The World Bank (WB) has agreed to inject 350 million USD into the 8th Poverty Reduction Support Credit (PRSC 8) for Vietnam.

An agreement on the WB’s biggest-ever credit to the PRSC was signed in Hanoi on Aug. 7.

The PRSC 8 is part of phase 2, which includes five direct support credit programmes to the Vietnamese Government to boost economic growth and reduce poverty.

Earlier, the WB provided 175 million USD and 150 million USD to the PRSC 6 and 7, respectively. The previous PRSCs in phase 1 averaged 100 million USD per year.

The PRSC 8 began last November by proposing a series of policies in 17 fields focusing on business development, social inclusion, natural resource management and modern governance.

The PRSC in Vietnam is viewed as the most successful in the world with eight programmes implemented, WB country director Victory Kwakwa said at the signing ceremony.

She stressed that the Vietnamese Government has obtained some achievements since the PRSC 7, and expressed her wish that the government would further focus on those areas where reforms have not yet met their agreed-upon targets.

The WB is able to mobilise more capital to support Vietnam ’s ongoing economic reforms, the WB official said, adding that her institution is willing to work closely with Vietnam in non-PRSC programmes in order to help the country carry out its stimulus plan./.