WB helps Mekong improve transport

WB5 helped improve road and waterway traffic and reduce congestion on main roads and waterways, Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyễn Nhật, who attended a conference yesterday in Cần Thơ to review the project, said.

The work began in 2008, linking HCM City with the delta’s 13 provinces and city at a cost of US$555 million, which included $360 million in IDA loans from the bank, a $45 million GOA grant from Australia, and $150 million from the Government.

Lê Huy Thăng, general director of the Ministry of Transport’s Management Board for Waterway Projects, said WB5 met the target of reducing transportation costs and eased travel between the delta and HCM City.

It helped improve the condition of waterways used for transport and improved transport facilities in remote areas where ethnic minorities live, he said. The financial support provided by the World Bank and Australia was used effectively, contributing to socio-economic development in the area, he said.

The project’s four packages were Package A to upgrade National Highways 53, 54, 91 and build Láng Sắt ferry station on National Highway 53, which was executed by the Directorate for Roads of Việt Nam.

Package B, executed by the Việt Nam Inland Waterways Administration (VIWA), expanded waterway corridors in the north of the region running through Đồng Tháp Mười and Long Xuyên and coastal corridors in the south.

Package C, implemented by local authorities, upgraded provincial roads and local waterways.

Package D by VIWA supported the ministry and local agencies in terms of technology.