WHO lauds Vietnam response to new Covid-19 outbreak and repatriation program

Vietnam has responded well to the new Covid-19 outbreak and made great efforts to repatriate its citizens stranded abroad, local media quoted Kidong Park, a World Health Organization (WHO) representative in Vietnam as saying.

At a recent meeting with the National Steering Committee on Covid-19 Prevention and Control in Hanoi, Park hailed Vietnam's effective disease surveillance system that has enabled it to track down cases quickly and on time.

The WHO official believed the Southeast Asian country will be able to quickly detect infection cases, trace suspected ones and lock down Covid-19 stricken areas to stamp down the outbreaks.

Besides, Park hailed Vietnam’s decision to bring home thousands of Vietnamese citizens from Covid-19-hit regions, including 219 from Equatorial Guinea, of whom more than half are infected with coronavirus, and 226 from Uzbekistan, of whom around 100 are virus positive.

A flight on July 28 left Hanoi for Equatorial Guinea along with a medical team while those in Uzbekistan are expected to be brought home early next month. These are proofs of a humanitarian policy which could reinforce people’s trust in the Vietnamese government, Park said.

Since April Vietnam has operated more than 60 flights to bring home more than 16,000 nationals from over 50 countries and territories, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The WHO’s representative assessed that the current evolution of Covid-19 infections in the community in Vietnam is normal. Many countries have recorded a sharp increase in the number of infectious cases in the community after lifting social distancing order.

Medical workers and crew on the repatriation flight for 219 Vietnamese citizens in Equatorial Guinea. The flight took off on July 28 from Hanoi. Photo: Ha Nga

Dr. Kidong Park expressed his impression with what the Vietnamese government and the Ministry of Health have done in the past few days.

The WHO representative, international organizations and experts also appreciated Vietnam's public, transparent and timely provision of information. This helps to strengthen people's confidence in Covid-19 prevention and control in Vietnam.

They expressed their hope that Vietnam will keep sharing information on mutation of SARS-CoV-2 virus, the use of test kits and Covid-19 patient treatment regimen.

At the time of writing, Vietnam has confirmed 446 Covid-19 positive cases, of them 369 have been cured and 77 are being treated. No deaths have been reported.

On July 24, a 57-year-old man in Danang with several existing diseases was diagnosed with Covid-19, and then three more cases of community transmission were found the following day in the city and Quang Ngai province.

On July 27, seven patients and four medical staff at the Danang Hospital tested positive. Authorities are still searching for the sources of infection.