A seminar to help Vietnam improve its ability to assess projects to encourage further economic development took place in the capital city of Hanoi on June 15.

The seminar, jointly held by the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), reviewed the progress of a joint Vietnamese-Japanese programme to increase the capacity of the MPI and other agencies in charge of supervising and assessing JICA-funded projects in the fields of urban transport and environment.

Speaking at the seminar, Cao Manh Cuong, Deputy Director of MPI’s Department of Foreign Economic Relations, stated that the programme will help Vietnam to enhance its future planning as well as its ability to carry out projects more effectively.

Toshihiro Shimuzu, a senior adviser at the JICA, said that the JICA, as one of Vietnam’s development partners, hopes to contribute more to Vietnam ’s development.

During the seminar, a new joint programme for this year was agreed upon by the JICA, MPI, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Electricity of Vietnam (EVN), the Ministry of Transport, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam and the Southern Airports Corporation. This year’s programme aims to develop the assessment capacity of the JICA’s partners and will also set up an association to assess investments in Vietnam./.