A training centre will be built in Vietnam to improve its capacity to enact environmental and social protection measures as stipulated in a memorandum of understanding signed in Hanoi on April 2, said the World Bank (WB) office in Vietnam.

The document was inked between the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) and its partners, namely the WB, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The centre’s establishment will be funded initially by the Australian Government with technical assistance provided by the development partners.

WB Country Director for Vietnam Victoria Kwakwa said the country’s socio-economic development strategies are geared towards sustainable environmental and social development, which requires greater attention to environmental and social protection in the implementation of major infrastructure projects.

The centre, to be located at the AIT in Vietnam, will assist project management boards, local authorities, consultant and relevant agencies to increase their capacity to manage social and environmental issues, she added.

ADB Country Director Tomoyuki Kimura said the bank is willing to assist the facility, which will play an important role in training environmental and social safety experts in Vietnam amid the increase in infrastructure investments, pollution challenges, and vulnerability to climate change.

The centre is expected to open training courses for its lecturers in resettlement policy to prepare its teaching staff for future courses. It will also design programmes to raise local agency and organisation capacity to promote sustainable infrastructure development.-VNA