RoK approves US$77 million loan for Vietnam

The Republic of Korea (RoK)’s Ministry of Strategy and Finance on May 19 approved a US$77 million loan for irrigation systems upgrade projects in Vietnam’s central provinces of Thanh Hoa and Nghe An.

An irrigation system in Nghe An province
An irrigation system in Nghe An province

The loan will be provided through the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF).

The two projects will construct dykes and canals to bring water from Thanh Hoa’s Len river and Nghe An province’s Hoang Mai river to water local fields, while contributing to improving the environment, and coping with climate change and rising seawater levels.

Earlier, a working delegation from EDCF and the RoK’s Bank of Export-Import (EximBank) conducted field research in the two provinces in late 2014.

EDCF was founded by the RoK government in 1987 and is currently run by EximBank. The fund aims to provide preferential loans for poor and under-developed countries to help them build infrastructure and contribute to bolstering economic relations between the RoK and other countries.

According to the RoK’s Ministry of Strategy and Finance, which decides on the provision of EDCF loans, the country had lent KRW11 trillion (US$10 billion) via EDCF funding as of the end of 2014, and plans to lend another KRW1.4 trillion this year.