Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Phạm Bình Minh chairs the meeting. —VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The Vietnamese Government continues to consider official development assistance (ODA) as an important capital source and will allocate part of it for socio-economic development in the mid-term public investment plan, said Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Phạm Bình Minh.

Minh made the statement during a meeting between the Government and six foreign development banks in Hà Nội on Thursday to discuss their recommendations about ODA, foreign preferential loans and a draft Decree replacing the Government’s Decree dated May 25, 2020 on the use and management of ODA and preferential loans provided by foreign sponsors.

Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Trần Quốc Phương said 2021 was the first year to perform tasks in the mid-term public investment plan for the 2021-2025 period. Since late 2020 and especially mid-May, the COVID-19 pandemic had broken out again in localities, thus affecting the progress of foreign capital disbursement.

Data from the Finance Ministry showed that about US$287.6 million of foreign capital was disbursed in the first nine months of this year, or 12.69 per cent of the yearly capital plan.

Representatives from development banks spoke highly of the Vietnamese Government’s efforts in the process of institution building, project implementation and ODA disbursement. Some of them suggested approving projects with regional connectivity and on a large scale in each locality to achieve efficiency.

World Bank Country Director in Việt Nam Carolyn Turk expressed her wish to cooperate with the Vietnamese Government on big projects with greater impacts.

Minh said several laws regarding ODA and public investment were being proposed for amendment.

The Vietnamese Government would consider simplifying procedures while ensuring the efficiency of projects, he said, expressing his hope that six development banks and agencies, including the WB, ADB, JICA, KEXIM, AFD and KfW, would consider harmonising their procedures with Việt Nam’s.

About ODA mobilisation for 2021-2025, Minh said the Vietnamese Government built priority areas in need of ODA and hoped that the banks would offer loans to projects that match Việt Nam’s development goals in the period. —VNS