Passengers wait to handle boarding procedures at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi. (Photo: VNA)

At a meeting in Hanoi on December 8, ministries reported that since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, Vietnam has received more than 200,000 foreign experts, engineers, and skilled workers. A large number of flights have also been conducted to repatriate Vietnamese citizens with urgent demand for returning home, basing on the anti-pandemic principles and domestic quarantine capacity. Recently, some localities have piloted a programme to welcome international tourists back.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs highlighted the great demand for returning to the homeland among OVs, including workers with expired labour contracts, students, and those going abroad for business purposes but stranded.

However, they noted, the biggest difficulty now is how to balance the pandemic control capacity, especially amid the appearance of the Omicron variant, and OVs and foreigners’ demand.

Dam, who is also Deputy Head of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, said apart from receiving foreign experts, engineers, skilled workers, and tourists, ministries and sectors also need to pay special attention to OVs’ demand for returning home, especially when the Lunar New Year festival is nearing.

He noted the current COVID-19 situation in the country is different from the previous months. Though the coronavirus still spreads in the community and the number of infections remains high, the pandemic is basically under control. The vaccination rate has been growing fast, and the country is focusing on curbing the cases in critical conditions and deaths.

Given this, it is necessary to change the mindset in the reception of those coming to the country, he said.

The Deputy PM requested that by December 15 at the latest, the Ministry of Health issue new guidances on quarantine and health monitoring for people entering Vietnam. In particular, people who have been fully vaccinated and tested negative for the virus only need to undergo self-quarantine at home. Those who haven’t been vaccinated will stay at domestic quarantine sites and receive inoculations.

Dam also asked the Ministry of Transport, the aviation sector, and related ministries and sectors to step up preparations for resuming international commercial flights./.

Source: VNA