The Prime Minister issued Directive 44/CT-TTg on strengthening measures to ensure a safe, economical and happy Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday.

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No price fever or lack of goods on Tet:
Under the directive, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) is tasked with cooperating with local provinces / cities in domestic consumption, while ensuring sufficient supplies of basic necessities to meet local demands during the final month of the year and in the Lunar New Year period. Moreover, MoIT must coordinate with localities to implement market stabilization programs, supply-demand matching activities, the program bringing Vietnamese goods to rural areas, bringing goods in rural areas to cities, boosting the consumption of agricultural products for farmers; early and adequate supply of goods to stabilize the market for localities, especially in remote and deep-lying areas, areas damaged by storms, floods and landslides over the past time; strengthen activities to implement the campaign "Vietnamese give priority to using Vietnamese goods".
It is necessary to ensure a sufficient reserve of petroleum for the market during the final month of the year and in the Lunar New Year period; supply electricity regularly, continuously and safely; strengthen communication and propaganda activities on use of electricity towards safe, economical and effective.
In additions, the market inspection and control should be strengthened without affecting the production and business activities of enterprises and people. The MoIT should give priority in protecting customer’s rights and timely identify market violations, especially regarding the sale of smuggled, fake, banned or low-quality products. Specially, basic necessaties serving for New Year 2021 and Lunar New Year need to be paid attention.
MoIT should coordinate with functional forces to strictly control cross-border import of basic necessaties; the trading of prohibited goods, smuggled goods, origin fraud; transportation and trading of cattle, poultry, and products from cattle and poultry do not meet the requirements of veterinary hygiene and food safety, and meet the requirements of disease control.
No lack of food on Tet:
The Ministry of Finance (MoF) is responsible for monitoring the market prices, particularly basic necessities under the price stabilization program; to promptly direct and take measures to strictly handle violations of the law on prices; strictly control state budget revenues and expenditures, public debts and public assets; direct tax agencies, customs and state treasuries to allocate sufficient resources to promptly handle problems; to direct the State Reserve General Department to promptly supply rice from the national reserve in accordance with regulations, prevent people from suffering from the shortage of food during the Lunar New Year and the pre-grain period.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) will actively monitor weather and natural disasters; have plans for prevention and control of natural disasters and epidemics of plants and animals, ensuring production stability, especially prevention and control of plants and animals diseases in localities suffered from natural disasters, storms and floods; promptly respond to extreme cold, damaging cold, drought, saltwater intrusion, forest fires; provide timely support to plant varieties, domestic animals, vaccines, antiseptic chemicals and plant protection drugs according to local regulations to quickly restore production, ensure environmental sanitation and stabilize for the people.
 Moreover, MARD will review and have a specific plan to ensure the balance of supply - demand activities, especially pork and pork products before, during and after Tet, to prevent shortage of goods and increase of price; set up scenarios in stabilizing prices and balance supply – demand of agricultural products and basic necessities in the final month of 2020 and early 2021; coordinate with functional agencies to tightly control the supply, trading activities, livestock transport, and related products, especially at border gates, trails, opening paths in border areas; closely monitor the production situation and disease developments in order to promptly come up with a plan to ensure supply and stabilize the market, especially to prevent the outbreak of African swine fever.
Prevention and control of epidemics, especially COVID-19 pandemic:
The Ministry of Health shall take responsibility for boosting the prevention and control of epidemics, especially the COVID-19 pandemic and other diseases in danger of outbreaks in the winter – spring; strictly comply with the directions and regulations in epidemic prevention and control, ensure safety of festival activities, events with a large number of people, make plans for epidemic prevention and control, implement “4-on-spot” when an epidemic occurs; proactively monitor and detect pathogens and promptly handle emerging epidemic outbreaks, prevent disease outbreaks and spread; update treatment regimens, preparation of drugs, medical supplies and equipment to treat COVID-19 infected patients; strictly comply with the process of medical control and quarantine; review and check the arrivals' certificate confirming their negative test results for SARS-CoV-2.
Strengthen inspection and examination to ensure food safety before, during and after Tet; coordinate to organize the interdisciplinary delegations, especially food production and trading establishments; promptly detect and strictly handle violations, publicize the results on the mass media; collect and check samples of imported foods to determine and assess the risk of COVID-19 infection.
Tổ chức tốt công tác khám chữa bệnh, chỉ đạo các bệnh viện, cơ sở y tế ứng trực 24/24 giờ; dự trữ đủ cơ số thuốc, máu, dịch truyền, vật tư, trang thiết bị y tế, hóa chất, phương tiện đáp ứng nhu cầu khám chữa bệnh, đặc biệt kịp thời xử lý các trường hợp cấp cứu tai nạn giao thông, thương tích, ngộ độc... Duy trì tổ chức, thực hiện nghiêm các quy trình về sàng lọc, phân loại, phân luồng; đảm bảo công tác kiểm soát nhiễm khuẩn trong bệnh viện, tuyệt đối không để lây nhiễm chéo trong bệnh viện; tiếp tục mở rộng xét nghiệm cho các đối tượng nghi ngờ; tăng cường kiểm tra, giám sát việc thực hiện phòng, chống COVID-19 trong bệnh viện.
