Low carbon investment fund

A signing ceremony for the funding was held in the Lao capital of Vientiane Friday, its beneficiary, the Mekong River Commission (MRC), said. This extra funding has brought the German contribution to the MRC to 6.45 million euros ($7.2 million) for the current strategic plan 2016-2020 and the initial part of the new plan 2021-2025. The funding will enable the MRC to further foster dialogue and cooperation on trans-boundary water resource planning and management among the four lower Mekong countries -- Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam. Disbursed in 2019-2021, the grant will also be used to increase monitoring of the environmental impacts of mainstream Mekong dams built on Lao territory, the Xayaburi and Don Sahong, and identify measures to mitigate them.  "The German support comes at a critical time when the Mekong River is facing difficult trade-offs between increased development in the energy, transport and agriculture sectors and impacts on the environment and local … [Read more...] about Germany facilitates Mekong basin management with additional funding

Egypt’s Wanna Explore Travel Limited has been licensed to provide services of operating tours and other direct support for air transportation in Vietnam. Foreign tourists in Vietnam The project worth 300 million USD was registered in the southern economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City. This is the first time an Egyptian business has invested big in Vietnam. To date, Egyptian firms have registered to invest more than 302 million USD in 11 projects in Vietnam. This means Wanna Explore Travel’s project has made up most of Egypt’s investment in the Southeast Asian country./. VNA Vietnam still faces hurdles in tourism promotion In 2018, the government approved to establish a public tourism development fund with an initial annual budget of US$4.3 million. Vietnam develops tourism with 'old way' of thinking: experts The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) is stuck in an old way of thinking, which has not changed over the last 20 years, according to Vu … [Read more...] about Egypt’s travel company invests $300 million in Vietnam

Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak (Photo: upi.com)   Kuala Lumpur (VNA) – Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was charged on September 20 with money laundering and abuse of power in connection to the case of the state investment fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). The charges include four counts of abuse of power, involving in 2.3 billion ringgit (556.3 million USD), and 21 counts of money laundering. Najib, 65, has denied all the charges. The Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) arrested Najib on September 19 for new corruption charges related to 1MDB. Najib was arrested on July 3 for corruption-related charges over his involvement in the multi-billion-dollar 1MBD scandal. He was later released on bail. He was charged with three counts of criminal breach of trust in his former posts as a prime minister and minister of finance, in association with the transfer of 42 million ringgit, or 10 million USD, from SRC International Sdn Bhd to his … [Read more...] about Former Malaysian PM Najib Razak charged with money laundering, power abuse

Phu Yen has great potential for tourism development By the end of November 2019, Phu Yen has been reporting stable socio-economic growth, with positive changes in the local economy which now includes a lower proportion of agriculture and more industry and services. By the end of the year, the province is expected to witness over 8.3 per cent economic growth, earn a budgetary revenue of about VND5.5 trillion ($239.13 million) and export turnover of $165 million – while ensuring welfare, social security, and constantly improving people's lives. At the same time, the total number of newly-established enterprises in the locality was 325 (down about 6.4 per cent compared to the same period last year) with total registered capital of over VND5.014 trillion ($218 million), up 5 per cent compared to the same period last year. The provincial leaders assign agencies, units and localities to intensify propaganda activities in various forms. The provincial leaders assigned agencies, … [Read more...] about Phu Yen seeks solutions to spur business development

Adam Ward, Country Representative of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) in Vietnam (left) and Kate Bronstein, Research Environmental Engineer from RTI International. Air pollution is a mixture of small particles and gases – some we can see and some we can’t. Vietnam’s major cities are gravely affected by poor air quality; indeed, Hanoi was ranked second worst for air quality in the Southeast Asian region in 2018 by Air Visual. Situation in Vietnam When we talk about air pollution, we are referring to: particulate matter 10 micrometers or less in diameter (PM10), PM2.5, black carbon, nitrogen oxides (NO and NO2), sulphur dioxide (SO2), ozone (O3), and volatile organic carbons (VOCs). Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City regularly exceed the safe World Health Organization (WHO) limit for air pollution such as PM2.5 and PM10. So, what is causing this poor air? This has been attributed to five main drivers, including coal power, heavy industry (such as cement … [Read more...] about Tackling Vietnam’s air pollution