Illustrative image. Photo: VNA

1,020 new Covid-19 cases recorded on October 4

The national Covid-19 caseload rose to 11,482,334 with 1,020 new cases recorded on October 4, according to the Ministry of Health.

With 805 patients given the all clear during the day, the number of recoveries rose to 10,593,986. Meanwhile, there are 57 patients needing breathing support, cited VNA.

Two deaths from Covid-19 were recorded in the past 24 hours. The total fatalities rose to 43,151.

On October 3, an additional 18,113 doses of vaccines were administered, raising the total number of doses of Covid-19 vaccines injected to 260,228,227.

Foreign hi-tech firms expand investment in Vietnamese market

Molex, the world’s leading supplier of connectors and interconnect components, has unveiled its ambitions to expand its existing manufacturing plant in Hanoi, covering on a total production area of up to 16,000 square meters.

Molex's factory expansion is anticipated to generate at least 200 new jobs in the high-tech manufacturing sector.

This expansion is being done as a means of helping Molex to meet the growing demand for its products used in multiple fields, including smartphones, TVs, household appliances, medical and testing equipment.

Joe Nelligan, CEO of Molex, revealed that the company has been operating in the Vietnamese market for more than 15 years, adding that the expansion of the manufacturing plant in Hanoi will serve to accelerate its growth plan and improve production capacity in the Asia-Pacific region, as well as offering additional employment opportunities for highly-skilled workers.

Vanti Fan, director of Delta Electronic, said the nation is currently attracting investment from several countries around the world such as the United States, China, the Republic of Korea, and Singapore, affirming that Vietnam is the company's key strategic market.

Photo: VOV

He noted that the country enjoys a number of advantages such as a highly-skilled workforce, the development of a strategy for Industry 4.0 trends, and involvement in multiple Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with the European region.

Delta is aiming to become one of the most successful and reliable solution providers by 2027 and grow to be among the top five automation solution providers in the Vietnamese market.

Sharing this viewpoint, Shi-Chi Ho, general director of Techman Robot Company, emphasized that Vietnam has had a high GDP growth rate which is projected to reach 7.5%.

At present, many large corporations worldwide are seeking to move their factories from China to other countries, including Vietnam, according to VOV.

According to a report released by TMX, the Asia-Pacific region's leading business transformation consultancy, Vietnam represents one of the markets with the lowest average operating costs in the Asian region, just higher than Cambodia and Myanmar.

In line with this, nation’s average total operating costs range between US$79,280 and US$209,087 per month.

Moreover, Vietnam also ranks fifth in terms of competitive scores compared to other countries in the spheres of business climate, talent, logistics, and digitalization, behind Singapore, Malaysia, India and Thailand.

Vietnam rakes in US$16.05 billion from tourism in nine months

Vietnam earned some VND394.2 trillion (US$16.05 billion) from tourism in the first nine months of this year, equivalent to 78% of the figure recorded in 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic broke out.

The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism said the country welcomed over 1.8 million foreign tourists in the nine-month period, of which 1.2 million were recorded in the third quarter of this year, 2.5 times the figure in the previous quarter, reported VNA,

The Republic of Korea (RoK), the US and Asian countries like Cambodia, Japan, Singapore and Thailand are the biggest sources of tourists for Vietnam, the agency noted.

As of mid-September, international search volumes for aviation and lodging services in the Southeast Asian nation rose three times and 10 times, respectively, as compared with early March when the country had yet reopened its doors.

Illustrative image. Source: VNA

Domestic holidaymakers reached about 86.8 million in the nine months, surpassing the 85 million in 2019.

More and more Vietnamese are travelling abroad, with their search volume increasing four times from early March, targeting such countries as Thailand, Cambodia, Australia, the US, Indonesia, France and Malaysia.

Vietnam fully reopened borders to tourists from March 15. The country aims to welcome 5 million foreign arrivals this year.

Son Doong tops 10 greatest natural caves in the world

Son Doong cave, in the central province of Quang Binh, Vietnam, topped the list of the 10 Greatest Natural Caves in the world, which was announced by the famous travel website Wonderlist.

The site stated that the Son Doong Cave is the world’s largest cave, which was formed by the erosion of limestone underneath the mountains by river water.

“The cave hides a whole world inside it, with its river, jungle and climate. Some of the world’s tallest stalagmites are found here”, the website noted.

According to Wonderlist, the cave has a large calcite wall called The Great Wall of Vietnam, behind which, abnormally large cave pearls the size of baseballs were found.

Son Doong Cave was surveyed by the British Royal Cave Research Association (BRCA) in 2009. With a volume of 38.5 million cubic meters, the cave is the largest natural cave in the world.

