Vietnam Govt Urges Speedier Site Clearance $200M WB-funded Transport Project

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has asked agencies to quicken the site clearance for a $200 million waterway transport project in northern Vietnam funded by the World Bank (WB). The project was kicked off in 2011 and was scheduled to be completed in late 2013 but the slow site clearance is hindering the project, the Thoi Bao Kinh Te Viet Nam newspaper reported on May 13. Most of the WB-funded infrastructure transport projects in Vietnam are running behind schedule mainly due to capital shortage or sluggish site clearance, the Ministry of Transport earlier said. Since 1993, the WB has provided over $14 billion in credit, loans and grants to help Vietnam sustain growth and fight poverty. (Thoi Bao Kinh Te Viet Nam – Vietnam Economic Times May 13 p3)