EU aid not to be affected by crisis
Print 
The European Union has assured it will not reduce its official development assistance to Vietnam despite its current economic difficulties.
Sean Doyle, head of the Delegation of the EU in Vietnam, said in the next three to four weeks ODA disbursement could reach 40 million euro ($60 million). The EU is awaiting reports on the general economic situation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The bloc is the major provider of non-refundable aid to Vietnam with a total of $972.3 million earmarked for 2011, or 11.1 percent of total overseas donor commitments to the country.
Of this, 42 percent, or $406.4 million, will be non-refundable aid.
The EU is working with the World Bank and IMF to make policy recommendations to the Vietnamese government at the mid-term meeting of the Consultative Group to be held Thursday in the central province of Ha Tinh.
The EU said it had enough resources to tackle the public debt crisis in several member countries, and therefore there was no concern about its aid to other countries.
The Ministry of Planning and Investment said Vietnam’s ODA disbursement in the first five months is estimated at $1.26 billion, or just over half the targeted amount, with loans accounting for $1.19 billion and non-refundable aid for $70 million.
The commitments for during the period were worth more than $1.66 billion, including $1.63 billion in loans and $27 million in grants.
