Anti-flooding projects in HCM City halted following ODA cut

Authorities in Ho Chi Minh City are now uncertain about how to mobilize capital for major anti-flooding projects after the World Bank ended its official development assistance (ODA) last month.

The municipal People’s Committee and the WB in June agreed to terminate the US$400 million in ODA for the Tham Luong-Ben Cat-Nuoc Den Canal project, causing it to be halted halfway.

The plan to renovate Hy Vong Canal, which is intended to alleviate inundation in Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Tan Binh District, is also affected by the cut.

The canal renovation was expected to give the city a facelift and improve the lives of two million residents in eight districts.

The first phase of the project has been finished, which included dredging the canal bottom and building roads along the waterway.

The second phase involves the construction of tidal drainage facilities at two ends of the canal and a pipeline system to direct wastewater to a treatment plant in Tan Phu District.

These components were anticipated to be carried out in the 2017-20 period, as long as the ODA package would be provided by the WB.

Regarding the Hy Vong Canal project, Tran Dang Nghia, an official from the Steering Center of the Urban Flood Control Program, stated it is the only solution to flooding at the airdrome as previous measures did not work.

Mời quý độc giả theo dõi VOV.VN trên