The World Bank (WB) will provide Vietnam with a credit of nearly US $65.3 million, part of a US $79-million project to foster the country’s livestock competitiveness and food safety, according to deals signed by the bank and the State Bank of Vietnam on December 10.
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The signing ceremony of a financial agreement on livestock competitiveness and food safety between the World Bank and the State Bank of Vietnam, Hanoi, December 10, 2009
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The project, to be first implemented in Hanoi, Thai Binh, Ho Chi Minh City and Dong Nai, and then expanded to Hung Yen, Hai Duong, Hai Phong, Cao Bang, Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Long An and Lam Dong, is aimed at improving competitiveness of animal raising households through bettering productivity, quality, food safety and minimizing environmental pollution. It will last till mid-2015.
According to the WB, Vietnam’s agriculture contributes 22% of the country’s gross domestic product and accounts for over 60% of its total labor force. Animal husbandry is expected to account for some 42% of the agriculture sector’s GDP in 2020, up from the current 27%./.