Previously, the Government issued Resolution No.20/NQ-CP to regulate export licensing for medical face masks on February 28.
Accordingly, the Ministry of Health reported the development of the disease and domestic demand of face masks in the country to the Prime Minister who will decide proper management basing on the country’s reality.
The Government assigned the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Industry and Trade to publicize index of face mask producers and their manufacturing capacity while the Ministry of Finance disclosed the number of face masks for export.
The Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Industry and Trade to intensify supervision and impose harsh penalties on businesses for hiking prices of materials to make face masks and hoarding the commodity as well as establishments making substandard face masks to launch in the market.
The Government asked people’s committees in cities and provinces to direct departments of health and state competent agencies to pay visit to local face mask manufacturers to ensure quality of face masks. Exporters take responsibility on quality of medical face masks and they must sell face masks to medical centers when being required.
Before, in the battle against Covid-19, the Prime Minister permitted export licensing for medical face masks for humanitarian aid and international assistance.
According to the Vietnam Customs’ report on exports in April and the first four months of 2020, Vietnam exported 88.19 million face masks, mostly cloth face masks, to Japan ( 32.7 million face masks), to South Korea (17.1 million face masks), to Germany (11.1 million face masks) and the US (10.4 million face masks). Vietnam has totally sold 415.7 million face masks since January 1 earning US$63.19 million.
