Vietnam News Today (September 22): HCM City Issues Covid Safety Rules to Resume Tourism

A task force removes a barricade at a Covid-19 checkpoint in Hanoi's Hoan Kiem District, Sept. 21, 2021. Photo: VnExpress

Vietnam confirms 11,687 new Covid-19 cases

Health authorities confirmed 11,687 new local Covid-19 cases Tuesday in 34 cities and provinces, up 3,019 against Monday.

Ho Chi Minh City accounted for the most infections, 6,521 cases, followed by its neighboring provinces of Binh Duong (3,609), Dong Nai (590), and Long An (254).

The Health Ministry announced another 240 Covid-19 deaths Tuesday, including 184 in HCMC and 41 in Binh Duong.

Another 11,017 patients recovered on Tuesday, raising the number of recoveries to 475,343. Of those in hospitals, 5,133 are severe cases, cited VnExpress.

Vietnam has reported 702,973 cases since the new wave broke out at the end of April and 17,510 have died.

The total number of deaths so far is 17,545 cases, accounting for 2.5 percent of the total number of cases and 0.4 percentage points higher than the mortality rate in the world.

The country has vaccinated more than 35 million people, among them over 6.78 million have received two doses.

HCM City issues Covid safety rules to resume tourism

Tourists coming to HCMC must be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 or have recovered from the disease.

Visitors aged under 18 must furnish a negative Covid test certificate obtained within 48 hours before arrival.

These are among newly issued safety regulations for the city's tourism industry as HCMC starts to gradually resume tourism activities in so-called 'green zones' where the pandemic situation has been brought under control.

Tourists join a boat tour inside a mangrove forest in HCMC's Can Gio District, July 2020. Photo: VnExpress

At facilities offering tourists accommodation, all employees who have to make frequent contact with them are required to be fully immunized at least 14 days prior to resuming work or furnish a certificate showing they had contracted and recovered from Covid.

Employees who do not need to be in frequent contact have to get at least one shot and unvaccinated staff can only work remotely, reported VnExpress.

Those directly serving tourists such as receptionists and restaurants' staff will be tested every three days.

All staff must wear masks and gloves and establishments need to have at least one quarantine room to deal with suspected Covid cases.

Tours will only to allowed to 'green zones', those deemed of low Covid risks.

Tour guides and drivers must undergo Covid rapid testing every three days.

All tourists must also wear masks and comply with all pandemic prevention measures.

At outdoor tourist attractions, the number of visitors should not exceed 30 percent of capacity.

Vietnam Airlines completes procedures for direct flights to US

National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines said it has completed all necessary documents to be approved by the United States Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to conduct regular direct flights to the US.

On this basis, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will grant permission to the national carrier.

Vietnam Airlines completes procedures for regular direct flights to US. Photo: VOV

The TSA represents one of the toughest obstacles due to its stringent requirements. As a result, it will send experts to examine Vietnamese airports before proceeding any further with the matter.

If granted approval, Vietnam Airlines will become the first local airline to conduct regular direct flights to the US, cited VOV.

Vietnam Airlines stated that the permit is different from that given earlier for International Special Charter flights between the nation and the US.

As a result, regular flights will be carried out according to the airline’s flight schedule without limiting types of passengers. Their tickets are to be widely sold on websites, mobile apps, and at the airline’s ticket agencies. In addition, passengers can also look up flight schedules and book tickets at prices that suit their relevant needs.

Vietnam to compete in AFF Suzuki Cup's in Group B

Vietnam have been placed in Group B of the Suzuki Cup ASEAN Football Federation after a draw that took place virtually on September 21, according to the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF).

Vietnam will compete against Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia and Laos.

Meanwhile, Group A comprises Thailand, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore and the winner of a play-off match between Brunei and Timor Leste.

Vietnam to compete in AFF Suzuki Cup's in Group B. Photo: VNA

Before the draw, the AFF divided the teams into five pots based on their performance in the last two tournaments.

Vietnam, as the reigning champions, are in pot 1 along with Thailand, according VNA.

According to the schedule announced by the AFF, the play-off match between Timor Leste and Brunei will take place on December 1, 2021.

Matches at the AFF Suzuki Cup 2020 will be organized from December 5, 2021 to January 1, 2022.

The teams will play in the round-robin format. The first-place and second-place teams in each group will compete at the semi-finals.

The two semi-final winners will play the first leg final on December 29, 2021 and the second leg final on January 1, 2022. The teams that lose in the semi-finals will be tied for third places.

“Clean up the world” campaign launched virtually in Vietnam

The Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, in collaboration with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, held a ceremony to mark the national launch of the “Clean up the world” campaign.

The event was held concurrently online in Hanoi and a number of other northern and central localities.

Photo: VOV

The purpose of the campaign is to call on a variety of organizations, businesses, individuals, and the entire community to engage in a broad array of activities to improve and protect the environment. These measures include collecting, treating, and recycling waste, along with refusing to use disposable plastic products and hard-to-degrade plastic bags, VOV reported.

This primary focus of this year’s campaign is to convey messages and raise public awareness regarding the meaning, role, and responsibility of environmental protection in socio-economic development. This is in addition to ramping up activities in order to promote environmental protection, sustainable development, disaster reduction, and climate change adaptation in the “new normal”.

People can therefore respond to the campaign through actions such as sorting, recycling, reusing plastic waste, increasing environmental sanitation, and planting trees.

The campaign was originally organized globally back in 1993 and it has since become one of the main annual international environmental events responded by hundreds of millions of people in over 130 countries across the globe.

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