The Mỹ Tho-Vũng Tàu hydrofoil route was opened for use on Sunday in the southern province of Bến Tre.

A solid waste treatment plant was opened for public use on Sunday in Đức Phổ District in the central province of Quảng Ngãi.

The HCM City Public Transport Management and Operation Centre wants to offer free tickets on buses running to Tân Sơn Nhất international airport to help ease congestion as Tết (Lunar New Year) draws close.

Historically, the mostly publicly financed health care system in Việt Nam has only been able to afford to pour resources into a handful of central level hospitals in big cities, forcing patients living in remote areas with serious diseases to go to Hà Nội or HCM City for treatment.

Đặng Quang Hữu, 44, of Đakrông District in the central province of Quảng Trị, is known as a bank owner who has risen from owning nothing to offering loans to 600 poor local households. Unlike other financiers, he requires no interest payments, supporting them as they grow forests to escape from poverty.

Transport departments from HCM City and southern provinces have started a campaign to better control unauthorised buses, coaches and bus terminals. They will also punish the owners of buses that stop in unauthorised places.

Post-harvest losses not only refer to the quantity of lost crops, but also any reductions in their quality and access to international markets, experts have said.

HCM City authorities are taking measures to ensure access to clean water during the dry season and upcoming Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday.

Nguyễn Thị Hồng Thương, 33, runs a large ginseng garden with more than 600 plants and many other traditional herbal medicine plants.