Hanoi (VNA) - The following is a brief review of the day’s events as reported by the Vietnam News Agency.

- The central steering committee for the review of the implementation of Resolution No. 18-NQ/TW, issued by the 12th Party Central Committee in 2017, on December 5 requested all units to complete their proposals for restructuring and streamlining the organisational apparatus in December 2024, in preparation for extraordinary meetings of the Party Central Committee and the National Assembly, scheduled to take place in February 2025.

Everything is proceeding with great urgency. Within two months, from the launch of the "revolution to streamline the state apparatus" to the completion of the restructuring plan, all must be finalised. Read full story

- General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee To Lam has laid stress on the critical role of the CPV Central Committee’s Commission for Economic Affairs in perfecting institutions for the development of the socialist-oriented market economy as well as outlining pivotal guidelines for national economic management.

At a working session with the commission on December 9, the Party chief highlighted that the commission has made contributions to the country’s impressive economic achievements over the past years. Read full story

- State President Luong Cuong on December 9 presented the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces to the Viettel Aerospace Institute under the Viettel Military Industry and Telecoms Group (Viettel) in recognition of its excellent achievements in research and production of hi-tech strategic weapon products for the military and the nation.

Addressing the awarding ceremony, Cuong emphasised that achievements made by the institute are not only the nation’s pride but also the realisation of a long-standing aspiration of the nation to possess enough strength and self-reliance to safeguard its independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, for eternal peace and longevity of the country. Read full story

- Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, who is also Chairman of the Central Emulation and Commendation Council, chaired its 10th meeting Hanoi on December 9.

The session aimed to review the council’s performance in 2024, set out directions and tasks in 2025, and consider awarding the titles of "Hero of the People's Armed Forces" and "Hero of Labour" to collectives and individuals with particularly outstanding contributions to national construction and defence. Read full story

- Hanoi must take more decisive actions to restructure its economy in alignment with renewing growth model, prioritising resources to successfully implement strategic breakthroughs and addressing bottlenecks in institutions, infrastructure, and human resources, said National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man at the 20th meeting of the municipal People’s Council for the 2021 – 2026 tenure on December 9.

In his remarks, the top legislator urged the municipal authorities to proactively implement the Capital Law with special mechanisms and policies to make breakthroughs, creating motivation to become a leading locality in the region and the country. Read full story

- The Party organisation, administration, and people of Ninh Thuan province have high consensus and expectations on the nuclear power project which will be restarted in the south-central province after the 15th National Assembly (NA) approved the policy at its recent 8th session, according to Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Tran Quoc Nam.

In an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency, Nam said that since 2009, when the 12th National Assembly passed Resolution 41/2009/QH12 on the policy to build the Ninh Thuan Nuclear Power Plant, the local Party organisation, administration, and people had highly agreed with the implementation of the project, and coordinated well to carry out the tasks until the 14th National Assembly issued Resolution 31/2016/NQ-QH14, which halted the project. Since then, local people in the project areas have faced many difficulties and are hoping for the early stabilisation of their lives and livelihoods. Read full story

- Two cutting-edge AI research centres, namely Vietnam Research and Development Centre and AI Data Centre, will be established under the partnership between Vietnam and US tech giant NVIDIA, making a significant milestone in the country’s technological transformation.

The partnership was formalised during the second visit to Vietnam by NVIDIA President and CEO Jensen Huang, with a groundbreaking agreement signed between Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung and Executive Vice President of Worldwide Field Operations Jay Puri. Read full story

- After more than 12 years of implementing tobacco control measures, the rate of active smoking among adults in Vietnam has decreased, but ultimately, it is still high when compared globally.

The overall smoking rate for both genders is 20.8%, with the prevalence among adult men at 41.1% in 2021, placing Vietnam among the countries with the highest smoking rates globally./. Read full story