Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính meets with USAID Administrator Samantha Power. — VNA/VNS Photo

WASHINGTON — Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính had a meeting with Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Samantha Power in Washington DC on May 13 (US time), as part of his activities while on a working visit to the US.

At the meeting, Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính highly appreciated USAID's contribution to the recent development of Việt Nam-US relations through effective aid activities, contributing to the settlement of post-war consequences, hunger eradication and poverty alleviation, and promotion of sustainable and inclusive development in Việt Nam.

The Prime Minister welcomed USAID's plan to expand operations in Việt Nam, speed up approval procedures and implement projects to increase the effectiveness of development aid.

He suggested that USAID continue to increase support for Việt Nam in overcoming the consequences of the war, focusing on handling Agent Orange/dioxin at Biên Hòa Airport and other hotspots, supporting people with disabilities, war victims, supporting the search for remains of Vietnamese martyrs, and especially helping with DNA assessment capacity of Vietnamese scientists through the construction of a high-tech centre in this field.

While welcoming USAID's financial support for Fulbright University Việt Nam for the development and modernisation cause of educational institutions and universities in the country, the PM also asked USAID to further assist Việt Nam in health, culture, environmental protection, combating climate change and protecting biodiversity in the Mekong Delta.

USAID Administrator Power expressed her gratitude to Prime Minister Chính for Việt Nam’s COP26 commitments to reach net zero emissions by 2050 and strengthen adaptation efforts and reaffirmed USAID’s commitment to work together to meet these goals. She also thanked the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment for their work on the recent Memorandum of Understanding that formalises USAID’s partnership with the Vietnamese Government on combating climate change and environmental pollution, and raised the issue of ocean plastics as a key area of collaboration.

The Administrator also said that USAID would continue to focus on supporting Việt Nam in dioxin decontamination and mine clearance.

At the meeting, PM Chính and Administrator Samantha Power also celebrated the recent expansion of USAID's agreement with the Ministry of Planning and Investment to support local capacity development and private sector competitiveness. The cooperation would last until 2028 with the total amount of official development assistance being US$100 million. Administrator Power reaffirmed USAID’s commitment to working with the people and the government to promote an open, prosperous, and secure Việt Nam that is effective and inclusive in tackling its development challenges. — VNS