HANOI, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) -- Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has ordered strengthening COVID-19 prevention and control in the country as the Lunar New Year is approaching with several festivals expected to be held, Vietnam News Agency reported on Monday.
Though the pandemic has been basically brought under control, it still develops in a complicated way with new variants emerging including XBB, he said in a dispatch issued on Sunday.
The prime minister ordered the Ministry of Health continue to closely monitor the pandemic situation, coordinate with relevant authorities to proactively respond to developments of the pandemic.
The ministry should also cooperate with local and international experts and organizations to adjust the COVID-19 prevention and control measures when needed, he said.
The ministry must also coordinate with localities to promptly detect and handle outbreaks, prevent the spread in the community as well as prevent and minimize the number of hospitalizations and deaths while accelerating the COVID-19 vaccination program.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is requested to coordinate with competent authorities to instruct services providers to take preventive measures to ensure safety for tourists and local people, and closely monitor the organization of events and festivals during and after the Lunar New Year holiday, he ordered.
As of Monday morning, the country had reported a total of 11,525,763 cases of COVID-19 infections, of which more than 92 percent have recovered and 43,186 have died, according to the country's health ministry.
More than 265.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered, including over 223.2 million shots to people aged 18 and above, said the ministry. Vietnam has recorded COVID-19 infections with Omicron BA.4, BA.5, BA.2.12.1, BA.2.74 and XBB sub-variants. ■
