79 pct of European companies in Vietnam willing to pay for staff vaccination

By Dat Nguyen May 27, 2021 | 07:15 pm PT

A medical staff holds a Covid-19 vaccine container in Hanoi on March 8, 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Giang Huy.

Seventy nine percent of European companies in Vietnam are willing to pay for Covid-19 vaccination for their staff, and most want quarantine rules eased to boost economic recovery.

This was revealed by a study the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (EuroCham) released Thursday, which said its members want the government to go further and faster in its vaccination program by "harnessing the power of private enterprise."

They want quarantine regulations eased for investors and experts who have been vaccinated in their home countries.

Some 70 percent of business leaders said their companies face obstacles as a result of current restrictions, and 79 percent said the three-week mandatory quarantine for visitors would lead to fewer specialists coming to Vietnam.

More than four in five members want the government to reduce it to a maximum of one week for vaccinated foreign experts and their families.

Alain Cany, chairman of EuroCham, said Vietnam has been one of the world leaders in preventing the spread of Covid-19 and has set the global standard for the prevention of the disease with swift border closures, strict quarantine measures and targeted local lockdowns.

"However, this is not a permanent solution and it cannot continue for much longer without damaging economic growth."

There is a risk that Vietnam could fall behind unless it implements its own mass vaccination program at scale and pace, he warned.

Vietnam’s roadmap to recovery should harness the contribution of European business, he said.

EuroCham supports the government’s ambitious target to vaccinate 75 percent of the population, which is essential to revive international trade and investment, critical to Vietnam’s economic growth.

The American Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (AmCham Vietnam) has also urged the government to reduce the lengthy quarantine period for vaccinated travelers and allow businesses to help procure vaccines for their employees.

Eighty one percent of AmCham Hanoi members said they would bring more people to Vietnam if the mandatory quarantine period is reduced from 21 days to seven, it said in a statement.

As of Thursday nearly 1.04 million doses of vaccine have been administered, with over 28,500 people being fully vaccinated.