The red list of threatened species

The famed river bridges of the Iranian city of Isfahan are a beloved tourist draw -- but much of the time their stone arches span just sand and rocks, not water. Women pose for a selfie along the bank of the Zayandeh Rood in Iran's central city of Isfahan on May 15, 2022 Drought and upstream water diversions have seen the Zayandeh Rood, "fertile river" in Persian, run dry since 2000, with only rare exceptions. Sitting on a quay with two friends, 60-year-old Jalal Mirahmadi gazed with melancholy at the riverbed, which became the site of a farmers' protest late last year. "When I was a child, the water flowed under the arches of the bridge and sometimes overflowed to spill into the surrounding streets," he sighed. The river runs nearly 400 kilometres (250 miles) from the Zagros Mountains in the west to Lake Gavkhouni in the east, making it the longest waterway in central Iran. On its way through Isfahan, it meanders under several beautifully crafted … [Read more...] about Iconic Iran river threatened by droughts, diversions

At his meeting with British Cabinet Minister and President for the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) Alok Sharma, Khai said that Vietnam has been implementing many overall and comprehensive measures in the field of energy transition and growth model transformation towards a green and circular direction to realize commitments made at COP26. The official underlined that ensuring energy security for growth and reducing emissions at the same time is a very complicated problem that requires the support of the international community in terms of resources, technology, and governance capacity. Therefore, he said that Vietnam hopes that the U.K., the European Union (E.U.) and other member states of the Group of Seven (G7) will soon make specific commitments to supporting Vietnam in this area. For his part, Sharma held that Vietnam has made a proper decision to announce the net-zero emission commitment at the COP26, lauding Vietnam’s efforts to realize the commitments, … [Read more...] about Deputy PM busy with meetings on threshold of WEF meeting

Goalkeeper Van Toan (No. 18) and his teammate cheer for their victory at the freshly ended SEA Games 31 . Toan is in the list of 25 players earmarked for the 2022 AFC U23 Asian Cup final (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Head coach Gong Oh-kyun has announced a list of 25 football players to compete at the 2022 AFC U23 Asian Cup final, which will take place in Uzbekistan from June 1 to 19. More than half of the list are key players of the squad winning the goal medal at the freshly ended SEA Games 31 hosted by Vietnam. They include goalkeeper Van Toan, defenders Viet Anh and Thanh Binh, midfielders Ly Cong Hoang Anh and Le Van Do, and strikers Nguyen Van Tung and Nham Manh Dung. The remainder groups faces highly evaluated by Gong during a recent training in Hanoi, such as defenders Nguyen Thanh Nhan and Ha Trung Hau, midfielders Vo Dinh Lam and Khuat Van Khang, and strikers Le Minh Binh and Tran Danh Trung. According to the draw results, Vietnam is in Group C with the … [Read more...] about Players named for men’s football at 2022 AFC U23 Asian Cup

Though the benchmark VN-Index has lost nearly 19 percent this year, the bank said it was confident about the long-term prospects of the market as companies have been "on a roll" in terms of growth and profits in recent years. The average earnings per share of listed companies had grown by 35 percent last year, and while trading had dipped in the last few months, the Vietnamese market had surpassed Singapore and Indonesia to become the second largest in Southeast Asia behind only Thailand. Local retail investors accounted for around 87 percent of trading. Though foreigners had been mostly withdrawing from the market for nearly three years, they "have started to dip their toes into this market again" in the past few weeks. This was because only seven of the 30 biggest stocks on the main bourse, the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, had reached their foreign ownership limit. Overall the VN-Index had a foreign ownership limit of 44 percent, and current foreign holdings were at less … [Read more...] about HSBC optimistic about Vietnam stock market despite plunge

Hanoi (VNA) – The following is a brief review of the day’s events as reported by the Vietnam News Agency on May 24. - Deputy Prime Minister Le Minh Khai on May 23 led a Vietnamese delegation to attend the 52nd World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting. He proposed the establishment of a food innovation hub for Southeast Asia in Vietnam when addressing the “Averting a Global Food Crisis” session, a panel discussion with World Food Programme Executive Director David Beasley, UAE Climate and Environment Minister Mariam Mohammed Saeed Al Mheiri, Tanzania’s Vice President Philip Isdor Mpango, and CEO of the Swiss agriculture company Syngenta, J Erik Fyrwald. Read full story - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the US Embassy on May 24 co-organised a ceremony to inaugurate the US-Vietnam Cooperation Centre at the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam (DAV)’s campus in Hanoi. The new centre is an outcome of the partnership between the embassy’s Public Affairs Section and the DAV which … [Read more...] about ☕ Afternoon briefing on May 24

