Vietnam has gone through 54 consecutive days with no new COVID-19 infections among the community recorded on June 9 morning, according to the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control.

Among the total 332 cases, 192 were imported and quarantined upon arrival.

The committee’s treatment subcommittee reported that 316 out of the 332 patients have given all-clear so far and zero death has been confirmed.

Three patients tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 once and two tested negative twice or more.

The 91-year-old British pilot, who is receiving treatment at Ho Chi Minh City-based Cho Ray Hospital, is showing rapid recovery, according to Associate Professor Dr. Luong Ngoc Khue, Head of the Ministry of Public Health’s Medical Examination and Treatment Department.

At present, 8,182 people having close contact with patients or entering from pandemic-hit areas are being quarantined at hospitals, concentrated quarantine establishments, and home./.

Vietnam reports one more imported COVID-19 case, national total at 332

Vietnam confirmed one more COVID-19 case coming from abroad as of 6pm on June 8, according to the National Steering Committee on COVID-19 Prevention and Control.

Accordingly, the country has so far recorded a total of 332 infection cases.

Patient No.332, 18 years old, came into Vietnam through a border gate in the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap on May 25, and was quarantined in the province following his entry. 

As of June 8, Vietnam entered the 53rd day in a row without community transmission.

As many as 9,088 who had close contact with patients and entered from epidemic-hit areas are being put under quarantine.

Up to 316 out of the 332 patients have fully recovered./.

Half of new COVID-19 infections in Singapore show no symptoms

A Singaporean official said on June 8 that at least half of the newly discovered COVID-19 cases in the country show no symptoms.

The information was unveiled by Lawrence Wong, the co-head of the Singaporean Government’s virus taskforce, who did not reveal the number of asymptomatic cases in the country, which has reported 6,294 infections in the last two weeks, mainly among migrant workers.

According to him, asymptomatic individuals had fewer opportunities to spread the virus as they were not coughing or sneezing. However, there have been cases of asymptomatic transmission in Singapore, especially between patients living in close quarters.

The city-state is moving to gradually ease lockdown restrictions but still requires many residents to work from home and mix socially only with their families.

Last week, it reopened schools and some businesses after a near two-month lockdown.

Singapore has one of the highest infection tallies in Asia, with more than 38,000 cases, because of outbreaks in cramped dormitories of migrant workers.

Meanwhile, tens of millions of children in the Philippines will not be allowed back to school until a coronavirus vaccine is available.

Education Secretary Leonor Briones said on June 8 that they will comply with the president's directive to postpone face-to-face classes until a vaccine is available.

He said classes are to resume at the end of August and teachers will use distance learning methods via the internet or TV broadcasts where needed.

The numbers of COVID-19 cases and related fatalities in the Philippines rose to 22,474 and 1,011, respectively, after the Department of Health reported 579 more infections and eight deaths on June 8.

For its part, Thailand plans to introduce additional stimulus measures from the third quarter to spur domestic consumption and tourism following strong impact of the coronavirus outbreak, according to Finance Minister Uttama Savanayana.

He noted the measures will encourage people with purchasing power to spend more in the third and fourth quarters of the year.

Also on June 8, Malaysian health authorities reported seven new COVID-19 cases, the lowest daily increase since movement and business curbs were imposed three months ago. That raised the cumulative total to 8,329 cases while total fatalities still stood at 117.

Indonesia's health ministry reported 847 new coronavirus infections and 32 new deaths, taking the respective total numbers to 32,033 and 1,883.

More than 340 Vietnamese citizens brought home from US

More than 340 Vietnamese citizens in the US were brought home safely from San Francisco airport on June 7 and 8.

The flight was arranged by competent Vietnamese agencies, Vietnamese representative offices in the US, national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines and authorities of the host country.

The passengers included under-18-year-old children, the elderly, sick people, and students whose dormitories had closed.

Upon their arrival at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi, they underwent health check-ups and were put under quarantine in line with regulations.

Under the Prime Minister’s direction, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Transport, domestic agencies, and Vietnam’s overseas representative offices have organised a number of flights to bring Vietnamese citizens home.

Depending on the preference of Vietnamese citizens abroad, the development of the pandemic at home and around the world, and quarantine capacity in Vietnam, more flights are to be conducted in the time to come to bring more Vietnamese citizens home./.

Singapore announces safety measures for election

The Elections Department of Singapore on June 8 announced a detailed plan for safe polling and candidate nomination, as the number of COVID-19 infections has surpassed 38,000.

Accordingly, to avoid having large numbers of people descending on polling stations at the same time, voters will be allotted recommended two-hour slots for them to cast their ballot, which will be indicated on their hard copy polling card and also e-Poll card on the SingPass mobile app.

Some 1,100 polling stations will also be set up - an extra 220 - with election officials spread out at least 1m apart, so everyone can keep a safe distance from one another.

If COVID-19 fails to evolve, the general election is scheduled to be held in July.

As of June 8, Singapore confirmed additional 386 infection cases, bringing the total to 38,296, including 25 fatalities./.

WB Country Director in Vietnam impressed by Hanoi’s COVID-19 control

Country Director of the World Bank (WB) in Vietnam Ousmane Dione has expressed his appreciation of the success Vietnam and Hanoi in particular had in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic.

During a working session with Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Nguyen Duc Chung on June 8, Dione hailed Vietnam for bettering other developed countries in the fight against the outbreak.

He attributed the achievements to concerted efforts by the public as well as drastic and sound direction from authorities since the first infection was identified.

He expressed a hope that the success of projects between the WB and Hanoi in building transportation infrastructure, dealing with water and air pollution, and coping with climate change would help improve the capital’s competitiveness. He believed in the rapid and sustainable development of Vietnam and Hanoi in the future.

Chung, for his part, said that despite the negative impact of COVID-19, Hanoi’s economy still grew by 3.39 percent in the first half of the year.

He told his guest that the capital will organise an investment promotion conference on June 27, the first of its kind in Vietnam and perhaps in the world since the pandemic was brought under control.

The conference is expected to help the capital achieve the dual goal of COVID-19 prevention and control and socio-economic development, he said./.

Cambodia prepare another 12 million USD to help laid-off

Cambodia is preparing another 12 million USD as assistance for jobless workers as factories remain closed, Cambodian Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training spokesman Heng Sour has said.

About 110,000 workers of 344 factories and firms in Cambodia have received unemployment benefits, he added.

The ravaging COVID-19 pandemic has dealt a heavy blow to hundreds of thousands of workers in the garment and service sectors, especially tourism and hospitality, which use 620,000 workhands.

The ministry is in a partnership with Wing Specialized Bank to notice workers to receive their assistance after information registration.

A combined 2.4 million USD were transferred to Wing accounts between May 28 and June 3, Heng Sour noted.

According to the World Bank, COVID-19 is putting at least 1.76 million jobs in Cambodia at risks, driving the country’s unemployment rate to nearly 20 percent./. 

Bloomberg: Vietnam breaks out of COVID-19 tourist trap

Vietnam is pulling ahead in the race to reopen Southeast Asia to city-hoppers and sunseekers, an article of US magazine Bloomberg has written.

For a country of nearly 100 million that borders China, Vietnam has been a standout case through the COVID-19 pandemic, it said, adding that there are about 330 cases and no deaths. Success in containing the epidemic means domestic travel has already restarted.

“Vietnam has been among the first countries globally to get its citizens holidaying again,” it underlined.

A “Vietnamese People Travel in Vietnam” campaign began just as the country’s airline industry restarted regular schedules.

Last year, there were 85 million domestic tourists, who made up more than 80 percent of all visitors./.