COVID-19: Vietnam prioritises citizen protection
Hanoi (VNA) –
Vietnam is giving priority to citizen protection despite an array of difficulties
caused by COVID-19, Deputy Foreign Minister and Chairman of the State Committee on
Overseas Vietnamese Affairs Dang Minh Khoi affirmed in a recent interview
granted to the Vietnam News Agency.
He said amid the
complicated developments of the pandemic, the Vietnamese government has carried
out policies to bring home Vietnamese people who are studying, living or working
abroad, prioritising children, elderly people, those going abroad for treatment, and travellers trapped overseas.
The Ministry of Foreign
Affairs is working closely with relevant ministries, especially the Civil
Aviation Administration of Vietnam under the Ministry of Transport, to help
Vietnamese citizens return home.
Khoi said the biggest
goal is bringing Vietnamese citizens home safely, especially those in difficult situations, while implementing
quarantine measures to prevent a second wave of the COVID-19 outbreaks. This
requires the efforts of domestic and foreign agencies, as well as public
sharing and cooperation.
The diplomat went on that
overseas Vietnamese communities have actively contributed to the country’s
fight against COVID-19 in response to the call of the Party, State, Government,
and Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee.
Since the first COVID-19
cases were reported in Vietnam in January, the Vietnamese communities in
Poland, the Czech Republic and Russia have donated nearly 80,000 medical face masks,
hundreds of bottles of antiseptic solution, protective gear and medical gloves
to support Son Loi commune – a hotbed of COVID-19 in the northern province of Vinh Phuc, and a number of hospitals in Hanoi.
According to preliminary
statistics from the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, nearly 25
collectives and individuals overseas from 14 localities have raised about 33
billion VND (1.4 million USD) and donated medical supplies which have been sent
to the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee, the Vietnam Red Cross Society
and hospitals to prevent the pandemic.
The foreign ministry and
Vietnamese representative agencies abroad have also actively implemented
measures to support and protect citizens, particularly those stranded at airports
in Thailand, Japan, Singapore, the Republic of Korea and some European
countries./.