Donors at the two-day Consultative Group (CG) Meeting for Vietnam have pledged a record high of US $4.45 billion in Official Development Assistance (ODA) for Vietnam next year, compared to US $ 3.7 billion last year.
Of which, bilateral commitments reached US$ 2,16 billion, multilateral commitments recorded US$ 2,1 billion and commitments from International NGOs is US$ 180 million.
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From left to right: Minister of Planning and Investment Vo Hong Phuc, Deputy Prime Minister cum Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem, World Bank Country Director Klaus Rohland at the closing session. Photo: Reuters
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The biggest bilateral donor continues to be Japan with US $890 million in commitment, while the Asian Development Bank is the biggest multilateral donor, pledging US $1.14 billion.
Many foreign donors said that the increasing confidence of international donors in Vietnam and the country’s effective use of ODA have led to the rise in ODA commitment to Vietnam.
The two-day Consultative Group (CG) Meeting for Vietnam was characterised by an open and frank dialogue on the path ahead, including key challenges Vietnam need to address in order to become a middle income country.
The international donor community also highly appreciated the Vietnamese government’s special attention to the meeting, with Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung for the first time attending, and having direct dialogue with foreign donors.
In his remarks, Mr. Klaus Rohland, World Bank Country Director for Vietnam, underlined that the pledge of US$ 4.45 billion reflects the unanimity of donors in supporting Vietnam’s goal of becoming a middle income country by 2010 and an industrialised country by 2020. However, he added that a higher pledge entails heavier responsibilities and tasks for the government of Vietnam.
At his closing speech, Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia Khiem thanked donors for their interest in Vietnam, reserving a significantly higher pledge compared to previous years. Vietnam also commits to better use the resource, and to closer co-operate to implement the Hanoi Core Statement on harmonisation and effective development.
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Bilaterals |
Pledge for 2007 (US $ million) |
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Australia |
63.7 |
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Canada |
27.0 |
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Japan |
890.3 |
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Korea |
110.5 |
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New Zealand |
6.0 |
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Norway |
10.0 |
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Switzerland |
23.4 |
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Thailand |
0.3 |
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United States |
84.7 |
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EU |
948.2 |
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Multilaterals |
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ADB |
1,140.5 |
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UN agencies |
70.9 |
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World Bank |
890.0 |
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International NGOs |
180.0 |
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Total |
4,445.7 |
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