Official Dispatch 13417/UBND-VP Vung Tau 2021 continuing COVID-19 prevention and control measures

To:

- Heads of Departments, sectors and branches;

- Chairpersons of People's Committees, Steering Committees and Command Centers for COVID-19 Prevention and Control of districts, towns and cities.

Since July 19, 2021, Ba Ria - Vung Tau City has applied social distancing measures in line with the Prime Minister’s Directive No. 16/CT-TTg dated March 31, 2020 (hereinafter referred to as the Directive 16/CT-TTg) on the spirit of “every citizens must stay where they are, not leave the places of residence”. With the synchronous, drastic, active, and effective implementation of the entire political system, and the responsible participation of the enterprise community, the consensus, and support of the people, the COVID-19 pandemic has been basically put under control in the province is put under control. However, in some neighboring provinces and cities, the pandemic still remains complicated, posing a risk of spreading.

In order to ensure the people's health, safely maintain the results of pandemic prevention and control, and reopen a number of activities in the province according to the motto of safety, step by step, with a specific roadmap, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee hereby decides as follows:

To apply the social distancing measures in line with the Prime Minister’s Directive No. 15/CT-TTg dated March 27, 2020 (hereinafter referred to as the Directive 15/CT-TTg) in the province (except for Con Dao district and other areas currently placed under lockdown order) from 00:00 on September 23, 2021 until new notices are issued. To be specific:

1. The following activities shall continue to be suspended:

- Events combining eating and singing; night markets, wedding restaurants; buffet-style restaurants.

- Healthcare establishments, beauty salons, physical therapy, massage, spa, sauna centers; amusement and entertainment areas; music, dramatic theaters; cinemas; walking streets; karaoke in any form, sing together; discos, bars, pubs, beer clubs; Internet and game centers.

• Indoor and outdoor sports establishments (golf, tennis, badminton, table tennis, football, gym, fitness, billiards, yoga, etc.); sports centers and sports training areas, public fitness areas.
• Religious and belief activities (online activities are encouraged).
• Beach activities.
• Resorts.

2. The following activities are permitted to be conducted:

• Meetings and events with not more than 10 participants in one room (with an area of at least 40 m²) are allowed to hold. Meetings or events with more than 10 participants must be permitted by leaders of the provincial party committee and Provincial People's Committee (in case of necessity); agencies, organizations and individuals must ensure safety for pandemic prevention and control. It is not allowed to gather more than 05 people outside of offices, schools, and hospitals; the minimum distance of 02 meters in public places must be maintained.
• To reduce 50% of employees directly working at agencies and offices; promote online working; heads of agencies and units must develop plans to divide working groups to minimize infection.
• Weddings and funerals must be organized in a simple manner according to 5K regulations with 10 participants maximum

3. Regarding production and business activities:

• Production and business establishments and enterprises shall continue to organize their operations according to the following plans:

+ For a production establishment employing 100% of workers that are currently living in one district, town or cities, such workers are allowed to use their personal vehicles to travel from their places of residence to the workplace (having a written certification issued by the employer).

+ For a production establishment employing workers from different districts, towns and cities that implements the “three-on-the -spot” plan for more than 14 days, only workers who are living in the district, town or city where the establishment is located may use their personal vehicles to travel from their places of residence to the workplace (having a written certification issued by the employer).

• Employers must strictly comply with pandemic prevention and control measures, conduct COVID-19 test for their workers every 5 days (test results shall be sent via the Internet to the infrastructure economics department or economics department of the district-level People's Committee for inspection and supervision of the pandemic prevention and control).
• Enterprises and individuals are required to register the routine of every worker, which presents the road from the place of residence to the workplace and vice versa as certified by the People's Committee of commune, ward or township. Workers must commit to move from his/her place of residence to the workplace according to the registered routine (without stopping or parking along the road).  Enterprises and workers must take full responsibility for complying with their road and routine.
• Enterprises must develop plans on COVID-19 prevention and control according to Appendix 1 and send them to the following units for consideration and approval within 03 days:

+ The Management Board of Industrial Parks, via email: (for enterprises inside the industrial parks);

+ The provincial Department of Industry and Trade, via email: (for enterprises industrial clusters);

+ The provincial Department of Transport, via email: [email protected] (for enterprises seaports, inland waterway ports under the management);

+ People’s Committees of districts, towns and cities (for production and business establishments located outside industrial parks, industrial clusters, seaports - inland waterway ports managed by the district-level authorities), via email: [email protected] (in which abc refers to the abbreviated name of the district, town or city. For example: email address of the People’s Committee of Vung Tau City is [email protected]).

4. Regarding agriculture, forestry and fishery activities:

• Workers must commit to travel on one road from the place of residence to the production location and implement pandemic prevention and control measures as prescribed (5K). Those who work outside the districts, towns or cities, the People’s Committees of districts where they are living shall reach an agreement with the People’s Committees of districts where they work.
• Vehicles used to transport goods, the connection and consumption of agricultural products are allowed to operate but must comply with pandemic prevention and control regulations.
• For fishing and logistic service: Fish harbors, fishing vessels and fishermen that satisfy pandemic prevention and control conditions as prescribed may resume their operation.

