Eighteen COVID-19 patients will leave hospitals on April 7 after their complete recovery, according to the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control.

As of 6:00 on April 7, Vietnam had no new cases of COVID-19 to report in the country, keeping the national count at 245 unchanged from the figure reported on the night of April 6, the committee said.

Of the patients, 153 people returned from abroad.

There are currently three people in serious conditions in hospitals, but one is showing signs of improvement.

A total of 32 patients tested negative for the virus for the first time, and 30 others got negative results for the second.

The committee has asked ministers, heads of ministerial-level and government agencies, and chairpersons of municipal and provincial People’s Committees to strictly handle violations of regulations on COVID-19 prevention and control.

Reports on the implementation work must be sent to the Ministry of Health before April 15 to be submitted to the Prime Minister before April 17.

Localities asked to review impact of COVID-19 on development

Chairspersons of the people’s committees of centrally-run cities and provinces have been asked to review the overall impact of COVID-19 on local socio-economic development.

According to a dispatch sent by the Ministry of Planning and Investment, they must review economic growth in terms of gross regional domestic product, State budget collections, exports and imports, tourism, corporate performance (the number of enterprises and consumption levels), and the lives of local residents and workers and those hit by the pandemic, such as the poor, social beneficiaries, and ex-revolutionaries.

Localities are also required to suggest measures to support workers and enterprises, ensure social welfare, maintain social safety and order, and step up public capital disbursement.

At the same time, they must exert the utmost effort to achieve socio-economic development goals for 2020 set by the Party Central Committee and in resolutions of the National Assembly, the Government, and city and provincial party congresses and people’s councils.

Localities have also been directed to promptly handle investment procedures and address any difficulties facing businesses, cooperatives, and business households.

Firms donate food for frontline medical force

Firms in Ho Chi Minh City have prepared nutritious meals for front-line doctors and nurses participating in the fight against the COVID-19 epidemic.

According to a representative of GS25, Truong Thi Tuyet Mai, GS25 has offered food portions to the HCM City Hospital for Tropical Diseases since March 23 and District 7 Hospital since April 1.

About 115 food portions are sent to HCM City Hospital for Tropical Disease at 8pm daily, while 30 are sent to District 7 Hospital at 7.20am.

The menu is changed every day to ensure hearty yet delicious food portions for the front-line medical force.

“At this time, doctors and nurses need quality food so that they have enough strength to keep up the hard work and provide the best treatment for all patients. Taking great care of doctors and nurses is not simply an act of empathy but also our responsibility,” Mai said.

Since many business firms in HCM City are doing the same meaningful action, GS25 is merely contributing a part of providing extra food portions at night, according to Mai.

The quality and packaging of each portion is carefully thought out to ensure food hygiene and safety, while the delivery process follows strict standards.

“Beloved doctors and nurses just need to focus on the fight against COVID-19 epidemic. In the background, local businesses will try to take care of as many things as possible, including food and drink," Mai said.

To ensure smooth delivery of food, GS25 has increased the number of staff and plans to contact other hospitals for meal donations to the medical force.

“We believe that we can never do enough to take the best care of front-line doctors and nurses. We can only support a small part to HCM City’s medical force. There are many hard-working doctors and nurses elsewhere that risk being infected with COVID-19,” she said.

In addition to GS25, ABC Bakery, owned by Kao Sieu Luc, has produced 10,000 loaves of super-nutritious breads.

This is the company’s second batch after it donated 3,000 special loaves of bread.

Kao Huy Minh, Luc’s daughter, said that each loaf of bread contained the love of many locals.

“After seeing that my father started helping the medical force, many suppliers donated milk, yeast, white flout and black wheat. The US Embassy in Vietnam has even provided us with some types of nuts,” she added.

Minh’s family company is in the process of waiting for hospitals’ approval to donate bread.

Even though the company is willing to help the medical force, Minh admitted that sales revenue of ABC Bakery had dropped by more than 60 percent.

“Some suppliers have closed down so we have to find replacement materials. If we cannot find them, we have no choice but to stop making certain types of bread,” she said.

To keep the business going, Kao Siêu Lực has suspended production of many types of bread and only offered essential, easy-to-eat, delicious and affordable items.

“Everything must be calculated carefully since we do not want to waste existing resources,” Minh said.

She emphasised the importance of providing essential food to locals while ensuring employees’ stable incomes.

“What makes me happy is seeing a lot of businesses in HCM City trying very hard. Their quiet participation in social activities and food donations is only a simple part of a bigger picture,” she added.

Public support gives more strength to COVID-19 fight

Representatives of the Da Nang municipal People's Procuracy present financial support to the city's Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee on April 6

The fight against COVID-19 is gaining more strength as more support from the public was contributed to the efforts in the central city of Da Nang and Hanoi capital on April 6.

On March 6, the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Committee of Da Nang received more than 1 billion VND (over 42,600 USD) donated by the FPT Joint Stock Company, the municipal People’s Procuracy and the A Viet Inspection JSC.

Appreciating the assistance, President of the committee Dang Thi Kim Lien said the money will be swiftly delivered to the frontline units of the COVID-19 combat.

She noted in response to the VFF Central Committee’s appeal to all Vietnamese people to support the disease prevention and control, many agencies, organisations, businesses and individuals have joined hands with the city’s authorities in the work.

