raising awareness of Industry 4.0 in ASEAN cooperation, he stated.

He went on to highlight Vietnam’s initiative and activeness in addressing disputes in East Sea, particularly accelerating the conclusion of an effective and practical Code of Conduct (COC) in the regional waters.

Vietnam eyes building blue economy partnership group

The Vietnam Administration of Sea and Islands (VASI) at the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and the World Bank have jointly held a virtual consultation workshop on the building of a Blue Economy partnership group.

At the event, VASI Deputy Director General Nguyen Que Lam said the proposal to build a partnership group on blue economy aims to mobilize the participation of stakeholders for the efficient management and sustainable development of Vietnam’s maritime economy.

Photo: VNA

Participants discussed and share information on programs and projects related to the field.

According to the World Bank, the Blue Economy refers to the sustainable and integrated development of economic sectors for healthy oceans and seas. Nguyen Thi Tho, an expert at the VASI, said that the blue economy model aims to improve welfare and social fairness, as well as mitigate risks in environment and scarcity, reported VOV.

The annual Vietnam Blue Economy Forum is among major activities of the country’s seas and islands week. The forum helps the community understand the potential and challenges in the realization of maritime economy development targets.

Vietnam airline announces direct UK flight routes

The first Vietnam-U.K. direct flight routes were announced by Bamboo Airways on Sunday, with APG UK being the airline's representative in the U.K.

The announcement was witnessed by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, who's in the U.K. for the COP26 climate meeting and other tasks.

Trinh Van Quyet, chairman of Bamboo Airways, said direct flights could commence within this year once both countries allow the resumption of commercial flights between the two.

A Bamboo Airways plane takes off from HCMC's Tan Son Nhat Airport. Photo: VnExpress

The airline would have direct flights connecting Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City with London, with six expected round trips a week. Flight frequency may increase based on demands.

The direct flights would help cut down travel time between Vietnam and the U.K. to around 12 hours, seven hours quicker than flights that require transit.

Flights are expected to drop and take passengers at the Heathrow Airport's Terminal 2, connecting Vietnam's Noi Bai and Tan Son Nhat Airport to the U.K.'s largest airport. Flights would be done using the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.

Nguyen Hoang Long, Vietnamese ambassador to the U.K., said opening direct flights between Vietnam and the U.K. would contribute to commerce and people's exchange between the two countries, especially for the Vietnamese community in the U.K, cited VnExpress.

At the announcement event, Bamboo Airways also introduced APG UK, a passenger and cargo representation company, as its representative at the U.K. market, supporting the airline regarding aviation policies and procedures, sales and marketing and customer support, among other tasks.

There are currently over 100,000 Vietnamese studying and living in the U.K., and around 60 percent of them are in London. In 2019, the number of visitors from the U.K. to Vietnam reached 315,000, a 105 percent increase from 2018, according to the General Statistics Office.

Tour plans to entice visitors back to ancient capital

Several places of historical and scenic interests in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue, home to the ancient capital of Hue, will be connected in a tour aiming to attract domestic tourists back to the province in the post-pandemic period.

To prepare for the launch of the “Hue Green Tourism” tour, the province's tourism association has collaborated with the information centre for tourism promotion and the Hue Monuments Conservation Centre to examine local tourist attractions.

The tour is expected to revive the provincial tourism sector that has been severely affected by the pandemic by building a new safe “travel bubble” model to help the sector resume a stable state in the “new normal”.

Members of the survey team pictured while examining some tourist attractions in Thua Thien Hue province. Photo: Thua Thien-Hue newspaper

Under a “travel bubble” tour, visitors will mostly take part in outdoor activities and only have close contact with members of their package tour.

The province's tourism association will coordinate with tourism businesses in Hanoi to pilot the “Hue Green Tourism” tour, which will be first targeted at domestic tourists next month, reported VNA.

The participants must have either two vaccine shots against Covid-19 for over 14 days or a negative PCR test within 72 hours (for people under 18). They are also required to strictly abide by pandemic prevention measures and have a Disease Control Card to scan QR codes at every visited site.

The tour will receive international tourists with vaccine passports and arriving by charter flights from December when the provincial tourism sector opens its door to the world as approved by the Prime Minister.

The sites surveyed by the Hue Tourism Association are those with significant historical value that are attractive to tourists such as the Thanh Toan tile-roofed bridge, Tomb of Emperor Gia Long, Hue Imperial Citadel, Tam Giang Lagoon, and Huyen Khong Pagoda.

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