5. Regarding trading, service and tourism activities:

a) Establishments are allowed to resume operations if fully satisfying regulations on pandemic prevention and control

• Supermarkets, shopping malls, retail chains must assess the safety in pandemic prevention and control before resuming their operations under the Decision No. 2225/QD-BCDQG dated May 28, 2020, of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, on promulgating the “Guidance on prevention, control and assessment of the risk of cOVID-19 infection at shopping malls and supermarkets” (according to guidelines provided in Appendix 2).

- Traditional markets satisfying pandemic prevention and control conditions provided in the Decision No. 238A/QD-BCD dated August 06, 2021 of the provincial Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, promulgating the guidance on assessment of the safety in COVID-19 prevention and control at markets in the province, and the Official Dispatch No. 4728BCT-TTTN dated August, may resume operation, provided that only essential goods are sold in such markets; localities shall have specific plans for pandemic prevention and control, such as arranging shopping dates and times, distributing shopping  of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, guiding the temporary location and reopening of markets, may resume operation provided that, only essential goods are sold in such markets. The sources of goods provisions for small traders shall be strictly controlled at the goods gathering points by periodical testing as prescribed for small traders; the number of citizens entering markets shall be controlled, ensuring COVID-19 prevention and control requirements. People’s Committees of districts, communes and cities shall specify shopping times and methods according to actual situation of each area. - Citizens of each residential group, hamlet or village shall have a shopping ticket with a different time frame (according to Appendices from 3.1 thru 3.9).

• Small establishments trading essential goods must assess the safety in COVID-19 prevention and control before resuming their operation according to guidelines provided in Appendices 4.1 and 4.2.
• Restaurants, food and beverage establishments may operate online without directly selling food for customers; delivery persons who are staff of delivery service providers using technology application must take pandemic prevention and control measures. Restaurants appraised as eligibility shall have a “green” or “safe” business household signboard. People’s Committees of districts, towns and cities are assigned to organize the implementation; business establishments must assess the safety in pandemic prevention and control before resuming their operations according to Appendices 5.1, 5.2 and 5.3.

b) For tourism

To agree to pilot self-contained hotels with plans to ensure safety in pandemic prevention and control, including Melia Ho Tram, Ho Tram Strip, Binh Chau hot spring and Con Dao Six Senses, according to guidelines provided in Appendix 6.

6. Regarding transport activities

• To continue to strictly comply with directions of the provincial People’s Committee in the Official Dispatch No. 1325/UBND-VP dated August 28, 2021, and the Official Dispatch No. 11994/UBND-VP dated September 03, 2021 and other documents of the provincial People’s Committee. To strictly control drivers and persons accompanying vehicles transporting essential goods (including those who sit inside the vehicles) and seriously implement regulations on pandemic prevention and control according to directions of central and provincial authorities.
• To increase the effectiveness of COVID-19 checkpoints at highways, trails, crossings and borders between Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province and other provinces and cities; to continue to strictly control people and vehicles entering and leaving localities.
• To re-arrange COVID-19 checkpoints in scientific manner, in consistent with other localities; to conduct rapid test according to regulations.

7. Regarding investment in construction:

• Works may continue to be built (workers and employees shall comply with Point 3 of this Official Dispatch).
• Separate houses are permitted to be built but must have fences around the construction sites (with 10 workers maximum); workers employed to build such houses must be citizens currently living in one district, town or city.
• Project owners and units organizing the construction must satisfy COVID-19 prevention and control conditions at construction sites according to regulations provided in Appendix 7.

8. Regarding Con Dao district:

To comply with pandemic prevention and control measures provided in the Prime Minister’s Directive No. 19/CT-TTg dated April 24, 2020, from 00:00 on September 23, 2021 until new notices are issued. No means of transporting passengers in and out of Con Dao are allowed; citizens must not be subjective, and should strictly implement 5K rules. The freight transport route by waterway to Con Dao is allowed to operate but the number of people working on the ship must be strictly controlled. Before leaving the ship to disembark, everyone must perform medical quarantine, and medical isolation as prescribed while waiting for disembarking to ensure safety for pandemic prevention and control.

9. Citizens are required to:

Comply with 5K, make health declaration on a daily basis on the website: www.tokhaiyte.vn or Ncovi, Bluezone, VNeID application. Promptly contact local authorities, health establishments when the symptoms of fever, cough, shortness of breath, loss of taste, etc. appears.

- Actively participate in the pandemic prevention and control work at grassroots, work together with frontline workers to protect and expand the “green zones”; Propagate and persuade their relatives, families and other people to effectively implement regulations on pandemic prevention and control to reverse the pandemic.

- Strictly comply with social distancing measures. Restrict going out, only leave home in case of necessity.

- Regularly clean the house to keep it airy and healthy.

- Protect their health, the health of their family, the community and society.

10. Enterprises, production and business establishments are allowed to operate only when they have a pandemic prevention and control plan approved by a competent agency according to regulations. They shall take responsibility before the law for any acts of violation that cause the spread of the pandemic.

