Amid the surging global demand for food and foodstuffs due to the coronavirus outbreak, Vietnam is examining its export capabilities to secure the domestic supply.

Several Vietnamese singers have recently released new music videos as a way of inspring their fans during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Buses operating on frequent routes which depart from or arrive in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City and cover less than 100km can still run two trips per day at maximum with no more than 20 passengers.

The Vietnamese Government has decided to suspend cross-border activities of individuals at main and secondary border gates, and trails in border areas sharing with Cambodia and Laos from April 1.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc affirmed that the government has yet to plan lockdown of major cities during a meeting in Hanoi on March 31 with permanent Government members.

Providing loans with zero percent interest for business owners to pay their workers during the time the businesses have to suspend operation is one of the solutions proposed at a meeting of the Government’s standing members on March 31.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has said that in the current situation, rice exports should be controlled to ensure food security in line with the Government’s Decree No.107.

The Ministry of Transport has asked airlines to stop carrying passengers to Vietnam as from 00:00 of April 1 until the end of April 15 as part of measures to curb the COVID-19 pandemic.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister (FM) Pham Binh Minh held phone talks with Japanese Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu on March 31 to discuss cooperation amid the complicated developments of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs has proposed the government to lift a ban and allow on a priority basis for 8,459 highly skilled foreign workers to enter Vietnam since it has been difficult to find replacements for them.

Hundreds of thousands of tons of rice in Mekong Delta remain unsold as merchants have stopped collecting rice. Farmers fear the rice price will drop dramatically if Vietnam stops exporting rice.

Hanoi Chairman Nguyen Duc Chung has directed the Department of Health to set up 10 working groups and arrange 10 rapid COVID-19 test stations in the city. At first, tests will be implemented in the wards around Bach Mai Hospital.

The first teleconference of the ASEAN Coordinating Council Working Group on Public Health Emergencies was held on March 31 under the chair of Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung, head of the ASEAN Senior Officials’ Meeting Vietnam.

While Vietnam remains significantly exposed to the COVID-19 outbreak and the ongoing turbulence in the global financial markets, its economy stays resilient to external shocks in the first few months of 2020, according to the World Bank (WB).

UK Ambassador to Vietnam Gareth Ward and Consul General in HCM City Ian Gibbons have advised UK citizens who are living and working in Vietnam to comply with local laws and customs amid the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Food processing firms in Ho Chi Minh City have stepped up production to meet demand while also enhancing safety measures for their staff amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh and Philippine Foreign Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. have discussed on cooperation between the two countries at bilateral and multilateral levels during their recent phone talks.

The Government Office said Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung has ordered the setting up of a managing unit for the Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway project.

The Hanoi Department of Education and Training has issued guidelines for schools and vocational education centres to extend online and television-based teaching amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The High-Level People’s Court in Hanoi will hold an appeal trial from April 13 to 16 for the case involving MobiFone Telecommunications Corporation’s purchase of a 95 percent share in Audio Visual Global JSC (AVG).

HCM City Chairman Nguyen Thanh Phong has agreed to a proposal from the municipal Transport Department on suspending all public bus services in the locality from April 1 to the end of April 15.

Export of fresh fruit to China via train using refrigerated containers has contributed to curbing the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy, head of Vietnam’s Permanent Mission to the UN, has called all concerned parties to continue pursuing dialogue and seeking long-term political solutions for the situation in Syria.

The General Statistics Office (GSO) is scheduled to begin a survey of businesses on April 1 with a view to collecting basic information to serve management and policy making, Deputy General Director of the office Nguyen Trung Tien said.

The national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines has committed to intensifying the operation of freight flights, both domestically and internationally, amid the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.