The city recently organized a seminar that sought collaboration between investors and banks in seven so-called breakthrough programs.

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Tan Cang Sai Gon
Participating banks have signed loan agreements for eight projects, worth a total of VND 26 trillion (USD 1.1 billion) under the public–private partnership (PPP) investment mode.

The projects include a North-South road worth VND 18 trillion and Nguyen Tat Thanh street worth VND 4.6 trillion.

Chairman of the city People’s Committee Nguyen Thanh Phong said that loans for the eight projects had created a push for future projects, as the city has a limited local budget.

More businesses are expected to invest under the PPP mode, he said.

Around 153 projects have been carried out under the PPP mode in Ho Chi Minh City, with total investment of VND 451 trillion (USD 19.9 billion), of which 23 projects worth a total of VND 71 trillion have been completed, and another 130 projects worth VND 380 trillion are underway.

Though the number of projects under the PPP mode only accounted for 5 percent of the total of public-invested projects, the amount of investment was 51 times higher than total public investment during the 2011-15 period, he added.

Pham Phu Quoc, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Finance and Investment State-owned Company (HFIC), said that HFIC had sponsored 152 infrastructure projects in the city, valued at a combined VND 25 trillion (USD 1.1 billion).

It has also called for VND 26.8 trillion of local government bonds, he added.

Upgrading old buildings and building new ones are part of the city’s modernization plan.

At least 474 old buildings were built before 1975. Since the beginning of 2016, 1,592 households in four old buildings have been relocated.

The People’s Committee will be in charge of making decisions on relocating residents who live near canals to other areas and upgrading infrastructure.

To effectively handle the seven “breakthrough” programs that are key to the city’s development during the 2016-20 period, the city needs a total of VND 850 trillion (USD 37.5 billion) in funds.

Sixty percent of that total would be for anti-flooding, transport and infrastructure-related projects.

Source: VNA