The financing agreement was signed between the State Bank of Vietnam and the WB in Hanoi on May 25.

Accordingly, the Second Northern Mountains Poverty Reduction Project, which is earmarked for US$150 million, will continue to raise the living standards of the poor in the six provinces of Lao Cai, Yen Bai, Son La, Hoa Binh, Dien Bien and Lai Chau. It will also help to build up the capacity of local government.

In the health sector, the US$75 million Central North Region Health Support Project, US$65 million of which is financed by the WB, will upgrade medical services, from provincial to grassroots level, and train more health workers to fill staff shortage.

The US$318 million Power Sector Reform Development Policy Loan is to develop a competitive power market by doing away with the existing monopoly.

The WB will also provide loans worth US$155 million to an environmental sanitation project in Ho Chi Minh City and a water supply and sanitation project in the Red River Delta.

On addressing the function, the Governor of the State Bank, Nguyen Van Giau, praised the WB’s support for Vietnam, saying that the agreement is evidence of the WB’s commitment to support Vietnam in important and prioritised sectors.

The WB’s Director in Vietnam, Victoria Kwakwa, said she hoped that these five projects would be successfully carried out and help advance Vietnam’s socio-economic development.