Finland Aids Vietnam in Water Improvements

At a workshop jointly held by the Vietnamese Construction Ministry and the Finnish Foreign Ministry in Ha Noi on September 12, 2007 the two sides agreed to discuss a future co-operation programme focusing on the issue which Finland will further help Vietnam upgrade safe water supply systems in small towns throughout the country.
According to Deputy Construction Minister Tran Ngoc Chinh, Viet Nam has 729 urban centres and close to 10,000 communes. With urbanisation spreading like wild fire and annual growth rate of urban population of 2.9 per cent, Viet Nam is expected to double its urban population by 2020.
The deputy construction minister said the country would need close to VND15 trillion (US$1 billion) for urban water supply projects, VND44 trillion ($3 billion) for drainage and waste water treatment and VND16.5 trillion ($1 billion) for solid waste treatment.
Finnish Ambassador Pekka Hyvonen said his country began co-operation with Viet Nam in 1985 with an 84 million euro package for a 16-year programme to improve fresh water supply for Ha Noi. The programme, which ended in 2001, helped to build and improve underground water wells, water stations and distribution systems for the capital city.
Finland also poured another 24 million euros into a project in Hai Phong, and an additional 20.8 million euros for similar projects in rural Vietnamese towns.