KIEN GIANG (Vietnam) – The resort island Phu Quoc in southern Vietnam plans to fully vaccinate its residents against Covid-19 by September to welcome the year-end foreign tourism surge, as part of a vaccine passport pilot programme, the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reported.
During a Health Ministry meeting with Kien Giang province’s leaders on Covid-19 prevention and control and the vaccine passport pilot implementation in Phu Quoc island city on Saturday, Deputy Secretary of the Kien Giang Party Committee Mai Van Huynh said the plan is to carry out the first phase of vaccinations next month and the second phase in September, with total time needed of about 16 to 18 weeks.
According to Huynh, it is estimated that 220,000 doses will be needed to fully inoculate the entire population of Phu Quoc.
The budget reserved for the doses would be 29.3 billion dong (RM5.27 million) if the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine is to be used, or 40.3 billion dong if the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is used.
The vaccination plan will be carried out once the vaccines are delivered, he said.
Fully vaccinated Russian tourists, which made up a large part of visitors to Phu Quoc pre-pandemic, will be the first to be welcomed to the island in a "closed tourism model", where they will stay at a resort and movements are restricted.
The model will be reviewed and tourists from other countries with high Covid-19 coverage can then be allowed in as well.
Tourism is the mainstay of Phu Quoc's economy. Last year, tourists to the island dropped 30.6% compared to 2019, with international tourists plunging even further at 76.1%, due to border closures. – Bernama, June 28, 2021
