The Vietnamese and Finnish governments have signed a framework agreement to pave the way for public projects in Vietnam to access concessional loans from Finland’s Public Sector Investment Facility (PIF) scheme.

Overview of the signing ceremony.

Vice Minister of Finance Tran Xuan Ha and Finland’s Ambassador to Vietnam Kari Kahiluoto were authorized to sign the agreement on January 21.

Priorities under Finland’s PIF scheme will be projects in fields of poverty reduction, environmental protection, enhancement of climate change resilience, innovation, while supporting Vietnam to further access Finnish modern technologies and improve expertise.

The framework agreement will replace the concessional credit program for Vietnam that ended in 2014.

“The fact that Finland has resumed its financial support for Vietnam, showing the strong bilateral relations and the trust of the Finnish government in Vietnam’s project management and implementation capabilities, as well as its potential for development,” said Mr. Ha.

Vice Minister of Finance Tran Xuan Ha.

According to Mr. Ha, in the coming time, the Ministry of Finance and other government agencies will continue to work with their Finland’s counterparts in identifying suitable projects under the PIF scheme and contribute to the country’s sustainable development.

Finnish Ambassador to Vietnam Kari Kahiluoto noted the framework agreement will open up new opportunities for economic cooperation between the two countries.

Such agreement has taken bilateral relations to a new level from aid support to a fair cooperation with mutual benefits, stated Mr. Kahiluoto, saying the concessional loan will help Finnish companies to better access the Vietnamese market.