IMF praises Vietnam’s COVID-19 prevention method
(VOVWORLD) - Vietnam has shown that there is indeed an effective way to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, even in the absence of a vaccine that can allow an economy to recover, according to Helge Berger, Assistant Director of the Asia and Pacific Department at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
 People are tested for coronavirus. (File photo: VNA) |
In a post in The Print, an Indian online newspaper, the IMF official described local restrictions and rapid testing and tracing as some of the key measures adopted in Vietnam in response to the outbreak. He stressed that Vietnam’s experience in prevention can be replicated in low-income countries facing pressure in acquiring sufficient doses of vaccine.
Meanwhile, Radio France Internationale (RFI), a French public radio service, said that Vietnam is one of only a few Asian countries to effectively control the pandemic. Vietnam has considerable experience in disease prevention and strict management of arrivals from overseas. Vietnam has closed border with China early since the pandemic broke out. Tracing the close contacts of COVID-19 patients contributed greatly to its success, with very few cases of community transmission being recorded.
As the pandemic was brought under control quickly and social distancing measures were only in place for three months, Vietnam’s economy escaped recession in 2020 and was one of the few to post growth, at 2.9 percent, RFI said.