HIGHLIGHTS
- The output of seafood exports in the second half of July decreased suddenly.
- Businesses applying the “3 in place” policy encountered many difficulties, just after less than 1 month implementing.
- According to VASEP, firms need 2 types of vaccine in order to come through this harsh period.
FULL ARTICLE
In the seafood production for export, there are more than 270 enterprises operating. Most of them are in the Southern regions, where the Covid-19 epidemic hit extremely hard.
Challenges for “3 in place” implement
In the first 7 months of this year, the total output of seafood exports still increased by 11% over the same period in 2020, reaching 4.88 billion USD. But now, the outbreak of Covid-19 at the peak period of production made this figure in the second half of July 2021 decreased by roughly 15%-20% compared to the first half of the month. The estimated turnover reduction for the whole month was about 763 million USD.
And to ensure epidemic prevention conditions, businesses that want to maintain operations must organize production according to the “3 in place” model: production, isolation, and accommodation.
According to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), only about 30% of seafood enterprises in the southern area can implement the “3 in place”. And about 30 – 50% workers worked at factories, the rest still worked from home or quitted.
However, less than a month after applying the “3 in place” policy, businesses could not maintain because of too high costs.
Moreover, many orders were delayed and canceled, making it harder to cover costs such as weekly testing, extra wages, the cost of electricity, the cost of shipping freight all skyrocketed, etc.
Policies to overcome
According to VASEP, there must be 2 types of vaccine for businesses.
The first is the “vaccine” in policy for businesses and workers. These are support packages, tax reduction, electricity bill and loan interest rate reduction, etc.
The second one is medical vaccines which are used to injects employees in essential sections first and for all later.
Phan Quyen
FURTHER READING
Prioritise workers in logistics sector in Covid-19 vaccination
