The under-construction East-West Highway in Ho Chi Minh City is a project funded by Japan’s aids

Japan’s official development assistance to Vietnam was likely to decrease this year compared to the record loan of 202.3 billion yen (US$2.2 billion) given last year, according to a press briefing on Monday.

However, normal assistance may exceed that of last year, he added.

He said as much as $500 million of last year’s loan was approved in November to help Vietnam cope with the global economic crisis.

The recipient of the largest ODA from JICA, Vietnam is supposed to repay debt and interest of about 20-25 billion yen ($220-270 million) a year, he said.

But JICA wasn’t concerned about the country’s capacity to repay the debt, he noted, adding that since last year the country had started servicing loans taken in the 1992-1999 period.

Source: Thanh Nien, Tuoi Tre