Carolyn Turk, Country Director for the World Bank in Vietnam. (Photo from Vietnam Government Portal) CarolynTurk, Country Director for the World Bank in Vietnam, made the statement at a conferenceto announce the Mekong Delta Regional Master Plan and Investment Promotion forthe Period 2021-30 opened on June 21 in Can Tho city.
Congratulatingthe Vietnamese Government on this first-ever regional master plan, she notedthat it demonstrated the whole-of-government approach and a strong commitmentto promoting sustainable development and enhancing the climate resilience ofthe Mekong Delta.
Theplanning highlighted the new mindset and new vision for the region considered aglobal hotspot for climate change, the WB official said, adding that manyestimates suggest increasing climate impacts may, in a year, cost the region upto 70 million USD in the rainy season due to flooding and up to 1.7 billion USDin the dry season due to drought and salinisation.
Shesaid that from a vision and planning into implementation was always achallenge, and there were already some observable trends that would need to beaddressed to spearhead the transformation of the Delta’s economy.
“Forexample, while the Mekong Delta region has made a stellar contribution to theeconomy of Vietnam in the past, it is now the only region in the country wherethe share of districts with poverty rates above the national average increasedfrom 2015 to 2019. This has been further compounded as we know by the dualcrisis of droughts in 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Theregion had also witnessed out-migration over the last years due to climatechange, especially with migrants from the region accounting for about 37 per centof all migrants in the country in 2020, she added.
Carolynsaid the long-term COVID-19 pandemic impacts, global economic turbulence, andmarket uncertainty all made it an exceptional challenge for the region toachieve its ambitious goals and targets set in the master plan and contributeto Vietnam’s goal of reaching high-income status by 2045.
Sheurged the Government to be focusing on efficiency and effectiveness, with astrategic and implementable Action Programme to accompany the Regional MasterPlan, given the estimated financing needs of at least 57 billion USD betweennow and 2030 for the plan’s investment.
“Iam also pleased to see a strong emphasis on private sector engagement and Istrongly encourage you to put in place the necessary enabling regulatoryframework and institutional mechanisms for scaling up private finance,” the WBofficial noted.
Thereis also a need for clear guidance and “consensus of roles and responsibilitiesof all key stakeholders, and a strong engagement and collaboration acrossrelevant sectors and across levels of administration.”
Themaster should also be a “living document” that is adaptive and flexible duringits implementation, with proper feedback mechanism to allow for continuousreflection, assessment, updating, and revision, Carolyn said, adding that arobust monitoring and evaluation framework is also needed to record and assessthe progress being made and ensure quality of implementation.
TheWB said it would continue to support Vietnam as the master plan comes intoimplementation after having contributed to the formulation of the Mekong DeltaRegional Plan, especially in providing underpinnings for the development of themaster plan, policy development and strengthening regional coordination.
“Weare committed to bringing our global knowledge, convening power and financingto work in partnership with the whole-of-government, development partners,private sector, and other key stakeholders to achieve sustainable, climateresilient and inclusive growth for the Mekong Delta,” she said.
Theinstitution had already commenced the preparation of an integrated programme tooperationalise the Regional Master Plan – enhancing the resilience of MekongDelta’s people, livelihoods and assets, and improving regional productivity andcompetitiveness in the face of increasing climate and development challengescompounded by COVID-19 impacts, the WB director said./.
VNA
