Viet Nam’s socioeconomic development has been remarkable, and the country achieved outstanding growth again in 2018 and 2019. This growth was underpinned by robust domestic consumption, which was boosted by low inflation and rising incomes among the country’s growing middle class. The acceleration of industry, notably manufacturing, driven by sizable increases in foreign direct investment, aided the growth momentum. The signing of the European Union–Viet Nam Free Trade Agreement and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership also created more opportunities for the country’s exports.

Viet Nam was one of the founding members of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in 1966. ADB has since supported the country in its achievements in reducing poverty and has more recently been helping to guide Viet Nam’s endeavors to address income inequality and socioeconomic disparities, particularly for ethnic minorities and other vulnerable groups.

ADB’s investments in Viet Nam will enhance transport connectivity, urban development, access to quality education, health security, environmental sustainability, and integration into the regional and global economy.

Viet NamSince 1966, ADB has provided $16.7 billion in cumulative assistance for Viet Nam. Cumulative loan and grant disbursements to Viet Nam amount to $11.1 billion. These were financed by regular and concessional ordinary capital resources, the Asian Development Fund, and other special funds.

On 1 January 2019, Viet Nam graduated to a Group C country, with access only to regular ordinary capital resources.

ADB-SUPPORTED PROJECTS AND PROGRAMSIn 2019, ADB signed sovereign and nonsovereign projects with Viet Nam, with loans and grants totaling $612.56 million and technical assistance worth $14.72 million. These investments will help the country enhance transport

Viet Nam: Cumulative Lending, Grant, and Technical Assistance Commitmentsa, b, c

Sector No.

Total Amount

($ million)d %d

agriculture, Natural Resources,  and Rural Development

103 1,836.26 10.59

education 44 1,116.50 6.44 energy 57 2,834.39 16.35 Finance 55 1,109.42 6.40 Health 43 749.96 4.33 industry and trade 15 201.59 1.16 multisector 7 153.57 0.89 Public Sector management 87 1,823.74 10.52 transport 88 5,917.61 34.13 Water and Other Urban  infrastructure and Services

56 1,594.41 9.20

Total 555 17,337.44 100.00 a  Grants and technical assistance include aDB-administered

cofinancing.b includes sovereign and nonsovereign loans and technical assistance.c Using primary sector in reporting of commitments.d Numbers may not sum precisely because of rounding.

Viet Nam: Ordinary Capital Resources Nonsovereign Commitments by Product, 2007–2019No. of transactions Signed 4

Amount ($ million)Loans 342.60equity investments –Guarantees –Total 342.60– = nil.

Viet Nam: 2019 Committed Loans, Grants, and Technical Assistance ($ million)

Loans

Sovereign NonsovereignTechnical

Assistance Grants Total 576.96 17.60 14.72 18.00 627.28

Notes: Commitment is the financing approved by the aDB Board of Directors or management for which the investment agreement has been signed by the borrower, recipient, or the investee company and aDB.

Grants and technical assistance include aDB-administered cofinancing.

ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANKMEMBER FACT SHEET

Published in may 2020

connectivity and urban development, improve access to quality education and health services, support climate change mitigation and environmental sustainability, promote competitiveness of the domestic economy, and integrate Viet Nam into the regional and global economy.

The new initiatives will continue ADB’s track record in helping the Government of Viet Nam deliver development results. From 2010 to 2019, ADB assisted Viet Nam in constructing or upgrading 3,042 kilometers (km) of roads, 173 km of railway, and 1,727 km of power transmission lines. Over this period, the bank also helped provide 231,379 households with new or improved water supply and 112,255 homes benefited from new or improved sanitation. ADB-supported projects also improved irrigation, drainage, and flood management for an area covering 1,390,827 hectares, benefiting more than 2.2 million households.

ADB has been supporting government efforts to strengthen, deepen, and broaden the reach of Viet Nam’s finance sector. These include improvements in the legal and regulatory framework for financial stability, nonperforming loans

resolution, and bank restructuring. ADB has backed the government in creating an enabling environment for money market and capital market development. It is supporting policy measures to introduce a market-based approach to financial inclusion through development of microfinance and adoption of financial technology. ADB’s private sector operations have also supported finance sector development through a range of activities, including the Trade Finance Program and credit lines for commercial financial institutions to support small and medium-sized enterprises. ADB also helps strengthen capacity development in the finance sector through technical assistance combined with financing.

