ADB President Meets with Viet Nam Prime Minister and Discusses Operations

OSAKA, JAPAN (29 June 2019) — Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Mr. Takehiko Nakao today met with Viet Nam Prime Minister Mr. Nguyen Xuan Phuc on the sidelines of the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Osaka. They discussed Viet Nam’s macroeconomic performance and ADB’s continued engagement with the country. Their last meeting was held in late June 2018 in Da Nang, Viet Nam.

Viet Nam’s macroeconomic performance has been solid in recent years, with real gross domestic product growth at 6.7% in the first half of 2019 and 7.1% in 2018—the fastest growth rate in more than a decade.

“Viet Nam continues to demonstrate strong potential for sustaining high economic growth, given its prudent fiscal management, stable inflation, healthy current account balance, and strong foreign direct investments. Viet Nam is also positioning itself effectively in the changing landscape of regional and global value chains,” said Mr. Nakao.

Mr. Nakao commended the structural reforms being implemented by the Government of Viet Nam, including the establishment of the Commission for the Management of State Capital as a key part of the government’s state-owned enterprise reforms. ADB has been among the largest development partners supporting Viet Nam for the last several years, operating through project loans in transport, water supply and sanitation, energy, agriculture, and education. ADB has also provided policy-based loans promoting reforms in public expenditure, financial sector, and health. ADB is assisting Viet Nam’s regional cooperation and integration through the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Economic Cooperation Program, including by supporting the implementation of the Ha Noi Action Plan, which was endorsed at the 6th GMS Summit held in Ha Noi in March 2018.

ADB’s sovereign lending in 2018 was $689 million in concessional terms. In addition, ADB committed $300 million in nonsovereign lending to support small and medium-sized enterprises and municipal waste-to-energy conversion.

Mr. Phuc expressed appreciation for ADB’s support. He noted that Viet Nam will need continued support for infrastructure development, as well as innovative financing solutions, to attract greater private sector investments.

“ADB stands ready to continue to provide strong support to Viet Nam in the coming years in areas such as urban rapid transit systems, highway modernization, water supply and sanitation, and climate resilient urban and rural infrastructure. We will also extend our support to foster more public–private partnerships and continue our nonsovereign lending. ADB’s capacity building work is helping improve the credit worthiness of selected state-owned enterprises,” Mr. Nakao said.

ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. In 2018, it made commitments of new loans and grants amounting to $21.6 billion. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members—49 from the region.