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Forest fires supercharged by climate change are burning twice as much global tree cover as 20 years ago, according to a data Wednesday showing the equivalent of 16 football pitches are now lost every minute. The research showed in unprecedented detail how wildfires have progressed over the past two decades, with the blazes claiming an estimated three more million hectares each year -- an area the size of Belgium -- compared with 2001. The study showed that the majority of tree cover loss is occurring in the boreal forests that blanket much of Russia, Canada and Alaska, which are among the largest storers of carbon on Earth. Researchers from the University of Maryland used satellite imagery to map areas of tree cover lost, including that burned by what are known as stand-replacing forest fires. These are fires that kill all or most of the forest's canopy and which cause long-term changes to forest structure and soil chemistry. The data showed 2021 to be one of the worst years … [Read more...] about Climate change driving unprecedented forest fire loss

The Vietnamese delegation, led by General Ngo Xuan Lich, member of the Politburo, Deputy Secretary of the Central Military Commission, Minister of National Defense, attended the conference. The conference focused on global and regional security issues, counter-terrorism, security in Europe and the Middle East, the situation in the Asia Pacific region, and the role of multilateral cooperation mechanisms in dealing with challenges. Russian President Vladimir Putin sent to the conference a message, which was read by Nikolai Patrushev, Secretary of the Security Council of Russia, at the opening ceremony of the conference. In his opening remarks, General Sergei Shoigu, Russian Minister of Defense, reviewed issues in Russia’s relations with NATO, countries inside and outside the region, and traditional partners in Asia Pacific. He stressed that Russia’s strategic partnership with China, India, Vietnam, Laos, and Myanmar is practical, and Russia is promoting partnership with Brunei, … [Read more...] about Seventh Moscow Conference on International Security opens

The approval of Vietnam’s circular economy development plan, announced in June, aims to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 15 per cent of GDP by 2030 (as compared to 2014). The commitment at COP26 by Vietnam to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 is considered the main call for investment into green technologies and friendly-environmental projects, as well as approval of plans such as the aforementioned circular economy one. These messages have sent a strong signal regarding the country’s direction towards low-carbon, green development, and a circular economy, and could be a new driving force for Vietnam’s sustainable socioeconomic development, helping to improve its competitiveness and foreign direct investment (FDI) into the country. While governments have committed to lowering CO2, companies are also following suit for the good of the planet, Photo: Shutterstock As a result, numerous groups have made decisions in terms of investment and other operations … [Read more...] about Green standards top policies for fresh foreign ventures

The image of Ao Tien high-class tourism urban area has been shared widely on social networks in recent days. (Photo nld.com.vn) Quang Ninh (VNS/VNA ) - The People's Committee of northern coastal Quang Ninh province has refuted information that it has allowed a project to conduct sea encroachment and subdivide land plots for sale, which seriously undermined the conservation of the UNESCO-recognised Ha Long Bay . The committee said the information circulating online about a development project encroaching into the bay in recent days was "not true." The image circulated was taken at in Ao Tien high-class tourism urban area project in Van Don district. The area was in Van Don economic zone, not in the Ha Long Bay, the province stressed. In recent days, the image of an urban area with divided land plots and an island in the middle of the area locating right close to Ha Long Bay has been shared widely on Facebook, stirring strong opposition about greed-driven … [Read more...] about Quang Ninh refutes allegations of sea encroachment in Ha Long Bay

At the meeting (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam on August 17 asked the Ministry of Culture , Sports and Tourism (MCST) to review the operation of household businesses in the tourism sector affected by the COVID-19 . The ministry should coordinate with core travel firms to form key routes connecting localities, the official said at a meeting of the State Steering Committee for Tourism in Hanoi which assessed the implementation of tourism recovery solutions. He ordered restarting heritage digitalisation with the participation of travel enterprises to promote new tourism products. Regarding electricity prices for tourism services and lodging facilities, Dam, also head of the Committee, asked the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) to submit a plan on power price adjustment to the Prime Minister before application. The MCST, travel associations and firms should propose specific tax and land incentives, he said. Minister Nguyen Van Hung … [Read more...] about Committee seeks ways to ensure rapid, sustainable tourism recovery

