This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 08 HANOI 000158 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/BCLTV, EB/IFD/OMA AND EB/IFD/ODF 
STATE PASS USAID FOR ANE/SPO: DMCCLUSKEY AND ANE/AFERRARA 
STATE PASS USTR FOR ELENA BRYAN 
TREASURY FOR OASIA 
USDOC FOR 4431/MAC/IFP/OKSA/HPPHO 
USDA FOR FAS/FAA/STEVE HUETE 
SECDEF FOR ABLAGG 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID EFIN ETRD ECON PREL VM HIV AIDS ETMIN SOE
SUBJECT:  VIETNAM CONSULTATIVE GROUP MEETING 
 
REF: HANOI 02805 
 
¶1.  (U) Summary: The eleventh Vietnam Consultative Group 
of Donors (CG) meeting took place in Hanoi December 1-3, 
¶2003. Donors at the meeting, co-chaired by the Government 
of Vietnam (GVN) and the World Bank, expressed continued 
support to the GVN's action program for 2002-2007 and 
emphasized the need for balance between the pace and 
quality of growth. Additionally, donors raised concerns 
about the growing HIV/AIDS epidemic. In the opening 
session, five key targets were identified for the 
Government and donors: continued implementation of 
policies to reach the country's target of rapid and 
equitable growth; execution and roll-out of the expanded 
Comprehensive Poverty Reduction and Growth Strategy 
(CPRGS) and its integration with the Public Investment 
Program and five-year plan; improving the competitiveness 
of enterprises and the economy; addressing social and 
economic challenges in relation to HIV/AIDS; and 
enhancing the effectiveness of development assistance and 
reducing transaction costs in aid delivery. Delegates 
emphasized the need to promote trade and integration in 
the global and regional economy and to reduce corruption 
and its potential threat to sustainable poverty 
reduction. They also stressed the important role of the 
private sector in future efforts aimed at growth and 
poverty reduction. In a historically candid discussion, 
participants raised concerns about the need for a 
multisectoral coordinated response to the growing 
HIV/AIDS epidemic and addressed gender inequity and 
underserved populations, including ethnic minorities. 
 
¶2.  (U) The U.S. delegation, co-chaired by Ambassador 
Burghardt and USAID Acting Regional Mission Director Leon 
Waskin, made pointed and well-received interventions 
regarding the importance of increased access to capital 
and land, reduction in the size of state sector, the need 
for greater space for private enterprise, and further 
commitment to the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) as a 
means to World Trade Organization (WTO) accession. The 
U.S. delegation also made strong and resonating 
statements regarding HIV/AIDS, encouraging the government 
that the epidemic still can be curbed, stressing the 
importance of reduction in stigma and discrimination and 
of responding with a coordinated and multisectoral 
effort, and stressing the need to keep HIV/AIDS on the 
next CG agenda in order to monitor and discuss progress. 
In the final session, the USG pledged 50 million USD in 
assistance to Vietnam, contingent on the availability of 
funds. This amount reflects an increase of roughly 14 
million USD over the last year's contribution. The total 
contribution to Vietnam in the form of grant and loan 
assistance totaled 2.8 billion USD for the coming year - 
an overall increase from last year's total of 2.5 billion 
USD. This development was viewed as a continued positive 
commitment from the donor community. End summary. 
 
