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World BankNew research on development issues in Vietnam - Volume 9, number 22 (2017 November 17)? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685229" Agriculture and Rural development???????? Farmers’ Perceptions of and Adaptations to Climate Change in Southeast Asia: The Case Study from Thailand and Vietnam.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685231" Flex crops or flex livelihoods? The story of a volatile commodity chain in upland northern Vietnam.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685232" The Impact of Climate Change on Agriculture: Findings from Households in Vietnam.???????? Determinants of farmers’ adaptation to climate change in agricultural production in the central region of Vietnam.???????? Economic Analysis of Improved Smallholder Paddy and Maize Production in Northern Viet Nam and Implications for Climate-Smart Agriculture.???????? From cheap commodity to prestige item: Hanoians longing for clean and safe vegetables.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685236" Rice Cultivation, Production, and Consumption in Mainland Southeast Asian Countries: Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam.???????? Local institutions and global value chains.???????? Forest change in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS): An overview of negative and positive drivers.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685239" Forest tenure policies and legislation in Cambodia, Nepal and Viet Nam: Status, gaps and way forward.???????? Compatibility of Alternate Wetting and Drying Irrigation with Local Agriculture in An Giang Province, Mekong Delta, Vietnam. HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685241" Economic development???????? The effectiveness of Korea's official development assistance: The cases of KVIP in Can Tho city and rural development in Quang Tri province, Vietnam.???????? The Effects of Ethnic Chinese Minority on Vietnam’s Regional Economic Development in the Post-Vietnam War Period.???????? Small firm death in developing countries.???????? The transmission of socially responsible behaviour through international trade.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685246" Does economic distance affect the flows of trade and foreign direct investment? Evidence from Vietnam.???????? The Effects of A Temporary Corporate Income Tax Cut and Deferral: Evidence from Vietnam. HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685248" Education???????? Social Network Sustainability Metrics: A Study of Co-authoring Behaviors in the Social Sciences, Using 2008-2017 Scopus Data for Vietnam.???????? Starting Together, Growing Apart: Gender Gaps in Learning from Preschool to Adulthood in Four Developing Countries.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685251" Economic capital of the family as a factor of availability of higher education: a comparative study of universities in Russia and Vietnam.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685252" Building a Modern Chemistry Undergraduate Program at Hanoi University of Science-Vietnam National University: A Vietnam?U.S. Partnership.???????? National Presentations of Lower Mekong Sub-region Countries.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685254" Financing TVET in the East Asia and Pacific Region : Current Status, Challenges and Opportunities. HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685255" Environment???????? Application of remote sensing and GIS-based hydrological modelling for flood risk analysis: a case study of District 8, Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam.???????? Using numerical modelling in the simulation of mass fish death phenomenon along the Central Coast of Vietnam.???????? Processes in informal end-processing of e-waste generated from personal computers in Vietnam. HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685259" Gender???????? Dependent or breadwinner? Vietnamese brides reshaping gender roles at the China-Vietnam border.???????? Incorporating gender into low-emission development: a case study from Vietnam.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685262" Lessons learnt from gender impact assessments of hydropower projects in Laos and Vietnam. HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685263" ICT for development???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685264" Universal service in Vietnam: An institutional approach.HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685265"Governance???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685266" Do Natural Disasters Open a Window of Opportunity for Corruption? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685267" Healthcare, Nutrition and Population???????? ‘I do want to ask, but I can’t speak’: a qualitative study of ethnic minority women’s experiences of communicating with primary health care professionals in remote, rural Vietnam.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685269" Leading Causes of Death in Vietnam [Poster].???????? Patient Perception and Choice Factors Related to International Hospitals: A Study in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.???????? A review of Vietnam’s healthcare reform through the Direction of Healthcare Activities (DOHA).???????? Burden of hospitalized childhood community-acquired pneumonia: A retrospective cross-sectional study in Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Republic of Korea.???????? Dengue vaccine supplies under endemic and epidemic conditions in three dengue-endemic countries: Colombia, Thailand, and Vietnam.???????? Developing an antimicrobial resistance reference laboratory and surveillance programme in Vietnam.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685275" Incidence of dengue and chikungunya viruses in mosquitoes and human patients in border provinces of Vietnam.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685276" Acute effects of ambient air pollution on lower respiratory infections in Hanoi children: An eight-year time series study.???????? Biomonitoring of Metals, Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers, Polychlorinated Biphenyls, Persistent Pesticides in Vietnamese Female Electronic Waste Recyclers.???????? Do prospective payment systems (PPSs) lead to desirable providers' incentives and patients' outcomes? A systematic review of evidence from developing countries.???????? Data on the chemical properties of commercial fish sauce products.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685280" HIV and other STIs in male sex workers: Findings from a sexual health promotion intervention in Vietnam.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685281" Systematic review of the design, implementation and effectiveness of mass media and nutrition education interventions for infant and young child feeding.???????? Condom use behaviour among people living with HIV: a seven-country community-based participatory research in the Asia-Pacific region.???????? Misuse of antenatal care and its association with adverse outcomes of pregnancy in a Southern rural area of Vietnam. HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685284" Infrastructure and Urban development???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685285" Equity issues in land acquisition: A source of delays in large construction projects in Vietnam [PhD thesis].???????? Making public-private partnerships in infrastructure successful in Vietnam: A need for a better procurement legal mechanism [PhD thesis].???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685287"Mobilized territories in more-than-relational public spaces: Sidewalk territories of resistance in Hanoi, Vietnam.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685288" Housing satisfaction and its correlates: a quantitative study among residents living in their own affordable apartments in urban Hanoi, Vietnam.HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685289"Poverty???????? Sectoral Employment and Poverty in Rural Vietnam in 2000s. HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685291" Social development???????? Disability and Social Protection Programmes in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review.???????? HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685293" Labor migration flows from Vietnam to Thailand in the context of ASEAN regional integration.???????? The trafficking of women and girls in Taiwan: characteristics of victims, perpetrators, and forms of exploitation. HYPERLINK \l "m_4917496260369292636__Toc498685295" Tourism???????? The development of rural tourism in Vietnam: Objectives, practical experiences and challenges.???Agriculture and Rural development ?Farmers’ Perceptions of and Adaptations to Climate Change in Southeast Asia: The Case Study from Thailand and Vietnam.Hermann Waibel, Thi Hoa Pahlisch and Marc V?lker. in: Climate Smart Agriculture : Building Resilience to Climate Change, Springer International Publishing, Cham, 2018, pp. 137-160.?Abstract: The perceptions of climate change and adaptation choices made by farmers are important considerations in the design of adaptation strategies by policy makers and agricultural extension services. This paper seeks to determine these perceptions and choices by farmers in already poor environmental regions of Thailand and Vietnam especially vulnerable to climate change. Overall findings were that farmers do perceive climate change, but describe it in quite distinct ways and that location influences how farmers recognize climate change. Our 2007 and 2013 surveys show that farmers are adapting, but it is difficult to determine if specific practices are “climate smart”. Further, adaptation measures are informed by perception and, at least in the case of Vietnam, perceptions are shaped by the respondent’s characteristics, location variables and recent climate related shocks. Finally, the three climate variables of rainfall, temperature, and wind are the most important factors in explaining specific adaptation measures chosen by farmers. Farmer participation is an essential part of public actions designed to allow adaptation to climate change. Our research can also contribute to understanding farmer constraints and tailoring good overall strategies to the local heterogeneity of vulnerable locations.?Flex crops or flex livelihoods? The story of a volatile commodity chain in upland northern Vietnam.Sarah Turner, Annuska Derks and Ng? Thúy H?nh. The Journal of Peasant Studies, 2017, pp. 1-21.?Abstract: Despite the multiple usages of star anise, a spice harvested from trees native to northeast Vietnam and southeast China, and notwithstanding its potential as a ?flex crop? due to being a key component in the pharmaceutical production of the anti-influenza drug Tamiflu, little is known about who cultivates this spice and how it reaches consumers around the world. Putting commodity chain analysis literature into conversation with recent ?flex crop? debates, we analyse the roles of actors along star anise commodity chains originating in rural, upland northern Vietnam. Our qualitative fieldwork reveals the intricate and idiosyncratic nature of these commodity chains upon which ethnic minority cultivator livelihoods depend, and which connect uplands and lowlands through manifold linkages. Cultivators, intermediaries, wholesalers, exporters and marketplace traders are constantly having to renegotiate their positions along these chains to maintain viable livelihoods due to uncertain financial returns and shifting demands. Adding to livelihood insecurities, financial gains have fluctuated wildly over time. The segmented knowledge individuals have of these commodity chains keep many in a vulnerable position, while the Vietnamese state's approach to promoting this commodity as a way to improve local livelihoods is questionable.??????????????? Back to top?The Impact of Climate Change on Agriculture: Findings from Households in Vietnam.Trong Anh Trinh. Environmental and Resource Economics, 2017.?Abstract: This paper examines farm household-level impacts of climate change by examining the relationship between climatic variables and Vietnamese agricultural output. The Ricardian technique is applied with panel data which accounts for both adaptation strategies and household characteristics. This study proposes a two-stage Hsiao model to correct for collinearity between climatic variables and