Staff of Sai Gon Bank interview candidates at a job fair held by the HCM City University of Economics in May. — Photo diendandoanhnghiep.vn Banks are focusing on digital transformation and automation, which has led to increasing demand for IT and data personnel, according to a report recently released by the recruitment service provider Navigos Group. Banks need high-quality human resources, yet it can be difficult and costly to find qualified staff due to market competition. Digital transformation has been undertaken by large banks in the past three to five years. Due to competition and the pandemic, numerous banks have expanded their digital transformation over the past two years. Searches by banks for mid- and high-level positions related to digital banking and digital transformation occupied half of bank jobs from the second half of 2021 to mid-2022. Some positions that are always in high demand for digital transformation include product owner, project manager, business … [Read more...] about Banks struggle to recruit personnel for digital transformation

Piles of VND100.000 bank notes. — EastAsia forum/VNA Photo Banks must tighten their assessment controls of corporate bond investments to avoid excessive risk and the misuse of funds raised by firms, experts said. In early April, the Banking Supervision Agency, under the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) conducted an inspection of corporate bond investment activities at seven banks, while the Ministry of Finance inspected one bank. According to the SBV, by the end of 2021, there are 41 credit institutions holding VND274 trillion (US$11.7 billion) of corporate bonds, of which more than 75 per cent of them are held by ten major banks - Techcombank, MBBank, VPBank, TPBank, BIDV, Vietcombank, VietinBank, HDBank, ABBank and SeABank. At some banks, the value of corporate bonds exceeds 10 per cent of total assets. Although the inspection results were not published, a SBV senior leader said in an interview with Vietnam Investment Review that a number of credit institutions failed to … [Read more...] about Banks should tighten assessment controls of their corporate bonds investments – experts

ADB experts at the press conference (Photo: Vietnam+) Hanoi (VNA) - ADB experts forecast that Vietnam's economy could recover at 6.5 percent this year and grow stronger at 6.7 percent in 2023, due to high vaccination rates and the implementation of expansionary fiscal policies. On April 6, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) released the Asian Development Outlook Report (ADO 2022), which stated that the Vietnamese economy is ready for a strong recovery in the context of global economy instability. GDP reaches a high level ADB experts forecast that Vietnam's economy could recover at a rate of 6.5 percent this year and grow stronger at 6.7 percent in 2023 due to high vaccination rates, trade promotion and continued implementation of expansionary fiscal and monetary policies. Andrew Jeffries, ADB Country Director for Vietnam, said that high vaccination rates have allowed the Vietnamese Government to lift strict pandemic containment measures. The timely shift in pandemic … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s economy recovers strongly amid global instability: ADB

Well you got caught with a flat? Well, how 'bout that Well babies, don't you panic By the light of the night, it'll all seem alright I'll get you a Satanic mechanic (Lyrics from the Rocky Horror Show) You hear that chunk and feel the dump and know you’re in trouble. Yes, it’s that wonderful time when you get a flat tire and need to find the repair shop pronto. Murphy’s Law (anything that can go wrong will go wrong!) applies here: 1) it nearly always happens when you are the furthest away from a repair shop; 2) it will happen when you are in a hurry to get somewhere; or 3) just when you’ve achieved that perfect mood to get through the day… (A note for English learners – ‘tire’ is used in America and Canada, however most of the rest of the world spells it ‘tyre’ – the rubber outside part of a wheel.) A mechanic repairs a motorbike for free during a rainstorm in Da Nang in December 2018. Photo: Doan Nhan / Tuoi Tre Your magic words will be ‘sửa chữa’ … [Read more...] about The art of motorbike repairs in Vietnam

Every year, the city Department of Natural Resources and Environment has advised the municipal People's Committee to issue a plan and collect, manage and use information and data on natural resources and the environment in the southern largest city. The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Natural Resources and Environment has completed the construction of the Natural Resources and Environment Portal in 2021 https://geoportal-stnmt.tphcm.gov.vn The HCMC Natural Resources and Environment Data Portal and the axis system integrating web services of the natural resources and environment sector are served as a database platform for sharing environmental and resource data to serve state agencies, people, and businesses in accordance with the present regulations. Nguyen Toan Thang, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Natural Resources and Environment, said that through this platform, organizations and individuals can clearly understand the data and approach to create applications … [Read more...] about HCMC announces database platform for sharing environmental data