A ceremony to honour the most outstanding products of the Vietnamese Talents Awards 2011 will be held in Hanoi on November 20.

 

Candidates giving their presentations  

The event, the 7th of its kind organised in Vietnam, has attracted products from the three areas of information technology, natural sciences and health.

The IT sector has drawn the highest number of products with a total of 204. From those, the organising board selected 17 for the final round which took place on November 18. After the final round, the winning candidates will receive awards at the granting ceremony.

The IT finalists were divided into two groups: products already that already are being practically applied, and those with great potential for application.

The atmosphere of the final round was tense. The developers had to answer a number of questions posed to them by the panel of judges. Most of the questions centred around the quality, price competitiveness and advantages over similar existing products. They were also asked if there were any flaws or weaknesses which could be improved.

Accoring to Pham Huy Hoan, Editor-in-chief of Dantri/DTiNews Newspaper and Head of the oganising board, the contest would help to recognise and foster new talent. This year, the event attracted more support from state and Government leaders.

Professor Nguyen Van Hieu, Head of the board of examiners, said the Vietnamese Talents Awards is a way to introduce the most promising developments in the chosen fields. He added, however, that a number of very qualified potential candidates chose not to enter, for fear that their ideas might be taken.

He added that stricter regulations on intellectual property would remedy this situation, and encourage a healthy competitiveness in the areas covered.

Dr. Nguyen Long, General Secretary of the Vietnam Informatics Association, said that there was not much of an improvement in the IT products presented this year. Those which were in the "already-in-use" category lacked in technology. He expected that the contest will attract better products in years to come.

Products in the natural science and health areas were examined by science councils of the Vietnamese Academy of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Health. The councils have made their decisions and informed the organising board. The winners will be announced at the awards ceremony.

 The ceremony, to be held at Vietnam Cultural Friendship Palace, will be broadcast live on VTV2 at 20:00pm, on November 20.

The Vietnamese Talents Awards 2011 is organised with the sponsorship of the Ministry of Information and Communications, the Ministry of Education and Training, the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Health. The main sponsor is Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group (VNPT).

Jury during the final round

Pham Huy Hoan, Editor-in-chief of Dantri/DTiNews, and Head of the organising board making his speech at the final round