So far, more than 4.6 billion VND, 1,000 antibacterial face masks, 10 tonnes of rice and 100 bottles of hand sanitiser, among others, have been donated via the municipal VFF Committee.

The same day, a delegation of the Hanoi Red Cross Society and philanthropists visited and presented aid to the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases No. 2 in Kim Chung commune of Hanoi’s Dong Anh district and the quarantine site at the FPT University’s dormitory in the city’s Thach That district.

They supported the forces working at each site with one tonne of rice, 1,000 face shields, 1,000 food containing boxes, and 50 million VND in cash.

Vietnamese companies assist Laos’ efforts in COVID-19 fight

Luu Manh Ha, General Director of Star Telecom (second, left), presents his firm's support to Lao Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Somdy Duangdy (second, right) on April 6

Two Vietnamese businesses in Laos presented support in both cash and kind worth 370,000 USD to representatives of the Lao Government on April 6 to help with the host country’s fight against COVID-19.

Luu Manh Ha, General Director of Star Telecom (Unitel) – a joint venture of Vietnam’s telecom group Viettel in Laos and Lao Asia Telecom, noted as a leading information technology firm in Laos, the company is aware of its responsibility for deploying technological solutions to assist COVID-19 prevention and control efforts in the country.

Since COVID-19 broke out in China’s Wuhan city, the company has implemented technological solutions for the Lao Government and Health Ministry such as installing teleconference devices, providing an SMS network that automatically sends coronavirus-related information to more than 3.5 million people, and offering 400 SIMs with preferential policies to frontline cadres of the anti-COVID-19 committee.

Aside from the three abovementioned aid packages worth 320,000 USD, the business has also carried out many programmes to help its clients amid the pandemic, Ha added.

Meanwhile, the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) contributed 50,000 USD to the Lao Government and people’s efforts to deal with COVID-19.

Nguyen Van Binh, General Director of LaoVietBank and head of BIDV’s representative office in Laos, said the support, donated by over 20,000 staff members of the bank in Vietnam, aims to assist Laos in the combat against the pandemic.

BIDV will continue directing its representative bodies in Laos to keep making practical contributions to the country’s efforts in this regard, he noted.

In response, Lao Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Somdy Duangdy, who is also head of the country’s national steering committee for COVID-19 prevention and control, appreciated the two businesses’ assistance, affirming that his country will use the aid in the most effective manner to control and curb the spread of the disease.

Laos records one more COVID-19 case

People in Vientiane, Laos, wear face masks

Laos reported one more case of COVID-19 on April 5, raising the country’s tally to 11, according to the Lao health ministry.

The 11th patient is the first foreigner tested positive for the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 in Laos.

Speaking at a press conference in Vientiane on April 5, Lao Deputy Minister of Health Phouthone Meuangpak said the new patient is a 55-year-old man from Papua New Guinea, who travelled to Singapore on March 21, and entered Laos from Thailand via air route on March 23.

The man had contact with 11 people and worked with at least 100 others.

To date, Laos has conducted SARS-CoV-2 tests for 604 cases, with 11 positive ones. The patients are being treated in Vientiane and Luang Prabang.

Meanwhile, on April 5, Cambodia reported no new COVID-19 cases, while one patient was declared to have recovered on the same day.

So far, the country recorded 114 COVID-19 cases, including 50 recoveries.

Cambodia’s police on April 6 directed all forces to enforce a ban on large gatherings during the Khmer Chol Chnam Thmey New Year celebration from April 13 to 16 to prevent the spread of the pandemic.

Malaysia announces another stimulus package to cope with COVID-19

A banner calling on people to stay home in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

The Malaysian government on April 6 unveiled an additional stimulus package worth 10 billion ringgit (2.3 billion USD) to support small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.

In a live televised address, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin noted that SMEs contributed to 40 percent of the economy, adding that it was therefore necessary to sustain the companies through these trying times.

Earlier, on March 27, the PM announced an economic stimulus package worth 250 billion ringgit, after the launch of the movement control order (MCO), which was initially effective from March 18 to 31, but later is extended until the end of April 14.

Malaysia is taking measures to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the community. By the end of April 5, Malaysia had recorded a total of 3,662 cases, including 61 deaths.

Hundreds of thousands of workers in Jakarta affected by COVID-19

A woman has her blood sample taken for testing in West Java province, Indonesia

The Jakarta Manpower, Transmigration and Energy Agency said on April 6 that a total of 162,416 workers in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, have been laid off and forced to take unpaid leave due to COVID-19 pandemic.

Of the figure, 30,137 workers of 3,348 registered companies were laid off, while 132,279 others from 14,697 firms were also put on forced unpaid leave," according to the agency.

The data will soon be submitted to the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs, it said.

As part of its stimulus package to counter the effects of the epidemic, the Indonesian government has issued a policy of expanding its pre-employment card programme which provides job skills training and incentives for laid-off workers.

President of the Confederation of Indonesian Trade Unions (KSPI) Said Iqbal has called on the government to prepare more measures to support workers who lose their jobs, such as providing money to workers and drivers. On the other hand, the government also needs to reduce interest rates on bank loans and taxes for tourism businesses to help them overcome the current hard time.

By April 5, Indonesia had recorded 2,273 COVID-19 cases, with 198 deaths. The respective figures in Jakarta were 1,143 and 111.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/en/society/more-covid-19-patients-to-be-discharged-from-hospital-on-april-7-631422.html