To streamline residence management and reduce land paperwork, Hanoi is speeding up the digitization of land use rights and assets and cleaning up the city's land data.

Welcome to this week's Words on the Street, where we explore the latest shifts shaping Vietnam's digital landscape, and look at Deepseek's quiet but intriguing entry into an AI market where ChatGPT reigns supreme.

Taking the water from the Red River and the West Lake to clean To Lich River is just one piece of the puzzle. Drastic actions are needed to keep the environment clean and green.

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) on January 16 launched a US$26 million climate change project in Nam Dinh province.

As many as 450 domestic and international tourism companies will attend an international tourism fair at Hanoi’s Vietnam Exhibition Fair Centre from April 3–6.

The Vietnamese Government highlighted the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) financial support, which amounts to US$13 billion in aid so far, contributing to national poverty reduction work, said Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.

The revised Land Law, which will come into force on July 1, 2014, will help improve transparency in land management and use, said National Assembly Vice Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.

The Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said the government is building a stricter legal framework that will help to curb corruption and even recover state assets.

Dong Van and Meo Vac border districts in the northernmost province of Ha Giang reportedly saw widespread snowfall on the night of January 12, with temperatures dropping to minus one degree Celsius.

The Vietnam Red Cross (VRC) has disbursed VND4.8 billion from its budget to support families in special difficulty in 37 provinces to enjoy a happy lunar New Year (Tet) holiday.

Finance Minister Dinh Tien Dung has confirmed the financial sector will use necessary instruments for managing market prices to support the government’s macroeconomic stabilisation efforts.

Nearly VND150 billion was raised by various organisations and individuals at the seventh “Spring for Children” program held in Hanoi.

A January 11 ceremony in Hanoi has honoured a range of traditional product brands including Uoc Le pork pie, Trach Xa ao dai (traditional long dress), Dong Ky ceramics, and Chang Son woodcraft.

PM Nguyen Tan Dung has asked the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai to consider reducing poverty especially among ethnic minorities, in a fast and sustainable manner, a focal task in the time to come.

The Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) will intensify its “Day for the Poor” campaign and monitor the implementation of poverty reduction projects to improve their efficiency.

Businesses are busy shipping their special commodities for Vietnamese nationals residing overseas as the traditional lunar New Year (Tet) festival is drawing near.

The National Traffic Safety Committee (NTSC) reports 2013 saw a total of 29,385 traffic accidents that killed 9,369 people and caused 29,500 injuries.

Ethnic minorities are increasingly choosing not to wear their traditional costumes, especially for their daily activities.

Vietnam has established an overseas labour management office in Seoul, the Republic of Korea (RoK), following the Korea Employment Permit System (EPS) with the intention of protecting the legitimate rights and interests of Vietnamese guest workers.

On December 29, the Thua Thien Hue provincial Youth Union launched an action program for a green, clean and beautiful environment in collaboration with Hue Beer Company.

Overseas Vietnamese in Canada, Bulgaria, and the Netherlands have donated more than VND200 million to share with and support disadvantaged people back home.

Truong Thi Mai, Chairwoman of the National Assembly’s Committee for Social Affairs, has hailed Ho Chi Minh City for its achievements in poverty reduction, saying the city has set the highest poverty line nationwide.

The Minister of Labour, Invalids, and Social Affairs (MoLISA) has asked the State President to reserve VND397.305 billion in the 2014 State budget to purchase gifts for social policy beneficiaries during the approaching Lunar New Year (Tet) Festival.