Ha Noi (VNA) - "We are working with the government on the anti-corruption issue, and the number of steps that the Vietnamese government is taking is impressive," said Rakesh Nangia, Manager of Portfolio and Country Operations of the World Bank (WB) in Viet Nam .
Talking with Vietnamese reporters in Ha Noi on May 12, Nangia cited the proposed changes in the country's civil service -- public administration reform, public financial management and transparency of budget allocation and spending, as promising anti-corruption efforts by the Vietnamese government.
Nangia also stressed customs modernisation and reform, a project which has recently been launched, and preparations for an upcoming tax reform project. "You see all of these elements to improve the anti-corruption agenda," he said, adding that "the proposed reforms with customs is promising."
He went on to say that "the strength and willingness of senior leadership are very impressive. In other countries we do not see that... In Viet Nam , fortunately we’ve seen very strong and aggressive leadership which wants to handle and tackle the corruption issue."
Nangia also stressed the importance of measures taken by the Vietnamese government to address the corruption issue. "I think there has been recognition by senior leadership on the importance, and an acceptance by senior leadership of moving forward quickly and aggressively on the anti-corruption issue. The PMU 18 story only highlighted the need for urgency."
He mentioned that the WB has completed 20 projects in Viet Nam , of which 17 have been formally evaluated by the WB's Independent Evaluation Group. All 17 evaluations show that these projects achieved satisfactory outcomes and are likely to be sustainable. "So we are sure of the past anyway, that in the past all the projects have been rated satisfactory. They have also been rated satisfactory by the government’s evaluation. The key of course is how to make sure that the satisfactory completion continues," he added.
Nangia also informed reporters of the WB's mission to arrive Viet Nam to evaluate the use of two WB loans managed by PMU18. The group, constituting roughly 10 members, will begin their fieldwork on June 1, and which will last for around three weeks.-Enditem |