Category: Covid 19 Southeast Asia

The Vietnam News Agency Express Online reported that the Vietnamese government issued Government Resolution No. 1 on the main tasks and measures to achieve the socio-economic development plan and the state budget for 2021. The resolution specifies that it will continue to achieve the dual goals of effective prevention and control of the New Coronary Pneumonia epidemic and restoration of socio-economic development under the new normal. The economic targets set by the government for 2021 are: GDP growth of about 6.5%, GDP per capita of about US$3,700, annual growth rate of the consumer price index (CPI) of about 4%, contribution of total factor productivity (TFP) to growth of about 45-47%, and social labor productivity growth of about 4.8%. The resolution stresses that Vietnam will continue to properly control the entry of people to prevent the import of the epidemic from outside and consider reopening international commercial routes when conditions permit. Accelerate vaccine development and international cooperation to provide solutions for early access to vaccines for the population.

Meanwhile, the government continues to provide support in the areas of credit, finance, and tax reduction to help people and businesses overcome difficulties and resume production in the post-epidemic period. In addition to improving the legal system, relevant departments will strictly control the promulgation of documents related to investment conditions, operations, administrative procedures, and special inspections to ensure an open and favorable investment and business environment for enterprises. Promote the development of financial, securities and insurance markets and strengthen the management of the corporate bond market. The government requires the National Bank to cooperate with fiscal and other policies for active and flexible regulation to ensure the safety of the system, stabilize the macroeconomy, and provide support for the resumption of economic growth. The management of prices of electricity, refined oil products and other important goods and services will be made open and transparent to ensure a balance between supply and demand of basic commodities and stabilize market prices. The need to diversify import and export markets and avoid over-reliance on a single market was emphasized. Effective implementation of signed free trade agreements and continued negotiation of new FTAs. Accelerate economic restructuring in sectors such as agriculture, transportation services, and credit institutions. Continue to shrink wholly state-owned enterprise operations, promote demutualization and asset divestment of state-owned capital, and firmly focus on loss-making and poorly performing projects.

While many countries have endured extremely high rates of infection and mortality from the new coronavirus, Vietnam, with a population of 96 million, has fewer than 1,500 confirmed cases and only 35 deaths. Massive quarantines, extensive contact tracing and strict travel controls kept Vietnam's factories largely operational and people back to work quickly.

On January 1, local time, Harry Roque, spokesman of the Philippine Presidency, said that based on the joint recommendation of the Philippine Department of Health and the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Philippine Presidency has decided to restrict the entry of travelers from the United States from the early hours of January 3, 2021 until January 15 to prevent the entry of the mutated New Coronavirus into the Philippines. Also, foreign travelers will be barred from entry if they have visited the United States within the last 14 days prior to their arrival in the Philippines.

In addition, foreign travelers from the U.S. or who have visited the U.S. within the past 14 days may enter the Philippines if they arrived before January 3. Upon entry, travelers are subject to strict vaccination rules and must undergo a mandatory 14-day quarantine at a quarantine facility designated by the Philippine government, even if they test negative for New Coronavirus. Filipino citizens are not affected by this restriction and may enter the Philippines, but must also undergo a 14-day mandatory quarantine.

The Philippine Presidency has announced that the government has decided to extend the national state of disaster already in place until September 12, 2021, in light of the ongoing new crown epidemic in the country. Unless a new decree cancels or continues to extend this state earlier.

In view of the seriousness of the Newcastle Pneumonia epidemic in the country, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin announced the implementation of the MCO 2.0 in five states, namely Sabah, Selangor, Penang, Johor, Malacca and three Federal Territories (Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan) for a period of two weeks from January 13 to January 26. He pointed out that the government will implement the control orders by state. Apart from the above states, Pahang, Perak, Negeri Sembilan, Kedah, Terengganu and Kelantan will implement the Conditional Control Orders (CMCO).

