The complex development of the Covid-19 pandemic has directly affected the operation of a number of industrial parks (IZs) in Bac Giang, Bac Ninh, Da Nang and HCM City since the end of April 2021. However, with drastic anti-pandemic solutions, many firms in industrial zones have resumed operations. Localities strive to maintain stable production chains, implement the "dual goal" of both fighting the pandemic and developing the economy.

Samsung Vietnam has been applying many strong pandemic prevention
measures to ensure production stability. Photo: Samsung Vietnam

A series of firms reopen

Referring to the fourth outbreak of Covid-19 in Vietnam recently as well as the impact on the industrial production activities of localities, Bac Giang is the name "number 1".

The pandemic broke out in industrial zones in Bac Giang, causing a heavy impact. Bac Giang province had to suspend the operation of 4/5 industrial zones from May 18, of which, 340/344 firms in industrial zones stopped operating and 172,000/174,000 workers stopped working.

The latest report shows that the industrial production index of Bac Giang reached VND 14,757 billion in May, down 40.9% compared to April 2021 and down 33.3% over the same period last year.

Right next to Bac Giang, Bac Ninh has the most industrial production and export activity in the country, including factories of global corporations. In Bac Ninh, there are currently 1,120 firms located in 10 concentrated industrial zones and 26 industrial clusters with about 450,000 workers. Since the Covid-19 pandemic appeared until now, hundreds of firms have had to stop production and tens of thousands of workers have been forced to stop working.

As soon as the seriousness of the Covid-19 outbreak in industrial zones was assessed, it threatened to cause a disruption in the production chain in industrial zones, especially those of large and multinational corporations, affecting the local economy and the national economy. The Government as well as ministries and local authorities quickly implemented a series of drastic and urgent solutions to localising and controlling the pandemic.

Chairman of the People's Committee of Bac Giang province Le Anh Duong said after closing four industrial zones, the province established 35 working teams to guide and inspect safety conditions to prevent and control the Covid-19 pandemic in production of firms in industrial zones in the area; therebybuilding a plan to restore production. Bac Giang did not have a policy to simultaneously reopen industrial zones but selected a number of firms, thereby building a safe production model that could live with the pandemic for a long time and gradually replicated model according to a strict schedule.

It is very good news that up to now, the pandemic situation in key industrial zones in areas where the pandemic has taken place recently such as Bac Giang and Bac Ninh has been quickly localised and controlled. From May 28, four industrial zones of Bac Giang have resumed operation after 10 days of suspension. The amount of firms returning to operate and the number of employees returning to work is constantly increasing.

Talking to a reporter of Customs Newspaper, Dao Xuan Cuong, Head of the Management Board of Bac Giang Industrial Parks, said as of June 8, Bac Giang province had allowed 60 firms to resume operations with a total of employees registered by firmsmore than 8,000 people.Among these 60 firms,many were located in global supply chains.“In the future, Bac Giang province in general and the Management Board of provincial industrial zones in particular will continue to drastically and urgently appraise documents as well as check the conditions of facilities to allow more firms to return to operation,” emphasised Dao Xuan Cuong.

Continuing to be fierce, not neglecting

Regarding the pandemic situation in HCM City, some experts recommended neighbouring localities should pay attention to cases related to clusters of cases in residential areas with a large number of workers working in industrial zones. Provinces with many industrial zones located in HCM City such as Binh Duong must strictly manage residential areas so that the disease does not appear in the industrial park like in Bac Giang.

Speaking at an online meeting betweem Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, head of the National Steering Committee for Covid-19 prevention and control, and the leaders of the two provinces of Bac Ninh and Bac Giang on the afternoon of June 7, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Bac Ninh Nguyen Huong Giang said as of 4 p.m. on June 7, the whole province recorded 1,113 cases of Covid-19, of which 335 were found in 72 firms in industrial zones and high-tech zones.

“For industrial zones, and high-tech zones, Bac Ninh advocates regularly organising inspection teams for disease prevention and control on the basis of not only inspecting once, but also inspectingmany times”, said Vuong Quoc Tuan, Standing Vice Chairman of Bac Ninh Provincial People's Committee. It is known that currently about 50% of workers of many companies in Bac Ninh have returned to work. With the current pandemic prevention and control activities, it is expected that in about half a month, most activities in Bac Ninh will return to normal.

As the leading FDI firm investing in Bac Ninh, Samsung Vietnam has been applying many strong pandemic prevention measures to ensure production stability. According to the reporter's research, in addition to basic pandemic prevention measures such as checking the body temperature of employees at the entrance gates, disinfecting at all areas in the factory, ensuring a safe distance among employees, installing partitions to avoid direct contact in the cafeteria/meeting room, operating the screening area inside and outside the factory recently, facing the spread of the disease, Samsung Vietnam has increased the use of more stringent pandemic prevention measures.

For example, increasing the number of employees working from home and resident employees working in factories; conducting large-scale Covid-19 testin,; providing free KF-94/KN-95 masks for employees and make daily medical declaration for all employees through internal electronic system.

Regarding measures for employees to stay at work, the representative of Samsung Vietnam when talking to the reporter of Customs Newspaper especially emphasised: “Thanks to the enthusiastic support of Bac Ninh province, Samsung Vietnam has expanding locations to arrange accommodation for employees, suitable to ensure safety and prevention of pandemics. We are arranging and completing related facilities to ensure that employees have a comfortable living and resting space after working hours. In the future,Samsung Vietnam will continue to work closely with local authorities to ensure strict pandemic prevention requirements to protect the health of employees and local people while ensuring stable production, striving to fulfil the export targets.”

Similar to Bac Ninh, with Bac Giang, this local report states that, up to now, the pandemic situation has been basically controlled, localised, narrowed the sources of infection, focused on basic pandemic prevention and control in concentrated isolation areas. The locality is continuing to strengthen the isolation model at worker dormitories, isolating at home, taking samples itself for testing and soon summarising and disseminating it to provinces across the country, prevent disease in many industrial zones in many localities at the same time.