Amhara democratic party central committee members

As part of the support program for COVID-19-hit people run by the VRCS in 13 cities and provinces where COVID-19 infection cases have been found in the community, including Hai Duong, Quang Ninh, Gia Lai, Bac Ninh, Binh Duong, Hanoi, Bac Giang, Ho Chi Minh City, Hoa Binh, Ha Giang, Dien Bien, Hai Phong and Hung Yen, the campaign runs from late February to mid-March.

Reportedly, more than 10 tons of agricultural products were sold at the launching ceremony of the campaign in Hanoi on February 23. For the past three days, more than 20 tons of farm produce have been purchased by consumers in Hanoi. All of the products were strictly sterilized before being sold.

The VRCS Central Committee asked the Red Cross society in Hai Duong province to choose agricultural products that meet food safety standards, and transport them to the Central Committee as well as the Red Cross Society in Hanoi for distribution, said President of the VRCS Central Committee Nguyen Thi Xuan Thu.

Translated by Chung Anh

Local authorities announced the information during a meeting between the cabinet, the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, and localities on February 24.

Quang Ninh recently issued a resolution stipulating urgent tasks and solutions in the COVID-19 fight.

It will cut 10 percent from regular spending and increase budget contingency to a maximum of 4 percent per total budget spending in order to provide the resources to fight COVID-19 and other diseases and respond to natural disasters and emergencies.

As of February 24, Quang Ninh had reported 61 COVID-19 cases.

Local departments, agencies, and localities have been urged to remain vigilant and take measures seriously, synchronously, and effectively to prevent the spread of the pandemic.

At a meeting on February 23, the standing board of the provincial Party Committee decided to provide 4 billion VND to the neighbouring province of Hai Duong, which is now grappling with COVID-19 clusters.

Source: VNA

The groups include health professionals, the pandemic prevention and fight task force (members of steering committees, people working in quarantining areas, reporters and others), diplomats, and customs and immigration staffs, military personnel, police force, teachers, and the elderly aged over 65.

Others include those working to maintain the supply of essential services such as aviation, transportation, tourism, electricity and water supply, as well as people with chronic diseases,people going abroad on a mission, to work, or study, and those in pandemic-hit areas.

The Ministry of Health (MoH) has announced the plan on the reception, preservation, distribution, and use of COVID-19 vaccines during 2021-2022 with the support of the COVAX Facility – the global procurement mechanism of COVAX.

Vietnam aims to have 80 per cent of its population get vaccinated against COVID-19. However, due to the limited supply, the rate can hit 20 per cent in 2021-2022.

COVAX is co-led by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), GAVI – the Vaccine Alliance, and the World Health Organization (WHO), alongside key delivery partner UNICEF. Its aim is to accelerate the development and manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccines and to guarantee fair and equitable access for every country in the world.

The COVAX Facility aims to supply COVID-19 vaccines to 190 countries worldwide. On December 10, 2020, GAVI named Vietnam as a member nation. GAVI and COVAX Facility expect to provide COVID-19 vaccines for 20 per cent of the population of member nations.

In spite of this, it is currently estimated that the COVAX Facility will provide the vaccine and materials for vaccination free of charge for 15-16 per cent of the population of 92 countries, including Vietnam. On January 29, the COVAX Facility said that more than 4.8 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine produced by AstraZenecca will be delivered to Vietnam in the first half of this year, while the next delivery will be announced later.

As planned, around 600,000 Vietnamese people, comprising healthcare and COVID-19 combat workers, will be given shots in the first quarter. Meanwhile, 1.8 million customs officers, diplomats, army and police personnel, and teachers will be injected in the second quarter. During the second half, over 16 million teachers and people above 65 will access 33 million doses of vaccines to be provided by the COVAX Facility later.

At a recent online meeting with cities and provinces, Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long said that in 2021 Vietnam will 150 million doses of the vaccine to ensure sufficient supply. The COVAX Facility has committed to supply 30 million doses for Vietnam this year, mainly used for the remaining six months of the year. AstraZeneca also committed to supply the same doses.

Vietnam stepping up vaccine activities While pushing ahead with locally-made vaccine trials and production, Vietnam is calling on private involvement and resources to quickly increase COVID-19 vaccine supply amid the …

Vietnam to import first batch of Covid-19 vaccine (Infographics) The Drug Administration of Vietnam has approved the import of the first 204,000 doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use.

PM requests purchasing COVID-19 vaccine in February Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has ordered the health sector to conduct all necessary measures to make COVID-19 vaccines available in Vietnam this month either …

Speaking at a meeting between the permanent cabinet members and the standing members of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control on February 24, the minister said localities around the country have performed well in implementing prevention and control measures.

As of the morning of February 24, Vietnam had 2,403 COVID-19 infections, with 1,760 recoveries. Ten localities hit by the latest outbreak have now gone many days without new cases, he noted.

In Hai Duong, the pandemic is now under sound control with faster testing and contact tracing.

He said that SARS-CoV-2 variants found in cases in Vietnam include the 20C variant, which was contracted by a Japanese patient found dead in Hanoi earlier this month and another recent case in the capital. This variant is mostly found in the Republic of Korea, India, and Taiwan (China), but not Japan. Its infection speed is not high, while its strength is yet to be determined.

The SARS-CoV-2 variant found in Hai Duong originated from the UK and South Africa, while that in Quang Ninh was also detected in the UK.

The minister asked localities to continue applying preventive measures against the pandemic in line with the Prime Minister’s Directive No 05, while paying greater attention to supervising medical facilities and patients exhibiting fevers and coughs as well as foreign experts and people entering the country from abroad.

Source: VNA

The track of Metro Line No. 1, from Ben Thanh Market to Suoi Tien Theme Park, in HCM City (Photo: VNA)

HCM City (VNA) – The Export-Import Bank of the Republic of Korea (KEXIM) has asked Ho Chi Minh City ’s authorities for permission to conduct an investment study for Phase 2 of Metro Line No. 5 , set to be carried out in the public-private partnership (PPP) format.

In its letter sent to the Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee and the city’s Management Authority for Urban Railways (MAUR), KEXIM said it will soon provide funding for the update of the project’s pre-feasibility study, which covers technical, financial, and legal aspects, according to the MAUR.

The bank noted that members of the research group and participating investors have experience in building and operating urban railway routes, including Metro Line No. 9 of the RoK’s Seoul capital, in the PPP format.

The MAUR said it had a working session on January 19 with some investors and consultancies from the RoK to discuss the study and related orientations for the project.

The Korean side, including KEXIM and some businesses and consultancies, presented the plan to update the pre-feasibility study, whose final version is expected to be submitted by the end of 2021.

The pre-feasibility study for Phase 2 of Metro Line No. 5 was previously financed by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA). However, due to certain objective reasons, the project was unable to be funded through official development assistance (ODA) loans, but the PPP format.

The 23.39km-long Metro Line No. 5 is developed in two phases.

The first one, from the Bay Hien intersection to Sai Gon Bridge, is about 8.8km long and invested with around 1.66 billion USD. It is funded with ODA capital from the Spanish Government, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the European Investment Bank (EIB), and the German development bank KfW.

Meanwhile, Phase 2 is about 14.5km long./.