individual effects. The results show that in the dry season, increases in temperatures are beneficial to all farms in the warmer southern regions, while increases in precipitation will damage only irrigated farms in the Central and South regions. The impact of higher temperature in the wet season is similar, except that it will negatively affect net revenue of irrigated farms in the long run. More rainfall in the wet season will increase net revenue in the North region only. Finally, this study combines the estimated results with future climate scenarios to predict how future changes in climate will affect farmers on aggregate.?Determinants of farmers’ adaptation to climate change in agricultural production in the central region of Vietnam.Trinh Quang Thoai, Roberto F. Ra?ola, Leni D. Camacho and Elisabeth Simelton. Land Use Policy, 2018, volume 70, number Supplement C, pp. 224-231.Free full text : This paper discusses the likely changes in farm cultural practices that farmers would adopt to minimize agricultural production losses as a response to the increasing occurrence of extreme weather conditions due to climate change in the Central Region of Viet Nam. Using binary logit model and multivariate probit model, this paper examined different factors influencing farmersTiO2-N’ decision on adaptation to climate change in their agricultural production. Training attendance, farm size, damage level, educational level, farming experience, access to credit, and gender were the factors that influenced significantly the probability that farmers would adapt to climate change. Of these factors, attendance in climate change training and farm size were the most important factors affecting the farmersTiO2-N’ decision on adaptation to climate change, while labor availability and membership in local organizations were not. Three policy recommendations were proposed to enhance small-scale farmersTiO2-N’ adaptive capacity to climate change in the region. These include: iTiO2-N). broadening of training courses on climate change; iiTiO2-N). institute policies that would promote consolidation of farmlands; and, iiiTiO2-N). integrate concepts of climate change and climate change adaptation into the operation of the local organizations.Back to top?Economic Analysis of Improved Smallholder Paddy and Maize Production in Northern Viet Nam and Implications for Climate-Smart Agriculture.Giacomo Branca, Aslihan Arslan, Adriana Paolantonio, Romina Cavatassi, Nancy McCarthy and others. in: Climate Smart Agriculture : Building Resilience to Climate Change, Springer International Publishing, Cham, 2018, pp. 563-595.?Abstract: Adoption of improved agricultural practices is shown to vary based on rainfall variability and long-term average maximum temperature, and although such practices increase productivity and profitability on average, their impacts also vary based on climatic conditions. This paper presents a case study on impacts and implications for adoption of Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) solutions in the Northern Mountainous Region (NMR) of Viet Nam. We use primary data collected through ad hoc household and community surveys to conduct profitability estimates of comparative technologies using crop financial models based on partial budget analysis and a study of the determinants of adoption and of yields. In particular, we find that the majority of farmers in NMR rely on ‘conventional’ farming despite indications that sustainable land management practices such as Minimum Tillage (MT) applied to upland maize production, and Fertilizer Deep Placement (FDP) and Sustainable Intensification for Paddy (SIP) production are more profitable. Adoption of MT is greater where long-term variation in rainfall during critical growing periods for maize is higher; FDP and SIP adoption is greater in places where the long-term average of maximum temperatures is higher during critical periods for rice growth. Finally, these improved practices have higher labour and input costs compared to conventional practices, which may prevent or slow adoption.?From cheap commodity to prestige item: Hanoians longing for clean and safe vegetables.Sandra Kurfürst. ZANTHRO - Zurich Anthropology Working Papers no. 2, 2017.Free full text : Access to food, water, shelter and air are major preconditions for living in the city, like anywhere else. They constitute what Parnell and Pieterse (2010: 148) in their discussion of the ‘right to the city’ refer to as ‘basic or 1st generation human rights’. However, particularly the first right of access to food has only recently moved into the analytical focus of urban studies (Morgan, 2015). The ‘urban food question’ (Morgan, 2015) is often linked to the topics of food deserts (e.g. Weatherspoon et al., 2015; Whelan et al., 2002) and food security (e.g. Barthel et al., 2015; Crush, 2014; Morgan, 2015). The former frequently being linked to the cities of the Global North and the latter to cities of the Global South. So far, food safety, the concern for the products’ origin, and the usage of chemicals in food processing has hardly been discussed in the context of Southern cities, where more and more consumers, in particular a rising urban middle-class, are concerned about the absence of food standards and the danger this poses to their families’ health. This paper presents urbanites responses to these perceived dangers with empirical reference to urban Vietnam. In Vietnamese cities residents are increasingly in search of ‘clean and safe vegetables’ (rau s?ch, rau an tòan).???????????????Back to top?Rice Cultivation, Production, and Consumption in Mainland Southeast Asian Countries: Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam.Tuyet L. Cosslett and Patrick D. Cosslett. in: Sustainable Development of Rice and Water Resources in Mainland Southeast Asia and Mekong River Basin, Springer Singapore, Singapore, 2018, pp. 29-53.?Abstract: Rice in the four countries of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam, also referred to as the Mainland Southeast Asia (MSEA) countries, has been cultivated in highlands and flatlands, in irrigated lands and rainfed lands, and in different seasons according to the monsoon rains and climate. For millions of farmers, rice farming is a way of life providing food subsistence, self-sufficiency, and security for their families, communities, and countries. This chapter examines agricultural land, paddy land, and harvested land, and rice production and consumption in the four countries. Throughout this study the term “paddy”, or “rice paddy”, describes the yield of raw (“rough”) rice as grown and harvested in the fields. Paddy only becomes “rice” after it has been milled to separate the rice from the matured paddy plant (or “husk”). Inevitably some rice is lost during the milling process with the amount of rice lost varying by crop variety and quality. Overall, finished polished white rice tends to average 67% of rough rice by weight. All rice production data in this study refers to “paddy” grown in the field, whereas all rice consumption data refers to the polished white rice after the milling process.?Local institutions and global value chains.Noburu Yoshida. Journal of Agribusiness in Developing & Emerging Economies, 2017, volume 7, number 3.?Abstract: Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore how the shrimp aquaculture export industry in Vietnam can achieve further development in the highly competitive global market particularly in the context of complying with food safety standards set by the markets.Design/methodology/approach This paper applies two conceptual approaches, local institutions and global value chains. The concept of global value chains helps this paper to understand what extent the external pressures are placed on the industry while the concept of local institutions effectively examines its responses to the external pressures. Applying this conceptual framework this paper examines an empirical case analysing secondary data and literature.Findings Market requirements on food safety are brought by global buyers through the global value chains governance structure to the local institutional function. It includes local buyer-supplier relationship within the industrial cluster, industrial policy and business institutions, although it is less likely to address the local backwards suppliers to improve the industrial capability of food safety standard compliance.Research limitations/implications This paper has a research limitation due to the prioritised research scope that critically examines potential pathway for further development of Vietnamese shrimp aquaculture export industry. Therefore, it needs further comparative in-depth analysis with more vertically organised industrial structure performed by the countries such as Thailand.Originality/value The originality of this paper is to critically examine the conceptual limitation of global value chains approach in the context of food safety standard compliance issue, which is likely to be originated in local backward suppliers by applying a complementary concept, local institutions.???????????????Back to top?Forest change in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS): An overview of negative and positive drivers.Y. Yasmi, P. Durst, R. Ul Haq and J. Broadhead. FAO, 2017.Free full text : This report looks at both negative and positive drivers that affect forest change in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) in the last 25 years (1990-2015) in order to have a better understanding of their influence on forests in the region. It evaluates policies and measures in relation to drivers of forest change. Agricultural expansion, infrastructure development particularly hydropower dams and road construction, logging, mining operations and forest fires are the most dominant drivers of forest loss in GMS. At a positive note, almost all countries in the region have adopted policies that support SFM and balance the social, economic and environmental aspects of forestry. Furthermore, there seems to be a movement towards sustainable policies which influence the shift towards SFM, forest conservation and afforestation and reforestation. Although it seems the policies addressing the drivers of deforestation exist at local, national and international level, their effectiveness has been mixed. T his report presents forest changes in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) over a period of 25 years between 1990 and 2015. It describes key drivers that have affected these changes. Some drivers influenced forests negatively in that they resulted in deforestation and forest degradation. On the other hand, positive drivers promoted sustainable forest management (SFM), afforestation and reforestation and forest conservation.?Forest tenure policies and legislation in Cambodia, Nepal and Viet Nam: Status, gaps and way forward.Yurdi Yasmi, Ganga Ram Dahal and Patrick B. Durst. FAO, 2017.Free full text : Key messages: --- The current regulatory framework in Cambodia, Nepal and Viet Nam addresses the issue of forest land tenure and recognizes the rights of legitimate holders of forests and forest land. Each country is at relatively different stages of forest tenure reform. However, major policy gaps commonly exist in terms of allocation and transfer of tenure rights, access to justice and resolution of tenure disputes, gender equity, defining the roles of state and non-state actors, responses to climate change and the livelihoods of forestdependent communities. --- To address these gaps, each country will have to amend? specific policies, guidelines and regulations. In addition, new policies and regulations should also be formulated to address the policy gaps identified by the assessment. --- Strong forest tenure policies and regulations are key factors for ensuring benefits from forests and forest land but it is equally important to have strong institutional and technical capacity, and sufficient resources (human and financial) to put policy into practice. --- Strengthening tenure policies through coordinated efforts and participatory and bottom-up processes is crucial to ensure livelihood improvement for local people.???????????????Back to top?Compatibility of Alternate Wetting and Drying Irrigation with Local Agriculture in An Giang Province, Mekong Delta, Vietnam.Takayoshi YAMAGUCHI, Minh Tuan LUU, Kazunori MINAMIKAWA and Shigeki YOKOYAMA. Trop. Agr. Develop., 2017, volume 61, number 3.Free full text : In response to