The Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee (VFFCC) on July 24 met with nearly 150 war invalids and family members of soldiers laid down in battle to mark the occasion of War Invalids and Fallen Combatants’ Day (July 27).

Addressing the function, VFFCC President Pham The Duyet stressed that the country appreciated the contributions made by the war invalids and fallen combatants during the resistance wars against the French and American aggressors.

Also on July 24, the Government Office also held a get-together with officials and public employees who are war invalids and family members of soldiers killed in the fighting.

Deputy Prime Minister Truong Vinh Trong said that celebrations for the day should be practical and in accordance with the sacrifices of those that paid the ultimate price for the country.

To mark the event, localities and businesses nationwide also visited and presented gifts to veterans and their families. (VNA)

Urgent actions needed to control bird flu and pig disease

The country still has four provinces affected by bird flu and outbreaks are difficult to anticipate, according to the nation’s chief veterinary.

At a National Bird Flu Control Steering Committee’s meeting on July 24, Bui Quang Anh, Director of the Veterinary Department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, named the four provinces as Dien Bien, Ninh Binh in the north, Quang Binh in the centre and Dong Thap in the Mekong Delta.

Also on July 24, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat sent an urgent message to the People’s Committees of central-run cities and provinces, urging them to promptly take measures against the Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) in pigs or the “blue-ear” disease.

The minister warned of the high risk of the disease spreading as it is difficult to control pig transportation and trading while breeders’ awareness on the disease is low as it is new to Vietnam.

Therefore, cities and provinces were required to strictly follow the Prime Minister’s guidance on spreading information regarding the disease’s symptoms, encouraging breeders to sterilise their farms and vaccinate their pigs as well as advising them against selling ill pigs or throwing away dead pigs.

Minister Phat also asked affected areas to cull seriously ill pigs, conduct sterilisation and ban pig transportation and trade in these areas until they are free from the disease.

He required unaffected localities to set up stations to check the transportation of pigs and pork products in order to curb the spread of the disease. (VNA)

Education budget for Mekong delta rises

Thirteen provinces and cities in the Mekong Delta have had their education budgets increased by 12% to VND 7.2 trillion (US $451.8 million).

At a conference to review the development of education, training and vocational training in the Mekong delta region in the first half of the year, officials from the region said that VND 1.84 trillion (US $115.1 million) was funnelled into the construction of 12,177 classrooms across the Delta.

Among some of the initiatives being singled out for praise by educational officials was Can Tho university’s Khmer language training programme for the region's teachers that drew the attendance of 520 people, a year-on-year rise of 48%.

Among some of the difficulties raised by delegates at the conference included the need for school refurbishments, a shortage of accommodation for teachers and the need for increased investment in human resources to meet the socio-economic development of the Khmer inhabited region. (VNA)

Summer camp brings young overseas Vietnamese closer to homeland

Sixty-five young overseas Vietnamese from 22 countries worldwide are gathering in their motherland for the Vietnam Summer Camp 2007 from July 21-30.

This is the fourth year the Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs and the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union Central Committee have organised the camp with the aim of giving young Vietnamese living abroad a greater understanding of their homeland.

The camp kicked off by a visit northern Phu Tho province to pay tribute to the nation's legendary founders, the Hung Kings.

Duong Thuy Ha from Ukraine said her parents, who hailed from Phu Tho, told her many stories about how the Hung Kings founded the country of Vietnam and fought off invaders to protect their land, but this was the first time she had set foot in the temples dedicated to the Kings.

"I wish my friends have opportunities to come here to discover beautiful landscapes and sacred historical and cultural traditions, thus understanding more about the history of Vietnam," Ha said.

Ngo Ngoc Anh from Bulgaria confided that this is the first time she has been told about the Hung Kings. She said she will try to learn Vietnamese in order to study more about the history of her nation.

The delegation then left for Ha Long Bay in northern Quang Ninh province, which has been twice recognised as a World Natural Heritage site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).

Hoang Hong Phuong, an overseas Vietnamese from the UK, said this was the third time she has visited Vietnam but her first time to Ha Long Bay. “During this visit to Vietnam, I had a chance to visit Hanoi’s old quarters and take part in several charity activities and I was very surprised at the rapid development of the country,” she said.

Phuong, who works as an accountant at a hospital in London, said she would come back to Vietnam to teach English if she had any chance.

Meanwhile, Anh Vu, a student from Canada's Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal University, showed her good knowledge of Vietnamese history though he was born and grew up in Canada. “I have been learning how to beat Vietnamese traditional drums at the Hong Duc Cultural Centre in Canada for six years,” he said.

After a series of activities in the north, the young overseas Vietnamese will then to visit central Da Nang city and Ho Chi Minh City. (VNA)