Many industries including agriculture have been affected by the pandemic. — Photo vov.vn

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Tuesday said it was ready to provide Viet Nam with timely and flexible support for the Government’s response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

“The ADB stands ready to provide financial assistance and policy advice to help the Vietnamese Government contain the spread of COVID-19,” said ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa.

“We will consider all options, including quick-disbursing of budget support, policy-based lending, and expedited disbursement of existing loans, to ensure any support package can be approved quickly and disbursed in a timely manner.”

Asakawa discussed options for ADB support in detail with Governor of the State Bank of Viet Nam Le Minh Hung on Tuesday and Minister of Finance Dinh Tien Dung late last week.

He commended the Vietnamese Government on its timely and effective actions to combat the pandemic.

He welcomed the Government’s focus on maintaining economic stability and growth in the medium and long-term, including through expanding public investment expenditure and strengthening social safety nets for poor and vulnerable households.

Last week, ADB announced a US$6.5 billion initial package to address the immediate needs of its developing member countries as they respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"This pandemic has become a major global crisis. It requires forceful action at national, regional, and global levels. With our developing member countries, we are formulating an aggressive set of actions to combat the pandemic; to protect the poor, the vulnerable, and wider populations across the region; and to ensure economies will rebound as swiftly as possible. Based on close dialogue with our members and peer institutions, we are deploying this $6.5 billion rescue package to meet the immediate needs of our members,” said Asakawa.

He stressed that ADB stands ready to provide further financial assistance and policy advice down the road whenever the situation warrants, on top of the $6.5 billion package. — VNS