the tightening supplies and growing demands for water on a global scale, the International Rice Research Institute has attempted to diffuse a water-saving technology called alternate wetting and drying irrigation (AWD) for rice farming in Asian countries. This study assessed the compatibility of AWD with local agriculture, based on field surveys in An Giang Province (AG), which is located in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam. Interviews with the local government staff that is responsible for AWD diffusion in AG indicated that farmers who used AWD realized not only water-saving effects, but also improvements in rice yield and growth. For instance, rice farming in the Mekong Delta has always suffered from culm lodging due to the flood plain location; however, farmers realized decline of culm lodging through AWD, and hence these additional benefits will help to further diffuse AWD. Moreover, these interviews illuminate that AWD can be used in certain natural, agro-engineering, and social settings, because it's an irrigation technology that requires precise water level control. For instance, higher-lying paddy fields tend to dry up earlier due to higher levels of percolation and seepage, while lower-lying fields are difficult to drain; therefore, mid-lying fields are best suited to AWD. This study highlights the importance of compatibility between AWD and the local agriculture in the diffusion process based on qualitative surveys, which should be quantitatively verified with statistical data and satellite images on a wider scale.?Economic development ?The effectiveness of Korea's official development assistance: The cases of KVIP in Can Tho city and rural development in Quang Tri province, Vietnam.Suk Chan Ko. The journal of Asian studies, 2017, volume 20, number 3.?Abstract: Korea’s ODA programs have been ineffective due to duplication of projects and policy inconsistency with high percentage of concessional loans, large number of recipients, and regional bias due to fragmented ODA system. This research intended to investigate the effectiveness issue based on two recent projects in Vietnamimplemented by Korean government. Based on the literature on the effectiveness of ODA and the comparative analysis between the Korea VietnamIncubator Park(KVIP) in Can Tho City and the Quang Tri NewRural Development Project(QTNRD), this research found that OTNRD project was more effective than KVIP. OTNRD project was more effective because the project was implemented by MOFA and KOICA with more specific objectives and worked more closely with the recipients. The research implies that the Korea’s ODA practices characterized by the lack of integrated structure, the overlap of aid projects, and the mismatch of demands and needs need to be improved.???????????????Back to top?The Effects of Ethnic Chinese Minority on Vietnam’s Regional Economic Development in the Post-Vietnam War Period.Tuan Anh Nguyen-Viet and Masami Imai. The Journal of Development Studies, 2017, pp. 1-18.?Abstract: This paper examines the impact of the Hoa, an ethnically Chinese, economically dominant minority, on regional economic development in Vietnam. To address the endogeneity of the geographical distribution of the Hoa, we use an important historical episode: the rapid deterioration in Sino-Vietnamese diplomatic relationship that led many ethnic Chinese to flee abroad, particularly to the refugee camps in the Guangxi province of China, in 1979. We find that the effects of proximity to the refugee camps on the share of ethnic Chinese in 1989 were more pronounced for provinces that had a larger presence of the ethnic Chinese population in 1979. We also find strong correlations between the 1989 share of ethnic Chinese (instrumented) and contemporary indicators of economic performance. The results suggest that the ethnic Chinese minority had positive economic impacts on Vietnam?s regional economies and that the post-Vietnam War exodus of ethnic Chinese was likely to have had long-term negative economic impacts.?Small firm death in developing countries.David J. Mckenzie and Anna Luisa Paffhausen. World Bank Policy Research working paper no. WPS 8236, 2017.Free full text : Small firms are an important source of income for the poor in developing countries, and the target of many interventions designed to help them grow. But there is no systematic information on the failure or death of such firms. The paper puts together 16 panel surveys from 12 different developing countries (including Vietnam) to develop stylized facts from over 14,000 firms on how much firm death there is; on which types of these firms are most likely to die; and on why they die, paying careful attention to issues of measurement and attrition. The authors find small firms die at an average rate of 8.3 percent per year over the first five years of following them, so that half of all firms observed to be operating at a given point in time are dead within 6 years. Death rates are higher for small firms in richer countries, younger firms, retail firms, less productive and less profitable firms, and those whose owners are female and not middle-aged. The paper proposes three theories of why small firms die: firm competition and firm shocks, occupational choice, and non-separability from the household. It finds the cause of firm death to be heterogeneous, with different subgroups of firms more likely to die for reasons consistent with each of these theories.?The transmission of socially responsible behaviour through international trade.Carol Newman, John Rand, Finn Tarp and Neda Trifkovic. European Economic Review, 2018, volume 101, pp. 250-267.Free full text : We investigate the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices of domestic Vietnamese firms and their engagement with foreign markets. We develop a measure of CSR that combines compliance with labour standards, management commitment to CSR, and corporate community related actions; and find a strong relationship between this measure and participation in international markets. Results suggest that both exporting and importing firms engage in more CSR activities. Conditional on exporting, we show that Vietnamese exporters to China are less involved in CSR related activities, and that exporters to the US engage in more community related CSR. This may reflect differences in stakeholder preferences across markets.???????????????Back to top?Does economic distance affect the flows of trade and foreign direct investment? Evidence from Vietnam.Thai-Ha LE. Cogent Economic & Finance, 2017.Free full text : This study examines the effect of relative economic distance (RED) between countries on bilateral foreign trade and foreign direct investment (FDI), using Vietnam as a case study. The difference in per-capita GDP is used as proxy for the RED between Vietnam and her partner countries. Modified gravity models are estimated using the procedure of panel-corrected standard errors (PCSE). The results indicate that there is a feedback and significantly positive relationship between Vietnam’s trade and FDI inflows. The economic distance between Vietnam and her partner countries has a significantly positive influence on the country’s bilateral trade and FDI inflows.?The Effects of A Temporary Corporate Income Tax Cut and Deferral: Evidence from Vietnam.Pham Anh, 2017.Free full text : Governments often use a temporary corporate income tax cut and? deferral policy to encourage investment, despite a potential decrease in? tax revenue. Yet, to my knowledge, no formal study has evaluated the effects of a temporary corporate income tax cut, tax deferral, or the combination of the two. This paper studies the causal impacts of a corporate income tax cut and deferral during the Great Recession in Vietnam. Vietnam implemented the policy from the end of 2008 through 2009. I compare firms just below and above the eligibility threshold, based on assets and employment. To address concerns about possible manipulation around the thresholds, I use criteria in the year before the policy was announced. To address concerns about possible differences between control and treatment firms, I use a firm panel data from 2004 to 2014 to show that the two groups were similar in pre-policy years. The results vary between foreign-owned and domestic firms in Vietnam. Eligible foreign-owned firms reported a large increase in profits in the two years after the policy ended (2010 and 2011), but then dissipated. I find no evidence to suggest that real factor inputs (e.g, labor or capital profits) led to the increased in profitability of foreign-owned firms. Instead, multinational firms could have shifted profits to Vietnam to take advantage of the tax policy. The continuation of the high profits in the two years after the policy ended suggests that foreign-owned firms may have experienced friction in profit-shifting across borders. Among domestic firms, I do not find evidence for changes in profits, capital, nor labor. Finally, although tax payments by foreign-owned firms increased,? the net impact of the policy on tax payments is ambiguous because of the decrease in payments among domestic firms.???????????????Back to top?Education ?Social Network Sustainability Metrics: A Study of Co-authoring Behaviors in the Social Sciences, Using 2008-2017 Scopus Data for Vietnam.Tung Manh Ho, Hong Kong Nguyen-To, Thu-Trang Vuong and Quan-Hoang Vuong. Université Libre de Bruxelles - Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management - Centre Emile Bernheim CEB Working Paper N° 17/027, 2017.Free full text : The study examines the co-authoring behaviors of 412 Vietnamese social scientists over the 2008-2017 period via a new method – social network analysis – to determine if these researchers have formed sustainable scientific communities, using Scopus data. The dataset provides an insightful look into the predominant form of collaboration, i.e., co-authorship, within the Vietnamese social science research communities. Through basic network metrics such as density and clustering coefficient, the study hypothesizes that the socially sustainable research communities are those with low clustering and high density. As any scholar’s position in a network can be specified by three quantities: number of publications, connections, and years in research, the distance metrics from the most productive to the rest are computed and compared. The study hypothesizes that if the distance is too large; it reflects the socially unsustainable situation in the network. The results indicate that certain level of social unsustainability exists in social sciences groups in Vietnam. Though the results are only indicative, it has opened up a fertile space for future enquiry into this matter.?Starting Together, Growing Apart: Gender Gaps in Learning from Preschool to Adulthood in Four Developing Countries.Abhijeet Singh and Sofya Krutikova. Young Lives working paper 174, 2017.Free full text : This working paper studies the evolution of gender gaps in multiple cognitive skills from the ages of 5 to 19 years old, using Young Lives unique panel data from Ethiopia, India, Peru and Vietnam; it is the most extensive panel-based investigation on this question in developing countries. The findings suggest that, in all four countries, gender gaps in learning are either absent or small in absolute magnitude prior to school entry (at 5 years old) and at primary school age (8 years old). Larger gaps emerge later, widening particularly between the ages of 12 and 15; gaps favour boys in Ethiopia, India and Peru, but girls in Vietnam. This is in contrast to OECD contexts, where signi?cant gender gaps in maths and language skills tend to be in the same direction. Subsequently, these learning gaps appear to mostly persist until early adulthood. In establishing the direction, magnitude, and persistence of gender gaps, we pay careful attention to issues of ordinality and decay in test scores. Panel-based, value-added models with a rich set of covariates including past achievement, child health, time use, parental education and wealth, and school quality explain at most half to two-thirds of the cross-sectional gender gap in test scores at 15 years old.???????????????Back to top?Economic capital of the family as a factor of availability of higher education: a comparative study of universities in Russia and Vietnam.Hoang Ha Van, Valentina V. Fursova and Alla Yu. Shakirova. Revista QUID, 2017, volume 28.Free full text : The article is devoted to the