Despite limited resources, Vietnam has been taking proactive measures in tackling COVID-19, said an article posted on The ASEAN Post on April 9.

Thai authority is using the rare hiatus of the aviation industry caused by the COVID-19 crisis to develop airport facilities in preparation for the post-pandemic world.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has emphasised the importance of strengthening regional and global cooperation in the fight against COVID-19, which he said threatens efforts to maintain peace and international security.

Thailand’s Ministry of Finance met on April 9 to hash out details of a planned cash handout for almost 9 million farmers to inject liquidity into the economy amid the slowdown brought on by the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Indonesian government on April 9 announced a plan to support locals affected by the disruption of operations in the context of the COVID-19 outbreak.

The US Department of Defence issued a statement on April 9 expressing its deep concern over a Chinese coast guard's collision with and sinking of a Vietnamese fishing vessel near Vietnam's Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago in the East Sea.

The Indonesian government is ramping up efforts to carry out mass, rapid polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing amid concerns the world’s fourth-most populous nation lags behind other nations in testing people for COVID-19.

The ASEAN Coordinating Council (ACC) held its 25th meeting in the form of a video conference on April 9 under the chair of the council’s chairman - Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh.

Vietnam, as ASEAN 2020 Chair, has been proactively promoted joint efforts of the 10-member group in the fight against COVID-19 with the spirit of "cohesive and responsive", said Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung at a press conference in Hanoi on April 9.

The ASEAN Special Summit and the ASEAN+3 Special Summit on COVID-19 Response will be held online on April 14.

Cambodia’s tourism, which is the most vulnerable industry from the spread of coronavirus, will see a slower recovery than other sectors after the COVID-19 pandemic ends, according to Chhay Sivlin, President of the Cambodia Association of Travel Agents.

Singaporean authorities said they will impose stronger punishments on those who repeatedly break the 28-day circuit-breaker rules.

The Thai government has prepared to receive Thai nationals returning from abroad by taking into consideration the number of returnees and Thailand’s capacity on communicable disease control.

The Consul Office at the Vietnamese Embassy in Laos announced on April 9 that all foreigners living in Laos, including Vietnamese, do not have to request a visa extension if their Lao visa expires. The decision is effective until April 20.