ADB Provides $9.09B Loans for Vietnam So Far

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has provided 114 sovereign loans totaling $9.09 billion for Vietnam since the communist nation has become its member in 1996, the Tien phong newspaper reported May 5. ADB has given Vietnam 255 technical assistance grant projects amounting to $199.5 million, one sovereign guarantee of $325 million, and 26 other grants totaling $150.1 million.  The Philippines-based lender has also approved eight non-sovereign loans, two political risk guarantees, and one B-loan totaling $280.0 million. Vietnam is currently one of the largest recipients of resources from the Asian Development Fund (ADF). The country is also an important borrower of ordinary capital resources (OCR). The Asian Development Bank (ADB) plans to increase loans to Vietnam to $2 billion in the coming years, President Haruhiko Kuroda said at an earlier meeting with Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in Hanoi. (Tien phong – Pioneer May 5 p9, nld.com.vn May 2, www.adb2011.vn)