Vietnam’s central hub Da Nang City has decided to resume most businesses given COVID-19 adaptation, except beauty and recreational activities, after two weeks of no new community coronavirus infections.

Such resumption will be announced in a decision expected to be issued by local authorities on Friday, going in tandem with the central government’s guidance on safe adaptation to the COVID-19 pandemic in ‘new normal conditions,’ or living safely with the coronavirus.

The new loosening, which is scheduled to take effect from Saturday, follows the previous easing having been applied by the city since September 30, from which the city has recorded no new COVID-19 cases.

“From October 16, the city will resume almost all operations, except those of beauty salons, discos, massage parlors, bars, pubs, karaoke shops, and some others,” said Ngo Thi Kim Yen, deputy chairwoman of the Da Nang administration.

Upon reopening, all establishments, including dine-in restaurants, are required to put in place a specific plan for epidemic prevention and control while complying with the Ministry of Health’s relevant regulations.

They must also meet such strict requirements as operating at less than 50 percent of capacity or gathering no more than 40 people, Yen said.

All 56 wards and communes of Da Nang have become 'green zones,' meaning areas with no known community COVID-19 cases, the local administration reported.

One of the localities with the highest vaccination rates in the country, Da Nang has targeted to administer a COVID-19 vaccine dose to all residents aged 18 and older by October 25, according to the Vietnam Government Portal.

The coastal city will strive to complete the coverage of second shots for all people in this age group by the end of this year, the city’s Party chief Nguyen Van Quang said at a conference on Tuesday. 

As one of the first three localities selected by the health ministry for immunization of children aged 12 to 17, Da Nang will effectively organize the assigned vaccination drive according to the ministry’s guidance, Quang said.

The city, whose population is nearly 1.2 million, had administered some 821,000 first shots and more than 121,000 second jabs to its residents aged 18 and older by Thursday, according to the national COVID-19 vaccination portal.

Since the pandemic hit the country in early 2020, Da Nang has documented 5,434 COVID-19 cases, including 104 deaths, the ministry’s data shows.

Nationwide, 853,842 infections have so far been recorded, including 788,005 recoveries and 20,950 fatalities, in 62 out of the country’s 63 cities and provinces, except Cao Bang.

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