PANO - The Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) signed a sub-loan contract with four banks, namely the Vietnam Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Agribank), the Cooperative Bank, the VP Bank and the Oriental Commercial Joint Stock Bank (OCB).

The contract was to re-lend the credit loan borrowed from the World Bank (WB) and to implement the Vietnam Sustainable Agriculture Transformation (VnSAT) project.

The VnSAT project has a total capital of US$ 238 million from WB’s loan. The project aims to effectively implement the restructuring of the agriculture sector by enhancing its capacity, renovating methods of sustainable cultivation and raising the value of two sub-sectors: rice production in the Mekong Delta and coffee production in the Central Highlands.

The signing ceremony

The project will strengthen the capability of governmental agencies in researching, designing and transferring technologies to farmers, as well as implementing and supervising restructure and renewal of the agricultural sector.

Notably, about 140,000 households involved in rice cultivation in eight provinces of the Mekong Delta, namely Kien Giang, An Giang, Hau Giang, Tien Giang, Long An, Dong Thap, Can Tho and Soc Trang, will be supported to access and apply advanced technologies in their production. As a result, their production profits are expected to increase by 30 percent per ha.  

While in the Central Highlands, the project will support 63,000 households in the five provinces of Lam Dong, Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Gia Lai and Kon Tum to acquire new technologies for sustainable coffee planting and re-planting, with a possible income increase of 20 percent per year.

BIDV was chosen by the government as a wholesale bank, to manage and re-loan US$ 105 million out of the total capital loan of the project. The money will be disbursed through selected banks, to support businesses to upgrade rice processing technology and facilities in the Mekong Delta and farmers to re-cultivate coffee areas in the Central Highlands.

BIDV will select 10 banks to join the VnSAT project and strive to accelerate the disbursement to the project, contributing to achieving the socio-economic development objectives set by the Party and State.

Translated by Hong Anh