thesaigontimes

Việt Nam's Deputy Minister of National Defence Sen. Lt. Gen. Hoàng Xuân Chiến and Minister of the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces Alvaro Lopez Miera signed documents on bilateral cooperation. — VNA/VNS Photo HAVANA — Deputy Minister of National Defence Sen. Lt. Gen. Hoàng Xuân Chiến held talks with Minister of the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces Alvaro Lopez Miera in Havana on the morning of September 20. Deputy Minister Chiến is accompanying President Nguyễn Xuân Phúc during his official visit to Cuba. At the meeting, Minister Alvaro Lopez Miera spoke highly of President Phúc’s visit to Cuba, saying it reaffirms the solidarity and special brotherhood between the two countries at the time when the world is facing challenges caused by the uncertainties of the COVID-19 pandemic. Both sides welcomed the outcomes of bilateral defence cooperation over recent years which are in line with documents and agreements signed by the two ministries and commitments made by the …

[Read more...] about Cuba’s defence ministry donates 150,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses to Việt Nam

As of September 5, Bình Dương Province had administered 1.2 million vaccine doses to residents. VNA/VNS Photo Dương Chí Tưởng HCM CITY— HCM City and its neighbouring provinces of Đồng Nai and Bình Dương are waiting for the Ministry of Health to allocate further vaccines. Although HCM City received 54,700 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine on September 19 and 500,000 doses of Vero Cell vaccine on September 18, the city still lacks more than 1.9 million of doses for use in the next 10 days, according to the city Department of Health. Nearly 515,000 people need the first shot and 1.78 million people need the second shot by September 30. Gò Vấp District, for instance, has nearly 142,000 people who need the second shot of AstraZeneca vaccine. According to District 8, it temporarily stopped vaccination for locals on September 19 because the vaccines ran out. During the afternoon on that day, it received an additional 3,000 doses of Pfizer and 4,000 doses of …

[Read more...] about HCM City, Đồng Nai and Bình Dương provinces wait for further vaccine allocations

A noodle stall in Hà Nội offers takeaway services. Food stalls in green areas in the city reopened on September 16 but only takeaways are allowed. VNA/VNS Photo HÀ NỘI — Hà Nội will loosen social distancing restrictions step by step after September 21 but still ensure pandemic prevention and control protocols, said Dương Đức Tuân, vice chairman of the municipal People’s Committee. Speaking at the COVID meeting of the city on Sunday afternoon, he said authorities of districts and towns must prepare preventive plans after September 21 in order to realise dual targets of economic development and pandemic prevention, while at the same time accelerate the administration of the second vaccine shot for residents. Since applying social distancing restrictions on July 24, the capital city has recorded about 71.2 positive cases per day on average. In the fourth period of social distancing over the past two weeks, the number of daily caseload has decreased to around 15 cases per …

[Read more...] about Hà Nội to loosen social distancing restrictions

Leaders of Hà Nội check the production of Garment 10 Corporation (GarCo10) in August. The city is developing plans to restore production and business. — Photo courtesy of the firm HÀ NỘI — The capital city’s businesses and production facilities have developed plans to reopen as Hà Nội reports fewer positive cases of COVID-19. Four months before the end 2021, a number of business establishments, services and enterprises have started to reopen, while workers were gradually returning. Thái Minh Hi-tech Joint Stock Company in Thạch Thất Industrial Park, Quốc Oai District, said staffing levels had reached up to 90 per cent instead of about 40 per cent when the firm implemented the "3-on-site" model. The "3-on-site" model means having staff stay, eat and work at the factory. Director of the firm Đỗ Việt Hà told local media that the division of risk zones has helped to solve labour difficulties for enterprises as workers from green zones could work. General Director of …

[Read more...] about Enterprises take flexible scenarios to recover after social distancing

Custom officers of Lạng Sơn Custom Department settle procedures for enterprises.  — VNA/VNS Photo Phạm Hậu HÀ NỘI — Finance Minister Hồ Đức Phớc has affirmed that the State budget is enough for expenditures planned by the National Assembly (NA) and the Prime Minister. Answering reporters’ queries about the State budget situation amid the pandemic at present, Phớc said following the Prime Minister’s directions, ministries, agencies and localities saved at least half of the cost of conferences and working trips at home and abroad, and 10 per cent of other regular expenditures this year to supplement financial resources for the COVID-19 fight and other necessary tasks. So far, about VNĐ14.62 trillion (US$635 million) from regular expenditures have been saved. The finance ministry suggested the PM submit a proposal to the NA Standing Committee on using the saved sum to add to the central budget reserve fund 2021 and provide for ministries, agencies and localities to fight …

