HANOI, November 2 (Engineering Daily) -- The Asian Development Bank has approved a $ 170 million loan to help Vietnam improve urban infrastructure and respond to climate change in Hue, Vinh Yen and Ha Giang. The project will benefit 116,000 households.
According to ADB, more than 30 million people live in urban in Vietnam, but the impact of urbanization is uneven across the country. Unlike Hanoi and other developed urban centers, secondary cities with populations of 50,000 to 300,000 people, such as Hue, Vinh Yen and Ha Giang, are growing more slowly. For example, less than 60% of households in secondary cities have access to clean water and only 10% of sewage is properly treated.
The Secondary Green Urban Development Project (Green City) will help these cities become more livable, environmentally friendly and adaptable to climate change.
For Vinh Yen, the project will build a new wastewater treatment system, upgrade 66.1 km of drainage ditches, dredge Dam Vac lake and build 44.5 hectares of new green public space.
In Hue, the project will upgrade 21.9 km of drainage pipes, renovate 15.9 km of road surface and sewers and build 17.2 hectares of green space along with other items.
In Ha Giang, the project will rehabilitate about 7 km of urban sewers, reinforce 5.6 km of embankment and strengthen the urban road network with 6.2 km of road and a 150 m long bridge to help to allocate traffic flow.
In addition to loans, ADB will also provide technical assistance with a total capital of $ 14.1 million in cooperation with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and a $ 6 million non-refundable aid from the Global Environment Fund. And technical assistance will integrate green urban development approaches and adapt them to government agencies through policy advice and capacity building, as well as to replicate this approach to other cities in Vietnam.
