Authorities in Hanoi have allowed residents to play sports and participate in physical activities in public from Tuesday, as long as these activities do not lead to gatherings of more than ten people.

Hanoi deputy chairman Chu Xuan Dung issued an urgent document to announce new COVID-19 prevention and control regulations on Monday afternoon.

Accordingly, the municipal People’s Committee granted permission to people to exercise outdoors and play sports in public starting Tuesday, with the number of participants in each activity limited to ten.

Shopping malls can resume operation, with food joints and beverage stores only providing takeout service.

Clothing, fashion, and cosmetics stores are also allowed to reopen.

Businesses, service establishments, and people must strictly comply with the 5K recommendations, mandatory usage of quick response codes, and other pandemic prevention and control measures required by the Ministry of Health and the city’s authorities.

The Hanoi People’s Committee also requested the municipal Department of Health to coordinate with other units to continue medical screening, especially conducting COVID-19 tests at medical isolation areas and places at very high and high risk of infection every two to three days.

In addition, the committee urged the health department to review and vaccinate people who have yet to be administered with COVID-19 vaccine doses.

Hanoi has recorded 4,202 local COVID-19 cases since a new wave of infections began in Vietnam on April 27 and has applied various social distancing levels since early July, with the latest being the prime minister’s Directive No. 15.

The loosened pandemic prevention regulations on Monday came as Hanoi had recorded no new local infections for 48 hours on Saturday and Sunday last week.

The city’s health workers have administered the first doses to over 5.8 million people, according to the national COVID-19 vaccination portal.

More than one million people in the city have been fully inoculated.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!