Article 19 reasonable restrictions

Vietnam has been recording over 571,000 new Covid-19 cases a week on average, which is only behind South Korea (713,000 cases), the U.S. (760,000 cases) and Japan (1.4 million cases), according to a World Health Organization report. But the report did not mention Vietnam among countries with top Covid deaths. The WHO said the high numbers of recorded cases in Vietnam were partly because of extra data provided by certain localities, which were recorded since February. Over the past week, the northern port city of Hai Phong added another 402,830 cases to its tally and the northern province of Thai Nguyen added another 152,485 cases, the Ministry of Health said. Vietnam records around 2,000 new Covid-19 cases a day on average over the past week, the ministry added. There has been a spike in the number of new Covid-19 cases as reported on Thursday, with 6,775 new cases, which is three times that of the average number of new cases recorded in the previous week, the ministry said. … [Read more...] about Vietnam has 4th highest number of weekly Covid cases worldwide: WHO

Thai Airways plane (Source: AFP/VNA) Bangkok (VNA) – The Central Bankruptcy Court of Thailand on September 14 approved a request for a debt restructuring plan of Thai Airways International Plc, the nation’s flagship carrier, which has been hit hard by the COVID-19. Thai Airways reduced its stake in May and went to the insolvency court to resolve its debt, which totalled 332.2 billion (10.6 billion USD) by the end of June, according to local media. The carrier, which reported a loss of nearly 900 million USD in the first quarter of this year, is seeking a loan worth around 1.78 billion USD in the short term to operate and pay for its employees. It is expected to submit the debt restructuring plan by the end of this year. The global aviation sector has plunged into crisis by the pandemic as countries severely restricted travel, forcing airlines to ground vast numbers of planes and seek government help as they hemorrhaged cash./. VNA … [Read more...] about Thai Airways receives court greenlight for debt restructuring

An overview of the meeting (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – The impressive economic growth in the first seven months of this year reflects the efficiency of the policies that have been applied recently, stated Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung at the meeting between the Prime Minister and businesses that opened in Hanoi on August 11. The minister said that international organisations have shown optimism about the Vietnamese economy, rating the country’s long-term credit as "stable" and "positive". Many economists held that the Vietnamese economic resilience is relatively good currently, he added. The official cited a recent survey as showing that in the second quarter of this year, 70-80% of total businesses highly valued the effectiveness of the Government’s support to businesses amid the COVID-19 pandemic , especially those in taxation. As of the end of July, the country had 871,000 companies, up nearly 13% over 2019. In July alone, more than 130,000 … [Read more...] about Government’s economic stimulation policies prove effective: Minister

Illustrative image (Source: VNA) HCM City (VNS/VNA) - As tourism continues to revive, the hotel and tourism industry is suffering from challenges in recruiting qualified human resources post pandemic, industry players warned. Speaking at a seminar on August 9 in HCM City, Dr Nguyen Anh Tuan, director of the Institute for Tourism Development Research, said there was a lack of high-quality staff in the industry. Vu The Binh, chairman of the Vietnam Tourism Association , said that human resources were a weak point for the industry even before the pandemic. “Efficient, hard-working, and resourceful human resources are the backbone of any successful business. It is even more so in the case of the hotel industry.” Successful hotel operations are sustained by customer-oriented and hard-working employees who have adequate competencies, he added. A large number of hotels and resorts stopped operation during the two-year pandemic, and coming back could prove challenging, he … [Read more...] about High-quality human resources key to sustainable tourism industry

With the peak summer travel season drawing to a close, Vietnam’s international tourism segment still faces bottlenecks on its route to full recovery. Within the framework of a program early this week to discuss the current state of the Vietnamese tourism sector, representatives from businesses and organizations across the country voiced doubts that Vietnam will meet its goal of welcoming five million foreign tourists by the end of the year if regulations governing visa policies, infrastructure, and personnel are not relaxed. Incomplete recovery According to Cao Thi Tuyet Lan, sales manager at Viettours Incentives & Events Co. Ltd., foreign tourists still find it difficult to enter the country despite Vietnam having fully reopened its borders. “What's more, it is hard to apply for visas for business travelers who work with domestic enterprises," Lan said. “[The domestic partner] first has to register [the foreign partner] with the Immigration Department, then wait for a … [Read more...] about Vietnam still struggles to welcome back int’l tourists