Vietnamese nationals in Mozambiqnue line up for necessary procedures prior to their departure to the airport  (Photo: the Vietnamese Embassy in Mozambique)

A Qatar Airlines plane carrying the citizens in eastern and southern Africa touched down at Ho Chi Minh City’s Tan Son Nhat International Airport on August 30.

The flight was arranged by the Vietnamese Embassy in Mozambique in collaboration with Vietnamese representative agencies in South Africa, Qatar and Tanzania alongside relevant agencies based in the host nations.

This is considered a practical activity in citizen protection efforts made by representative agencies and the Consular Department which concurred with the celebration of Vietnam's diplomatic service (August 28) and National Day (September 2).

Passengers onboard included Vietnamese citizens in Mozambique, some neighboring countries such as South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Qatar and Middle Eastern nations. They are those in extremely difficult circumstances, including children under 2, people with underlying illnesses, pregnant women, stranded travellers, guest workers with expired visas and labour contracts.

Ahead of departure, Vietnamese representative agencies dispatched staff to the various airports to assist the citizens with necessary procedures before they boarded the plane.

Meanwhile, a total 570 Vietnamese citizens, including 230 from Taiwan (China) and 340 from Japan were also flown home safely on August 29.

The flights were arranged by the Vietnamese embassies in China and Japan in coordination with relevant agencies of the host nations.

The passengers were minors under the age of 18, the elderly, pregnant women, people with illnesses, guest workers with expired labour contracts, students without accommodations, stranded tourists, and others in extremely disadvantaged circumstances.

Security, safety and hygiene measures were carried out throughout the flights to protect their health and prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19)

Upon landing at airports in Vietnam, those on board received health check-ups and were sent to concentrated quarantine facilities in line with regulations regarding COVID-19 prevention and control.

More repatriation flights are set to be conducted in the coming time to bring home Vietnamese citizens with disadvantaged circumstances, depending on their need and the nation’s quarantine capacity.

Source: VOV