HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc has asked for measures to prevent the COVID-19 pandemic from peaking and curb its spread in the community.

During a meeting of the COVID-19 Prevention and Control Committee in Hà Nội yesterday, PM Phúc said the “golden time” to combat COVID-19 was only one week away, so continued vigilance in the fight was of utmost importance.

He called on the whole of society to switch to online transactions or via mobile phones and limit face-to-face meetings to prevent infections. In crowded or COVID-19-hit areas, people must wear face masks, he stressed.

The Ministry of Education and Training was required to enhance online teaching while people were urged not to visit karaoke clubs or massage parlours, which he said, should be suspended or even shut down.

The PM ordered raising public awareness in an effort to strengthen trust, as well as an increase in the use of technological advances in this regard.

Visas suspended

Granting of visas to Việt Nam will be suspended from 0:00am on March 21, so authorities were required to minimise visitor arrivals in Việt Nam via air, road or sea, he said.

The PM said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Vietnamese embassies around the world must encourage overseas Vietnamese to stay in their host countries for treatment if necessary. In case they still wanted to return home, flights would be arranged at an appropriate time, he said.

According to the government leader, all people entering Việt Nam would be quarantined and those violating quarantine regulations would be strictly punished.

The health sector and authorities were asked to promptly discover infections to provide timely treatment, thus minimising deaths.

Việt Nam had enough food and necessities to meet public demand, he said, stressing that it was prohibited to hoard goods to seek profits from the epidemic. — VNS