actual problem of accessibility of higher education (on the example of universities of Russia and Vietnam). Social inequality, which is a characteristic of any society, remains a serious barrier to higher education. Moreover, in spite of the fact that today the number of forms and methods of obtaining higher education is substantially expanding, socially unprotected layers of the population still can not take advantage of many educational services. --- In the article, based on conflictological and structuralist campaigns, using the quantitative method of sociological surveys conducted in 2015-2016 (the sample consisted of 2000 respondents - students of KFU and DSU), the influence of the economic capital of the family on the accessibility of higher education for Russian and Vietnamese students is analyzed. Recommendations are offered to reduce the economic barrier to access to higher education for different groups of students. --- On the basis of empirical research it is shown that the socioeconomic capital of the family is a deterrent to the accessibility of higher education. At the universities of Russia and Vietnam, children come from middle and upper classes, while for lower classes the accessibility of higher education remains limited. The study showed that the majority of students from families with an income of 20,001 to 50,000 rubles (60.5%) study at the DSU, while 47.7% of respondents in KFU belong to families with income from 50,001 to 100,000 rubles, which indicates the high socio-economic status of their families. --- The study of the stated problem can help to overcome a number of social contradictions, to build a more effective model of vocational training and socialization of individuals, and also help ensure high modern standards of social policy of states. Moreover, a comparative analysis in this area will allow states to integrate into a single educational system for solving global educational problems of our time. Of particular relevance is a comparative analysis of the problem on the example of a developing (Vietnamese society) and an economically developed country (Russian society). --- These articles can be used in the activities of government bodies that implement and regulate educational policy in Vietnam and Russia, in the process of developing and improving social development programs in the field of general and higher education in Vietnam and Russia, in cross-cultural comparative studies.?Building a Modern Chemistry Undergraduate Program at Hanoi University of Science-Vietnam National University: A Vietnam?U.S. Partnership.Martin Gruebele, James M. Lisy, Alexander Scheeline and Steven C. Zimmerman. in: Educational and Outreach Projects from the Cottrell Scholars Collaborative Undergraduate and Graduate Education Volume 1, American Chemical Society, 2017, pp. 15-32.?Abstract: In 2007, the University of Illinois Chemistry Department entered an agreement with the Hanoi University of Science Chemistry Department (part of Vietnam National University) to modernize their chemistry curriculum. This was achieved by sending Illinois faculty to teach classes in Vietnam, introducing active learning, live demonstrations, U.S. textbooks and English language instruction into the curriculum. Illinois also provides undergraduate research positions and faculty training in the U.S., takes excellent students into the Illinois PhD program. The loop eventually closes when Vietnamese PhDs return to their home country to teach as chemistry faculty themselves. This chapter outlines the approach we took, provides some assessment data, and discusses the personal connections of the Illinois-Hanoi outreach program as a model for similar programs to build up chemical education infrastructure and foster international science education collaboration in interested countries.???????????????Back to top?National Presentations of Lower Mekong Sub-region Countries.Fidel R. Nemenzo, Masami Isoda, Maitree Inprasitha, Sampan Thinwiangthong, Narumon Changsri and others. in: Proceedings of the 13th International Congress on Mathematical Education: ICME-13, Springer International Publishing, Cham, 2017, pp. 361-366.Free full text : Mathematics educators have tried to take responsibility in improving the educational situations in the region. Among the countries in Lower Mekong sub-region, we have been able to gradually create collaboration through a network of a number of collaborative projects and study in mathematics education programs. The mathematics education community in this region was able to be established through the leading role played by Thailand in collaboration among the countries of the region. We should set long-term shared goals to solve the common problems in mathematics education and keep and expand the collaboration for better education in our Lower Mekong sub-region. The presentation consists of three parts: Overviews of (1) mathematics education in each country in the Lower Mekong sub-region (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam), (2) the establishment of societies of mathematics education and development in each country, and (3) the emergent mathematics education community in the Lower Mekong sub-region.?Financing TVET in the East Asia and Pacific Region : Current Status, Challenges and Opportunities.Robert Palmer. World Bank, 2017.Free full text : The East Asia and Pacific (EAP) region is very diverse and there is a wide range in the extent to which firms across these countries identify the education level of their work force as being a major constraint. However, developing skills, including vocational and technical skills, and enhancing employability are clear strategic objectives in the EAP region.Countries in the region face strong pressures to expand their technical and vocational education and training (TVET) systems and enhance their quality, while also facing spending pressures on basic and higher education. As this demand increases, the need for sustainable financing for TVET becomes more urgent; this is not only about ensuring that sufficient and predictable revenue streams exist to fund training programs, but perhaps just as importantly about how financing mechanisms themselves can be strongly linked to achieving policyobjectives of making TVET systems more accessible, equitable, efficient, demand-driven,responsive and relevant.???????????????Back to top?Environment ?Application of remote sensing and GIS-based hydrological modelling for flood risk analysis: a case study of District 8, Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam.An Thi Ngoc Dang and Lalit Kumar. Geomatics, Natural Hazards and Risk, 2017, pp. 1-20.?Abstract: Rapid and unplanned urbanization, together with climate change, have exacerbated flood risk which has caused devastating loss of human life and property in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Our study utilized remote sensing techniques combined with Geographic Information Systems-based hydrological modelling to identify flood risk in this urban area. QuickBird imagery was used to create land-use/land-cover information, an important input into the U.S. Soil Conservation Service Technique Release 55 (SCS TR-55) model which is used for predicting rainfall-induced flood. Tidal floods were examined using a Digital Elevation Model in a GIS framework with water level in rivers as an input. The findings indicated that rainfall-induced flood is not a serious problem with the flood depth of 2?10 cm while tidal flood is a substantial issue with 10?100 cm flood depths. Increasing impervious surfaces and decreasing flow length areas resulting from the growth of urbanization in combination with tidal effects contributed significantly to increased flood risk. These findings have implications on solutions for flood risk control in the district, including managing urbanization processes with appropriate infrastructure and improving the infiltration capacity of the runoff with optimized drainage systems.?Using numerical modelling in the simulation of mass fish death phenomenon along the Central Coast of Vietnam.Doan Quang Tri, Nguyen Thi Mai Linh and Nguyen Cao Don. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 2017.?Abstract: A two-dimensional model was used to reconstruct scenarios related to the mass fish death phenomenon that occurred along the Central Coast of Vietnam. First, a Weather Research Forecasting model was used to simulate the wind field during April 2016, and was then used as an input to the two-dimensional (2D) model. Second, the calibration of the 2D model showed high conformity in both the phases and amplitude between the simulated and observed water levels. The simulation results of two scenarios, S1 and S2, were highly recommended for explaining the mass fish death phenomenon that occurred along the coast from Ha Tinh Province to Thua Thien-Hue Province. The calculated results of water quality data combined with the toxic concentration measured in fish will ultimately enable the simulation of the delimiting pollution zones and will facilitate response solutions when a similar phenomenon occurs in the future.?Processes in informal end-processing of e-waste generated from personal computers in Vietnam.Chung Duc Tran and Stefan Petrus Salhofer. Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management, 2017.Free full text : Informal treatment of e-waste plays an important role in many countries which have no or weak formal waste management structures. One of the challenges for assessing informal e-waste recycling technologies is to identify their disadvantages and potential technology improvement. The analysis of informal recycling processes starts with a balance of input and output materials for each of the processes. Main obstacles are the fact that in most cases, mixed or variety materials serve as input and, secondly by nature, the informal sector does not systematically measure and monitor the process. This study presents the processes and available data for informal e-waste recycling of desktop personal computer as it consists of components made of plastic and many metals within the Vietnamese context. To identify the most relevant processes, critical flows and technology gap, two scenarios are compared: (1) current situation in which recycling activities are taken in recycling craft villages and (2) appropriately selected BAT. The selected materials from e-waste cover a wide range of recycling processes and technologies: Printed Circuit Board treatment, metal (ferrous metal, aluminum and copper) and plastic recycling.???????????????Back to top?Gender ?Dependent or breadwinner? Vietnamese brides reshaping gender roles at the China-Vietnam border.Pengli Huang. The Journal of Chinese Sociology, 2017, volume 4, number 1, p. 16.?Abstract: Within cross-border marriages, foreign brides’ economic contributions to their families are often underestimated due to the fact that they are always believed to be passport and economic “dependents.” However, this paper examines how the Vietnamese brides take advantage of their cross-border marriage and migration to China to create more opportunities and social capitals for themselves and their families. Importantly, the specific context of the China-Vietnam border has provided varied opportunities and resources for these women to go beyond the state’s regulations and constraints and to experiment with the alternatives. By taking advantage of the prosperity of border trade, the chaotic administration, and the benefits of living in the space “in-between,” Vietnamese brides have developed different transnational networks, making concrete contributions to their families and greatly challenging the label of economic “dependents” or family burdens.?Incorporating gender into low-emission development: a case study from Vietnam.Cathy Rozel Farnworth, Tr?n Thu Hà, Bj?rn Ole Sander, Eva Wollenberg, Nicoline C. de Haan and others. Gender, Technology and Development, 2017, pp. 1-26.?Abstract: Reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agriculture is needed to meet global climate policy targets. A number of low-emission development (LED) options exist in agriculture, which globally emits 10?12% of GHG emissions. In paddy rice production, alternative wetting and drying (AWD) can reduce emissions by up to 48%. Co-benefits of AWD include lower water consumption, lower use of fertilizer and seeds, and higher resistance to some pests and diseases. These are expected to result in improved benefits for individual farmers