The Association of Vietnamese Cities (ACVN) has stated that it will focus on intensifying international cooperation to encourage sustainable urban development.

At a press briefing on Nov. 2 in preparation for the second Vietnamese Cities Day (Nov. 8), the association said that it has launched an EU-funded project to increase community involvement and the State management of urban centres in Vietnam, which will last for 30 months with 30 urban centres taking part.

The project will design a training programme for urban officials and develop a training centre for the ACVN.

According to the association, the five Vietnamese urban centres of Nam Dinh, Tuy Hoa, Lang Son, Vung Tau and Ninh Binh have been taking part in cooperation programmes with five Canadian cities.

These programmes focus on using advanced information technologies in land and housing registration and tax collection, improving waste management in urban centres, encouraging community participation in tourist development, and generating jobs for migrants.

The ACVN has expanded its ties with various other international organisations and associations in cities in Canada, Germany and the Republic of Korea.

It also takes part in activities held by the United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) organisation and has been working with the Asian Coalition for Housing Rights (ACHR) to develop urban housing funds.

Vietnam currently has 747 cities and major towns and a new town is born almost every month. The urban population is expected to increase from 27 percent of the national population at present to 45 percent by 2020./.