It should be paid attention to well implementing the medical examination and treatment, direct hospitals and medical establishments to be on duty for 24 hours a day; to reserve sufficient quantities of drugs, blood, infusion fluids, medical supplies, equipment, chemicals and means to meet the medical examination and treatment needs, especially to promptly handle traffic accident emergencies, injury, poisoning ... Maintain organization, implementation of screening, classifyiny to ensure infection control in the hospital, absolutely prevent cross-contamination in the hospital; continue to expand testing for suspect subjects; strengthen inspection and supervision of the implementation of COVID-19 prevention and control in hospitals.
All social beneficiaries will be received gifts before Tet:
The Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) focused on reviewing and grasping policy beneficiaries, people in difficult circumstances (people who have rendered meritorious services to the revolution, the poor, the elderly, the disabled, children with special circumstances, people in areas affected by natural disasters, storms, floods, landslides, people facing difficulties, people seriously affected by COVID-19 epidemic, remote areas, border, island, ethnic minority areas, mountainous areas ...) to be timle supported and cared. All social beneficiaries must be eunsured to recieve gifts before Tet.
Besides that, MoLISA will monitor the labor force in industrial zones, economic zones, especially localities with a large number of labor, creating favorable conditions for employees to take Tet holidays and return to work after Tet; pay attention to and support workers who have a decrease in their wages or are unemployed due to COVID-19 epidemic; ensure that overseas Vietnamese workers can welcome the Lunar New Year according to national customs, and practical conditions.
Given the huge traffic movement during the Lunar New Year, the Ministry of Transportation is urged to manage transportation activities in an efficient manner to avoid cases of people unable to return to their hometown due to the lack of services. The Ministry is also required to raise the service quality, publicly post ticket prices, and promote the online ticket sales; intensify the inspection of freight fare declaration, post freight, train and vehicles fares according to regulations; andmanage the transportation of goods smoothly, especially in remote areas, ethnic minority areas, border areas and islands.
The Ministry of Transportation needs to put more efforts to reduce traffic accidents and congestions, especially at the gateways in big cities, railway stations and airports, resolutely strictly handle violations against traffic regulations; strengthen conditions to ensure the rescue of incidents.
The Ministry of Public Security is assigned to actively grasp the international and regional situation affecting the interests and national security of Vietnam;arrange forces and means to absolutely ensure the social order and safety for activities, key locations as well as political, cultural and social events of the country, especially the 13thNational Party Congress; take effective measures to prevent, detect and thwart plots by hostile forces and reactionaries, not to be passive in any situation; ensure the information security and national network safety.
The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) is urged to operate the monetary policy in proactive and flexible manner in accordance with the international and domestic financial situation; closely follow the exchange-rate fluctuations, international and domestic gold prices in order to promptly inform and recommend the people and stabilize the market sentiment; strengthen the inspection, examination and supervision of the activities of credit institutions andforeign bank branches; ensure liquidity safety; coordinate with functional agencies to take measures to eliminate black credit (loan shark).
The SBVshould assign credit institutions to take drastically measures to support the people and business affected by Covid-19 outbreak and natural disasters; fully and promptly satisfy the demand for credit capital for production and business activities during the festival period.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism should further inspect and supervise the organization of cultural, sport and tourism activities as well as festivals before, during and after Lunar New year in order to ensure a safe and happyTet holiday in line with the civilized lifestyle, beautiful traditional customs and practices of each locality. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism also should promote domestic tourism, improve service quality, develop various types of tourism in association with customs, beliefs, etc…of localities.
The Ministry of Information and Communications should continuously maintain the safety and security during supplying service; not post prohibited goods or restricted goods; not let the loss or stagnant of goods, then giving customers cause to complain.
It is necessary to implement measures to further manage subscriber information, charge rates, service quality and promotion; prevent fake news and disinformation on the internet; actively detect and prevent the use of radio system to send and spread false information; implement plans to protect internet and communication security in order to meet the maximum requirements of the people and organizations during Tet Holiday. Besides, it is necessary to establish the infrastructure of telecommunications, information technology and postalservice to ensure the fast, accurate and absolute communication on the upcoming 13th National Party Congress.
State funding should not be spent on firework displays:
The Provincial/Municipal People’s Committees are assigned to be non-subjective and strictly direct the implementation of regulations on Covid-19 containment, uphold the responsibility of headers, ready to respond and deploy drastic, synchronous and effective measures to prevent and control the Covid-19 outbreak.
The firework displays at each province/city during Lunar New year, the Year of Buffalo, should depend on their own conditionsand state funding should not be spent on this purpose.The scale and forms of celebration activities should be reduced to ensure the saving policy, the fight against waste, and Covid-19 containment.
Functional units and grassroots authorities are assigned to effectively implement the solutions stated in this Directive, focusing on ensuring the social safety, order and security as well as taking care of the material and spiritual life for the people, especially the families affected by the recent storms and floods, in order to ensure a happy, warm, health and safe Lunar New Year. The head of agencies and units should take responsibility for any law violations occurring in their respective localities or fields.
The National Steering Committee against Smuggling, Trade Frauds and Counterfeiting Goods is assigned to should further direct, inspect and urge the ministries, agencies and localities in the fight against smuggling, trade fraudsand counterfeit goods; supervise, detect, prevent and promptly handle smuggling, illegal transportation and trading of animal-based foods into Vietnam, especially wild animal food.