Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has agreed in principle to the organization of the Consultative Group Meeting for Vietnam in 2012 (CG 2012), the government said on its website. The CG is a platform for discussion between the Vietnamese government and its donors on economic policy, poverty reduction strategy, and the efficiency of official assistance development (ODA). A formal meeting is normally held every December while an informal meeting is held every May or June. The Ministry of Planning and Investment was assigned to work with the World Bank and relevant agencies to identify the modality of the mid-term CG 2012, and propose the PM the organization of the event at a proper time. Besides, the Ministry of Planning and Investment will be responsible for coordinating with relevant agencies to implement Vietnam’s commitments to the previous year’s CG; study donors’ proposals and devise ways to realize them; and ask donors to speed up the disbursement of ODA they pledged to provide. Earlier, at the CG held on December 6, 2011, donors pledged $7.386 billion in ODA to Vietnam in 2012. ODA disbursement reached $2.94 billion in 2010. The figure was forecasted to increase to $3.65 billion in 2011. (Thoi Bao Ngan Hang – Banking Times Jan 5 p2, Giao Thong Van Tai – Transport Jan 5 p2, chinhphu.vn Jan 4)
