The World Bank plans to finance four railway projects in Vietnam, according to a Friday discussion between Vietnam’s Ministry of Transport and the bank's representatives.
Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Danh Huy and Sudeshna Ghosh Banerjee, WB’s regional director for infrastructure for the East Asia and Pacific region, agreed on the cooperation.
The four projects are railway traffic safety, a ring line for the eastern part of Hanoi, the Ho Chi Minh City-Can Tho city railway, and Hanoi’s metro line No. 5 (Van Cao-Ngoc Khanh-Lang-Hoa Lac).
Per the WB’s suggestions, the transport ministry will forward the portfolio to the Ministry of Planning and Investment for further progress.
The two sides also discussed other projects, including Bien Hoa-Vung Tau railway (connecting the southern provinces of Dong Nai and Ba Ria-Vung Tau), Pleiku-Quy Nhon expressway (connecting Central Highlands province of Gia Lai and central coastal province of Binh Dinh), Cam Lo-Lao Bao expressway (central province of Quang Tri), and traffic management of expressways and waterways in the southern region.
Sudeshna Ghosh Banerjee said the WB is willing to cooperate with Vietnam, including technical cooperation for metro line projects and non-financial support.
President of the WB Ajay Banga is set to visit Vietnam next month to push the collaboration between the two sides in the next three-four years, including the discussed traffic infrastructure projects, Banerjee added.
Vietnam’s railway infrastructure, with the first project of 71 kilometers dating back to 1881, is now outdated. The country has 3,315 kilometers of railways, with 1,000 millimeter-gauge railways accounting for 80%. The 1,435 millimeter-gauge railways account for 6%, while the rest is a mix of the two systems. The highest operational speed is 100 kilometers per hour.