Goods are still abundant on supermarket shelves in HCM City. VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — HCM City has developed a plan together with six neighbouring provinces to create favourable traffic conditions for and issue QR identification code to their vehicles transporting foodstuffs and other goods through its COVID-19 quarantine checkpoints to ensure adequate retail supply.

Trần Quang Lâm, director of its Department of Transport, said smooth cargo transport is the city’s main priority.

Trucks from neighboring provinces would be identified by QR codes so that they could pass through anti-pandemic checkpoints quickly, he said.

From yesterday the department will issue QR codes to businesses in neighbouring provinces to paste on their vehicles.

Lâm also suggested prolonging the validity period of a negative COVID-19 test certificate for drivers from the current three days to seven to reduce costs for transport businesses.

Nguyễn Văn Huyện, general director of the Directorate for Roads of Việt Nam, said his agency has instructed southern road management agencies to co-ordinate their work to create favourable traffic conditions to ensure smooth circulation of goods.

It has also called on provinces to publicise the locations of their COVID-19 checkpoints, quarantine forms and the phone numbers of COVID-19 check point managers so that businesses could have documents ready to avoid congestion at the checkpoints, he said.

The checkpoints need to arrange separate test places for foodstuff transport drivers so that they could leave quickly, he added.

Minister of Transport Nguyễn Văn Thể has called for simplifying and speeding up the issuance of QR codes for vehicles by using technology.

Localities need to agree on how to manage foodstuff transport vehicles passing through checkpoints so that they are not stopped for inspection, he said.

Publicise essential food supply points

With all three of its largest wholesale markets and half the traditional markets, supermarkets and food stores closed, the city is publicising information about 2,833 food supply points with locations, contact phone numbers and delivery methods for people to easily access them.

The city Department of Industry and Trade said the list of these places would be sent to each district, ward and commune, adding the number of places is high and they are widely distributed, and so the public could be assured of uninterrupted supply.

In the past few days people have flocked to supermarkets and food stores to buy goods and stock up, mainly foodstuff, leading to temporary shortages, especially of fresh produce like meat and vegetables at the end of the day.

Food supply businesses assured that these shortages are temporary and only occur because staff are unable to replace the goods on the shelves fast enough because of the huge buying.

Supply is abundant and enough to meet all needs, they said.

According to the department, the city consumes 5,000-6,000 tons of foodstuffs a day but has stocks of over 120,000 tonnes, triple the normal volume, to ensure demand is fully met. – VNS