The great beauty of Son Doong cave. Photo: Ryan Deboodt

On April 30, 2013, Son Doong was recognized as the largest cave in the world by the Guinness World Records. Since its milestone, Son Doong has become a symbol and brand of Vietnam’s tourism.

It has been voted and honored by prestigious international travel magazines, such as the top 11 best tourist destinations around the world in 2019 (according to Telegraph), one of the five most desirable destinations of the world in 2019 (according to Lonely Planet), and one of the top destinations in 2022 (by AFAR).

In addition to Son Doong, the nine other greatest natural caves in the world are Ice Cave near Mutnovsky Volcano (Russia), Caves of Algarve (Portugal), Marble Caves (Chile-Argentina), Antelope Canyon (American Southwest), Waitomo Glow-worm Caves (New Zealand), Cave of Swallows (Mexico), Caverns of Sonora (Texas, the US), Fingal’s Cave (Scotland) and Painted Cave (California in the US).

Vietnam attends meetings on ASEAN connectivity

Ambassador Nguyen Hai Bang, head of the Vietnamese Delegation to ASEAN, attended a series of meetings from October 1 to October 4 on the ASEAN connectivity in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

These events include the third meeting of the ASEAN Connectivity Coordinating Committee (ACCC), a dialogue between the ACCC with the Lead Implementing Body for Sustainable Infrastructure (“LIB-SI”), and the fifth Monitoring, Review and Evaluation (MRE) Meeting for the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity (MPAC) 2025. This is along with the 13th ASEAN Connectivity Forum and the consultation meeting of ACCC with dialogue partners and other partners.

At the third ACCC meeting held this year, countries highly appreciated the positive progress made in the implementation of MPAC 2025. The meeting primarily focused on discussing ways in which to increase the efficiency of carrying out projects within the MPAC 2025 framework in the future, provide comments on the draft of the fourth MPAC 2025 Progress Assessment Report for further completion and submission to the 31st ASEAN Coordinating Council (ACC) which is slated for November.

Vietnam attends the third meeting of the ASEAN Connectivity Coordinating Committee (ACCC). Photo: VOV

Currently, the bloc has implemented 14 out of 15 initiatives in five strategic areas of the MPAC 2025, including sustainable infrastructure, digital innovation, inter-connected logistics, planning optimisation, and people mobility.

At the dialogue held between the ACCC and LIB-SI, the two sides discussed various challenges in carrying out projects in the strategic field of sustainable infrastructure and solutions moving forward, cited VOV.

The fifth meeting of the MRE MPAC 2025 saw the participation of representatives of specialised agencies assigned to lead the implementation of 15 initiatives within the framework of MPAC 2025. This includes the ASEAN Senior Transport Officials Meeting (STOM), the ASEAN Senior Economic Officials Meeting (SEOM), the ASEAN Senior Official Meeting on Education (SOM-ED), the ASEAN Senior Labor Meeting (SLOM), the Lead Implementing Body for Sustainable Infrastructure (“LIB-SI”), as well as ACCC members.

With the cross-sectoral and cross-pillar nature of connectivity projects, the MRE mechanism serves to create greater cohesion among implementing agencies, while simultaneously increasing awareness of shared responsibility in implementing MPAC 2025 initiatives and projects. It also offers parties a chance to discuss and find solutions to challenges and difficulties faced in the implementation of MPAC 2025.

At the ACCC's consultation meeting held alongside dialogue partners and other partners, ambassadors, and heads of delegations of many ASEAN partner countries, including the United States, China, Japan, the Republic of Korea (RoK), Australia, Germany, the UK, Canada, and New Zealand, participants hailed recent ASEAN efforts. They praised the bloc for promoting intra-regional connectivity as well as connectivity with the wider region.

Partner countries affirmed their strong determination to continue to support ASEAN in implementing projects within the framework of MPAC 2025, as well as boosting connectivity in general to strengthen cohesion in building the ASEAN community. This is along with improving cohesion between the bloc and its partners and supporting regional economic recovery and development.

This year's 13th ASEAN Connectivity Symposium running the theme" Enhancing connectivity towards an inclusive, sustainable and resilient ASEAN community post-20215 vision" attracted more than 150 delegates, including Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Prak Sokhonn, ASEAN Secretary-General Dato Lim Jock Hoi, and Hidetoshi Nishimura, director of the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA). They were joined by numerous ambassadors and heads of delegations of ASEAN member states and ASEAN dialogue partners, development partners, as well as representatives from international organizations, the private sector, and other delegates.

During the three discussion sessions, the delegates shared information, knowledge, and specialized experience on the post-2025 ASEAN connectivity vision to promote partnership and linkages aimed at implementing MPAC 2025 projects, building sustainable infrastructure, and digitization in order to enhance connectivity.

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