VIETNAM TODAY

At present the number of deputy ministers at most ministries is higher than stipulated in Decree 36, said Minister and Chairman of the Government Office Vu Duc Dam.

The Ministry of Transport has warned three contractors and banned one other from bidding on new transport projects for two years after discovering violations.

By 4:00 pm on September 30, Typhoon Wutip is forecast to make landfall in the coastal provinces of Ha Tinh and Thua Thien Hue, packing winds of up to 118-149km per hour, according to the National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting.

International media has repeatedly covered the intensive agenda of PM Nguyen Tan Dung in New York, especially his address at the UN.

A surgeon in China says he has constructed an extra nose out of a man's rib cartilage and implanted it under the skin of his forehead to prepare for a transplant in probably the first operation of its kind.

The prevalence of US dollars in the Vietnamese economy had decreased significantly since the end of 2011 and the exchange rates had been stabilised, according to a State Bank of Vietnam statement.

Portuguese Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho admitted his conservative Social Democrat party's "national defeat" in municipal polls Sunday, as voters vented their frustrations at the government's austerity programme.

By 2020, Viet Nam intends to set up 41 nature reserves under the National Strategy on Biodiversity, officials announced at a recent meeting held by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

Haiphong city leaders held a meeting with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) on September 28 to consider Haiphong’s dossier seeking a UNESCO title for its Cat Ba islands.

The PM has called on ministries, sectors and localities to continue strongly applying measures to stabilise the macro-economy and rein in inflation.

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai has asked central coastal localities to take urgent measures in preparation for Typhoon Wutip, which is forecast to reach land in the afternoon of September 30.

Vietnam and Estonia have signed an agreement on visa exemption for holders of diplomatic passports.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung’s working trips to France and the United Nations, especially his speech at the UN General Assembly, have left a fine impression on the international community.

The Ministry of Finance has proposed to freeze and extend tax debt repayment terms for ailing businesses which would be able to commit to paying tax in the future.

Around one million Vietnamese children currently suffer from malnutrition, causing thousands of deaths.

The Scientific Union for Sustainable Tourism Development (STDe) hosted a seminar in Hanoi on September 28, introducing the potential for developing water tourism in Vietnam.

The private university system is potentially facing its end under the current policies, said the experts at a conference about private universities held in Hanoi.

Miss Philippines was crowned Miss World 2013 in a glittering finale Saturday on the Indonesian resort island of Bali, amid tight security following weeks of hardline Muslim protests.

Human Rights Watch on Saturday criticised a hard-won UN Security Council resolution ordering the destruction of Syria's chemical arsenal for failing to deliver justice for the conflict's victims.