Vietnam, WB Discuss $600M Urban Upgrading Project

The Vietnamese Ministry of Construction and the World Bank (WB) yesterday held a meeting to discuss a $600 million project to upgrade six urban areas in Mekong Delta region. The project will upgrade water supply and sewerage systems in Can Tho, My Tho, Ca Mau, Tra Vinh, Cao Lanh and Rach Gia, the state-run Vietnam News Agency said Jan 18. “The program is part of the national urban area upgrade strategy which will run until 2020”, Do Tu Lan, deputy head of the ministry's Urban Development Department said. The WB will provide 65% of the project's investment, worth $390 million for the project and the Vietnamese government will cover the remaining 35%. It is estimated that the project will directly benefit 142,000 people and indirectly boost the living conditions of a further 1.4 million. In addition, loans worth VND20-VND30 million ($952-$1,428) will be made available to 12,000 households to renovate their homes. About $112.7 million has been earmarked for projects to improve Can Tho City's irrigation system, clean up Bung Xang Lake, dredge Ngong and Nhieu canals and renovate a number of roads in Ninh Kieu District. Loans totaling VND73 billion ($3.4 million) will be made available to 3,000 families to upgrade their houses. The ministry and WB officials plan to meet again in June and September and approve the program in December. The project is slated to start early next year. The wider national infrastructure upgrade program was launched in 2007 in HCM City, northern provinces of Nam Dinh and Haiphong and Can Tho City. About 2.2 million people in the four localities have so far benefited from the program. The WB has pledged around $2.6 billion in ODA for Vietnam this year and also announced to finance over $6 billion for the country in the 2011-2013 fiscal years.  (Vietnam News Jan 18 p2)