Vietnam Needs up to $20B to Treat Wastewater in Next Decade: ADB

Vietnam would need between $6.4 billion and $20 billion by 2025 to treat wastewater as part of its plan to have 70% of the urban inhabitants equipped with a wastewater gathering and treatment system, according to the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The huge amount of money will help to cover as much as 80% of households’ wastewater in big cities, experts said at German-Vietnamese Forum held in Hanoi on Nov 25. The experts said that water pollution in Vietnam has become a severe issue due to the lack of wastewater treatment and water drainage systems. Germany has supported Vietnam in making policies, training workforce and consulting in wastewater treatment since 2011. The two countries signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in water sector in 2012 in order to build a joint center in the Southeast Asian country soon. Meanwhile, Vietnam is believed to need an estimated VND72 trillion ($3.2 billion) to upgrade water supply facilities to meet demand for tap water of urban dwellers from 2016 to 2020. (VietNamNet Nov 27)