[Read more...] about Finance Minister affirms State budget sufficiency

Illustration photo. Vaccinating workers in Đồng Nai Province. — VNA/VNS Photo HÀ NỘI — The southern province of Đồng Nai has started the gradual restoration of socio-economic activities, while ensuring the prevention and control of the COVID-19 pandemic, from Monday. Plan No 11102/KH-UBND of the provincial People's Committee aims to restart business following a period of social distancing. The province is home to 103 communes, wards and towns classified as green areas. In addition, the Center for Disease Control of the province has classified 25 communes, wards and townships as risk zones; 23 communes and wards are high-risk zones and 19 communes and wards are very high-risk zones. Leaders of the provincial Department of Health said that the key task in the coming days is to strengthen inspection and supervision of cross-infection in concentrated isolation areas and hospitals; strictly control hostels in locked down areas; strengthen testing, screening, and …

[Read more...] about Đồng Nai implements socio-economic recovery plan

A medical worker takes a sample from a resident for COVID-19 testing in Long Biên District of Hà Nội. —VNA/VNS Photo HÀ NỘI — The Ministry of Health has asked localities to pay attention to COVID-19 testing and prevention and control measures when implementing social distancing. That is part of the dispatch issued by the ministry which also required localities to focus on extremely high risk areas and high risk areas with regular examinations and supervision to quickly detect and handle issues. The ministry asked steering committees in localities to follow the guidelines issued in Dispatch No 1409/CĐ-BYT to decide loosing restrictions gradually, step by step, following a specific plan. In areas with risks (yellow zones), and new normal areas (green zones) testing will be carried out for groups of people at risk in order to adjust prevention and control measures properly, including shippers, medical workers, the elderly or those having symptoms such as cough, fever and …

[Read more...] about Health ministry asks to focus on testing during social distancing

A health worker holds a vial of Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine before administration during a vaccination drive Long Biên District, Hà Nội in early September 2021. — VNA/VNS Photo Thành Đạt HÀ NỘI — The National Institute for Hygiene and Epidemiology has issued a decision to allocate 8 million doses of Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine Vero Cell to 25 localities across the country. The vaccines are new donations from HCM City-based Vạn Thịnh Phát, following the deal for 5 million doses of the Chinese vaccines that the private group sponsored and donated to HCM City in late July, which have also been used in many southern localities amid the ongoing severe coronavirus outbreaks. In the latest allocation plan, the northern region received the majority of the doses. The capital city of Hà Nội receives 1,359,000 doses, followed by Quảng Ninh Province with 700,000 doses. Lạng Sơn, Yên Bái, Hải Phòng receive 500,000 doses each, followed by Bắc Ninh with 400,000 doses, Bắc Giang and …

[Read more...] about Hà Nội allocated 1.4m doses of Sinopharm’s COVID-19 vaccine in latest distribution of 8m doses

A landslide on a section of road in Mường Tè District, the northern mountainous province of Lai Châu on August 24. —VNA/VNS Photo HÀ NỘI — Northern mountainous provinces have been alerted about high risks of flash floods and landslides due to current torrential rains. The provinces at risk are Lai Châu, Điện Biên, Lào Cai, Hà Giang, Yên Bái, Tuyên Quang and Phú Thọ. The National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting said that torrential rain hit the provinces from Sunday midnight. Some locations saw high rainfall, such as: Tân Uyên District in Lai Châu Province (92.6mm), Bắc Hà District in Lào Cai Province (84.6mm), Lục Yên District in Yên Bái Province (92.4mm) and Vị Xuyên District in Hà Giang Province (72.4mm), the centre said. Early Monday morning, the heavy rain continued, with rainfall of 85mm in Mường Tè District, Lai Châu Province; 71mm in Mường Nhé District in Điện Biên Province; and 113mm in Trấn Yên District, Yên Bái Province, the centre said. …

[Read more...] about Northern provinces warned of flash floods, landslides

First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba Central Committee and President of Cuba Miguel Díaz Canel and Vietnamese President Nguyễn Xuân Phúc witness the signing of cooperation documents between the two countries. — VNA/VNS Photo Thống Nhất HAVANA — President Nguyễn Xuân Phúc held talks with First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba Central Committee and President of Cuba Miguel Díaz Canel in Havana on September 19 (local time). The two leaders briefed each other on the recent situation in each country, while discussing measures to continue to bolster the fraternal solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the two Parties, States and peoples, especially in the areas of consumer goods manufacturing, food and aquatic production and renewable energy. They also mentioned regional and international issues of shared concern. President Phúc conveyed best regards from Party General Secretary Nguyễn Phú Trọng and senior leaders of the Party and State of Việt Nam to …

[Read more...] about Việt Nam, Cuba seek to bolster all-round ties