At the receptions, Vietnamese leaders conveyed a consistent message that Việt Nam will make full use of capitals from ADB in an effective way. Both General Secretary Nông Đức Mạnh and PM Nguyễn Tấn Dũng highly appreciated contributions of ADB and President Haruhiko Kuroda to Việt Nam’s socio-economic development, poverty reduction, infrastructure development and improved economic competitiveness.

In 2008, ADB committed to provide loans and technical supports worth of US $1.3-1.6 billion for various projects in Việt Nam. On the occasion, PM Nguyễn Tấn Dũng mentioned a US $1.1 billion loan from ADB for the construction of a modern 244-km highway from Hà Nội’s periphery to the northern mountainous province of Lào Cai.

The PM confirmed that Việt Nam will closely work with ADB in putting these projects into reality. He asked ADB to further assist Việt Nam develop its infrastructure, train human resource, and find out solutions for two difficult problems: increasing inflation and high trade gap.

President Haruhiko Kuroda, who is paying his first visit to Việt Nam on February 19-21, pledged to help Việt Nam improve management skills and speed up disbursement. He suggested Việt Nam carefully realize its macro policies, especially on monetary and foreign exchange. He predicted that Việt Nam can maintain its growth rate of 10% in the future.

By Hoàng Hồng Uyên