Read what’s in the news today, March 3!

Society

-- A recent proposal by Ho Chi Minh City’s Department of Construction to raise the minimum living space required for immigrants to register as permanent residents from five square meters to 20 square metersper person has been met with criticism from social experts.

-- The tourism department of Da Nang is working to identify a foreign tour guide who was seen in a clip going viral on social media telling tourists at Da Nang Museum that Vietnam used to be a part of China, and traditional Vietnamese costumes had derived from Chinese ones.

-- The Ministry of Transport has approved a plan to develop a network of sea ports in the south-eastern region of Vietnam, including ports in Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Ba Ria – Vung Tau, and Binh Duong until 2020 to relieve traffic pressure in central Ho Chi Minh City.

-- Vietnam’s plan to build a north-to-south expressway, which is expected to greatly improve the flow of traffic and goods across the length of the country, has been submitted to Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc for feedback and approval.

-- Seventy-three students at an elementary school in the southern province of Dong Nai were admitted to hospital on Friday due to suspected food poisoning, after they had all drunk milk from a school nutrition program.

-- The deputy director of Dong Nai Province’s Department of Finance has received an official warning for his lack of responsibility that had allowed a local state-owned lottery company to violate regulations on salary payment by VND39 billion (US$1.72 million).

-- A number of officials and Party members in the Central Highlands provinces of Dak Nong and Dak Lak have been found to abuse their authority to reap huge profits from public land and forests the through illegal appropriation, transfer, and lease of the land to private parties.

Business

-- Da Nang’s Party chief Truong Quang Nghia has requested that the municipal administration end the sale of public land in the city’s two downtown districts of Hai Chau and Thanh Khe, with the remaining land being reserved for public use.

-- The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has warned of environment risks from two bauxite plants Tan Ri and Nhan Co in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong due to the degradation of equipment for environmental protection at the facilities.

-- The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said on Friday it has been working closely with provincial authorities to call for the Europen Union (EU) to lift the ‘yellow card’ – a warning to countries involved in illegal fishing it gave Vietnam in October last year – from this April.

-- Vietnam’s State Capital Investment Corporation (SCIC) is expected to rake in over $100 million from the sale of over 24 million shares, or 29.51 percent stake, in the local plastics giant Binh Minh Plastics.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!