¶3.  (U) The Consultative Group for Vietnam met under the 
co-chairmanship of Mr. Vo Hong Phuc, Minister of Planning 
and Investment, and Mr. Klaus Rohland, the World Bank's 
Country Director for Vietnam.  Deputy Prime Minister Vu 
Khoan and Minister Phuc led the Vietnamese delegation. 
In his opening remarks, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan 
established the overall themes of the meeting: review of 
social and economic achievements under the five year plan 
and the CPRGS, including challenges in balancing rapid 
growth and the quality of growth in the coming years; the 
economy's competitiveness and experiences with the 
enterprise law; the need to address the HIV/AIDS 
epidemic; and harmonization of ODA procedures. DPM Vu 
Khoan noted that relations between donors and Vietnam had 
evolved significantly, and that the country had recorded 
important achievements in the ten years since the first 
CG meeting was held in Paris in 1993. The DPM expressed 
his appreciation for the support provided by the donors 
in the past and stated that Vietnam was looking forward 
to continued cooperation and assistance in the coming 
years, not least in relation to further integration with 
the world economy under the WTO and bilateral trade 
arrangements. DPM Vu Khoan also touched on the importance 
of striking a balance between speed and sustainability of 
development. He closed with a request for assistance in 
developing infrastructure, improving healthcare and 
poverty reduction, encouraging the creation of small and 
medium enterprises, deepening Vietnam's integration into 
the regional and world economy, and enhancing public 
administration reforms. 
 
¶4.   (U) H.E. Mr. Vo Hung Phuc, Minister of Planning and 
Investment, co-Chair of the CG meeting together with the 
World Bank's Country Director, Klaus Rohland, identified 
five key targets for the Government and donors: continued 
implementation of policies to reach the country's target 
of rapid and equitable growth; implementation and roll- 
out of the expanded CPRGS and its integration with the 
Public Investment Program and the five-year plan; 
improving the competitiveness of enterprises and the 
economy; addressing social and economic challenges in 
relation to HIV/AIDS; and enhancing the effectiveness of 
development assistance and reducing transaction costs in 
aid delivery. 
 
¶5.  (U) This year's Consultative Group meeting focused on 
several issues.  The first day of the official meeting 
reviewed progress on socio-economic development during 
2001-2003 and challenges to achieving the goals laid out 
in the Comprehensive Poverty Reduction and Growth 
Strategy (CPRGS).  In addition, there was discussion on 
the competitiveness and effectiveness of Vietnamese 
enterprises, with a focus on ensuring a level playing 
field.  The second day of meetings concentrated on the 
socio-economic challenge of HIV/AIDS, improving official 
development assistance (ODA) effectiveness, and the 
traditional announcement of ODA commitments for the 
following year. 
 
Competitiveness and Sustainable Development 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶6.  (U) MPI Phuc opened the first session with a review 
of the socioeconomic development of Vietnam for the years 
2001-2003 and outlined the measures that the GVN would 
like to take, including maximizing resources from 
external and internal sources, addressing private sector 
resources, ensuring sustainable development, 
administrative reform, good governance, combating 
corruption, and using Official Development Assistance 
(ODA) to speed up disbursement. He noted that growth 
reached 7.3% this year and that the rate should be 
between 7.5% and 8% by 2004. 
 
¶7.  (U) The first discussion session, which was led by 
the representatives of the ADB, UNDP, Australia, and the 
IMF, prompted comments that fit broadly within the themes 
outlined by DPM Vu Khoan. Discussion topics included 
balancing the need for rapid and quality growth, 
promoting trade and integration in the global and 
regional economy, implementing the CPRGS, and undertaking 
large-scale infrastructure projects and the Public 
Investment Program (PIP). The delegation from Australia 
made a particularly pointed statement about the 
inadequacies of the PIP and encouraged the GVN to examine 
the prioritization of investments. This intervention was 
reiterated by the IMF delegation, using this year's World 
Bank report on government spending as a reference. The 
IMF also noted the need to increase transparency in an 
effort to strengthen institutions. 
 
¶8.  (U) The NGO delegation's representative noted the 
widening poverty gap and gender inequality and raised 
concerns regarding the inaccessibility of marginalized 
peoples in the Central Highlands. The NGO delegation also 
highlighted the need to build capacity at the local level 
in a more structured fashion, including input from 
beneficiaries. In concert with the NGO delegation, the 
Like-Minded Donor Group, an ad hoc grouping of nine 
bilateral donors (UK; Denmark; Netherlands; Finland; 
Canada; Norway; German; Sweden; Switzerland), stressed 
that the poverty rate among ethnic minority peoples has 
actually increased. Many delegates spoke about the need 
to prioritize social sector development, with particular 
emphasis on ensuring affordability for the poor and 
providing equitable access to high quality social 
services. They also discussed the need to invest in 
"human" and "social infrastructure," explaining that 
certain investments, such as in early childhood 
development, could yield very high returns. 
 
