PM Phuc made the statement during a reception in Hanoi on March 30 for ADB President Takehiko Nakao, who is in the capital city to attend the sixth GMS Summit and the tenth CLV Development Triangle Summit.
The PM noted that Vietnam attaches importance to the GMS and CLV cooperation and stands ready to work closely with member countries, ADB and development partners.
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Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) and ADB President Takehiko Nakao |
The Vietnamese Government supports ADB’s Strategy 2030 to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals and to continue assisting its member states in dealing with issues such as poverty, uneven development, climate change and development of the private sector, he said.
PM Phuc spoke highly of ADB’s policies of incorporating low-cost capital and special loans into a balance sheet, thus helping to increase loan resources for member countries, from USD 14 billion in 2014 to an estimated USD 20 billion in 2020.
Hailing ADB as one of the leading capital and technical assistance suppliers and consultants, the PM said ADB has funded over USD 16 billion to 165 programs and projects in Vietnam, which helped build roads, electricity and irrigation system, schools and hospitals.
The Vietnamese leader told his guest that the government is striving to reform economic sectors, including finance-banking, and wants to receive assistance from ADB, especially the Asian Development Fund (ADF)’s preferential loans with extended payment deadline.
PM Phuc called for ADB’s continued technical assistance, capacity improvement and policy consultations for Vietnam, as well as official development assistance (ODA) and loans used in prioritized fields of climate change, infrastructure, rural agriculture, education, health care and poverty reduction.
The government leader said Vietnam will do its best and coordinate with ADB to successfully hold the GMS Summit.
Nakao, for his part, described Vietnam as an important partner of ADB, adding that the bank wants to offer more capital to Vietnam, given that its economy is growing with the public debt-to-GDP ratio of nearly 61 percent.
The President said ADB will provide roughly USD 613 million in ADF preferential loans for Vietnam this year and suggested the country use the funding in several fields, including finance and hoped that it will be used effectively.
Nakao said ADB wants to receive the list of projects using such loans in the middle of this year so that it could be approved in the third quarter.
He added that ADB and several partners are planning to offer roughly USD 1 billion in low-cost loans to foster Vietnam’s development, especially in its efforts to respond to climate change.
Source: VNA