Vietnamese citizens recommended not to travel to Singapore following new entry regulations

On Sunday (March 15), the ministry cited the Singaporean Embassy in Vietnam’s announcement as saying that from 23:59 on March 16 (Singapore time), all travellers entering Singapore with recent travel history to ASEAN countries (including Vietnam), Japan, Switzerland, or the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland within the previous 14 days will be issued with a 14-day Stay-Home Notice (SHN) and may be required to take a COVID-19 test if necessary.

All short-term visitors who are nationals of any ASEAN country will have to submit requisite information on their health to the Singapore representative office in their country of residence for consideration before their intended date of travel.

Information on the form of health certificate is posted on the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore and the representative offices of Singapore in the host countries.

Therefore, the MOFA has advised Vietnamese citizens who have plans to go to Singapore or other countries to get regular updates on regulations of the destination countries and airlines, prepare all necessary papers as required, and strictly follow the recommendations and COVID-19 prevention and control regulations of the host countries’ authorised offices.

* On the same day, a delegation from the Ministry of Health (MoH) led by Assoc. Prof., Dr. Nguyen Truong Son, Deputy Minister of Health cum Deputy Head of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, visited Binh Thuan Province to inspect the disease response there.

Deputy Minister of Health, Assoc. Prof., Dr. Nguyen Truong Son (standing) speaks at a meeting with Binh Thuan provincial authorities on March 15, 2020. (Photo: NDO/Dinh Chau)

Son said that, as there are nine infection cases in the province, the MoH suggested that Binh Thuan use the spirit of "fighting against epidemic like fighting against the enemy" to mobilise forces and concentrate efforts on preventing, detecting, quarantining and stamping out the epidemic.

* In the afternoon of the same day, a mission from the National Steering Committee led by Deputy Minister of Health Do Xuan Tuyen inspected the prevention and control of the disease at Hanoi-based Noi Bai International Airport.

Tuyen proposed that Noi Bai Airport assign specific tasks to their on-site forces in the prevention and control of COVID-19, while making contingency plans in case of receiving a huge volume of passengers returning home, as well as conducting disinfection continuously and coordinating with functional forces to bring passengers to isolation camps according to regulations.

Deputy Minister of Health Do Xuan Tuyen (right, in blue jacket) inspects the COVID-19 prevention work at Noi Bai International Airport on March 15, 2020. (Photo: NDO/Tran Nguyen)

* The same day, the MoH organised a teleconference, with the participation of delegates from more than 700 venues across the country, on IT application in preventing and fighting COVID-19. At the conference, IT experts instructed localities to deploy related software for surveillance and prevention of COVID-19.

The Viettel Business Solutions Corporation introduced a tourism health declaration system for airports, border gates and all accommodation establishments and restaurants nationwide, which is helping to proactively capture the schedules of domestic and international tourists.

* Also, on Sunday, the MoH’s Administration of Examination and Treatment issued an urgent dispatch requesting hospitals to concentrate all resources to prioritise the management, treatment and comprehensive care for COVID-19 patients, while avoiding cross infection for health workers. In the afternoon of the same day, at the Centre for Online Management and Support for COVID-19 Diagnosis and Treatment in Hanoi, leading medical experts gathered for an online consultation on the health status of COVID-19 patients with the concerned hospitals nationwide.

* Prof., Dr. Nguyen Thanh Long, Deputy Minister of Health cum Deputy Head of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, said that the epidemic in Vietnam has its own characteristics, as most of the confirmed cases have been infected by foreign sources and newly detected cases have been infected mainly due to close contact with such invasive cases. Therefore, it is necessary to have drastic and persistent response to the epidemic to prevent new cases entering Vietnam from foreign sources, he stated.

Early detection of new cases is an important condition, while early isolation would help prevent the spread of the disease, Long suggested, adding that it is necessary to step up the application of science and technology in the prevention and control of the epidemic, especially the application of electronic medical declarations to well supervise all visitors to Vietnam during their stay.