Reign of COVID-19 in Vietnam short-lived: US magazine
The reign of COVID-19 in Vietnam has been watery and short-lived, in contrast to other countries like Italy or the United States thanks to an unique approach to testing, US-based Borgen Magazine said in a recent article.
Hanoi(VNA) – The reign of COVID-19 in Vietnam has been watery and short-lived, incontrast to other countries like Italy or the United States thanks to an uniqueapproach to testing, US-based Borgen Magazine said in a recent article.
It is mass-testingwhich has allowed Vietnamese doctors to practice thorough contact tracing andthus effectively control the spread of cases, the magazine noted.
It went on to saydespite the tenure of the novel coronavirus in Vietnam and the world, theVietnamese government remains optimistic about the country’s economy. “TheVietnam Institute for Economic and Policy Research (VEPR) predicts at least a5-percent growth in the country’s GDP by the end of 2020, and citizens havealready resumed normal economic activities.”
“In the midst ofa global pandemic, the spirit of Vietnam seems unworried about fiscal matters.”
This is due toseveral governmental factors, it continued; over the past few decades, thepoverty rate in Vietnam has fallen drastically as services such as healthcarehave become more widely available to citizens.
In 1990, thecountry’s extreme poverty rate was 50 percent. Today, that figure has fallen to2 percent. In 2019, 90 percent of Vietnamese citizens have access to healthinsurance, compared to 59 percent in 2011.
“The governanceof Vietnam in the face of COVID-19 reflects measures that the country has takenagainst poverty,” Borgen Magazine said, outlining the government’s Resolution84 which offers incentives and fee reductions to small, private-ownedbusinesses during the time of the global pandemic.
Under this resolution,there is a 15-percent reduction in the renting price for government-owned land.In addition, the resolution includes a 2-percent interest reduction forgovernment loans to small and medium-sized enterprises. “Such fee reductionsare potentially conducive to more employment and greater amounts of business.”
It alsohighlighted that Vietnam and the EU recently came to an agreement on a freetrade deal which would eliminate 99 percent of tariffs on traded goods betweenthe countries. The World Bank estimates that Vietnam’s GDP and exports may beboosted by 12 percent by 2030, thanks to the deal.
“These optimisticprojections also benefit the citizens of Vietnam — many of whom are farmers orproducers of exported goods,” it said./.
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Illustrative photo. (Source: VNA)
