The Ministry of Health said on July 15 it is well prepared to receive 219 Vietnamese guest workers, including 116 people with COVID-19, to be repatriated from the Republic of Equatorial Guinea.

Vietnamese workers in Equatorial Guinea expected to return to Vietnam
soon for COVID-19 treatment. (Photo: thanhnien.vn/Hien An) 

All the to-be-repatriated citizens are working at Sendje hydropower plant in Equatorial Guinea under labour contracts between Duglas Alliance Ltd of the UK and three Vietnamese companies, Tan Dai Loi, CMVIETNAM and LILAMA 10.

As many as 116 out of the workers had tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus and another one worker had tested positive but turned negative the other day. Two infected workers had to be transferred to the recovery room and put on oxygen masks.

The Ministry of Health said its Medical Examination and Treatment Department has had a working session with national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines to drawn up an evacuation plan.

A special flight is in the pipeline to evacuate the workers and the repatriation flight is scheduled to take off in at least 10 days due to difficulty in registration procedures.

The ministry said it will dispatch a contingent of doctors and orderlies to Equatorial Guinea to assist the guest workers on the repatriation flight.

At a recent Cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc requested relevant agencies to conduct a special flight to evacuate the guest workers from Equatorial Guinea.