Vietnam begins COVID-19 vaccination on March 8 Vietnam launches its COVID-19 inoculation drive on March 8 morning, administering the AstraZeneca vaccine to medical workers in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and northern Hai Duong province – the country’s biggest pandemic hotspot at present. The vaccination is conducted at the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Hanoi, the HCM City Hospital for Tropical Diseases and two medical centres in Hai Duong. As many as 100 staff members of the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases are expected to receive the shots in the morning of March 8. The hospital is allocated 450 doses among the first batch of 117,600 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine the country has received. In Hai Duong, 50 medical workers at Hai Duong city’s medical centre, and 30 others at Kim Thanh district’s medical centre will be the first in the province to be injected. The Ministry of Health has allocated the vaccine to 13 localities, along with the Ministry of National Defence, the Ministry of Public Security and 21 hospitals during the first phase. Among the localities, all having reported COVID-19 cases since the latest wave of outbreaks since January 27, the Hanoi Centre for Disease Control (CDC) is given 8,000 doses, Hai Duong CDC 32,000, and HCM City CDC 8,000. Meanwhile, the Ministry of National Defence and the Ministry of Public Security each receive 30,000 doses. At a meeting on March 6, Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long stressed the need to ensure equality in vaccine access as suggested by the WHO, UNICEF and COVAC. The localities excluded in the first phase should continue to prepare for the inoculation, with training programmes, he said, adding that they would receive the vaccine after the next shipment arrives in Vietnam in March. The ministry will roll out the vaccination in all COVID-19 treatment hospitals, prioritising those involved in frontline work, and those who participate in the pandemic combat in the community like …
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China willing to strengthen ties with ASEAN: Chinese FM
Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi (Photo: Xinhua/VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – China is ready to work with ASEAN to build an even closer community with a shared future, and open up another three decades of even greater cooperation, said Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi at a press conference on the nation’s foreign policy and external relations. At the event, held via video link on the margins of the Fourth Session of the 13th National People's Congress, Wang stated China and ASEAN countries need to remove distractions and press ahead with consultations for a code of conduct (COC) in the East Sea (South China Sea), and work toward the early conclusion of a set of regional rules that are more substantive and effective, consistent with international law and serve the needs of all parties. He added the sides should continue the full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the waters (DOC) in order to build consensus, enhance mutual trust, advance cooperation, and maintain overall stability in the sea. The official also said China will scale up support to the bloc’s pandemic response, noting that it is now providing COVID-19 vaccines for ASEAN countries and helping Indonesia to become a hub of vaccine production in Southeast Asia. Concerning the Myanmar issue, Wang underscored on the basis of respect for Myanmar's sovereignty and the will of its people, China stands ready to play a constructive role in easing the tension in the country./. VNA …
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Vietnamese textile industry sees huge export opportunities
A production line at the The Ky Yarn Joint Stock Company (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNS/VNA) - The textile and apparel industry , which managed to survive three waves of COVID-19 thanks to its decision to produce face masks and personal protective equipment, will focus on sportswear and yarn, according to the Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group . Le Tien Truong, its general director, said demand for face masks and personal protective equipment will shrink rapidly. Armed with their experience of coping with the pandemic, many textile and footwear enterprises are quietly confident of altering plans when required and finding new markets to cope with new situation after COVID-19 is under control. Sportswear has arguably been the most successful segment during the pandemic as awareness of physical exercise rose. According to Euromonitor International, in 2020 the demand for sportswear world-wide decreased only about 8 percent, the lowest in an industry which saw an overall decline of 16 percent. The compounded annual growth rate for the sportswear market in the last five years was 6.5 percent, 1.5 times the industry average, and it is expected to be worth 479 billion USD globally by 2025. The Thanh Cong Textile Garment Investment Trading JSC is considered one of the most successful businesses in 2020 thanks to seizing opportunities to export COVID-19 related apparel products such as fabric masks and PPE. But Tran Nhu Tung, its deputy general director, said the demand for cloth masks and protective gear is returning to pre-COVID levels with the advent of vaccines. This year his company has stopped taking orders for medical protective gear and antibacterial masks. It is focusing on traditional products such as T-shirts and sportswear, demand for which would continue to increase, and there are already enough orders for sportswear for the first 6 months of the year, he said. According to the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association, …
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