Vietnam News Today (October 2): Localities Welcome Back Vaccinated Tourists After Covid-19 Restrictions Relaxed

Photo: VOV

Vietnam reports 6,957 new Covid-19 infections and over 27,500 recoveries

The country recorded an additional 6,957 Covid-19 infections on October 1 across 37 localities nationwide, a drop of 996 cases compared to the previous day, according to figures released by the Ministry of Health.

Ho Chi Minh City, the currently the country’s largest pandemic hotspot, reported the highest number of infections with 3,670 cases, trailed by neighboring Binh Duong province with 1,787, Dong Nai with 735, An Giang with 116, and Long An with 112.

Hanoi capital reported eight new community cases, including those linked to a fresh outbreak detected at the Vietnam-Germany Friendship Hospital.

Since the initial resurgence of the virus in late April, the capital has recorded roughly 4,000 positive cases, of which more than 1,600 cases were found within the community and the remainder were detected in areas under lockdown.

The nation has so far documented 797,712 Covid-19 cases, including 2,993 imported and 794,719 domestic infections.

The same day saw the Health Ministry also announce the discharge of 27,250 patients on October 1, thereby raising the number of recoveries to 636,081, cited VOV.

As many as 136 deaths related to the pandemic were also announced to raise the tally to 19,437. In addition, the daily average number of deaths caused by Covid-19 over the last seven days stands at 167 cases. Overall, the number of local Covid-19 deaths accounts for 2.5% of the total of infections.

In comparison to the rest of the world, the nation ranks 34 out of 223 countries and territories in terms of fatality count. At present, more than 42.8 million people have been vaccinated against Covid-19 so far, with more than 9.8 million receiving full two jabs.

Meanwhile, Ho Chi Minh City has resumed the majority of activities from October 1. With the exception of some sectors considered posing a high Covid-19 infection risk, most public and private production and service facilities in the southern metropolis have now been allowed to reopen.

The city has also allowed people who have received at least one vaccine shot or recovered from Covid-19 to travel after September 30, but they are not permitted to leave the city on their own.

Moreover, Ho Chi Minh City has recorded more than 392,000 positive cases in the latest pandemic wave, with over 14,800 fatalities, the highest in the country.

Vietnam to prioritize October vaccine batches for southern localities

Distribution priority for the 54 million Covid-19 vaccine doses set to arrive this month will be given to southern localities, deputy health minister Do Xuan Tuyen said Thursday.

With the October batch, the nation would have received around 110 million Covid-19 vaccine doses in total, Tuyen said.

A person receives a Covid-19 vaccine shot in Bac Giang, northern Vietnam, September 9, 2021. Photo: VnExpress

He said 12 southern Vietnam localities – Tra Vinh, Ben Tre, Tien Giang, Can Tho, Kien Giang, Soc Trang, Hau Giang, Dong Thap, An Giang, Bac Lieu, Ca Mau and Vinh Long – are close to bringing the pandemic under control, but there are still risks of new outbreaks, reported VnExpress.

Around 2.7 million people in these localities have received at least one Covid-19 vaccine shot and round 690,000 people have been fully vaccinated, Tuyen said.

Vietnam has vaccinated around 32.7 million people with at least one Covid-19 vaccine dose. Around 9.5 million people have been fully vaccinated.

Localities welcome back vaccinated tourists after Covid-19 restrictions relaxed

With the pandemic situation under control, some localities have reopened tourism activities for mainly intra-provincial, vaccinated tourists.

Ho Chi Minh City reopened hotels, resorts, and tourist destinations from Friday but at only 50 percent of their capacities while each has to meet Health Ministry criteria for Covid-19 prevention and control.

Currently, accommodation facilities and tourist destinations in HCMC only serve tourists within the city who got at least one dose of a Covid vaccine or those having recovered from the disease.

Authorities in Khanh Hoa Province allowed restaurants and food services to reopen from Friday but only serve intra-provincial, vaccinated customers as part of its economic recovery roadmap.

Before resuming operation, restaurants and dining services must register with local authorities and ensure pandemic prevention measures.

Nha Trang Bay, a popular tourist destination in Khanh Hoa, is seen from above. Photo: VnExpress

These facilities are only allowed to serve fully immunized customers, including those with two doses of a Covid vaccine or had recovered from the coronavirus. Those with only one vaccine shot need to furnish a negative Covid certificate obtained via PCR or rapid testing before entering restaurants, etc.

Facilities offering tourist services in isolated areas can resume operation from Friday but only welcome back intra-provincial customers who got at least one dose of a Covid vaccine, according to VnExpress.

People in Khanh Hoa, home to popular Cam Ranh and Nha Trang beach towns, who got at least one dose of a Covid vaccine or those who have contracted and recovered from the disease are allowed to travel within the province without furnishing travel papers and negative Covid certificates.

Provincial authorities also plan to reopen public beaches in green zones from Oct. 15.

Starting from Friday, the UNESCO heritage site Hue Imperial Citadel and the Nguyen Dynasty tombs reopened their doors to tourists after four months of closure. However, visitors are only allowed to engage in outdoor activities.

Quang Binh Province, dubbed Vietnam's kingdom of caves, also welcomed back vaccinated travelers from Friday to join package tours with pandemic prevention measures in place as part of its tourism recovery plan.

Da Nang City, a popular tourist hub in central Vietnam, already allowed hotels, resorts and accommodation facilities to resume operation from Thursday but only serve vaccinated tourists or those having contracted and recovered from the disease.

Vietnam arrives in UAE to get ready for match against China

Vietnam’s national football team on October 1 arrived in the UAE for a match against China in the final round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Asian qualifiers.

Vietnam’s national football team arrives in the UAE on October 1 after a 7-hour-long flight. Photo: VFF

The Vietnamese footballers are scheduled to take part in the first training session in the UAE to prepare for the game at 10 p.m. the same day (Vietnam time).

Vietnam will face China at Sharjah Football Stadium at 0am on October 8 (Vietnam time). Both collected zero points after their two opening matches, cited VNA.

The Vietnamese team was defeated 0-1 by Australia and 1-3 by Saudi Arabia, while China lost 0-3 to Australia and 0-1 to Japan.

This is the first time Vietnam have ever played in such a round of World Cup qualifiers. Vietnam are in Group B along with Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia, China and Oman for a spot at the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

Vietnamese students win third prize at ASEAN youth journalism contest

Two Vietnamese student has secured the third prize at the 2nd ASEAN Youth Social Journalism Contest 2021 for their social media campaign to raise awareness about plastic consumption among young Vietnamese people amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Hoang Nguyen Nhat Vi and Pham Quang Vinh, both from the RMIT University Vietnam, obtained the award with a project titled “Flatten the Plastic Curve”, which reached close to 200,000 young audiences in just a month.

Photo: Facebook Page of the Flatten the Plastic Curve project

Following the theme ASEAN Youth and Covid-19 - Response, Recovery, and Resilience, the pair, via comic-like graphics and influencer marketing, worked to persuade young shoppers to take small but impactful actions while making their orders online, reported VNA.

The project encouraged young people to make changes, such as ordering from one shop to minimize the use of plastic packages, or directly sending plastic-reduction messages to shop owners or food shippers.

By the end of the campaign, Vi and Vinh reached over 40,000 young people with their print ads, received organic shares, and had their campaign mentioned in four Vietnamese macro influencers’ Facebook pages.

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