Covid 19 pandemic

Hanoi is ready to listen to recommendations and adjust plans for COVID-19 prevention and control as restrictions are eased in the capital city. People receive COVID-19 vaccinations in Hanoi. Deputy secretary of the municipal Party Committee Nguyen Van Phong made the statement during a press conference on Tuesday morning. Phong said that the capital city's authorities will learn from experience, always ask for advice, and is ready to listen, including to opposing opinions, to make appropriate adjustments. Dũng said the city had already set plans for the second dose of vaccine for residents. By September 18, the city had given the first dose to 94 per cent of the city’s population, and the second dose to 12 per cent of residents. Phong said that despite initial results, Hà Nội was still at risk of another outbreak. City leaders will work to live peacefully and safely with the pandemic, as the city could not close the gate because it is the political, …

Continue Reading about Hanoi ready to co-exist with COVID-19 pandemic →

ADB has reduced its GDP forecast for Vietnam but remains optimistic on its post-pandemic prospects The country’s economy is expected to grow 3.8 per cent this year and 6.5 per cent in 2022, according to the Asian Development Outlook (ADO) 2021 Update . Growth picked up in the first half of 2021, largely because of higher trade volumes, but slowed down in the second half of the year as the fourth wave of the pandemic took a toll on business and the labor market. Inflation will be muted in 2021 and 2022 due to the slower growth. “The prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and extended lockdowns have weakened consumption and investment, hampering Vietnam’s growth prospects," said ADB’s country director for Vietnam Andrew Jeffries. “But the Vietnamese economy will bounce back if the COVID-19 pandemic is brought under control by the end of 2021 and 70 per cent of the country’s population are vaccinated by the second quarter of 2022.” The COVID-19 pandemic is expected to drag down 2021’s …

Continue Reading about ADB bullish on Vietnam’s economic growth despite COVID-19 slowdown →

A representative of HCM City's Youth Union wears the costume of a traditional character of the Mid-Autumn Festival, as she presents gifts for children of migrant workers in dormitories in HCM City (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNS/VNA) - Many children in Ho Chi Minh City , the country’s coronavirus epicentre, have enjoyed a special Mid-Autumn Festival this year despite social distancing regulations thanks to joint efforts of authorities, organisations and volunteers. In the past three days, the dormitories of migrant workers in Son Ky, Tay Thanh wards in Tan Phu district; Tan Nhut, An Phu Tay wards in Binh Chanh district; and Hiep Phuoc Industrial Zone in Nha Be district have been full of the sounds of happiness with children’s laughter. Youngsters celebrated their Mid-Autumn Festival with mooncakes, milk, small boxes of candy and biscuits, as well colourful paper lanterns. These are in gift packages for the full-moon festival local authorities, youth unions and benefactors, …

Continue Reading about Efforts made to bring special Mid-Autumn Festival to kids amid COVID-19 →

The Ministry of Health reported 11,527 in Vietnam on Wednesday, together with 11,919 discharged patients and 236 deaths. Thirty-five provinces and cities logged 11,525 domestic cases while the country recorded another two imported infections, the health ministry said. The ministry had documented 11,687 locally-infected patients on Tuesday. Nearly 5,900 of the latest domestic cases were found in the community, with the remaining detected in sectioned-off areas or centralized quarantine facilities. Ho Chi Minh City reported 5,435 local infections, down by 1,086 patients from yesterday; Binh Duong Province 4,179, up by 570; Dong Nai Province 930; Long An Province 191; An Giang Province 186; Kien Giang Province 137; Can Tho City 48; Da Nang 10; and Hanoi seven. Vietnam has confirmed 714,497 community transmissions in 62 out of its 63 provinces and cities since the fourth – and worst – virus wave emerged in the country on April 27. Ho Chi Minh City suffers the most with 353,655 …

Continue Reading about 11,527 new COVID-19 cases recorded in 35 provinces, cities in Vietnam →

Collecting samples for COVID-19 testing (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – An additional 11,692 COVID-19 infections, including 5 imported cases, in the past 24 hours to 5pm on September 21, the Ministry of Health announced. Ho Chi Minh City, which is the country’s current largest pandemic hotspot, continued to  report the highest number of infections with 6,521 cases. It was followed by neighbouring Binh Duong province (3,609), Dong Nai (590) and Long An (254). The country has to date logged 707,436 COVID-19 cases. A total of 11,017 patients were given the all-clear from coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 on September 21, raising the total number of recoveries to 475,343. The death toll rose to 17,545 after an additional 240 deaths were announced on the same day. As of the end of September 20, over 35 million doses of vaccine s were given to people so far, including more than 28.28 million first shots and 6.78 million second jabs./. VNA …

