The Prime Minister agreed to borrow $2.53 billion to finance 16 ODA projects in the Mekong Delta region.

DNHN - The Prime Minister agreed to obtain ODA loans for 16 sustainable development projects to adapt to climate change in the Mekong Delta region and to implement a mechanism to allocate 90 percent of the capital for these projects.

According to Chinhphu.vn, Ho Chi Minh City hosted the "Conference to remove difficulties, promote highway projects, and deploy ODA capital in the Mekong Delta" On the afternoon of July 8, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh agreed to borrow ODA from 6 committed development partners (including the Asian Development Bank- ADB, the French Development Agency-AFD, Export-Import Bank of Korea- KEXIM, German Reconstruction Bank- KfW, Japan International Cooperation Agency- JICA and World Bank- WB), with a capital of USD 2.53 billion for 16 development projects.

In addition, the Prime Minister agreed to implement a mechanism to allocate 90 percent of the capital to these projects.

The Prime Minister emphasized at the conference that we have a great deal of room to continue to expand and be more flexible in borrowing ODA even though public debt, government debt, national foreign debt, and state budget deficit are all rising. According to the National Assembly's resolution, the country is effectively governed.

The Prime Minister suggested that agencies and individuals participating in the project should increase their sense of responsibility to the work, to the industry, to the people, and to the Fatherland; more effort, higher determination, more drastic action, renewed thinking, more creativity in thinking and doing to complete tasks well, contributing to the implementation of projects, contributing to achieving the goals established by the Party Congress, for the sake of the people.

Previously, on 1 April 2023 in Ho Chi Minh City. In Can Tho, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Quoc Phuong presided over the first meeting to assess the progress of preparing sustainable development projects to adapt to climate change in the Mekong Delta. Mekong DPO).

Mr. Pham Hoang Mai, Director of the Department of External Economic Affairs (Ministry of Planning and Investment), reported the status of Mekong DPO projects at this meeting. He stated that in March 2022, 6 partners agreed to develop foreign capital sources for projects (Specifically, ADB: Tien Giang, Tra Vinh, Soc Trang, Dong Thap, Kien Giang (DT.963), Bac Lieu; AFD: Vinh Long; JICA: Can Tho and Hau Gi

In addition, beginning in March 2022, the Ministry of Planning and Investment will coordinate with six development partners to organize more than ten survey trips, as well as work with thirteen provinces and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to discuss the project's scope, alignment, and technical standards.

The Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, and thirteen municipalities in the Mekong Delta have invested a total of 94,328 billion VND in 16 project proposals. With a counterpart capital of 28,046 billion VND and foreign loans totaling 2,817 billion USD (equivalent to 66,282 billion VND), this loan has a total value of 66,282 billion VND.

Apply the mechanism of 90% allocation and 10% on-lending for projects of the Government. local; authorize localities to be in charge of national highway projects; consider projects to build bridges connecting two localities in provincial roads as inter-regional projects and allocate 100 percent of ODA loans, authorizing one locality to be the investor (for sui generis projects) Mekong River Climate Change Adaptation).

At the meeting, the local leaders of the Mekong Delta strongly supported the proposal made by the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

PV (Synthesis)