A flock of 1,200 ducks raised by a farmer in Vinh Tuy commune, Go Quao district, Mekong delta province of Kien Giang, were culled on January 9 after showing signs of bird flu infection, according to the communal agency for bird flu control.

The Vietnam Agent Orange/dioxin Victims Association (VAVA) collected more than VND6.6 billion (US$412,500) in fund-raising campaigns in 2006.

The Vietnamese Government and international donors on January 9 signed projects worth US$20.2 million to help prevent bird flu and minimize the number of people infected with the disease in the country.

Approximately 500,000 overseas Vietnamese visited or did business in Vietnam in 2006. According to the Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs (COVA), the number of overseas Vietnamese returning home for this year’s Tet is expected to surpass last year’s figure of 100,000.

The Central Highlands province of Dak Lak plans to mobilize all its resources to help local residents develop production with the aim of reducing the poverty rate of local households to 15 percent by 2010.

The recurrence of bird flu was reported in Southern Bac Lieu province on January 8. By the end of January 5, bird flu recurred and spread over communes and districts in the three southern provinces of Ca Mau, Bac Lieu and Hau Giang. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the central region is facing a high risk of bird flu infection.

The ninth conference of the Vietnam Women Union’s Central Committee opened in Hanoi on January 8-9 in the presence of State Vice President Truong My Hoa.

The Vietnam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA) reported that the litigation trial of the lawsuit by Vietnamese Agent Orange victims against US chemical companies is scheduled to open in early April.

A delegation led by Fisheries Minister Ta Quang Ngoc on January 7 paid a visit to the central province of Phu Yen to inspect prevention and containment strategies against possible bird flu outbreaks in humans.

Good Neighbours, a charity organization in the Republic of Korea, has provided Vietnamese victims of Typhoon Durian with emergency aid worth US$200,000, including 147 parcels of clothes and 162 parcels of shoes and sandals.

Vietnamese labour export enterprises plan to send around 80,000 labourers working abroad this year, according to Overseas Labour Management Department of the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA).

An awards ceremony was held at the Hanoi Theatre on January 6 to honour outstanding Vietnamese enterprises, businessmen, artisans and products.

Experts from Vietnam, the Republic of Korea (RoK), Singapore and Malaysia are likely to be invited to India to help reduce the country’s dengue fatality ratio.

The Vietnam Red Cross (VRC) Central Committee has decided to donate US$112,500 to help poor people and Agent Orange victims celebrate the traditional Lunar New Year festival (Tet), which will fall in mid-February.

The government working group led by Minister of Fisheries Ta Quang Ngoc held a working session in central Khanh Hoa province on January 4 to examine the complicated development of bird flu and H5N1 virus infections in the southwestern region of Vietnam.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) said an additional 2.7 million people in rural areas throughout the country had been provided with safe water by the end of 2006, bringing the total number of beneficiaries to 66 percent of the rural population.

Minister of Health Tran Thi Trung Chien has called for nationwide implementation of urgent measures against avian influenza (type H5N1) in humans as the threat is heightened after the disease was spotted in poultry flocks in southern Ca Mau and Bac Lieu provinces.

The second Lawrence S. Ting charity walk will be held in Ho Chi Minh City on January 14, 2007 to raise funds for the poor.

Trinh Quan Huan, deputy minister of Health and deputy head of the National Steering Committee for Bird Flu Control said that four suspected patients in the southern province of Ca Mau have tested negative for the H5N1 virus.

Natural calamities last year including hailstorms, whirlwinds, flash floods and typhoons caused a total loss of US$1.17 billion – the heaviest economic loss during the past 25 years, according to the Central Steering Committee for Flood and Storm Control.

Vietnam has the highest rates of people seeking a better work-life balance (84 percent) and spending more time with family (54 percent), according to a recent survey conducted by AC Nielsen Company worldwide.

Bird flu has spread to 25 communes in 11 districts in the southern provinces of Ca Mau, Bac Lieu and Hau Giang, killing nearly 24,000 poultry.

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung: “I am very happy to attend the Vietnam Intelligence 2006 awards ceremony where I meet with young people who are working for an intelligent Vietnam on a par with powerful countries in the world.”

Ho Chi Minh City on January 1 welcomed 3,090 tourists, including 1,613 foreign visitors mainly from Europe and the US.

Nearly VND7 billion was raised for the poor by individuals, organisations and businesses in the country and abroad through a live TV programme on December 31.

Over the past years, the Vietnam Veterans of American Foundation (VVAF) and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (VVMF) have jointly launched various programmes to help Vietnam overcome war consequences. VOVNews guests today are VVAF President Bobby Muller and VVMF President Chuck Searcy. (Watch video)

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has urged Mekong Delta provinces to isolate bird flu-affected areas, cull dead and sick birds immediately and enhance communications to make local people aware of the danger of the epidemic and the need to take preventative measures.

The World Bank has announced that it will provide Vietnam with US$10 million in aid to early prevent the bird flu epidemic and treat infected patients.

The northern mountainous province of Son La and its Lao neighbour province of Hua Phan have agreed to take drastic measures for drug-related crime control along the 250 km borderline.

Caring for elderly people is the responsibility of the family and the entire society, so this activity should be socialised more effectively to create favourable conditions for elderly people to get full access to social services.