In October alone, 869 people were killed and 549 injured during traffic accidents. Compared to the previous month, the death toll rose by 7 percent and the number of traffic accidents by 3 percent, according to a latest report from the General Statistics Office (GSO).

A charity concert was performed by overseas Vietnamese pianist Vu Ngoc and French musician Nadege Barbin Sekaly at the Vietnamese Cultural Centre in France on December 12.

A total of US$45,000 was raised from a gala night during the 7th fund raising for charity in southern Binh Duong province on December 13.

The fifth Lawrence S. Ting Charity Walk will be held in the Phu My Hung Urban Complex in HCM City at 6.30 on January 10, 2010 in response to a campaign launched by the Vietnam Fatherland Front.  

Despite being disabled and bedridden for over 10 years, Doan Van Be, who is a seriously wounded soldier, has done the impossible.

Vietnam planned to send 90,000 guest workers abroad this year, but so far only 70,000 workers have been sent, achieving only 80 percent of the projected target, according to the Department for Overseas Labour Management.

The Government has decided to provide VND50 billion and 2,000 tonnes of rice to help Gia Lai province overcome the consequences of natural disasters.

The Japanese Buddhist Organisation Shinnyo-En on December 12 provided US$21,000 to the Vietnamese Study Encouragement Fund in 2010.

The third Post & Logistics Conference of the Union Network International – Asia/Pacific Regional Organisation (UNI-Apro) opened in Hanoi on December 12, drawing the participation of representatives from Asia-Pacific countries and the world.

The Vietnamese Students’ Association in Japan, in coordination with the Japan-Vietnam Association (JVA), held a music gala on December 12 to raise money for the victims of typhoon Ketsana.

The Lao Cai provincial People’s Committee held a press briefing in Hanoi on December 11 to introduce the “return to the roots” tourism programme 2010 in the three northern mountainous provinces of Lao Cai, Yen Bai and Phu Tho.

The fifth congress of the Radio and Electronics Association of Vietnam (REV) opened at the National Radio Centre in Hanoi on December 12.

The Ishikawajima Transport Machinery Co. Ltd. (IUK) signed a contract on automatic car parking systems with the Company for Technological Development (CFTD) in Hanoi on December 11.

The German Reconstruction Bank (KfW) signed a loan worth US$7.3 million with the Vietnam-Germany Hospital in Hanoi on December 11.

Delegates from Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar gathered at a sub-regional ministerial telecommunication meeting in the central province of Khanh Hoa on December 11  

A 57-year-old man in Hanoi’s Dong Da district has died after contracting the deadly strain of A/H1N1 virus, the Ministry of Health reported on December 11.

In recent years, Vietnam’s telecommunications industry has seen an impressive growth. However, the overall quality and stability remain poor.

From its 13th position last year, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) is now taking the lead in the Vietnam Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Index 2009, announced the Vietnam Association for Information Processing (VAIP) on December 11.

Twenty-two products and solutions in four aspects, including sectorial-level IT solution and product, packaging software – commodity software, Vietnam brand name computer and e-commerce product, have been awarded the Vietnam ITC Cup 2009.

Many second and third generation overseas Vietnamese cannot speak Vietnamese fluently or never at all.  

Laotian government officials and Vietnamese Ambassador to Laos Ta Minh Chau witnessed the construction of the Lao National Archives Centre in the capital city of Vientiane on December 10. 

Japan will invest VND61 billion (around US$3.9 million) in three social projects in the northern mountain province of Yen Bai, said Japanese ambassador to Vietnam Mitsuo Sakaba during his working trip to Yen Bai on December 9-10.

The northern province of Vinh Phuc has received almost US$1.39 million in aid from 21 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and international cooperation agencies to implement charity projects in 2008-2009. 

A tourism workshop titled “Vietnam – a favourite destination” will be held in France by the General Department of Tourism (GDT) and the Vietnamese Embassy in France on November 14.

The 2010 Spring Fair will open its doors to visitors at the Vietnam Trade Promotion Centre For Agriculture (Agritrade) in Hanoi on February 5, 2010.  

The 300th anniversary of the establishment of the Vietnamese catholic community was celebrated in Thailand’s Chanthaburi province on December 9.

A conference to raise awareness of electricity use production among people in the five north-western mountain provinces of Ha Giang, Tuyen Quang, Yen Bai, Lao Cai and Phu Tho was held in Yen Bai province on December 8.

“Fully aware of the challenges posed by drug trafficking, Vietnam gives high priority to drug prevention and control,” said a Vietnamese representative at the UN Security Council’s open debate on drug trafficking in New York on December 8.

Vietnam is one of the four countries most seriously affected by extreme weather events from 1990 to 2008, according to the Global Climate Risk Index 2010 report.

The International Traffic and Road Transport Conference and Exhibition (Viet Traffic 2009) officially opened in Hanoi on December 9.