¶9.  (U) With regard to corruption and good governance, a 
number of participants noted that corruption could pose a 
threat to the sustainability of poverty reduction, as 
some types of corruption impact directly on the poor. 
Donors suggested including corruption as a substantive 
agenda item for next year's CG meeting. They also 
recommended taking far-reaching steps to combat 
corruption as a result of a Swedish-supported diagnostic 
study. This report identified six areas for action on 
which the Government could work immediately: 1) creation 
of a comprehensive legal framework for anti-corruption; 
2) reform of public administration; 3) introduction of 
transparency and accountability; 4) expansion of the 
media's role; 5) SOE and financial sector reform; and 6) 
careful review of the mechanisms for screening policy 
lending. In response, the GVN noted that there had been 
extensive debate on the proposed Ordinance on Corruption, 
which included the possibility of upgrading it into Law. 
The Ordinance also involves establishing a strengthened 
oversight function within the National Assembly. 
 
¶10.  (U) The U.S. Delegation, represented by Leon Waskin, 
noted the need for increased access to capital and land 
for small and medium enterprises. He also noted that 
while the GVN remains committed to a reduction in the 
number of State-owned Enterprises (SOEs), SOEs still 
maintain a majority hold on enterprise in Vietnam. Waskin 
recommended providing more space for the private sector, 
including in infrastructure. Waskin further suggested 
that the GVN should reserve 25-30 percent of 
infrastructure projects for private sector contractors or 
financiers. Finally, he hailed continued commitment to 
the Bilateral Trade Agreement as means of brokering WTO 
accession. 
 
¶11.  (U) In discussions regarding the development of the 
next Public Investment Program (PIP), select delegates 
noted the critical importance of focusing on improved 
efficiency of public investments. Furthermore, these 
investments should be based on an analysis of their 
contribution to growth and poverty reduction. Finally, 
they stressed that one should not assume that all 
infrastructure projects necessarily yield positive 
returns. The World Bank summary of this session 
highlighted that "weak planning, inefficient 
implementation, corruption, and lack of evidence-based 
allocations, all contribute to poor (and worsening) 
performance. This inefficiency diverts resources away 
from other high priority investments. Though large-scale 
infrastructure could play an important role in growth 
promotion, it would not necessarily do so if the wrong 
investments were chosen or if the projects were poorly 
conceived or badly-managed." The Koreans also pointed out 
that their own experience showed that one must 
incorporate environmental protection early into planning 
for sustainable growth, lest costs be greater in the long 
term. The WHO delegation reiterated concerns about poor 
access to quality services for marginalized communities, 
pointing out a growing urban-rural disparity in terms of 
quality and access. Suggestions included higher 
investment in health and education and reform for pricing 
and payment policies. 
 
¶12.  (U) MPI Phuc responded to these comments by noting 
that the GVN has a monitoring system for transaction 
processes. In addition, the GVN reviewed public finance 
mechanisms this year, including management of debt, SOEs, 
customs, and reserves. Though he admitted that the pace 
of equitization has been slow, he reaffirmed that Doi 
Moi, or the opening of the economy, cannot be reversed. 
He reiterated his desire for large-scale infrastructure 
to remain a strong area of focus for international and 
private investment, especially in disadvantaged areas. In 
response to numerous comments made by donors regarding 
the BTA, Phuc said that GVN would look to the United 
States for assistance in carrying the BTA forward and 
will not let disputes stall the process. Finally, he 
asserted that "prisoners of conscience" do not exist in 
Vietnam and, in response to statements made regarding the 
inordinate use of capital punishment, contended that 
capital sentences are delivered only for special cases. 
 