while lowering the sector?s overall contribution to GHG emissions. Women are strongly involved in rice production, hence improving their access to AWD technology, participation in decisions about it, and capacity to use it influences AWD adoption and resulting emissions. Involving women in AWD and LED more broadly also can provide distributional and procedural justice gains for women. The authors develop a conceptual model to show how these issues can be integrated. They suggest that intermediary organizations such as farmer associations and women?s organizations are central to enabling women to realize their personal goals while allowing gender to be taken to scale in LED, as is the case for other technology interventions. This requires work to expand their social capacities. A case study developed from work on taking gender-responsive LED to scale in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam, illustrates the model.???????????????Back to top?Lessons learnt from gender impact assessments of hydropower projects in Laos and Vietnam.Christina Hill, Phan Thi Ngoc Thuy, Jacqueline Storey and Silavanh Vongphosy. Gender & Development, 2017, volume 25, number 3, pp. 455-470.?Abstract: The World Commission on Dams? influential final report linked equitable and sustainable water and energy development, and the need for hydropower dam proponents to recognise rights, address risks, and safeguard the entitlements of all groups of affected people, including women. Yet since the report?s publication in 2000, very limited attention has been given to the gendered effects of large hydropower dams. This situation must change, given that hydropower projects inevitably have considerable impact on women and gender relations. This article describes efforts by Oxfam, the Lao Women?s Union, and the Center for Social Research and Development in Vietnam, to engage the hydropower sector on gender issues, and to work with companies and other stakeholders to pilot gender impact assessments of hydropower projects in Laos and Vietnam.?ICT for development ?Universal service in Vietnam: An institutional approach.Do Manh Thai and Morten Falch. Telecommunications Policy, 2017.?Abstract: Applying institutional theory to look at the Program 74 (a universal service policy) in Vietnam, this paper concludes that the Vietnamese universal service policy was strongly affected by formal institutional factors (the international agreements and the directives of the Communist Party of Vietnam - CPV), in which the international agreements played a leading role and the CPV's directives played a guarantee role. The formulation and implementation of the universal service policy in Vietnam were mainly concentrated on action at levels 2 and 3 (formal and informal institutional arrangement, and formal institutional environment). The paper recommends that nations favouring a top-down approach not based on a market-oriented regime should deregulate and emphasize the role of provincial governments as well as encourage private sectors/social organizations and rural users to be more involved in the formulation and implementation of universal service policies. Moreover, the government should set up and force the contractual relations between governmental entities and telecom providers.???????????????Back to top?Governance ?Do Natural Disasters Open a Window of Opportunity for Corruption?Quang Nguyen. Journal of Development Studies, 2017, volume 53, number 1.?Abstract: This study explores the link between natural disasters and corruption at the local government level. We examine whether a natural disaster affects official households more favourably than non-official households. We find that natural disasters decrease nonofficial household expenditures significantly, however, they have negligible effect on official household expenditures. Meanwhile, both kinds of households experience similar reduction in incomes, and have much the same disaster coping strategies. Together, the results imply that local officials may receive unobserved monetary compensation--we define as corruption--in the aftermath of natural disasters.?Healthcare, Nutrition and Population ?‘I do want to ask, but I can’t speak’: a qualitative study of ethnic minority women’s experiences of communicating with primary health care professionals in remote, rural Vietnam.Shannon McKinn, Linh Thuy Duong, Kirsty Foster and Kirsten McCaffery. International Journal for Equity in Health, 2017, volume 16, number 1, p. 190.Free full text : Ethnic minority groups in Vietnam experience economic, social and health inequalities. There are significant disparities in health service utilisation, and cultural, interpersonal and communication barriers impact on quality of care. Eighty per cent of the population of Dien Bien Province belongs to an ethnic minority group, and poor communication between health professionals and ethnic minority women in the maternal health context is a concern for health officials and community leaders. This study explores how ethnic minority women experience communication with primary care health professionals in the maternal and child health setting, with an overall aim to develop strategies to improve health professionals’ communication with ethnic minority communities.???????????????Back to top?Leading Causes of Death in Vietnam [Poster].Lindsey Roth. CWIC Posters, 2017, volume 32.Free full text : Vietnam is currently facing a public health crisis. Rates of chronic and preventable diseases are climbing, in addition to mortality rates from these diseases. If nothing is done to halt these rising rates, the health of the Vietnamese people will only continue to decline. Although there may be many factors contributing to these high death rates due to chronic diseases, risky health behaviors, such as smoking, and the state of the healthcare system can be considered two main contributors to the leading causes of death in Vietnam. The high smoking rates and high costs of healthcare are hindering the health of Vietnam, and may be related to the top causes of death, including stroke, ischemic heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and lower respiratory infections (World Health Organization and UN partners, 2015). Implementing government programs, including smoking cessation, smoking education, tobacco taxes, healthcare education, and continued work toward universal healthcare coverage, will hopefully help decrease the rising rates of chronic diseases and the high mortality rates they cause.?Patient Perception and Choice Factors Related to International Hospitals: A Study in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.Lena Bucatariu and Babu P George. Journal of Health & Medical Informatics, 2017, volume 8, number 3.Free full text : In the background of stagnant home markets, health care firms from mature economies are looking for opportunities in developing markets such as Vietnam. Various studies on marketing of health care from developed economies show convenience, specialties, reputation, and word of mouth as major choice factors for hospitals. The limited number of consumer behaviour articles from developing economies has contradictory findings for private and public hospitals with no mention of international hospitals. In this paper, the authors investigate the choice? criteria and consumer perceptions of international hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City. Findings imply that younger consumers prefer private care as they suffer from minor illnesses and prioritize convenience, customer service and comfortable facilities. Some older patients are more conservative, seeking government sites due to trust, familiarity and insurance coverage. Irrespective of age and income, all those who experienced international hospitals where left with a lasting positive impression of the caring consultation and staff, modern equipment, and ‘VIP feel’ of facilities, with price quoted as the main barrier.???????????????Back to top?A review of Vietnam’s healthcare reform through the Direction of Healthcare Activities (DOHA).Kyoko Takashima, Koji Wada, Ton Thanh Tra and Derek R. Smith. Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine, 2017, volume 22, number 1, p. 74.Free full text : Objective: This article provides a comprehensive review of the healthcare reform process driven by the Vietnamese Ministry of Health’s Direction of Healthcare Activities (DOHA) scheme. --- Methods:? We reviewed policy documents relating to DOHA, along with historical literature and background information describing its formation. --- Results: DOHA (Ch? ??o tuy?n in Vietnamese) literally means guidance line or level in English. It requires healthcare facilities at higher government administration levels to support those at lower levels (the four levels being central, provincial, district, and commune), to help lower level hospitals to provide medical services for local communities in primary care settings and reduce the number of patients in higher level (central and provincial) hospitals. Since the 1990s, there have been too many patients attending higher level hospitals, and DOHA has therefore focused on technical skills transfer training to help alleviate this situation. Designated core central hospitals now provide technical skills transfer to provincial hospitals. Professional technical lists for each level of health facility have enabled strong commitment and proactive ownership of the process of training management in both higher and lower level hospitals. --- Conclusion: The DOHA scheme has accelerated the necessary up-skilling of healthcare at lower level public hospitals across Vietnam. These reforms are highly relevant for other countries with limited healthcare resources.?Burden of hospitalized childhood community-acquired pneumonia: A retrospective cross-sectional study in Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Republic of Korea.Kah Kee Tan, Duc Anh Dang, Ki Hwan Kim, Cissy Kartasasmita, Hwang Min Kim and others. Hum Vaccin Immunother, 2017, pp. 1-11.?Abstract: BACKGROUND: Few studies describe the community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) burden in children in Asia. We estimated the proportion of all CAP hospitalizations in children from nine hospitals across the Republic of Korea (high-income), Indonesia, Malaysia (middle-income), and Vietnam (low/middle-income). METHODS: Over a one or two-year period, children <5 years hospitalized with CAP were identified using ICD-10 discharge codes. Cases were matched to standardized definitions of suspected (S-CAP), confirmed (C-CAP), or bacterial CAP (B-CAP) used in a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine efficacy study (COMPAS). Median total direct medical costs of CAP-related hospitalizations were calculated. RESULTS: Vietnam (three centers): 7591 CAP episodes were identified with 4.3% (95% confidence interval 4.2;4.4) S-CAP, 3.3% (3.2;3.4) C-CAP and 1.4% (1.3;1.4) B-CAP episodes of all-cause hospitalization in children aged <5 years. The B-CAP case fatality rate (CFR) was 1.3%. Malaysia (two centers): 1027 CAP episodes were identified with 2.7% (2.6;2.9); 2.6% (2.4;2.8); 0.04% (0.04;0.1) due to S-CAP, C-CAP, and B-CAP, respectively. One child with B-CAP died. Indonesia (one center): 960 CAP episodes identified with 18.0% (17.0;19.1); 16.8% (15.8;17.9); 0.3% (0.2;0.4) due to S-CAP, C-CAP, and B-CAP, respectively. The B-CAP CFR was 20%. Korea (three centers): 3151 CAP episodes were identified with 21.1% (20.4;21.7); 11.8% (11.2;12.3); 2.4% (2.1;2.7) due to S-CAP, C-CAP, and B-CAP, respectively. There were no deaths. COSTS: CAP-related hospitalization costs were highest for B-CAP episodes: 145.00 (Vietnam) to 1013.3 USD (Korea) per episode. CONCLUSION: CAP hospitalization causes an important health and cost burden in all four countries studied (NMRR-12-50-10793).???????????????Back to top?Dengue vaccine supplies under endemic and epidemic conditions in three dengue-endemic countries: Colombia, Thailand, and Vietnam.Jung-Seok Lee, Jacqueline K. Lim, Duc Anh Dang, Thi Hien Anh Nguyen and Andrew Farlow. Vaccine, 2017.?Abstract: Dengue fever has been a major public health concern in Colombia, Thailand, and Vietnam. Unlike other infectious diseases, dengue vaccines had not been available for a long time, causing difficulties to control the disease. However, the first live attenuated, tetravalent dengue vaccine (CYD-TDV) became available in 2016 and has been already licensed in some dengue-endemic countries. Because