Authorities in Vietnam have been required to boost contact tracing to soon curb the Covid-19 movements ahead of a week-long Tet holiday starting from February 10. 

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam at a meeting on February 3. Photo:VGP Vietnam News Agency

Quick response needs to be made to ensure a safe Tet holiday [the Lunar New Year] as it is an important occasion for people in Vietnam, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam said at a meeting Wednesday morning [February 3]

Localities need to screen all people coming from the fresh Covid-19 outbreaks which are in the northern provinces of Hai Duong and Quang Ninh, he requested.

Chi Linh City in Hai Duong and Van Don Airport in Quang Ninh are the coronavirus hotspots that where the carriers of the UK coronavirus variant were detected on January 28. Since then, more than 300 cases of local transmission have been confirmed, putting the country in high alert.

Dam, who is head of the National Steering Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control, asked 10 affected cities and provinces to impose tough measures namely mass masking, health declaration on mobile apps, disinfection, sanitization, and body temperature Measurement.

Since the resurgence of SARS-CoV-2 last week, top leaders have requested tough precautionary measures as the country detected both variants initially found in the UK and South Africa.

Even more seriously, up to 80% of the total local infections show no symptoms, according to Associate Prof. Luong Ngoc Khue from the Ministry of Health.

At a meeting on February 2, Deputy PM Dam asked local authorities to keep vigilance on the pandemic, especially those in the non-affected areas; continue five-measure approach (mask – distance – sanitization – health declaration – no gathering); update the national Covid-19 map; tighten control over immigration; and step up the production of vaccines.

The measures are aimed to pursue the dual target of containing the virus and developing economy, Dam emphasized.