¶13.  (U) The Ministry of Planning and Investment then 
began a review of the integration of the Comprehensive 
Poverty Reduction and Growth Strategy (CPRGS) by noting 
that the number of households below the poverty line had 
decreased from 58 percent in 1993 to 29 percent in 2003, 
meaning that twenty million people had been lifted out of 
poverty.  A new chapter of the CPRGS suggested by the 
Japanese regarding large-scale infrastructure was adopted 
the previous week.  The GVN's goal in making this 
addition was to identify projects in key regions in order 
to cause spin-offs, because Vietnam's lagging 
infrastructure affects the country's competitiveness.  To 
meet the GVN's goals in this area, MPI asserted that it 
must strengthen planning, diversify resources, improve 
maintenance, and decrease costs. 
 
¶14.  (U) A Japanese report on economic growth and 
infrastructure outlined the impacts that include 
investment inducement, regional economic activation, and 
social benefits.  It also elaborated on the requirements 
to sustain projects, including appropriate resource 
allocation, effective inputs to the infrastructure, and 
mitigation of impacts.  The Like-Minded Donor Group 
welcomed the new chapter but pointed out that capital and 
recurrent expenditures must be integrated in order to 
ensure adequate maintenance.  The NGO representative and 
Australia asserted that large-scale infrastructure 
projects are not necessarily pro-poor.  Proper assessment 
regarding investments must be undertaken and utilization 
capacity must be increased.  Furthermore, Australia 
pointed out the necessity of undertaking other reforms, 
because building bridges to take people to markets will 
not matter if these markets are constrained. 
 
Enterprises - Competitiveness and Effectiveness in the 
Vietnamese Economy 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
¶15.  (U) The second session of the meeting focused on the 
Vietnamese economy's effectiveness and competitiveness 
with respect to the laws on enterprises, SOEs, and 
competition. This session also reviewed the outcome of 
the Business Forum session conducted the previous day. 
Dr. Tran Xuan Lich, Vice President of the Central 
Institute for Economic Management, presented the GVN's 
experience with the Enterprise Law over the past four 
years as a key component of the move towards a market 
economy. Lich noted that achievements include a vast 
improvement in business freedom, which is reflected in 
strong output growth and the performance of the export 
sector. He emphasized that the business environment has 
also benefited from the Enterprise Law's spillover effect 
into more general areas, including legal reform and 
institutional development. Lich thanked donors for their 
support in drafting the law and translating it into 
reality. According to Lich, the law's major weakness is 
the limitation of its primary impact to urban areas, with 
barriers to entry remaining high in rural areas. Lich 
also admitted that there remains a great extent for 
improvement of administrative procedures and coordination 
among agencies related to the implementation of the law. 
Lich mentioned that the GVN would place greater emphasis 
on building awareness about the importance of individual 
entrepreneurship in the process of economic development. 
 
¶16.  (U) Led by the Like-Minded Donor Group and supported 
by France, UNDP, and China, donors emphasized the 
importance of the private sector in future efforts for 
growth and poverty reduction. A summary of discussions at 
the Vietnam Business Forum (VBF), where this issue was 
more fully discussed, especially highlighted the 
constructive and frank nature of the exchange between the 
Government and private sector representatives. Delegates 
welcomed the efforts aimed at strengthening Vietnam's 
competitiveness in the context of preparations for WTO 
accession. UNDP noted that following leadership was 
identified as a key factor for success in a nine-province 
review of private sector development. UNDP further 
highlighted the importance of the media. The ADB and IMF 
representatives commented on the continuing difficulty 
faced by private enterprises in licensing and high 
production and transaction costs. The Chinese stressed 
the importance of creating favorable conditions for small 
and medium-sized enterprise (SME) development, offering 
to assist given their experience in Vietnam and the 
region. Some delegates noted the contrast between the 
increasing importance of SMEs in fuelling growth and 
poverty reduction with the fact that this sector remains 
largely informal, in part due to "over-regulation". 
 