As for Perlis and Sarawak, the RMCOs will continue to be implemented. The Prime Minister said it was necessary for the government to implement stricter CMCOs to control the spread of the epidemic in the country. Speaking on air today, Muhyiddin said that in order to reduce the spread of the disease, all social events involving groups of people, such as weddings, conferences, religious processions, including the Thaipusam Festival, Chinese New Year, conferences, seminars, courses and sporting events, are banned in all states where RMCOs are in place. National interstate ban During this period, cross-county travel is banned in all states, and in those states where a control order is in force, cross-county travel is also prohibited. From 12.00am on the 13th of this month, all movements in the states under the decree will be restricted to a 10km radius. Anyone who breaches these rules will be issued a RM1,000 fine. As for the economic sector, the government has identified only five basic key sectors as being allowed to operate, including factories and manufacturing, construction, services, trade and distribution, and plantation and primary industries. All non-critical areas are compulsory home work.

• On 12 October, the Malaysian National Security Council decided to impose "conditional movement control orders" in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya from 14 to 27 October. The Malaysian government has decided to extend the current movement control measures in place in Kuala Lumpur to most parts of the country in view of the continued spread of the New Guinea epidemic. Since mid-October, the Malaysian government has imposed conditional movement control orders in Sabah, Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, where the epidemic is deteriorating rapidly, restricting people from travelling across the region, closing schools and other places, and banning many social activities, but allowing most economic activities to continue as normal.
• The government has decided to implement a conditional action control order for Kedah, Malacca and other states during the period from November 9 to December 6.The Malaysian Defence Minister said the Conditional Movement Control Order would help the health authorities to implement targeted screening measures and reduce the movement of people in order to contain the spread of the disease. He also noted that the Conditional Movement Control Order, which was scheduled to end on November 9 in Kuala Lumpur and other places, will be extended until December 6, meaning that most of Malaysia will be under movement control.
•  On 9 November, a four-week conditional movement control order was introduced in seven Malaysian states, including Kedah and Malacca, until 6 December. According to reports, the Malaysian government said that in view of the continued spread of the new crown epidemic, it has decided to extend the implementation of the movement control currently in force in the capital city of Kuala Lumpur and other places to most parts of the country. Notes on the latest announced control order (SOP).
  : Cross-continental and cross-county travel will no longer be prohibited; except in areas where Enhanced Movement Control Orders (EMCOs) are being implemented.
  : The restriction of two persons per vehicle will be removed and travel will now be allowed according to the number of persons the vehicle can accommodate.
  : Persons travelling to Sabah must obtain a Covid-19 swab test three days prior to travel and only those who test negative will be allowed to enter the country. The CMCO for Sabah has also been extended until 20 December.
  : From 7 December, there will be no more roadblocks and road closures, but social distance measures will be more strictly enforced.
• Malaysia extends movement control measures against epidemic in Kuala Lumpur and other areas KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 5 -- Malaysian Defence Minister Ismail Sabri bin Yaakob, who is in charge of coordinating measures to control the epidemic, said at a press conference on Dec 5 that the existing operational control measures in the capital Kuala Lumpur and some areas will be extended until Dec 20 to control the spread of the new crown epidemic. The Minister said that according to the health department's health risk assessment, the number of cases in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor and Sabah is still increasing rapidly, so the government decided to extend the conditional movement control order, which was scheduled to expire on December 6 in Kuala Lumpur, most of Selangor and Sabah, until December 20. According to the Ministry of Health on the 5th, the country has seen 1123 new confirmed cases in the past 24 hours, with a cumulative total of 71,359 cases; 1,143 new cured cases, with a cumulative total of 60,204 cases; and 4 new deaths, with a cumulative total of 380 deaths. Most of the new confirmed cases are from Kuala Lumpur, Sabah and Selangor. According to the health department's recommendation, the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) will no longer be in force in the rest of the country from December 7, except for Kuala Lumpur, Sabah, Selangor and a few other areas, and the epidemic checkpoints at the borders of the relevant states will also be removed on the 7th, allowing people to travel across the states. Since mid-October, the Malaysian government has been implementing conditional movement control orders in Sabah, Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, where the epidemic is deteriorating rapidly, with specific measures such as restricting cross-regional travel and closing schools, but allowing most economic activities to continue as normal. As the outbreak spread, the Conditional Movement Control Order was extended to most parts of the country in early November.

