(VOVworld)- EU Commissioner for Development Andris Piebalgs has praised the Vietnamese government’s efforts to ensure spending transparency.

EU Commissioner for Development, Andris Piebalgs

The diplomat made the remarks at a signing ceremony to update the UN- EU Guidelines for Financing Local Costs in Development Co-operation in Vietnam – Version 2012. The new version provides clear and transparent guidelines for a tangible contribution to effectiveness in the context of the Hanoi Core Statement on Aid Effectiveness. The updated UN-EU rates are to be used as reference guidelines by all national implementing partners and other counterparts in Vietnam for the local costs of projects funded by UN agencies and the EU and its Member States’ missions in Vietnam. The agreement endorses the use of the new guidelines by UN agencies and the EU and its member states as part of continued efforts to harmonize procedures and reduce the costs of delivering aid from donors. It is expected that the new guidelines will be a benchmark for further aligning donor and government cost norms in the future.