Illustrative image (Source: VNA) The Climate Resilient Inclusive Infrastructure forEthnic Minorities Project I will upgrade 121.8 kilometers of roads usingclimate-resilient design standards, construct 115 kilometers of water supplypipelines, and help provide reliable weather and climate data in a timely,cost-effective manner, the bank said in a news release.
About 243,000 people, including 126,300 from ethnicminority groups, are expected to benefit from the project.
“The project aims to improve the living conditions ofethnic minority communities in remote areas of Vietnam,” said ADB ProgrammesOfficer Hong Anh Nguyen. “It will better link remote rural production siteswith markets and processing facilities for crops such as acacia and boostbeneficiaries’ access to health, education and market services. The projectwill also expand access to safe water supply and irrigation.”
The financing package includes 58 million USD inregular ADB loans and a 2 million USD grant from ADB’s High-Level TechnologyFund. The grant will fund the supply and installation of data systems forclimate risk management. In addition, the project will include 21.73 million USDin financing from the Government of Vietnam.
Vietnam’s economy grew 7 percent on average from 2016to 2018, but it slowed to 2.9 percent in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Significant gaps exist between the economically booming coastal communities andthe interior upland areas with a high ethnic minority population. About 87pecent of the ethnic minority households in Binh Dinh and 55 percent in QuangNam are poor or near poor.
These areas are challenged by low-quality, fragmentedtransport and water resource infrastructure. Most of the ethnic minoritycommunities are often isolated during the rainy season, cut off by floodedroads situated in hilly or mountainous terrain. Less than 60 percent ofhouseholds within the project area have access to reliable and safe watersupply.
Vietnam faces a high risk of disasters and climatechange. The country experiences an estimated annual average loss of 2.37billion USD due to natural hazards, especially floods, with Binh Dinh and QuangNam among the most affected areas./.
VNA