A four-year-old Vietnamese girl has passed away after she was bitten by a venomous snake but no venom antiserum against the species was available for use to save her then, local authorities said. The little girl, S.T.N.N., died on Sunday, a week after being bitten by a Malayan krait snake, one of the venomous snake species, while sleeping at home in Phuoc Tan Commune, Son Hoa District, Phu Yen Province, located in the south-central region. N.'s mother found her daughter being bitten by the snake at 0:00 on May 16 and took the girl to the district health center immediately, the commune authorities said. Due to her critical condition, the girl was transferred to the Phu Yen Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital at 2:30 am the same day in a state of lethargy and difficulty breathing. Doctors later performed endotracheal intubation on the girl as she showed signs of apnea, said Dr. Phan Van Minh, the hospital director. They promptly transferred her to the provincial General … [Read more...] about In Vietnam, little girl dies of snakebite as hospitals couldn’t find corresponding antivenom

HCM City had laid out plans for eight major transport infrastructure projects from now to 2025. The list includes the HCM City-Moc Bai Expressway project with an investment of VND16 trillion (USD689.65 million) and VND9.98 trillion Can Gio Bridge. HCM City plans major transport infrastructure projects (photo by VOV) Other projects comprise a VND6.2 trillion inland container depot, the VND5.3 trillion Thu Thiem Bridge 4, the VND1.33 trillion HCM City-Chon Thanh Highway, a VND1.76 trillion road to link Vo Van Kiet Highway to HCM City-Trung Luong Highway. However, funds for the Belt Road 4 project has not yet been disclosed. The Department of Transport has been asked to conduct feasibility studies on all the projects. … [Read more...] about HCM City plans major transport infrastructure projects

A representative of the General Department of Preventive Medicine under the Ministry of Health was quoted on the government news portal as saying monkeypox was usually zoonotic, but human-to-human transmission was possible through contact with wounds, bodily fluids and contaminated objects. To detect possible cases of monkeypox and promptly roll out response plans, the health ministry has asked local health departments to detect possible cases at the border, especially among those coming from countries where monkeypox is present: Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Liberia, Nigeria, Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone and South Sudan. Medical facilities should also increase surveillance and if possible cases of monkeypox are detected, they must be reported to health departments for follow up action. The health ministry recommended that people avoid contact with those having smallpox, including sexual … [Read more...] about Vietnam ramps up surveillance amid monkeypox outbreak in 12 countries

UVALDE, Texas -- A teenage gunman opened fire at an elementary school in South Texas on Tuesday, killing 18 children and three adults before the suspect was also killed, officials said, in the latest spasm of mass gun violence sweeping the United States. Governor Greg Abbott said the suspect, identified as 18-year-old Salvador Ramos, was apparently killed by police officers responding to the scene, and that two officers were struck by gunfire, though the governor said their injuries were not serious. Authorities said the suspect acted alone. Abbott told a news conference hours after the shooting that 14 schoolchildren had been slain, along with one teacher. But Texas state Senator Roland Gutierrez later told CNN , citing the Texas Rangers state police as his source, that the death toll had climbed to 18 children and three adults. Law enforcement personnel run away from the scene of a suspected shooting near Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, U.S. May 24, … [Read more...] about Gunman kills 18 children, 3 adults in Texas elementary school, officials say

Great Place to Work®, the global authority on workplace culture held its inaugural Vietnam Best Workplaces event on May 12 at Sofitel Saigon Plaza with the theme People-First, Purpose-Driven , acknowledging the approach that companies have adopted in their workplace practices over the past year. The event was attended by 120 participants, including Vo Tan Thanh, vice-chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Delphine Rousselet, executive director of the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam. In the welcome speech to the audience, Evelyn Kwek, managing director of Great Place to Work ASEAN and ANZ said, “The best way to do great business and take care of our customers is to take care of our people first. “When we are purpose-driven, the company is here to do more, a lot more than just make money; we’re here to take care of each other, respect each other, build great teams, and help each other perform in a way that is better for people, better for business, … [Read more...] about Great Place to Work Vietnam introduces Certification methodology