Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel has appointed Philipp Roesler Minister of Health in her new cabinet.

Vietnam has confirmed the 32nd fatal case of A/H1N1 flu, which is also the first death in the northern region.

According to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), Vietnam is listed among the top 10 countries achieving the fastest Internet development in the world between 2002-2007.

According to a report on the socio-economic impact of WTO admission on Vietnam’s rural women on October 20, rural women have plenty of opportunity to get jobs but often with low wages.

A Republic of Korea (RoK) education exhibition and a RoK gastronomy festival opened in Hanoi on October 24 on the occasion of Vietnam-RoK Culture Economics Week (October 18-25).

More than 300 lawyers are expected to attend the 22nd conference of the Law Association for Asia and the Pacific (LAWASIA) to be held in Ho Chi Minh City from November 9-12.

The number of people registering to buy social insurance is predicted to reach 14.4 million by 2015, according to Vietnam Social Insurance.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) will help Vietnam realise its initiative to make the upcoming 3rd Asian Indoor Games (AIG III) a smoke-free event.

Vietnam and Malaysia on October 15 agreed to increase cooperation in various areas, especially in economics and trade, seafood exploitation and maritime security.

Overseas Vietnamese in the Thai province of Khonkaen have donated VND470 million for victims of typhoon Ketsana in the central and Central Highlands provinces of Vietnam.

Japanese and Vietnamese scientists will join hands for a five-year research project, which has an important significance in saving and using clean energy.

The Vietnam-France Friendship Association (VFFA) will continue boosting the fine development of the traditional friendship and solidarity with France, as well as French investors and enterprises doing business in Vietnam.

The “2009 Korea-Vietnam Friendship Night” was held in Hanoi on October 23 by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOIKA) to enhance friendship between the Republic of Korea (RoK) and Vietnam.

Vietnam on October 23 confirmed four more deaths, including two pregnant women, from A/H1N1 flu, bringing the number of fatalities from the virus to 31.

A French funded centre in support of children was put into operation in Long Dien district of the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau on October 23 after almost a year of construction.

Ho Chi Minh City has seen its population increase by 41.14 percent or more than two million people over the last decade and a growing trend of mechanical increases in population.

Vietnam has made considerable progress in its struggle against drug crime after having applied synchronous measures to remove large-scale drug rings and abolish venues for retailing and using illegal drugs.

After their trip to Venezuela and Brazil, a Vietnamese delegation led by Hoang Tuan Anh, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism has visited the Vietnamese Cultural Centre in France.

A grand requiem will be organised at the Vietnam-Laos Martyrs’ Cemetery in Anh Son district, in the central province of Nghe An, from October 22-24 for fallen Vietnamese combatants. 

International donors and Vietnamese overseas on October 22 put up more aid for victims of storm Ketsana, which slammed into Vietnam late last month, displacing nearly 200,000 people and claiming 163 lives. 

Efforts from all strata of society are needed to combat crime related to the trafficking of women and children, said Deputy Prime Minister Truong Vinh Trong at an online conference in Hanoi on October 22 to review the implementation of an action programme to prevent and combat human trafficking in the 2004-2009 period.

Saigontourist on October 22 organised a MICE tour for a group of 80 Singaporeans, combining vacation with charity in Vietnam. 

Meteorologists predict that Vietnam will have a warm winter and large-scaled droughts this year due to the impact of El Nino. 

A second seminar entitled “Japanese studies in Southeast Asia: past, present and future” was held in Hanoi on October 22 with the participation of researchers from Japan, the US, UK, Austria, Germany, Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam.

A UK Education Exhibition was held in central Da Nang City on October 22 with the participation of 11 British universities and colleges.

A Vietnam-Republic of Korea (RoK) job festival opened in Hanoi on October 21 within the framework of Vietnam-RoK Cultural Week.

Saigontourist conducted a special MICE tour for 80 Singaporean visitors who came to Vietnam on October 22 to do charitable activities.

The National Fund for Vietnamese Children has provided an aid package worth VND500 million (around US$28,000) to nine central and Central Highland provinces hit by storm Ketsana. 

Vietnam’s Foreign Ministry and the UK’s London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) on October 20 signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on education and training cooperation. 

A US$3.9 million project funded by the Japanese government started this month to help citrus fruit growers in the Mekong Delta region improve their farming system and cultivation techniques.