(VOVWORLD) - The World Bank and the Ministry of Industry and Trade held a consultation workshop on Friday in Hanoi on mobilizing capital resources for an electrification program in remote, island, and rural areas in the 2021-2025 period.
Speaking at the event, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Dang Hoang An said it takes a lot of money and effort to connect households in rural, island and mountainous areas to the national grid, calling for funding from abroad.
"We’re asking for two important credit packages: 360 million USD from the World Bank and 400 million USD from the ADB, both were submitted to the Ministry of Planning and Investment on December 31, 2019. We are aiming for another loan worth of 141 million USD from the European Energy Transition Programme, 71 million USD of which will be reserved for connecting households to the national grid," said Mr. An.
Rahul Kitchlu, Program Leader for Infrastructure and Energy Sector Coordinator, World Bank, said Vietnam has set an example on electrification for many countries over the past 2 decades.
He said World Bank has mobilized 2 billion USD of its pledged 5 billion USD loan for Vietnam to invest in electrification in the country, saying this is one of World Bank’s priorities for Vietnam. He added that World Bank welcomes Vietnam’s initiative for more outside resources to fulfill its electrification program.