In education, ADB assistance has seen 973,340 students (of whom 405,425 are female) benefit from new or improved educational facilities, while 401,518 teachers (of whom 170,340 are female) have been trained to higher quality or competency standards.

ADB is committed to sharing knowledge for effective development in Viet Nam, while leveraging a wider range of financial and technical support, including private sector investment and operational participation.

NONSOVEREIGN OPERATIONSAs a catalyst for private investments, ADB provides financial assistance to nonsovereign projects and financial intermediaries. Total commitments from ADB’s own funds (in equity and direct loans) in 2019 amounted to $3.00 billion for 38 transactions in economic and social infrastructure, the finance sector, and agribusiness. ADB also actively mobilizes cofinancing from commercial and concessional sources. In 2019, ADB mobilized $3.28 billion of long-term cofinancing and $3.69 billion of cofinancing in trade finance, microfinance, and supply chain finance programs. Total outstanding balances and commitments of nonsovereign transactions funded by ADB’s own resources stood at $13.78 billion as of 31 December 2019.

PARTNERSHIPSADB remains one of Viet Nam’s top development partners due to its significant contributions in providing financial assistance, knowledge work, and policy advice to the government.

The 6 Banks Group (ADB, Agence Française de Développement, the Japan International Cooperation Agency, the

Viet Nam: Projects Cofinanced, 1 January 2015–31 December 2019Cofinancing No. of Projects Amount ($ million) Sovereign 31 1,751.43 Loans 5 1,684.87 Grants 10 32.32 technical assistance 16 34.23Nonsovereign 3 4,826.17

Viet Nam: Project Success Rates

YearSuccess Rate

(%)

No. of Independently Evaluated Projects

and Programs2007 100.0 22008 100.0 42009 85.7 72010 – 12011 100.0 32012 100.0 22013 50.0 42014 83.3 62015 75.0 42016 75.0 42017 66.7 62018 100.0 12019 77.8 9Total 79.2 53– = nil.

Note: the success rates reported are based on the ratings from validated PCRs and independently evaluated performance evaluation reports only and do not include self-evaluations. the ratings are reported not by calendar year but for the year ending June (e.g., 2019 success rates are derived from success rates of validated PCRs and PPeRs completed from July 2018 to June 2019). With small sample sizes, success rates do not necessarily represent country operations performance.

Source: PCR validation reports and project/program performance evaluation reports ratings database as of 31 December 2019.

Viet Nam: Portfolio Performance Quality Indicators for Sovereign Lending and Grants, 2018–2019No. of Ongoing Loansa (as of 31 Dec 2019) 47

2018 ($ million) 2019 ($ million)Contract awardsb, c 231.40 170.96Disbursementsb 515.99 360.35No. of Ongoing Grantsa (as of 31 Dec 2019) 2

2018 ($ million) 2019 ($ million)Contract awardsb, c, d – – Disbursementsb, d – – actual Problem Projects (%) (as of 31 Dec 2019) 14– = nil.a Based on commitments.b includes closed loans/grants that had contract awards or disbursements during the year.c excludes policy-based lending/grants.d includes only asian Development Fund and other aDB special funds.

Viet Nam: Share of Procurement Contracts for Loan, Grant, and Technical Assistance Projects

Item

2018 2019Cumulative

(as of 31 Dec 2019)Amount

($ million)% of Total

Amount ($ million)

% of Total

Amount ($ million)

% of Total

Goods, Works, and  Related Services

343.48 2.77 215.76 1.51 7,322.53 3.77

Consulting Services 9.65 1.37 13.60 1.82 174.59 1.30 Total Procurement 353.13 2.70 229.35 1.53 7,497.12 3.61

Export–Import Bank of Korea, German development cooperation through KfW, and the World Bank) coordinates closely during country programming missions and sector working group meetings.

In 2019, ADB worked with other development partners, especially the 6 Banks Group, to help the government revise its regulations on official development assistance (ODA) and concessional loan management, including priorities for development partner financing. ADB also collaborated with other development partners to support the preparation of Viet Nam’s Socio-Economic Development Plan 2021–2025.