several second-generation dengue vaccines are also in the pipeline, it is critical to understand the efficient allocation of dengue vaccines considering the geographical variation of the disease. The Climate Risk Factor (CRF) index was created using the climate and non-climate factors in the three countries. A random-coefficient negative binomial model was chosen to validate the relationship between the CRF index and dengue incidence proxy. Given the statistical significance of the CRF index, high risk areas for dengue fever were identified at the 5?km by 5?km resolution and used to estimate vaccination coverage rates and the number of doses required for various types of vaccination scenarios by country. Based upon a three-dose scheme, the estimated number of vaccines required for routine vaccination targeting 9 years old ranged from 1 to 2.6 million doses across the countries during the first year of introduction. A one-off catch-up campaign targeting the age group of 10–17 year olds would require 8 to 18 million additional doses. Routine vaccination (with or without a catch-up campaign) covered 63%, 90%, and 91% of the targeted age group populations in Colombia, Thailand, and Vietnam respectively. Given that many dengue-endemic countries face limited resources and that the costs for mass vaccination campaigns may not be trivial, the findings of this study can guide the decision makers in the three countries regarding the efficient distribution of vaccines by identifying populations at high risk at 5?km by 5?km resolution.?Developing an antimicrobial resistance reference laboratory and surveillance programme in Vietnam.Nguyen Van Kinh, Heiman F. L. Wertheim, Guy E. Thwaite, Luong Ngoc Khue, Cao Hung Thai and others. The Lancet Global Health, 2017, volume 5, number 12, pp. e1186-e1187.Free full text : The Fleming Fund was established by the UK Government in 2015 in response to recommendations of an independent review on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) led by economist Jim O'Neill and the Global Action Plan on AMR adopted by the World Health Assembly in 2015.1 These recommendations were subsequently endorsed by the General Assembly of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). --- The Fleming Fund represents a ?265 million investment from 2015 to 2022, aimed at improving laboratory capacity for diagnosis and surveillance of AMR and antibiotic use in low-income and middle-income countries where AMR has a disproportionate effect. The Fleming Fund is part of the UK Government's Official Development Assistance budget and is administered by the Department of Health. The Mott MacDonald Group was appointed in 2016 to manage the Fleming Fund's projects and a fellowship scheme that will provide support to create a sustainable community of practice within investment countries. Itad has been appointed as an independent evaluator. --- Following existing early investment in Vietnam, the Fleming Fund will expand into over 20 countries across sub-Saharan Africa, and south and southeast Asia. Grants are also provided to multilateral organisations, including WHO, the FAO, and the OIE, to assist countries with the development of AMR national action plans. --- AMR has been recognised as a major health threat in Vietnam for over two decades. A situation analysis was completed in 2010 by the Global Antibiotic Resistance Partnership (GARP) Vietnam National Working Group,2 led by the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases (NHTD) and the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit (OUCRU), with representation from the Vietnamese Ministries of Health and of Agriculture and Rural Development. In 2013, the Vietnamese Ministry of Health developed a national action plan on AMR, and was the first country in the WHO Western Pacific region to do so. The plan is comprehensive and follows the priorities as outlined by WHO.3 Surveillance of antibiotic use and antibiotic resistance, and an antibiotic stewardship programme are among its priorities. In 2015, the Ministries of Health, Agriculture and Rural Development, Industry and Trade, and Natural Resources and Environment in Vietnam, and WHO, the FAO, and the OUCRU signed an aide memoire committing to help coordinate and jointly implement the national action plans across different sectors.???????????????Back to top?Incidence of dengue and chikungunya viruses in mosquitoes and human patients in border provinces of Vietnam.Kim Lien Pham Thi, Laurence Briant, Laurent Gavotte, Pierrick Labbe, Marco Perriat-Sanguinet and others. Parasit Vectors, 2017, volume 10, number 1, p. 556.Free full text : BACKGROUND: Dengue virus remains a major threat in Vietnam, while chikungunya virus is expected to become one. Surveillance was conducted from 2012 to 2014 in Vietnam to assess the presence of dengue and chikungunya viruses in patients hospitalized with acute fever in five Vietnam provinces neighboring Lao PDR and Cambodia. Surveillance was extended to mosquitoes present in the vicinity of the patients' households. RESULTS: A total 558 human serum samples were collected along with 1104 adult mosquitoes and 12,041 larvae from 2250 households. Dengue virus was found in 17 (3%) human serum samples and in 9 (0.8%) adult mosquitoes. Chikungunya virus was detected in 2 adult mosquitoes (0.18%) while no chikungunya virus was detected in humans. Differing densities of mosquito populations were found, with the highest in the Long An Province border with Cambodia. Long An Province also displayed the lowest rate of infection, despite a very high Breteau Index, high human population density and presence of the main cross border road system. The highest incidence was found in Dac Nong Province, where the Breteau and Container indices were the second lowest. Dengue virus was detected in five Aedes albopictus, three Aedes aegypti and one Culex vishnui. Chikungunya virus was detected in two Ae. aegypti. All infected mosquitoes belonged to haplotypes described in other parts of the world and a number of novel haplotypes were found among uninfected mosquitoes. CONCLUSIONS: Dengue is considered to be regularly introduced to Vietnam from Cambodia, mostly through human movement. The data reported here provides a complementary picture. Due to intensive international trade, long-distance transportation of mosquito populations may play a role in the regular importation of dengue in Vietnam through Ho Chi Minh City. It is important to decipher the movement of mosquitoes in Vietnam, not only at the Lao PDR and Cambodia borders but also through international trade routes. Mosquito surveillance programs should address and follow mosquito populations instead of mosquito species.?Protocol for hospital based-surveillance of cerebral palsy (CP) in Hanoi using the Paediatric Active Enhanced Disease Surveillance mechanism (PAEDS-Vietnam): a study towards developing hospital-based disease surveillance in Vietnam.Gulam Khandaker, Nguyen Van Bang, Trinh Quang Dung, Nguyen Thi Huong Giang, Cao Minh Chau and others. BMJ Open, 2017, volume 7, number 11, p. e017742.Free full text : INTRODUCTION: The epidemiology, pathogenesis, management and outcomes of cerebral palsy (CP) in low-income and middle-income countries including Vietnam are unknown because of the lack of mechanisms for standardised collection of data. In this paper, we outline the protocol for developing a hospital-based surveillance system modelled on the Paediatric Active Enhanced Disease Surveillance (PAEDS) system in Australia. Using PAEDS-Vietnam we will define the aetiology, motor function and its severity, associated impairments, and nutritional and rehabilitation status of children with CP in Hanoi, Vietnam. These essential baseline data will inform future health service planning, health professional education and training, and family support. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This is a hospital-based prospective surveillance of children with CP presenting to the rehabilitation, neurology and general paediatric services at the National Children's Hospital and St Paul Hospital in Hanoi. We will use active, prospective daily case-finding for all children with CP aged <18 years who are hospitalised or present to outpatient departments. Following parental consent, data will be collected using a modified version of the Australian Cerebral Palsy Register questionnaire. The data collection form has been developed in consultation with local and international experts and translated into Vietnamese. Information collected will include demographics, maternal health and birth history, type and severity of CP, known risk factors for CP, and nutrition, immunisation, education and rehabilitation status. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study was approved by the Hanoi Medical University Institutional Review Board (decision no 1722) and The University of Sydney Human Research Ethics Committee (approval no 2016/456). Establishment of PAEDS-Vietnam will enable hospital-based surveillance of CP for the first time in Vietnam. It will identify preventable causes of CP, patient needs and service gaps, and facilitate early diagnosis and intervention. Study findings will be disseminated through local and international conferences and peer-reviewed publications.???????????????Back to top?Acute effects of ambient air pollution on lower respiratory infections in Hanoi children: An eight-year time series study.Nguyen Thi Trang Nhung, Christian Schindler, Tran Minh Dien, Nicole Probst-Hensch, Laura Perez and others. Environ Int, 2018, volume 110, pp. 139-148.Free full text : BACKGROUND: Lower respiratory diseases are the most frequent causes of hospital admission in children worldwide, particularly in developing countries. Daily levels of air pollution are associated with lower respiratory diseases, as documented in many time-series studies. However, investigations in low-and-middle-income countries, such as Vietnam, remain sparse. OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the short-term association of ambient air pollution with daily counts of hospital admissions due to pneumonia, bronchitis and asthma among children aged 0-17 in Hanoi, Vietnam. We explored the impact of age, gender and season on these associations. METHODS: Daily ambient air pollution concentrations and hospital admission counts were extracted from electronic databases received from authorities in Hanoi for the years 2007-2014. The associations between outdoor air pollution levels and hospital admissions were estimated for time lags of zero up to seven days using Quasi-Poisson regression models, adjusted for seasonal variations, meteorological variables, holidays, influenza epidemics and day of week. RESULTS: All ambient air pollutants were positively associated with pneumonia hospitalizations. Significant associations were found for most pollutants except for ozone and sulfur dioxide in children aged 0-17. Increments of an interquartile range (21.9mug/m3) in the 7-day-average level of NO2 were associated with a 6.1% (95%CI 2.5% to 9.8%) increase in pneumonia hospitalizations. These associations remained stable in two-pollutant models. All pollutants other than CO were positively associated with hospitalizations for bronchitis and asthma. Associations were stronger in infants than in children aged 1-5. CONCLUSION: Strong associations between hospital admissions for lower respiratory infections and daily levels of air pollution confirm the need to adopt sustainable clean air policies in Vietnam to protect children's health.?Biomonitoring of Metals, Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers, Polychlorinated Biphenyls, Persistent Pesticides in Vietnamese Female Electronic Waste Recyclers.Arnold Schecter, Jenevieve Kincaid, Hoang Trong Quynh, Joel Lanceta, Hanh Thi Tuyet Tran and others. Journal of Occupational & Environmental Medicine, 2017.?Abstract: Objective: Electronic-waste is increasing.Its frequently conducted in developing countries.This is the first study to report metals, polybrominated diphenyl-ethers(PBDEs), polychlorinated biphenyls(PCBs), 2,2-bis(4-chlorophenyl)-1,1,1-trichloroethane(p,p'-DDT), and p,p'-DDE concentrations in female e-waste workers. --- Methods: Female Vietnamese recyclers and non-recyclers were studied. Metals and halogenated organics were measured in blood and urine, and compared to levels in women in the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey(NHANES). --- Results: Recyclers had higher serum PBDE