Vietnamese holds a strong mindset of community respect and social compliance. They strictly follow the instructions from the local authorities: wearing mask, washing hands regularly, obeying quarantine order, standing still in isolation
WHAT MAKES VIETNAM DIFFERENT WHEN FACING COVID-19
Though having a close border with China, Vietnam seems to be in better control with a relatively small number of infectious cases of Covid-19. The difference lies not only in the action of government but also from the mindset of Vietnamese.
OVER-CAUTION TO THE NEW CORONAVIRUS
When the novel coronavirus gave its first strike on Wuhan back in Jan 2020, and there was not much reaction from most other countries, even WHO didn’t confirm the danger of Covid-19, Vietnam started over-reacting to get well prepared for the massive outbreak. Many quarantine zones were set up, determined actions were taken to lock down an administrative unit having people back from epidemic areas , and official communication were well managed to deliver consistent messages to people about the danger of Covid-19. Early defense became a norm as early as the threat was getting actualized: school closure, public activity restriction, and entertainment holdback, to name a few. This ‘all-or-nothing’ mindset was not uncommon, if we look at the way other governments within Asia react to the pandemic. However, it was even more pronounced in Vietnam, as we understand well that if Vietnam does not over-react and ‘put off’ the infection before its public break-out, our system will not afford tackling it on a large scale!
MY FAMILY FIRST
Social welfare in Vietnam, like in other developing country, has not matured. Thus, people have the very strong sense of self-defense to keep themselves safe and financially risk-free instead of depending on the government. The moment they became aware of Covid-19 pandemic risks, Vietnamese people have ‘acted’ fast compared with many countries, starting to stock lots of face masks, hand sanitizers as well as foods beforehand. Besides, they are conscious that their family members are fully equipped with knowledge of how to protect themselves and there is no person with the risk of infection walking around in public. This movement to prepare for the likelihood of even more ‘restricted mobility and living’ if the pandemic spreads well explains the surge of key FMCG product sales during March and April, despite overall slowdown of the economy.
ME VS. WE
While being provident for their family, Vietnamese holds a strong mindset of community respect and social compliance. They strictly follow the instructions from the local authorities: wearing mask, washing hands regularly, obeying quarantine order, standing still in isolation. At the same time, they even express anger if others do not follow the same. Surging criticism to individuals who break the community and government regulations related to Covid-19 through different means of media, or reporting neighbors, once used to be popular but unease to most of people, now becomes widely-accepted and even appreciated as a responsible behavior to the community. If you go to supermarkets these days, you will also enjoy the greater discipline in how people queue at check-outs, in order to remain the recommended distance of 06 feet of safe-ness. While people may become more ‘intrusive’ when it comes to risks posed to themselves and their community, they also have learnt to respect better other individual’s boundaries, both driven by the need to ensure safe-ness for everyone admist the raging concerns towards Covid-19
We have seen so far that the differentiated approach that Vietnam – as a country and its people – have taken against the Corona pandemic are rooted from long-established or in other words, ‘inherent’ values built through decades. Interestingly, these recent changes also hint that once the pandemic passes, there will be several new habits and behaviors to be formed and will possibly impact the way Vietnamese people behave socially and commercially, for good.
Stay calm and keep observing!
