The Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) has proposed a second relief package worth VND18.6 trillion (US$800 million) for businesses and laborers affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The second relief package is estimated at over US$800 million.

The relief package would include a credit package for small and medium enterprises, cooperatives, household businesses, particularly small and micro enterprises with less than 10 employees, as well as laborers in rural areas.

As per the proposal, beneficiaries would get access to loan with preferential rate of 3.96% per annum, equivalent to 50% of the lending rate for near-poor households, with the maximum amount of VND2 billion (US$86,100) for businesses and VND100 million (US$4,305) for laborers.

The rate is applied for new loans from September 1, 2020 to September 1, 2021, from a credit package worth VND15 trillion (US$645.84 million).

Meanwhile, workers who have children of less than six years old or have to pay home rent and are now out of work or forced to take unpaid leave would be subject to a threemonth financial support of VND1 million (US$43.5) per month per person and/or VND1 million (US$43.5) per children of less than six years old. The support period is set from September  - December 2020 with a total amount of VND3.6 trillion (US$154.96 million).

The MoLISA also advised the prime minister to halve interest rates to 3.96% per annum in 12 months for people seeking loans from the National Employment Fund and from the Vietnam Bank of Social Policies. The lending period is set from September 1, 2020 to September 1, 2021.

Regarding the first financial package for vulnerable people worth VND62 trillion (US$2.7 billion), as of August 10, local authorities had approved the list of nearly 16 million people with financial support of VND17.5 trillion (US$752.86 million).

To date, the State Treasury of Vietnam has disbursed VND11.98 trillion (US$514.83 million) for 12.06 million people and 13,725 business households.

A report from Vietnam Social Security informed as of July 31, 1,739 organizations and businesses had been allowed to defer paying premiums to the funds for pensions and death gratuity for 164,529 people.