A street vendor selling fresh fruit in Hà Nội. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Hà Nội is planning to install vending machines at public places in the city from now until 2025 in a bid to gradually replace street vendors and hawking practices that have become ubiquitous throughout the city and Việt Nam.

The plan, signed into effect by Deputy Chairman of Hà Nội People’s Committee Nguyễn Mạnh Quyền, also aimed to modernise retail models, increase transparency of the products offered to consumers, and gear transactions towards cashless payments.

According to the plan, Hà Nội will study the appropriate locations for the placement of vending machines – parks, gardens, monuments and relic sites, schools, hospitals, cinemas, malls, urban rail stations and bus stations, etc.

Each machine will occupy a space of 2-3sq.m and be placed about 500-1,000m from each other. A single area could have up to four machines next to each other depending on practical demands.

The vending machines are described as capable of offering “a variety of products and goods, types of food and beverages, including fresh fruits.”

The city also encouraged the installation of vending machines specialised in providing handicrafts, fine art products and souvenirs at tourist attraction sites.

Cigarettes and liquor will not be among the products on display and for sale.

The vending machine network will be integrated into the city's shopping map website and other maps to be more convenient for the city’s residents and visitors.

The vending machines must accept many forms of payment such as cash, bank cards, online payments, QR code scanning; can accept paper-based or polymer banknotes, and have a money changing function.

Hà Nội’s authorities requires relevant departments and localities to develop implementation plans, estimate costs and find suitable locations for the machines.

The approved locations will be made public. Along with that, the city will auction the rights to operate the vending machines. — VNS