Continue Reading about COVID-19: additional 11,692 cases recorded on September 21 →

South Korean President Moon Jae In has announced that they would send over one million Covid-19 vaccine doses to assist Vietnam in its Covid-19 fight. South Korean President Moon Jae-in (R) meets with Vietnamese State President Nguyen Xuan Phuc in New York on September 21 on the sidelines of the 76th UN General Assembly. President Moon announced the vaccine donation plan during his meeting with Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly’s 76th session on September 21 (New York time). According to President Moon, the vaccine donation to Vietnam will be South Korea’s first direct provision of the vaccine to a foreign nation, except for its financial support through the COVAX Facility. The vaccine is expected to be sent to Vietnam in October. Thanking the South Korean Government for timely vaccine support, President Phuc emphasized that Vietnam would continue to create favourable conditions for South …

Continue Reading about South Korea to donate one million doses of Covid-19 vaccine to Vietnam →

The Ho Chi Minh City Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control has issued a set of safety assessment criteria for eateries, food businesses, supermarkets, and shopping malls to reopen. There are six criteria for catering service providers and seven for supermarkets, shopping malls, and food retailers. Catering service - The establishment must have a certificate of food safety. - The establishment must ensure food safety conditions in accordance with regulations. - Employees, customers, and delivery workers must strictly follow health authorities’ pandemic prevention and control instructions. All staff members have to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and test negative for the novel coronavirus. - All people have to follow basic pandemic prevention measures, namely wearing face masks, sanitizing hands, and keeping a minimum distance of two meters. - The delivery area must be separated from the remaining sections, while hand sanitizer, antiseptic, and hand …

Continue Reading about How can food establishments reopen in Ho Chi Minh City after COVID-19 halt? →

By 2025, Hanoi envisions becoming a highly competitive city in the region by restructuring the growth model based on technological advancement and innovation. Despite the severe Covid-19 situation, Hanoi continues to set a high gross regional domestic product (GRDP) growth of up to 7.5% during the 2021-2025 period. Hanoi from above. Photo: Pham Hung Given the city’s estimated GRDP growth at around 3.97-4.54% in 2021, this would require Hanoi to achieve an average growth rate of 8.25-8.4% for the 2022-2025 period. This was among two growth scenarios in Hanoi’s socio-economic development plan for the 2021-2025 period, which have been signed off by Secretary of the Hanoi's Party Committee Dinh Tien Dung. In a less optimistic scenario, the city is expected to average economic growth of 6.5-7% during the period. This case is based on the fact that Vietnam could only contain the pandemic in the fourth quarter of 2021 and achieve herd immunity by the second half …

Continue Reading about Hanoi targets 7-7.5% GRDP growth in 2021-25 period →

Hanoi-based enterprises and experts shared with The Hanoi Times about their initiatives to ensure smooth operation with anti-pandemic prevention measures in place. Do Thanh Tam, Deputy General Director of Son Ha Group: Uniting to overcome challenges Do Thanh Tam, Deputy General Director of Son Ha Group. HNT Photos: Hoang Anh As Hanoi's authorities have eased the anti-pandemic restrictions, we have built safe operation plans at production facilities, which strictly complied with the 5K protocol (in Vietnamese) Khau tran g (facemask) - Khu khuan (disinfection) - Khoang cach (distance) - Khong tu tap (No gathering) - Khai bao y te (health declaration). We also tightened the implementation of anti-disease measures according to the Prime Minister's Directive. The “three on-site”option continues to be applied at some factories in high-risk areas to ensure the safety of all employees as well as uninterrupted production activities. Logistics units …

Continue Reading about Hanoi-based firms ensure safe production in new normal →

Illustrative image (Photo: AFP/VNA) Bangkok (VNA) - Thailand has increased the ceiling of its public debt-to-gross domestic product (GDP) ratio to 70 percent from 60 percent, allowing the government to raise more funds to help a struggling economy. The decision was made by the State Monetary and Fiscal Policy Committee chaired by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on September 20. The Southeast Asian country is dealing with its biggest COVID-19 outbreak to date and stricter containment measures have hit economic activities although some have been eased from this month. Last year, the government issued its first emergency loan decree last year to authorise it to borrow 1 trillion THB to fund its stimulus schemes to combat the pandemic. A second decree was issued this year to allow the government to borrow an additional 500 billion THB. Last month, Bank of Thailand Governor Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput said the country would need a further 1 trillion THB in fiscal measures to …

Continue Reading about Thailand raises public debt ceiling to recover economy →