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ADB issues grant for Vietnamese
development
HANOI - The
Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Vietnamese
government have signed an agreement for a US$1
million grant for an innovative urban improvement
project to help improve the quality of life in
poor communities in the country's central region.
The grant comes out of the ADB's Japan
Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR), which is
financed by the Japanese government.
Bradford Philips, country director of
ADB's Vietnam Resident Mission, signed the grant
on behalf of the ADB at a ceremony on Thursday
morning at the State Bank of Vietnam.
Phung Khac Ke, deputy governor of the
State Bank of Vietnam, and a representative from
the Ministry of Construction signed the grant on
behalf of the Vietnamese government.
First
secretary and head of the economic section of the
Embassy of Japan, Yasukata Fukahori, was also
present at the ceremony.
The project will
address scarce resources, poor health and lack of
opportunities to break the "cycle of poverty" in
Vietnam. The project will use community-based
approaches to address annual flooding, poor
drainage, unclean environments, skills training
and income-generating strategies.
The town
of Tam Ky in Quang Nam province will serve as the
pilot area, as it has high poverty and suffers
frequent flooding.
"The project will help
expand the benefits of urban improvements to the
poor through a participatory approach, with
external assistance serving as a catalyst for
community development," Philips said at the
ceremony.
"Good health, hygiene, and a
sanitary environment, coupled with adequate
skills, will result in a productive labor force
and help break the cycle of poverty," he said.
A majority of the population of the
central region, particularly the poor, do not have
access to hygienic facilities and infrastructure,
despite efforts by government agencies and donor
programs to improve these areas.
The grant
will finance small projects, such as building
tertiary drainage, improving alleyways and
footpaths, connecting water supplies to
households, and creating quality sanitation
facilities. It will also help with the larger
project of fighting floods, environmental hazards
and disease.
Transfer stations, small
equipment and other supplies for a community-based
solid waste management project, which will benefit
some 3,700 households, will also be provided.
The grant will allow for skills training
in construction and carpentry, waste collection
and recycling, sanitation, and other
environment-related work.
This will
provide jobs to the poorest members of the
community, who, by establishing a fee-based
collection system, will collect and recycle or
dispose of solid waste.
"The high level of
community involvement in the planning and
implementation of the project will increase
community ownership of these undertakings and
improve the prospects for sustainability," said
Januar Hakim, ADB urban development specialist.
The Ministry of Construction will
implement the three-year project. The Vietnamese
government and beneficiaries will contribute
$200,000 to the project.
The JFPR was set
up in 2000 with an initial contribution of $90
million. The fund now stands at more than $344
million, $153 million of which is committed.
The ADB is dedicated to reducing poverty
in the Asia-Pacific region through sustainable
economic growth, social development, and good
governance.
Established in 1966, it is
owned by 63 members, 45 of which are from this
region.
(Asia Pulse/VNA) |
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