VIETNAM risks losing its opportunity to compete for investment and economy recovery if it delays taking immediate steps to reopen the economy.
The warning came from foreign business chambers who said Vietnam could miss the chance of hosting multinationals that were diversifying their supply chains out of China.
The business chambers AmCham, EuroCham, KoCham and the United States-Asean Business Council said Vietnam could also lag behind global economic recovery due to the delays.
According to a Vn Express report, the business chambers said in a petition to the government that at least 20 per cent of their members have shifted some manufacturing activities to another country, and more discussions are underway.
Once the supply chain has been shifted, it would be difficult for these companies to return, they said.
The report said investments won't increase without a clear plan for reopening and recovery, while new investors' won't arrive without reasonable immigration policies.
There also needs to be an app or system to ensure consistent travel between localities and a mechanism to issue "green cards" for foreigners who have been fully vaccinated.
The government has also been urged to consider the restaurant business as key to ensuring food and job security as there has been much disruptions in food supply recently.
The chambers added that it was now a good time to consider reopening tourism activities in a safe and sustainable manner.
They also supported the government's decision to gradually reopen tourism activities on the country's biggest island of Phu Quoc and the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau.
The southern economic hub Ho Chi Minh City is gradually reopening its economy with easing of some rules in low risk areas but the lockdown will continue until the end of this month.
Of nearly 8,700 Covid-19 cases Vietnam recorded on Monday, some 5,200 were recorded in Ho Chi Minh City.
The four chambers also said that vaccines were the key to recovery, adding that medical staff, the elderly, people with underlying conditions, manufacturing staff and delivery personnel should be prioritised.
The Express also reports that AmCham Vietnam has requested the US government to donate more vaccines to Vietnam amid the supply chain disruptions faced by American companies.
"Our members believe that increased US vaccine donations to Vietnam will not only help fight the pandemic here, but will also benefit the American people as millions of American workers are directly dependent on suppliers around the world having healthy workforces," AmCham Vietnam wrote in a letter to US President Joe Biden.
It said that the factory shutdowns in Vietnam threatened global supply chains and added to a long list of challenges that US brands face in delivering reasonably priced goods in time for the upcoming holiday shopping season.
Vietnam accounts for almost a third of US footwear manufacturing and a fifth of US apparel manufacturing.
More than half of Nike's footwear and a third of Gap and Lululemon products are made in Vietnam.
In this regard, AmCham said the US business community in Vietnam appealed for additional supplies of excess US vaccines to be sent to Vietnam.
Last month, 90 CEOs of leading US companies in Vietnam made the same request to Biden, urging him to send more vaccine donations to the country.
Vietnam has so far received donations of six million vaccine doses from the US, comprising five million Moderna and one million Pfizer doses.
The country has inoculated almost 29 per cent of its 96 million population, with around seven per cent having been fully vaccinated.