Vietnam is the country in which World Bank’s rural finance project has been the most successful, an achievement that gained it enough support to guarantee its continuation.
With the World Bank and the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) presiding, the Bank for International Development of Vietnam (BIDV) organised a meeting on July 21 in Hanoi to evaluate the implementation of the WB-funded Rural Finance Projects Package since 1996.
Vietnamese farmers harvesting tea.
In 2009, the WB decided to provide an additional USD200 million in funding for the Rural Finance Project Phase III in Vietnam even though the country had yet to complete the second phase of the project. The unprecedented decision was based on the excellent implementation of the project in the country.
The project is one of a series of three rural finance projects with a combined funding of USD548 million from the WB.
Speaking at the meeting, SBV Deputy Governor Nguyen Dong Tien said that the Rural Finance Project Phase III has increased access to bank loans for rural populations and enterprises, generated jobs, increased the incomes of farmers and heightened awareness of the importance of environmental protection.
As of December 31, 2013, the entire WB’s USD200 million budget for the project had been disbursed.
World Bank Country Director for Vietnam, Victoria Kwakwa, said, “I’m greatly pleased to know that borrowers have been successful in their businesses and increased their incomes as a result of this project. After five years, the project has created investment in rural areas equivalent to USD487 million. This means that each US dollar from the project has created 2,62 USD worth of investment in the rural economy.”
She noted that the rate of bad debt rate from the project was low, estimated at only 0.40%, and that 51% of the loans were granted to women.
To date, over 135,000 individuals and enterprises in rural areas of Vietnam, including over 70,000 poor households, have gained access funding through the project. It also generated around 140,000 new jobs in rural areas.
The rural development project provided 500 financial training courses for nearly 17,700 individuals.
Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai commented that this project stands as a model for the efficient use of ODA. He asked for further study to draw lessons from its implementation and apply it to other ODA projects in Vietnam.
Đăng ký: VietNam News