FINANCING PARTNERSHIPS Financing partnerships enable ADB’s development partners, governments or their agencies, multilateral financing institutions, and commercial organizations to participate in financing ADB projects. The additional funds are provided in the form of loans and grants, technical assistance, and other nonsovereign cofinancing such as B loans, risk transfer arrangements, parallel loans and equity, guarantee cofinancing, and cofinancing for transactions under ADB’s Trade Finance Program and Supply Chain Finance Program.

ADB began cofinancing operations in Viet Nam in 1972. Since then, sovereign cofinancing commitments for Viet Nam have amounted to $4.59 billion for 59 investment projects and $132.22 million for 96 technical assistance projects. Nonsovereign cofinancing for Viet Nam has amounted to $8.62 billion for four investment projects.

In 2019, Viet Nam received a total of $10.48 million in grants and cofinancing from the Government of Australia and the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction for three investment projects.

A summary of projects with cofinancing from 1 January 2015 to 31 December 2019 is available at www.adb.org/countries/viet-nam/cofinancing.

PROCUREMENTEach year, ADB provides loans, grants, and technical assistance to fund projects and activities in its developing member countries and several billion dollars in contracts to procure goods, works, and consulting services. Most contracts are awarded on the basis of international competition, which is open to firms and individuals from any ADB member, regional or nonregional.

Share of ADB’s Procurement Contracts

Goods, Works, and Related ServicesADB’s procurement contracts in Asia and the Pacific for goods, works, and related services under loan and grant operations totaled $12.38 billion in 2018 and $14.27 billion in 2019. Cumulative procurement since 1966 has been $194.28 billion covering 219,119 contracts.

In Viet Nam, 11,055 contracts worth $7.32 billion have been awarded to contractors and suppliers since 1966.

Consulting ServicesADB’s procurement contracts in Asia and the Pacific for consulting services under loan, grant, and technical assistance operations

totaled $706.15 million in 2018 and $745.02 million in 2019. Cumulative procurement since 1966 has been $13.4 billion covering 63,327 contracts.

In Viet Nam, 2,190 contracts worth $174.59 million have been awarded to consultants since 1966.

OPERATIONAL CHALLENGESViet Nam is most at risk from the impacts of climate change, with extreme weather events becoming more common. A rapidly aging population also presents major demographic challenges for the government.

Public and publicly guaranteed debt in Viet Nam increased to 63.7% of gross domestic product in 2016. This led to legislative action to curb spending and reduce public debt, including the government imposing rigid ODA disbursement ceilings. Although fiscal constraints eased in 2018 and 2019, ODA disbursement continues to be delayed by lengthy budget preparation and approval processes. Other challenges include complex government procedures and regulations for project processing and procurement practices that limit project readiness.

To address these issues, ADB and other members of the 6 Banks Group are encouraging the government to streamline medium-term investment planning processes, accelerate ODA budgeting to meet disbursement needs, update ODA management and utilization regulations, and strengthen procurement capacity.

Top 5 Consultants from Viet Nam Involved in Consulting Services Contracts under ADB Loan, Grant, and Technical Assistance Projects, 1 January 2015–31 December 2019

Consultant SectorContract Amount

($ million)amDi (asian management  & Development institute)

aNR, eDU, iND, PSm, WUS

7.59

Vica Consultants international Ltd. aNR 4.65 Viet Nam Water, Sanitation  & environment JSC

WUS 3.25

Center for Development  of Community initiative  & environment

aNR 2.49

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer FiN, mUL 1.63 individual Consultants 13.22 Others 30.75 Total 63.58 aNR = agriculture, natural resources, and rural development; eDU = education; FiN = finance; iND = industry and trade; mUL = multisector; PSm = public sector management; WUS = water and other urban infrastructure and services.

Top 5 Contractors/Suppliers from Viet Nam Involved in Goods, Works, and Related Services Contracts under ADB Loan and Grant Projects, 1 January 2015–31 December 2019

Contractor/Supplier SectorContract Amount

($ million)Civil engineering Construction  Corp.

tRa 64.13

Power Construction JSC No. 1 eNe 57.90 Sai Gon Ha Noi Commercial  Joint Stock Bank

PSm 43.01

Bmt Construction investment JSC tRa 40.70 Bach Dang Construction Corp. eNe, tRa, WUS 40.45 Others 1,924.61 Total 2,170.80 eNe = energy, PSm = public sector management, tRa = transport, WUS = water and other urban infrastructure and services.

