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Shift from a Zero-COVID strategy to a New-normal strategy for controlling SARS-COV-2 infections in Vietnam
- Do Thi Thanh Toan, Thanh Hai Pham, Khanh Cong Nguyen, Quang Thai Pham, Quoc Doanh Ha, Hoa L. Nguyen, Robert J. Goldberg, Loc Quang Pham, Giang Minh Le, Tu Khac Nguyen, Van Khanh Tran, Van Thanh Ta
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- Journal:
- Epidemiology & Infection / Volume 151 / 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 04 July 2023, e117
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- Article
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- You have access Access
- Open access
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The aim of this study is to analyse the changing patterns in the transmission of COVID-19 in relation to changes in Vietnamese governmental policies, based on epidemiological data and policy actions in a large Vietnamese province, Bac Ninh, in 2021. Data on confirmed cases from January to December 2021 were collected, together with policy documents. There were three distinct periods of the COVID-19 pandemic in Bac Ninh province during 2021. During the first period, referred to as the ‘Zero-COVID’ period (01/04–07/04/2021), there was a low population vaccination rate, with less than 25% of the population receiving its first vaccine dose. Measures implemented during this period focused on domestic movement restrictions, mask mandates, and screening efforts to control the spread of the virus. The subsequent period, referred to as the ‘Transition’ period (07/05–10/22/2021), witnessed a significant increase in population vaccination coverage, with 80% of the population receiving their first vaccine dose. During this period, several days passed without any reported COVID-19 cases in the community. The local government implemented measures to manage domestic actions and reduce the time spent in quarantine, and encouraged home quarantining for the close contacts of cases with COVID-19. Finally, the ‘New-normal’ stage (10/23–12/31/2021), during which the population vaccination coverage with a second vaccine dose increased to 70%, and most of the mandates for the prevention and control of COVID-19 were reduced. In conclusion, this study highlights the importance of governmental policies in managing and controlling the transmission of COVID-19 and provides insights for developing realistic and context-specific strategies in similar settings.
Fifteen - The Resilience of Street Vendors in Surviving the COVID-19 Crisis in Hanoi, Vietnam
- Edited by Rianne van Melik, Pierre Filion, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Brian Doucet, University of Waterloo, Ontario
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- Book:
- Volume 3: Public Space and Mobility
- Published by:
- Bristol University Press
- Published online:
- 25 April 2023
- Print publication:
- 22 July 2021, pp 155-164
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Summary
Introduction
Vietnam is one of the first countries where strict lockdown measures were enacted to mitigate the COVID-19 outbreak (Pollack et al, 2020). While such actions are vital to control the pandemic and save lives, they appear to increase the vulnerability of people working in informal sectors, such as ‘handto-mouth’ fresh food vendors, lotto sellers, hawkers, barbers, motorbike-taxi drivers, and locksmiths. In the megacity of Hanoi, strict social distancing policies have wiped countless poor street vendors out of informal workplaces in public spaces, and closed hundreds of outdoor neighborhood markets and street-front businesses deemed non-essential. These informal workers are unlikely to receive timely financial support from the government and tend to suffer food insecurity due to income loss (Wertheim-Heck, 2020). During this difficult time, they have demonstrated their resilience with an ability to self-sustain and through their various, critical roles supporting the community. Given that informal sectors have usually been considered problematic and treated unequally by the government, the experiences and initiatives of street vendors during the pandemic in Hanoi represent a form of local resilience that deserves a closer look in our work to understand and minimize urban inequality.
This chapter examines the informal livelihoods of street vendors in Hanoi, Vietnam during the COVID-19 crisis, highlighting their initiatives (employed amid public health restrictions) to generate income and provide affordable foods and critical services to others, especially low-income families (see also Volume 1, Chapter Two). We analyze data from local reports and 22 interviews with street vendors conducted in April 2020, to illuminate the survival strategies and adaptive capacity of the urban poor in Hanoi. This sheds light on the role of social capital in enhancing resilience, through community collaboration, sharing, and solidarity. Given social capital has multiple meanings and applications, this chapter refers to the capability of people to work together for mutual objectives through personal connection, communal network, and virtual platforms in societies (Burt, 1992; Ellison et al, 2007). Street vendors’ practices during the lockdown in Hanoi aligns with Fukuyama (1995), who defines social capital as the presence of a certain set of informal values or norms shared among local residents that enable collaboration and bonding; both are significant in building resilience (Agnitsch et al, 2006).