than non-recyclers. PCB-138/158 and PCB-153 were higher in 18-<38year-old non-recyclers.Median urinary arsenic in both cohorts was 6 to 7-fold higher than NHANES.Median lead in blood and urine was 40-60% higher in recyclers than non-recyclers.Lead in non-recyclers was 4 to 6-fold higher than NHANES.Both cohorts had higher arsenic and mercury than NHANES. --- Conclusion: Occupational exposure to PBDEs and lead occurred in recyclers. Environmental exposure to arsenic, lead, and mercury occurred in both cohorts.Occupational and environmental remediation are recommended.???????????????Back to top?Do prospective payment systems (PPSs) lead to desirable providers' incentives and patients' outcomes? A systematic review of evidence from developing countries.Si Ying Tan and G J Melendez-Torres. Health Policy Plan, 2017.?Abstract: The reform of provider payment systems, from retrospective to prospective payment, has been heralded as the right move to contain costs in the light of rising health expenditures in many countries. However, there are concerns on quality trade-off. The heightened attention given to prospective payment system (PPS) reforms and the rise of empirical evidence regarding PPS interventions among developing countries suggest that a systematic review is necessary to understand the effects of PPS reforms in developing countries. A systematic search of 14 databases and a hand search of health policy journals and grey literature from October to November 2016 were carried out, guided by a set of inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data were extracted based on the Consolidated Health Economics Evaluation Reporting Standards checklist. Drummond's 10-item checklist for economic evaluation, Cochrane Collaboration's tool in assessing risk of bias for randomized trials, and Risk of Bias in Non-randomized Studies of Interventions were used to critically appraise the evidence. A total of 12 studies reported in China, Thailand and Vietnam were included in this review. Substantial heterogeneity was present in PPS policy design across different localities. PPS interventions were found to have reduced health expenditures on both the supply and demand side, as well as length of stay and readmission rates. In addition, PPS generally improved service quality outcomes by reducing the likelihood or percentage of physicians prescribing unnecessary drugs and diagnostic procedures. PPS is a promising policy tool for middle-income countries to achieve reasonable health policy objectives in terms of cost containment without necessarily compromising the quality of care. More evaluations of PPS will need to be conducted in the future in order to broaden the evidence base beyond middle-income countries.?Data on the chemical properties of commercial fish sauce products.Mitsutoshi Nakano, Yoshimasa Sagane, Ryosuke Koizumi, Yozo Nakazawa, Masao Yamazaki and others. Data Brief, 2017, volume 15, pp. 658-664.Free full text : This data article reports on the chemical properties of commercial fish sauce products associated with the fish sauce taste and flavor. All products were analyzed in triplicate. Dried solid content was analyzed by moisture analyzer. Fish sauce salinity was determined by a salt meter. pH was measured using a pH meter. The acidity was determined using a titration assay. Amino nitrogen and total nitrogen were evaluated using a titration assay and Combustion-type nitrogen analyzer, respectively. The analyzed products originated from Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, China, the Philippines, and Italy. Data on the chemical properties of the products are provided in table format in the current article.???????????????Back to top?HIV and other STIs in male sex workers: Findings from a sexual health promotion intervention in Vietnam.Lloyd A Goldsamt, Michael C Clatts, Le Minh Giang, Bao Q Le, Donn J Colby and others. Int J STD AIDS, 2017.?Abstract: Male sex workers (MSWs) in Vietnam are at high risk for acquisition and transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), yet are extremely disengaged from the healthcare system. This contributes to large numbers of untreated or late-treated infections and increased secondary transmission. We enrolled 995 MSWs in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) in a Sexual Health Promotion intervention that included face-to-face delivery of seven content modules, a clinical examination and testing for HIV, syphilis, gonorrhea and Chlamydia. Onsite treatment was provided for STIs, and those who tested positive for HIV were referred to local treatment centers. While 64.6% of participants had never been to a health service and fewer than half (41.2%) had ever been tested for HIV, 67.1% returned for test results. This testing identified 109 (11.0%) participants who were HIV-positive and 312 (31.4%) who tested positive for at least one other STI. Substantive differences were seen in MSWs from different cities, with those from Hanoi more likely to have ever visited a health service (57.8% vs. 24.9%) and to have taken a prior HIV test (54.1% vs. 37.9%) than those in HCMC. Sexual health promotion is a promising approach to engaging MSWs in health services.?Systematic review of the design, implementation and effectiveness of mass media and nutrition education interventions for infant and young child feeding.Matthew M. Graziose, Shauna M. Downs, Quentin O’Brien and Jessica Fanzo. Public Health Nutrition, 2017, pp. 1-15.?Abstract: Objective To systematically review the design, implementation and effectiveness of mass media and nutrition education interventions for improving infant and young child feeding (IYCF) practices and related psychosocial factors. Design A search of PubMed, Embase and PsycINFO databases, a Google search, and a consultation with experts in the field of IYCF performed in July 2016. Setting Low- and middle-income countries, as defined by the World Bank Group. Subjects Eligible studies: included a mass media component (with or without nutrition education); conducted a pre–post evaluation (with or without a control group); assessed IYCF knowledge, attitudes, beliefs and/or practices; and were published in English between 2000 and present. Results Eighteen unique studies were identified that examined the effect of mass media (types included: television; print; voice and/or SMS (text) messages; radio; megaphones/loudspeakers; videos; social media; songs/dramas) and nutrition education interventions on IYCF practices within thirteen countries. Of these, fifteen studies reported improvements in breast- and/or complementary feeding practices, using indicators recommended by the WHO, and six studies reported improvements in related psychosocial factors. However, little detail was provided on the use of formative research, a formal behaviour change theory and behaviour change techniques. Few studies reported both dose delivered and participants’ exposure to the intervention. Conclusions Despite evidence of effectiveness, few common elements in the design of interventions were identified. Future research should consistently report these details to open the ‘black box’ of IYCF interventions, identify effective design components and ensure replicability.???????????????Back to top?Condom use behaviour among people living with HIV: a seven-country community-based participatory research in the Asia-Pacific region.Keshab Deuba, Verena Kohlbrenner, Sushil Koirala and Anna Mia Ekstrom. Sex Transm Infect, 2017.Free full text : OBJECTIVES: We examined the prevalence of inconsistent condom use and its correlates among people living with HIV (PLHIV) in the Asia-Pacific region. METHODS: Between 1 October 2012 and 31 May 2013, a total of 7843 PLHIV aged 18-50 years were recruited using targeted and venue-based sampling in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Lao People's Democratic Republic (PDR), Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines and Vietnam. Logistic regression was used to explore the association between condom use behaviour and demographics, social support, stigma and discrimination and various health-related variables. RESULTS: Overall, 43% of 3827 PLHIV practised inconsistent condom use at sexual intercourse with their regular partner. An even higher proportion, 46% of 2044 PLHIV admitted that they practised unprotected sex with a casual partner. Participants from Lao PDR reported the lowest prevalence of inconsistent condom use for both regular and casual partners, while participants from the Philippines had the highest risk behaviour. Inconsistent condom use was significantly associated with belonging to a key population (drug user, sex worker or refugee subpopulation), not knowing that condoms are still needed if both partners are HIV positive, having a regular partner whose HIV status was either positive or unknown, having experienced physical assault and not receiving antiretroviral treatment. CONCLUSIONS: This large seven-country study highlights a high prevalence of inconsistent condom use among PLHIV in the Asia-Pacific region. In addition to knowledge-imparting interventions, the adoption and expansion of the 'Test and Treat' strategy could help to maximise the prevention benefits of antiretroviral treatment.?Misuse of antenatal care and its association with adverse outcomes of pregnancy in a Southern rural area of Vietnam.Thi-Thuy-Dung Ngo, The-Dung Nguyen, Philippe Goyens and Annie Robert. Health Care Women Int, 2017.?Abstract: Researchers in Vietnam reported a high percentage of pregnant women attending ANC at least once, but an insufficient utilization of ANC services remains. The evidence demonstrating how the utilization of these services affect pregnancy outcome is not documented in Vietnam. We investigated the association between the misuse of ANC services and pregnancy outcome, and assessed other determinants associated with ANC services utilization. We conducted a prospective community-based study in Trang Bom district, Dong Nai, during 12 consecutive months. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire and medical records. Women were followed up to delivery. Misuse of ANC services, related factors and its association with adverse events were assessed using logistic regression. Out of 3301 pregnant women, 91% initiated an ANC visit within first trimester, 95% attended at least three ANC visits, but a low percentage of pregnant women underwent blood and urine tests at least once (20% and 39%, respectively). Factors significantly associated with a higher risk of adverse outcomes were lack of blood test and urine test, parity >/= 3, ANC visits < 3, history of an adverse outcome, and having a clinical condition. Blood and urine tests were less frequently used by young women, women from ethnic minorities, women using only private facilities for ANC attendance, and women with a low number of ANC visits. Despite a high percentage of early entry into ANC and of at least three ANC visits, misuse of ANC services still exists and contributes to adverse outcomes. There is a need to increase the awareness of women on the benefits of ANC services by educating young women as well as women with several children. Health workers should be encouraged to propose suitable ANC services to pregnant women.???????????????Back to top?Infrastructure and Urban development ?Equity issues in land acquisition: A source of delays in large construction projects in Vietnam [PhD thesis].Thu Hang Vu. Queensland University of Technology, 2017.Free full text : Delays in construction projects have been a recurring and global problem for decades. In many countries, particularly developing countries, delays in land acquisition are considered one of the largest contributors of delays in large construction projects. In Vietnam, one key cause of these delays stems from equity perceptions of land-acquired communities who perceive themselves to be disadvantaged or let down by the land acquisition process. However, the formation of these equity perceptions has not been sufficiently investigated. Further, the relationship between equity issues on perceptions of land-acquired households and delays in construction projects has also not been clarified by existing literature that cannot help to adequately figure out solutions to these delays. --- Therefore, this research aims to investigate the formation of equity perceptions of land-acquired households and the relationship between equity issues and delays in construction projects. To implement this aim, a