World Bank approves more financing to help Vietnam improve sanitation

The World Bank on Thursday approved US$119 million in additional financing for an ongoing project to respond to key urban development challenges focusing on assuring water supply and wastewater needs in Vietnam.

The new funding for the Vietnam Urban Water Supply and Wastewater Project will mostly be used for a wastewater and drainage subproject for the southern province of Binh Duong, the Washington-based development bank said in a statement.

It will also cover cost overruns due to the appreciation of the US dollar and provide technical support to the Ministry of Construction to prepare a new water supply investment in the Mekong Delta, according to the statement.

Up to 65,872 households with 450,382 people are expected to be connected to clean water sources as a result of the financing, and up to 312,051 urban dwellers will benefit from improved sanitation.

Achim Fock, the World Bank’s acting country director in Vietnam, said in the statement that with the additional financing, achievements under the original project will be “further consolidated and sustained” and more people in Binh Duong will enjoy “better wastewater and drainage services.”

The original project, which was approved by the bank in 2011, sponsored seven water supply and seven wastewater subprojects in 10 provinces, with an average urban population size of 100,000.