On the occasion of the Mid- term Consultative Group Meeting in Nha Trang, the Vietnam Business Forum has an interview with Mr Ayumi Konishi, Asian Development Bank Vietnam country director.
Being an ODA capital donor of Vietnam, what are your assessment on Vietnam's ODA capital management and use?
At the general level, we are happy with the way Vietnam has been using ADB assistance for its socioeconomic development. Our assessment of ADB's past assistance confirmed the relevance of our projects and programs, although there is a need to improve efficiency and project implementation performance.
What should Vietnam do to manage ODA capital more effectively, especially after the PMU 18 scandal?
Continuing improvement in the capacity of the Government and strengthening of the mechanisms for checks and balance would be necessary. But in doing so, streamlining of the mechanisms or simplifying the processes would be important as inefficiency of the system would adversely impact on the effectiveness of ODA.
Vietnam has just successfully negotiated with the US about the bilateral agreement on WTO's accession. How do you assess the opportunities when Vietnam becoming a WTO's member?
It would be particularly important to clearly recognize the opportunities and challenges. WTO accession certainly opens greater opportunities for the development of trade and investment. Yet, there are also challenges associated with WTO accession, including widening of income disparities, the need to re-think industry policies, the danger of environmental degradation, weak financial sector, etc., to name a few. How to seize the greater opportunities while addressing the emerging challenges would be the key for Vietnam to benefit fully from WTO accession.
Do ADB have any special plan to support Vietnam's socio-economic development in the time to come?
We are now preparing our next assistance strategy and program to support Vietnam for the medium term. Our strategy will be aligned with SEDP and also closely coordinated with the envisaged assistance of other development partners. We would like to step up our support to Viet Nam to keep reducing poverty through continuing business-led growth by addressing key constraints, while providing targeted assistance to ensure inclusive development and support environmental sustainability.
Reported by Lan Anh
Vietnamese
