The World Bank in Vietnam on May 31 announced the official launch of the Country Partnership Strategy (CPS) 2012-2016, which shifts the focus from financial flows to how the bank can assist the country to capitalise on new ideas and manage its own resources better.

For the new CPS period, the indicative allocation from the World Bank's concessional arm, the International Development Association, to support Vietnam is about 4.2 billion USD.

According to WB Country Director Victoria Kwakwa, the new CPS has taken into account Vietnam 's new phase of development as it moved to a middle-income status.

The bank will operate in Vietnam with a more "strategic focus" and become more selective in choosing areas of support, she said, including phasing out programmes in areas that have achieved considerable results in the past such as rural electricity.

Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Cao Viet Sinh applauded the launch, saying that Vietnam was committed to increasing the value-added in aid effectiveness in line with its Socio-Economic Development Strategy 2011-2020.

The new CPS was built on three pillars – competitiveness, sustainability and opportunity – and would transform how the bank engaged with the Government.

The strategy outlined the need to ensure that projects are completely ready when approved, address systemic ODA implementation issues. It also calls for clearer strategies and assurance that "funds are disbursed on results-based rather than statement of expenditures".-VNA