theoretical model is proposed that link between equity issues, comparisons, equity perceptions, and responses of landacquired communities causing delays in large construction projects in Vietnam. --- After that, the case study approach and semi-structured interviews of 40 landacquired households are conducted across two case studies, which are two large construction projects in Vietnam. Content and thematic analysis of the data collected was performed using Nvivo software to verify the four propositions developed from the theoretical model. The main findings of this research are reflected by the revised theoretical model with the following implications: (1) Equity issues that involve distributive justice, procedural justice, and interactional justice can be judged by comparisons to form perceptions of equity/inequity; (2) Equity comparisons can be based on basic needs and conditional expectations; (3) Not all under-reward comparisons lead to equity judgement; (4) Both protest and nonprotest responses to restore equity can lead to delays; and (5) Political environment and social relationships are most important moderators influencing perceptions of equity/inequity and responses of land-acquired households. These findings of this research could provide better understanding of the relationship between equity issues and delays, which can help to address minimise delays in large construction projects. In addition, the principles of equity may be applied to project management to improve project? performance, which in turn, will enable more successful project outcomes.?Making public-private partnerships in infrastructure successful in Vietnam: A need for a better procurement legal mechanism [PhD thesis].Huong Van Nguyen. Queensland University of Technology, 2017.Free full text : Public private partnerships (PPPs) are a necessary and important mechanism for governments to improve and build new infrastructure and services. They also contribute to boosting economic development, enhancing the standard of living and improving other social services. PPP projects have been implemented in Vietnam to provide facilities in the context of the state budget deficit. Apart from the achievement of improving infrastructure conditions, there are shortcomings and failures of these projects. Previous and current PPP projects are not considered successful in delivering value for money for the Vietnamese government. Ineffective legislation and other political economic and social issues in Vietnam have caused these problems. --- This thesis examines how Vietnamese laws should be improved to facilitate successful PPP projects. It focuses on key PPP rules on project selection, land acquisition, major entities in procurement, capital and risk allocation of projects, procurement procedures and dispute resolution. The research utilises the regulatory regimes of Australia and the Philippines by way of comparison with that of Vietnam. --- This thesis concludes that although PPP laws are in force in Vietnam, there are many processes that could be improved. The research takes learning from Australia and the Philippines to provide recommendations to improve the relevant legislation in Vietnam.???????????????Back to top?Mobilized territories in more-than-relational public spaces: Sidewalk territories of resistance in Hanoi, Vietnam.Anh-Dung Ta and Manfredo Manfredini. 10th IFOU - International Forum On Urbanism Conference-Hong Kong 14-16 2017, 2017.Free full text : The Vietnamese government has been issuing a series of urban renewal policies with the aim of attracting international elites and investments. One of their most important strategies is to renovate and upgrade current public spaces in Hanoi, particularly focusing on the Ancient Quarter. A wide range of traditional activities, considered obsolete or inappropriate, have been banned through the implementation of blanket sidewalk clearance policies. The distinctive high socio-spatial relationality, local distinctiveness and diversity have been destabilised. Being stripped of social and cultural values, some of these spaces have been transformed into commodities of a globalised and homogeneous consumption-driven realm. In other areas, local people oppose this process, defending their forms of territorial appropriation and association, continuously producing and reproducing spaces that offer chances for accidental encounter, unexpected action and accommodate a multifarious practices in an active and dynamic play. The present paper explores the production of such territories, acknowledging that they are sources of enrichment and wellbeing, provide contribution to the sustainable development of the city, and empower citizens to play an active and unique role in development initiatives. Using actor-network theory, the paper attempts to disentangle the complex dynamic territorial processes to (1) explain how people use spatial elements to territorialise these spaces, and (2) describe the dynamics of their fleeting territories.?Housing satisfaction and its correlates: a quantitative study among residents living in their own affordable apartments in urban Hanoi, Vietnam.Anh Tuan Nguyen, Tuyen Quang Tran, Huong Van Vu and Dat Quoc Luu. International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development, 2017, pp. 1-13.?Abstract: Using a novel dataset involving 450 respondents living in their own affordable apartments in urban Hanoi, this study examines the housing satisfaction of the respondents and its correlates. We find that housing satisfaction is positively associated with household income but negatively related to education. Interestingly, the study finds that residents borrowing from banks to buy a home are less satisfied with their home than their non-borrowing counterparts. We also find that respondents? positive evaluation of features of their apartments, such as the design, construction quality and price, is strongly linked with housing satisfaction. In addition, the location of the house and quality of the environment in the area were found to be major factors affecting housing satisfaction.???????????????Back to top?Poverty ?Sectoral Employment and Poverty in Rural Vietnam in 2000s.Trung Xuan Hoang and Quang Nhat Bui. Economics bulletin, 2017, volume 37, number 4.Free full text : This paper uses Vietnam Households Living Standards Surveys of 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2008 and utilize a linear probability model with household fixed-effects to examine the impact of sectoral employment on rural poverty. The result shows that non-farm employment play a vital role in poverty reduction in rural Vietnam. The number of household members self-employing has a significant impact on poverty reduction. Employment in domestic private enterprises also contributes significantly to poverty reduction. Finally, change in rice price only helped to reduce poverty in 2006-08 when rice price increased significantly due to the global food crisis of 2008.?Social development ?Disability and Social Protection Programmes in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review.Lena Morgon Banks, Rachel Mearkle, Islay Mactaggart, Matthew Walsham, Hannah Kuper and others. Oxford Development Studies, 2017, volume 45, number 3.?Abstract: This paper systematically reviews the evidence on whether persons with disabilities in low- and middle-income countries are adequately included in social protection programmes, and assesses the financial and non-financial impacts of participation. Overall, we found that access to social protection appears to fall far below need. Benefits from participation are mostly limited to maintaining minimum living standards and do not appear to fulfil the potential of long-term individual and societal social and economic development. However, the most notable finding of this review is that there is a dearth of high-quality, robust evidence in this area, indicating a need for further research.?Labor migration flows from Vietnam to Thailand in the context of ASEAN regional integration.Nguyen Tuan Anh. RUDN Journal of Economics, 2017, volume 25, number 2.Free full text : International migration has been always an important and compound issue by virtue of it closely relates to various facets from political, social and economic development for regions and countries. In ASEAN, international migration has been always defined as one of the fundamentalfeatures in ASEAN’s development transition (Chantavanich, Ito, and Middleton 2013). Over the last decades, the region’s economies have achieved significant and impressive growth, becoming one of the most dynamic economic performance regions in the world as well as has become more widely integrated into the regional and global economics1. The rapid growth process has transformed fundamentally economic structure of many Southeast Asian countries with the greater contribution of industrial and service sectors instead of solely based on the agriculture sector over many centuries. The demand for skills in higher income countries in the region has grown, while there is a fall in birthrates with greying populations that causes an increasing shortage of labor such as Thailand. For the lower income ones, on the contrary, the youth populations are burgeoning, which lead to the unemployment and underemployment rate are dramatically increasing such as Vietnam and Philippines.???????????????Back to top?The trafficking of women and girls in Taiwan: characteristics of victims, perpetrators, and forms of exploitation.Lanying Huang. BMC Womens Health, 2017, volume 17, number 1, p. 104.Free full text : BACKGROUND: Prior to the passing of 2009 Human Trafficking Prevention Act (HTPA), human trafficking was underestimated in Taiwan. In the past, domestic trafficking in women and girls often targeted vulnerable groups such as young girls from poor families or minority groups. Since the 1990s, an increasing flow of immigrant women, mainly from Vietnam and Indonesia and some from China, into Taiwan has created a new group of Human Trafficking victims. The current study intends to identify, describe, and categorize reported and prosecuted human trafficking cases involving women and girls according to the HTPA in Taiwan. METHODS: Using the court proceedings of prosecuted trafficking in women and girls cases under Taiwan's HTPA from all 21 districts in Taiwan from 2009 to 2012 under the title keyword of 'Human Trafficking', this current study aims to categorize different patterns of existing trafficking in women and girls in Taiwan. The analysis is based on 37 court cases, involving 195 victimized women and girls and 118 perpetrators. RESULTS: This study identifies six forms of Human Trafficking victims according to their country of origin, vulnerability status, and means of transport. This study found that women and girls suffer from both labor and sexual exploitation, from mainly domestic male perpetrators. While sexual exploitation is more evenly distributed among citizens and immigrants and affects both adults and minors, labor exploitation seems to be an exclusive phenomenon among women immigrant workers in the data. CONCLUSIONS: Human Trafficking cases in Taiwan share many of the similarities of Human Trafficking in other regions, which are highly associated with gender inequality and gender-based vulnerability.?Tourism ?The development of rural tourism in Vietnam: Objectives, practical experiences and challenges.Pham Xuan Hau and Vu Anh Tuan. Van Hien University Journal of Science, 2017, volume 5, number 2.Free full text : In modern times, the form of rural tourism is developing ceaselessly due to its positive effects towards the economy, the society, and the environment of a country. In Vietnam, the potentials for development of rural tourism are greatly enormous, but its enhancement is inconsiderable and unsustainable. There has been misused the potentials somehow. The paper supplies some questions about the development tendency of Vietnam’s rural tourism based on experiences learned from other countries, on its potentials, on the orientation of Vietnam Communist Party and Government; and some solutions are suggested accordingly.???????????????Back to top????***************************V? Th? NhaLibrarianWorld Bank Group63 Ly Thai To, Hanoi, VietnamTel.: +84-4-3934 6845Email: nvu2@World Bank Vietnam web site ’s free documents and reports WB’s free publications & research ’s free data & statistics ? ................
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