Nearly 200 Vietnamese citizens stranded in the Philippines due to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic are waiting for a charter flight home to be approved as the country has banned all international flights.

They previously went to Cebu Province in the central Philippines as part of a ‘packaged’ English course, which covers tuition, accommodation, and meals for learners.

As the COVID-19 epidemic has become more intense in the Southeast Asian country, local English schools have been shuttered for over a week, while dormitories are expected to close in the near future.

The Philippines had confirmed 380 cases infected with the virus by Sunday afternoon, according to the Filipino Department of Health.

Vietnamese enrollees in English courses in Cebu have no choice but to return to their home country, but they are now facing another obstacle as Filipino authorities have already banned all international flights.

They have discussed the matter with the Embassy of Vietnam in the Philippines and the company that manages the English courses, and decided to charter a flight by national carrier Vietnam Airlines to fly home.

The charter flight reportedly costs VND13 million (US$555) per passenger.

Vietnam Airlines is now waiting for a license granted by Filipino authorities in order for the flight to take off.

The Embassy of Vietnam in the Philippines has sent a document to the Filipino Department of Foreign Affairs requesting issuance of the license in a prompt manner.

The novel coronavirus, which first emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019, has infected over 337,000 and killed more than 14,600 globally as of Monday morning, according to Ministry of Health statistics.

Vietnam has confirmed 118 COVID-19 cases, with 17 having already discharged from hospitals.

No death from the disease has been reported in the country so far.

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