• The Philippine Department of Health informed on the 11th that as of 16:00 local time on the 11th, the country had 1672 new confirmed cases of new crowns in 24 hours, with a cumulative total of 40,416 confirmed cases; 49 new deaths, with a cumulative total of 7710 deaths. Philippine Health Department Undersecretary Vergilay said the epidemic continues to moderate overall, but is still spreading rapidly in individual provinces and cities in the centre and south.
• The epidemic in the Philippines peaked in August this year and has since shown signs of easing, with the average number of new cases per day decreasing significantly. According to the Ministry of Health, the average daily number of new cases in the Philippines is about 1,900 since November, a further downward trend compared to the average of about 4,100 new cases in August, 3,000 in September and 2,200 in October. The rate of positive tests for the new coronavirus has also continued to decline, and since November, the rate of positive tests for the virus in the Philippines has remained at around 6%, compared to around 13% in mid-August. A total of 5.11 million samples have been tested to date, with an average positive rate of 9.4%.
• Philippine Health Secretary Francisco Ducay said on 9 September that the number of new cases per day has been declining for some time, an encouraging trend that is also attributable to the government's improved virus detection capacity and the construction of a large number of isolation facilities over several months, and that the government hopes the easing trend will continue. He urged the Filipino people to continue to wear masks, maintain social distance and avoid gathering, and to overcome complacency so that efforts to combat the epidemic are not undone. According to the World Health Organisation, the Philippines has the second highest cumulative number of confirmed new cases and deaths in Southeast Asia.

10 December 2020 Vietnam's major cities welcome Christmas without forgetting to guard against epidemics and safety Even though Christmas is still 2 weeks away, we can now walk around many streets in the capital Hanoi and feel the strong atmosphere of the birth festival. It is worth mentioning that the people are celebrating the Christmas season while at the same time keeping up with the epidemic prevention rules and making every effort to ensure a safe festive season. As the Newcastle Pneumonia epidemic has been evolving in Ho Chi Minh City in recent times, residents are aware of the epidemic when they go out. People are wearing masks, washing their hands with hand sanitiser, keeping a safe distance between people and avoiding crowded activities in public places such as tourist attractions, shopping areas and shops. Although the outbreak of Newcastle Pneumonia remains complex and unpredictable, Ho Chi Minh City residents still feel a deep sense of a warm and peaceful Christmas approaching.

• According to the Viet Nam Government portal, on 21 March, due to the seriousness of the neo-crowned pneumonia epidemic, the Government of Viet Nam has decided to suspend the entry of foreigners from 22 March onwards, requiring declaration in order to be allowed to enter the country in special cases and isolation after entry.
• From 0000 hours on 22 March, all foreigners are banned from entering the country, which does not apply to people entering Viet Nam for "diplomatic" or "official" purposes or those entering under special circumstances (e.g. foreign guests attending, serving important foreign activities; experts. enterprise managers and highly skilled labourers); visa-free entry certificates issued to foreigners of Vietnamese origin or their family members are temporarily invalid. Persons entering Viet Nam are subject to health inspection procedures and centralized quarantine, and persons entering for diplomatic and official purposes and in special circumstances (foreign guests attending, serving important foreign activities; experts, business managers and highly skilled labourers) are quarantined at their places of residence in accordance with regulations.
• From April 1, Vietnam-Laos and Vietnam-Cambodia border crossings and passages are temporarily closed; international crossings allow entry of people for diplomatic and official purposes and other special circumstances.
• On April 9, the news called for continued control of border areas and restrictions on foreigners and out-of-town Vietnamese entering Vietnam (except in special circumstances); suspension of operation of international flights (except those approved by the Government's Prime Minister for civil protection missions); maximum restrictions on domestic flights; and continued reminding out-of-town Vietnamese citizens not to return to the country until April 15. Quarantine of all arrivals, etc.
• In accordance with the requirements of the National Steering Committee on Prevention and Control of the New Coronary Pneumonia Epidemic in Vietnam, foreign investors, experts, business managers, and highly skilled workers are required to complete real-time fluorescence technology (RT-PCR) nucleic acid testing within three to seven days prior to entering the country.
  The tests must be performed at a government-approved testing facility or a WHO-system testing facility. The above requirements do not apply to persons who entered the country before August 5, 2020.