On March 1, Saigon students can once again return to school.

Saigon has now gone 14 days without any detected community cases of COVID-19, and yesterday, the city's municipal government decided that students could return to school. Teachers and pupils who have traveled to outbreak hotspots will need to make medical declarations, and everyone will need to provide daily health updates.

The city's more than 1.74 million students and 100,000 teachers and staff were told to attend online classes instead of going back to school on February 16 as previously scheduled due to the complicated state of the local epidemic.

Meanwhile, the last of Saigon's 33 areas put on lockdown was opened yesterday. The apartment buildings and alleys, mostly in Tan Binh District, had been blockaded in response to occupants testing positive for COVID-19 in relation to the outbreak amongst Tan Son Nhat baggage handlers, beginning on February 7. 

There is no update regarding the reopening of non-essential businesses such as karaoke parlors, bars, clubs, theatres and wedding halls, which the municipal government ordered closed on February 8. 

In total, 193 of Saigon's 210 confirmed COVID-19 cases have recovered, while more than 1,300 people are being quarantined at centralized centers and 524 are doing so at home. Earlier this week, the city announced plans to re-test all foreign workers who had arrived in the city and undergone quarantine. 

While cautious optimism may be warranted in Saigon, the situation remains challenging in Hai Duong, the epicenter of the latest outbreak. Yesterday, the northern province logged 11 new cases and strict lockdown procedures remain in place. 

Vietnam's first COVID-19 vaccines arrived in the country early yesterday morning, and an increasing amount of distribution details are being released.