Nha Trang, Vietnam, April 8, 2010 – Mr. Juan Jose Daboub, Managing Director at the World Bank, participated today in the 14th ASEAN Finance Ministers Meeting in Nha Trang along with the Asian Development Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Mr. Daboub congratulated ASEAN on the coordinating role it played from the time the global economic crisis started. He also conveyed to the Ministers that the developing countries of the East Asia & Pacific region are the first to emerge from the global economic crisis. These countries have the potential to grow rapidly in the next decade despite the uncertainties in the global economy, if they implement reforms with renewed vigor and cooperate further on regional economic integration and climate change.
On the margins of the ASEAN Finance Ministers’ Meeting, WB Managing Director Juan Jose Daboub discussed with Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung and Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam, Nguyen Van Giau recent economic and social developments in Vietnam and how Vietnam and the World Bank can further strengthen their partnership in support of Vietnam’s development.
Mr. Daboub stressed the World Bank’s willingness to continue its support to Vietnam in ensuring that macroeconomic challenges in the aftermath of the global crisis are adequately addressed. The World Bank will continue to assist Vietnam’s transition to a market economy with country ownership, including through technical assistance to define needed reforms. The Bank will seek to scale up its financial assistance to Vietnam to help close the infrastructure gap, strengthen access to basic social services, particularly in poorer ethnic minority communities, and tackle emerging middle income country challenges such as building a strong skills base, strengthening research and technology and expanding targeted social protection systems. The Bank will also focus a significant part of its support towards helping Vietnam address the challenge of sustainable generation and access to energy.
He announced that the World Bank’s financial commitments since July 2008, just before the global financial crisis spiked, have reached US$100 billion. In addition, the World Bank and four regional development banks, aiming to crack down on corrupt practices in developing countries, have agreed to jointly blacklist any company that one of the banks finds has committed graft or collusion.
For their part, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung and Governor Nguyen Van Giau all expressed the country’s support for a World Bank capital increase, and hope that the World Bank will continue to provide Vietnam with valuable support for the country’s socio-economic development.
