Interpreting at Thematic forum on Master planning, Regional coordination

On June 18, the Thematic forum on Master planning, Regional coordination mechanism and Investment attraction for the Mekong Delta Vietnam was held in HCMC. It was one of the four forums where AKT’s team were assigned at Mekong Delta Forum 2019.

Simultaneous interpretation is an activity of interpreting where the speakers and interpreters work with the assistance of equipment and a sound-proof booth. When the speaker starts, the interpreter sitting in the booth with headphone and micro also begins interpreting just seconds later. This kind of interpretation is common in conferences and seminars as well as workshops.

According to Minister Nguyen Chi Dung, Mekong Delta is the country’s largest rice, seafood and fruit producer and serves as an engine for economic development overall.

However, Nguyen Thanh Binh, Chairman of An Giang Provincial People’s Committee, said that the Mekong Delta ranks among five mega-deltas in the world that are most likely to be severely affected by climate change and sea level rise. Mekong Delta’s provinces are expected to continue to endure salinity intrusion, coupled with prolonged droughts. This makes the goal of achieving sustainable development harder to achieve.

Simultaneous interpretation is the toughest as it requires much effort from interpreters who must be proficient in listening, speaking and analytics skills. When the speakers keep going on at their normal pace, the language barriers become bigger. And AKT’s team managed to do a good job.

Developing policies and solutions to help provinces increase resilience to climate change and prevent natural disaster better is truly a matter of urgency.

According to Ousmane Dione, World Bank Country Director for Vietnam, effective regional coordination, a comprehensive integrated master plan and the efficient use of financial resources are three pillars in translating the Resolution 120 from policy to action. As Development Partners, World Bank is committed to continue working jointly with DFAT and other development partners to make a climate-resilient, prosperous and sustainable Mekong Delta a reality.

Simultaneous interpretation requires extreme concentration. Therefore, there must be 2 interpreters in a booth to take turns doing the translation in real time.

Greater coordination in the Mekong Delta would result in an institution that has the authority to oversee the execution of the Regional Master Plan, to make financing decisions and to determine which regional investments should be given priority. A comprehensive Integrated Regional Master Plan would chart measures to identify the correct regional framework. And having appropriate financing instruments would help the Government to tackle the challenges. Such objectives are only achieved if there are effective implementation, innovation, information and proactive engagement of all relevant ministries, provinces, and stakeholders.

Years of experience in interpreting for topics of all stripes allow AKT’s interpreting team to make the multidisciplinary forum go off without a hitch. That is the quality we are delivering in events assigned to our team of excellent translators in Vietnam.