Participants at the seminar
The Government Portal yesterday held a seminar with the theme Looking back to 2021 - strategic changes with the participation of experts, assessing transformational decision-making strategy in Covid-19 disease prevention and social-economic development in 2021 and outlook in 2022.
Seminar participants said that the country has obtained good results that also showed the positive prospect of economic resilience in 2022 has reinforced residents’ trust in recovery and rapid and sustainable development of the national economy.
Deputy Minister of Health Do Xuan Tuyen said that the Vietnamese government has come up with solutions according to the country's situation and the World Health Organization (WHO)’s recommendations with a study of other countries’ experiences.
According to the WHO forecast, Vietnam can’t fully control the epidemic situation with possible outbreaks in 2021-2022. Vietnam reaches 99 percent first dose Covid-19 vaccination milestone for adults while it is over 90 percent for the second doses ensuring herd immunity.
According to the Deputy Minister of Health, based on the goal of safe adaptation to the new normal state, the Ministry of Health, the standing body of the National Steering Committee, has developed solutions, especially the adjustment for treatment of people infected with Covid-19. In the past, all infected people were taken to medical facilities for treatment.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu
At present, Covid-19 patients with mild symptoms will receive treatment at home. When they see severe developments, health care workers are ready to take them to treatment facilities.
Similarly, contacts of infected people were prior put in concentrated isolation, now they are being monitored at home under close medical supervision. For foreigners entering Vietnam, they were previously sent to concentrated isolation for 14 days and tested according to instructions.
Currently, all people are allowed to enter Vietnam if they have received two doses of the vaccine and have a negative PCR test within 72 hours before boarding the plane to Vietnam then stay at home within three days according to the health sector’s new guidelines. If they experience symptoms of fever, they should inform local medical workers.
Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Quoc Phuong said that Vietnam has recorded nearly 1.7 million cases of Covid-19 and more than 31,000 deaths. The government has in the past week taken steps to gradually ease lockdown, following pressure from business associations and warnings by investors that the restrictions will prompt a shift away from the country.
The Covid-19 pandemic has seriously affected all aspects of the economy with many key production cities and provinces having to impose strict lockdown, the economy was stricken with Covid-19, gross domestic product in 2021 will only reach 2.58 percent, the lowest increase in the past decade.
The GDP decreased in the third quarter is very deep, more than -6 percent, but by the fourth quarter has recovered more than 5.22 percent.
This recovery has also shown that the resilience of our economy is very positive, as long as there are specific conditions for economic activities to return, it will immediately contribute to the growth of the economy.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu said that according to international experience, any country with a vaccine coverage rate of over 60 percent can open its doors step by step. Any country with enough vaccines will fight the epidemic differently. Vietnam has adapted and learned international experiences but still, keeps its practical experience.
The Deputy Foreign Minister said that the Southeast Asian country has accessed about 190 million doses of vaccines, of which about 68 million doses are donated by partners. Besides, Vietnam also buys a lot of commercial vaccines.
At the seminar, participants also shared that Vietnam will encounter many difficulties and challenges ahead in 2022 and the following years, but with the recent achievements, Vietnam will surely adapt safely to the new normal achieving its dual goals including successful prevention and control of the Covid-19 epidemic, maximally protecting people's health and lives and economic growth.
