Authorities in Ho Chi Minh City have proposed to the central government a plan to extend the current school break until the end of March to control the epidemic caused by the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

The municipal People’s Committee has recently announced it is seeking approval from the government and the Ministry of Education and Training regarding its wish to prolong the break to the end of next month.

The break will be applied to students of all public kindergartens, schools, and universities in the southern metropolis.

If approved, this will be the fourth time the school break has been extended since February 3. The break was previously prolonged to the end of February.

According to the administration, the second semester of the 2019-20 school year in the city will run from April to July.

The novel coronavirus, officially named COVID-19 by the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday, has killed 1,669 people and infected nearly 69,200 globally since it first surfaced in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019, according to the South China Morning Post.

Vietnam has so far confirmed 16 cases of the viral infection, including 13 Vietnamese, one Vietnamese American, and two Chinese.

The two Chinese and the Vietnamese American previously tested positive for the virus in Ho Chi Minh City. Both Chinese patients have recovered and been released from the hospital as of Wednesday.

All 63 provinces and cities in Vietnam have decided to postpone reopening schools at all levels until February 29 amid the outbreak, following an urgent request by the Ministry of Education and Training.

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