11. Organization of implementation:

11.1. Steering Committees, People's Committees, Command Centers for Covid-19 Prevention and Control of districts, towns and cities shall

- Direct communes, wards and townships to strengthen the control over citizens’ movement in the localities.

- Avoid the spread of the pandemic. Each commune, ward or township must be a "fortress”, every citizen must be a "soldier” - a subject in pandemic prevention and control. The citizens’ participation in, and compliance with regulations on, pandemic prevention and control play the decisive role in the pandemic prevention and control.

- Direct the implementation of tasks and solutions on pandemic prevention and control to neighborhoods, villages, hamlets and citizens so that they fully grasp and effectively implement them.

- Review in detail citizens facing difficulties at the blockade areas to promptly meet citizens’ needs, avoiding omission and unfairness, and promptly implement regimes, policies, and social security for the citizens, avoid citizens’ lack of food and foodstuffs.

- Strengthen inspection and patrol to grasp the situation, direct, detect and handle promptly violations

- Mobilize the Fatherland Front and unions to implement the propaganda in order that citizens calm down, agree on and support social distancing, coordinate with the executive committees and local authorities in implementing; and strictly comply with, social distancing regulations.

11.2. Provincial Department of Health shall

- Organize the fastest vaccination according to the vaccine amount allocated by the Government.

- Continue to direct testing and screening in areas at very high risk and high risk to control the risk of pandemic spread.

- Follow up the pandemic situation of neighboring provinces and localities to timely forecast, provide advice and adjust measures, ensure the proactive and effective control of the pandemic in the province.

- Improve the capacity of health establishments at all levels in terms of facilities, equipment and human resources, at the same time effectively deploy mobile health stations to respond to the works of pandemic prevention and control, and treatment of patients with confirmed Covid-19.

11.3. Provincial Public Security shall

- Continue to maintain the existing entry/exit checkpoints; coordinate with relevant agencies, units and localities to strictly implement the direction of the Prime Minister and the guidance of ministries and sectors on creating favorable conditions for transportation and circulation of goods, citizens’ movement, ensuring the consistency in the implementation and safety in pandemic prevention and control; do not define additional procedures to obstruct the circulation of goods, especially for essential goods serving citizens’ lives and production; avoid traffic jams; strengthen propaganda, guidance and prepare traffic separation schemes in advance, create favorable conditions for organizations and individuals to comply with regulations on Covid-19 pandemic prevention and control.

- Direct public security forces of districts, towns, cities and communes, wards, townships to strictly control citizens’ movement; coordinate with other functional forces to control the observance of pandemic prevention and control measures in the locality.

- Strengthen the direction of ensuring the security and order, crime prevention and combat in the province.

11.4. Provincial Department of Industry and Trade shall

- Organize the guidance of, inspect and supervise the compliance with, regulations on pandemic prevention and control, criteria of safety in industrial production and business activities, at distribution systems (essential food business establishments, spontaneous markets, wholesale markets) that are allowed to operate.

- Coordinate with the provincial Department of Transport and the provincial Public Security in ensuring smooth transportation and circulation of goods; the supply of goods for the citizens’ needs in the locality; deploy solutions to stimulate product consumption, cooperate with provinces to ensure the supply of goods in the locality.

11.5. Provincial Department of Transport shall

- Reorganize transportation activities; coordinate with the provincial Department of Industry and Trade to ensure the smooth transportation and circulation of goods.

- Coordinate with the provincial Public Security in implementing the control at entry/exit checkpoints.

- Assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the People's Committees of districts, towns and cities in, developing and reaching an agreement about a plan to reorganize the traffic in Ba Ria - Vung Tau province to ensure Covid-19 pandemic prevention and control.

11.6. Provincial Department of Tourism shall

Assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the provincial Department of Health, the provincial Public Security, the provincial Military Command, the People's Committee of Xuyen Moc district, in inspecting the facilities and plan for pandemic prevention and control of Melia Ho Tram, Ho Tram Strip, Binh Chau Hot Springs to confirm their eligibility for operation before allowing their resumption of operation.

11.7. People's Committee of Con Dao district

- The Steering Committee, People's Committee and Command Center for Covid-19 Prevention and Control of Con Dao district shall strengthen pandemic prevention and control work in the locality under the "four-on-the-spot” motto, promptly grasp the situation, handle arising problems, report any issues beyond their authority to the provincial People's Committee; focus on ensuring social security, order and security; and prepare the necessary conditions to organize activities when returning to the “new normal”.

- Check Six Senses Con Dao’s facilities and plan for pandemic prevention and control and submit it to the provincial People's Committee before the implementation.

11.8. Provincial Departments and sectors of Construction, Agriculture and Rural Development, Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, Finance, Provincial Department of Education and Training, Information and Communications, the Management Board of Industrial Parks, within their functions and tasks as assigned and the scope of their management of sectors and fields, shall take responsibilities for implementing this Official Dispatch.

The provincial People's Committee requests relevant agencies, units and localities to strictly organize the implementation of this Official Dispatch./.

(This Official Dispatch replaces the Official Dispatch No. 12538/UBND-VP dated September 12, 2021 of the provincial People's Committee).

For the Chairman

The Deputy Chairman

Tran Van Tuan