Hanoi (VNA) – Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son on November 20 received World Bank (WB) Vice President for East Asia and the Pacific Manuela V. Ferro who is paying a working visit to Vietnam.
During the reception, Son hailed the WB's decision to establish a regional office in Hanoi and shared his desire to work closely with the office, noting the WB is a reliable partner that has significantly supported Vietnam's socioeconomic development.
He affirmed that Vietnam is committed to strengthening the partnership with WB and hopes to continue to cooperate with the WB in programmes to promote sustainable growth, green economy, digital economy and circular economy in the near future. The Deputy PM informed the guest that the Government of Vietnam has established a working group headed by a Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment to closely coordinate with the WB office in Vietnam to solve challenges related to the implementation of WB projects.
This will help reduce preparation and approval time, especially when there are differences between Vietnam’s and WB’s regulations.
Son welcomed the WB's proposal to lend to Vietnam for the next five years focusing on key areas such as infrastructure (large-scale transport projects), energy (energy transition and renewable energy), and agriculture (environmentally friendly initiatives such as low-emission rice cultivation projects).
The Deputy PM called on the WB to continue to simplify the approval process and adopt a flexible approach in the negotiation process to address challenges, and asked the WB to provide more non-refundable aid to mitigate the impact of high-interest loans from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD). In 2017, Vietnam graduated from the status of an Official Development Assistance (ODA) recipient, specifically from the International Development Association (IDA) of the WB.
According to Son, the Vietnamese Government has submitted to the National Assembly amendments to some laws to simplify procedures and solve challenges related to disbursement and planning for projects using ODA and foreign concessional loans.
He suggested that the WB's regional office continue to work closely with relevant agencies of Vietnam to study and propose solutions to shorten the preparation time for projects and solving cases where there are differences in regulations of Vietnam and the WB.
Acknowledging Vietnam's success in economic development over the past time, the WB Vice President said her visit to Vietnam this time aims to discuss measures to make Vietnam a high-income country by 2045. That depends a lot on both internal factors and external factors. She noted that Vietnam has benefited from the openness of international trade.
The WB wants to help Vietnam identify opportunities and risks along with suitable investments, she said, adding that the WB always provides support in accordance with the context and development investment needs, and is ready to support Vietnam in the upcoming development.
Ferro took note of an improvement in the disbursement of projects funded by WB loans in Vietnam, but it is still slow.
According to her, one of the advantages of a higher income status is that it has conditions and access to the international financial market. It can mobilise capital from many different sources to serve its development process./.
