Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Van Trung and Japanese Ambassador to Viet Nam Hiroshi Fukada at the signing ceremony. The loan is expected to enable the Vietnamese Government to improve socio-economic infrastructure and the competitiveness of the national economy. — Photo Danh Lam

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — The Japanese Government will provide the Vietnamese Government with an JPY11 billion loan in the 2016 fiscal year to help improve socio-economic infrastructure and the competitiveness of the national economy.

A diplomatic note to this effect was signed by Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Van Trung and Japanese Ambassador to Viet Nam Hiroshi Fukada in Ha Noi on September 6.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Deputy Minister Trung hailed Japan as Viet Nam's largest bilateral ODA supplier, pledging that the ODA will be used effectively, contributing to further deepening the bilateral economic strategic partnership.

The above sum, equivalent to US$106 million, will enable the Vietnamese Government to carry out the third phase of the Economic Management and Competitiveness Credit programme (EMCC), which aims to strengthen reform in several priority fields as part of the 2016-2020 socio-economic scheme adopted by the National Assembly last April.

Japanese Ambassador Fukada expressed hope that the Vietnamese Government would use the loan productively and transparently, contributing to helping the country with administrative and financial institution reform.

He also took the occasion to urge Viet Nam to pay attention to personnel training and effective policy enforcement.

With this loan, the Japanese Government has so far committed nearly JPY2.8 trillion in ODA to Viet Nam.

Based on the diplomatic note, the Vietnamese Finance Ministry and the Japan International Co-operation Agency will sign a specific lending agreement in the future. — VNS