Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính checked COVID-9 prevention and control at Ching Luh Vietnam Footwear Company in Long An Province on Saturday. — VNA/VNS Photo

LONG AN — Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính has proposed the Ministry of Health considering shipping 400,000 doses of vaccines to southern Long An Province in the coming days.

The province requested the vaccines at a working session with the Government leader on Saturday amid complex outbreaks in the south.

Winning the fight against COVID-19 while maintaining production and business is the top priority of Long An at present, the PM said.

The Government leader also asked Long An to support local citizens following Resolution 68 issued by the Government on policies to support employees and employers facing difficulties due to the pandemic to ensure no one is left behind.

Provincial Party Committee Secretary Nguyễn Văn Được said the province has detected 488 COVID-19 patients and has carried out measures to prevent further spreading of the disease, applying strict lockdown measures in some areas following Government Directive No16.

However, he said, there was a high risk of transmission in industrial zones with a huge number of workers travelling between the province and HCM City – the biggest outbreak of the country at present - daily.

An estimated 20,000 people return to Long An from HCM City after work each day.

The province is capable of testing 16,000 out of 24,000 samples taken each day. However, this capacity could only meet the current situation, he said, adding that testing needs would be greater if the outbreak worsened.

The province proposed the Government help it boost testing capacity and provide medical materials to fight the pandemic, as well as prioritise vaccinating 400,000 workers of local companies to ensure the production chain was not disrupted.

Minister of Health Nguyễn Thanh Long said the ministry would send PCR testing machines to the province but the province needed to choose the best testing strategy

PM Chính said Long An had close ties with HCM City and has applied social distancing measures for 10 districts following Government Directive No. 15.

Non-essential services are shut, and so will entertainment, cultural and sports activities in public. Gatherings of more than 10 people in public will be banned, and events and meetings with more than 20 people in one room will not be permitted. People must keep a 2-metre distance from others in public, and transportation from COVID-19 hit areas must be limited.

Meanwhile, stricter lockdown measures have been applied for five districts that border HCM City following Government Directive No.16. The directive also requires people to keep a distance of at least 2 metres from others. Gatherings of more than two people in public are banned. Production factories must ensure a safe distance between workers and disinfect their working space and workers must wear masks.

He said amid the outbreak, the province needed to do everything it could to protect its development results. The province was applauded for its development efforts over the past years. Its GRDP increased 6.06 per cent in the first six months of the year.

He pointed to the need to strictly apply social distancing measures in areas that applied Directive No 15 and 16 while those areas free from COVID-19 must stay vigilant against the disease.

The PM also called for measures to prevent infections in industrial zones where a huge number of workers are concentrated.

Only safe places can continue production and business activities while strict lockdown measures should be applied for high-risk areas. Businesses can set up temporary houses for workers in factories to keep production flow following experience from other COVID-19 hit localities like Bắc Giang and Bắc Ninh.

He instructed local authorities to focus preventive measures for hospitals and set up more field hospitals to improve COVID-19 treatment capacity.

Attention should also be made to agricultural production, creating conditions for the circulation of agricultural products and materials, he said, adding that Long An should review its testing capacity immediately and prepare for a worse situation. — VNS