ABOUT VIET NAM AND ADB

ADB Membership Joined 1966

Shareholding and Voting PowerNumber of shares held: 36,228 (0.341% of total shares)Votes: 75,342 (0.567% of total membership, 0.870% of total regional membership)Overall capital subscription: $500.97 millionPaid-in capital subscription: $32.51 million

In-chang Song is the Director and Yu-Peng (James) Tseng is the Alternate Director representing Viet Nam on the ADB Board of Directors.

Andrew Jeffries is the ADB Country Director for Viet Nam. The Viet Nam Resident Mission was opened in 1997 and provides the primary operational link for activities between ADB and the government, the private sector, and civil society stakeholders. The resident mission engages in policy dialogue and acts as a knowledge base on development issues in Viet Nam.

The Viet Nam government agencies handling the partnership with ADB are the State Bank of Viet Nam, Ministry of Finance, and Ministry of Planning and Investment.

ABOUT THE ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANkADB is a multilateral development bank owned by 68 members, 49 from the region and 19 from other parts of the world. ADB’s main instruments for helping its developing member countries are policy dialogue, loans, equity investments, guarantees, grants, and technical assistance. In 2019, lending volume was $20.47 billion (133 projects), with technical assistance at $237.31 million (252 projects) and grant-financed projects at $844.07 million (31 projects). In addition, $11.86 billion was generated for sovereign and nonsovereign cofinancing in the form of loans and grants, B loans, risk transfer arrangements, guarantee cofinancing, parallel loans, parallel equity, and cofinancing for transactions under ADB’s Trade Finance Program. From 1 January 2015 to 31 December 2019, ADB’s annual lending volume averaged $17.41 billion. In addition, investment grants and technical assistance funded by ADB and Special Funds resources averaged $702.60 million and $202.27 million over the same period. As of 31 December 2019, the cumulative totals excluding cofinancing were $296.28 billion in loans for 3,221 projects in 44 countries, $10.23 billion in 409 grants, and $4.72 billion in technical assistance grants, including regional technical assistance grants.

CONTACTS

Viet Nam Resident MissionAsian Development Bank3rd Floor, CornerStone Building16 Phan Chu Trinh StreetHoan Kiem District, Ha Noi, Viet NamTel +84 24 39331374Fax +84 24 39331373adbvrm@adb.orgwww.adb.org/viet-nam

ADB Headquarters6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City1550 Metro Manila, PhilippinesTel +63 2 8632 4444Fax +63 2 8636 2444

State Bank of Viet Nam 25 Ly Thuong Kiet StreetHoan Kiem District, Ha Noi, Viet NamTel +84 24 39343364Fax +84 24 38250612adbdivision@sbv.gov.vnwww.sbv.gov.vn

Useful ADB websites

Asian Development Bankwww.adb.org

Annual Reportwww.adb.org/documents/series/adb-annual-reports

Asian Development Outlookwww.adb.org/publications/series/asian-development-outlook

ADB Data Librarydata.adb.org

FUTURE DIRECTIONSADB is currently preparing a country partnership strategy to support Viet Nam over 2021–2025. The new strategy will incorporate priorities of Viet Nam’s Socio-Economic Development Plan 2021–2025 and ADB’s Strategy 2030. It will also take into account

the government’s changing appetite for ODA.

ADB will help Viet Nam build a core pipeline of projects that includes more responsive financing modalities and value-adding innovations and technologies that can leverage either more concessional cofinancing or

increased private sector participation, including through public–private partnerships. The bank will continue to support climate change adaptation and mitigation measures to respond to the heightened environmental risks facing Viet Nam. It will also explore the possibility of financing multisector projects at the subnational government level.

Notes:ADB welcomed Niue as its 68th member in March 2019.ADB recognizes “Korea” as the Republic of Korea.Figures are estimated by ADB unless otherwise stated. “$” refers to United States dollars.Data are updated as of 31 December 2019 unless otherwise indicated.