¶17.  (U) In response, the Vice Minister of Finance 
explained that VAT reforms will reduce the overall rates 
criticized by donors and that the National Assembly will 
develop a new law on personal income tax. Additionally, 
import tariffs will be reformed in accordance with the 
BTA and an agreement with the EU. To enhance 
understanding of these new laws, the GVN stated it would 
introduce a tax counseling system in major cities. The 
Vice Minister also announced the GVN's intention to 
separate policy making from tax supervision.  Following 
final comments by the delegations from Japan, IFC, and 
Germany, Minister Phuc noted that the GVN plans to revise 
decrees on the private sector, including amending the 
Enterprise Law, Foreign Investment Law, and Domestic 
Investment Promotion Law. He closed the session by saying 
that registration and licensing would be reformed in 
order to treat foreign investors more favorably. 
 
HIV/AIDS - A Social and Economic Challenge 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶18.  (U) Although this session was not the first time 
that HIV was discussed in a CG Meeting, it was the first 
time that it was included officially on the agenda. The 
donor-led discussion for this session was remarkably 
candid and concerted - a stark contrast to the relatively 
uncoordinated response delivered by Professor Le Ngoc 
Trong, Vice Minister of Health. The session opened with a 
Ministry of Health presentation on the draft National 
Strategy on HIV/AIDS developed during the final quarter 
of 2003. The principal objective is to maintain an HIV 
prevalence rate of 0.3 percent or lower through the year 
2010 and to alleviate the socioeconomic impact of HIV on 
the population. Trong noted that the specific objectives 
of the strategy include multisectoral collaboration on 
prevention by targeting 100 percent of ministries and 
provinces, control of transmission among high-risk groups 
through condom social marketing and safe injections among 
drug users, care and treatment for 90 percent of HIV+ 
adults and 100 percent of positive children, anti- 
retroviral medicine for 70 percent of all HIV positive 
people, improved surveillance, and improved blood 
screening. Trong also pledged that the overall investment 
in HIV/AIDS would increase by 50 percent for 2004. 
 
¶19.  (U) Following the GVN strategy presentation, UNAIDS 
presented a summary statement and recommendations of the 
Community of Concerned Partners, an ad hoc consortium of 
international and local partners working in HIV/AIDS and 
chaired by the UNDP Resident Representative. UNAIDS 
outlined lessons learned from the Thai experience and 
outlined four key steps for successful prevention, 
mitigation and support measures including:  1) strong 
political will and involvement, 2) a coordinated 
multisectoral response with inclusion of all relevant 
government offices, 3) inclusion of people living with 
AIDS in the policy and human rights-based dialogue, and 
4) strong anti-stigma and anti-discrimination efforts to 
allow for greater support and open communication. 
 
¶20.  (U) The subsequent discussion was marked by candid 
and resolute remarks by numerous delegations, many of 
whom raised shared concerns. Overwhelmingly, donors 
indicated the availability of ample funding for effective 
prevention and mitigation programs. The LMDG noted the 
increased economic burden of HIV and the need for an 
aggressive multisectoral government, private sector, and 
population-based response. Like many delegates, the LMDG 
touched on the steps necessary to mitigate the epidemic 
effectively, including the destigmatization of HIV, 
strong prevention messages, condom social marketing, 
accessible voluntary testing and counseling services, HIV 
education in the school curriculum, good services for the 
care and support of people living with HIV/AIDS, and the 
involvement of people living with HIV/AIDS in policy and 
program decision processes. Regarding these steps, 
multiple delegates stressed the importance of a 
coordinated, multisectoral response in light of the 
government's recent dismantling of its national 
coordinating body in an effort to centralize the response 
within the Ministry of Health. They also repeatedly 
stressed the importance of increasing efforts to reduce 
stigma and discrimination of people living with HIV/AIDS. 
IMF's personal remarks brought the focus to the human 
level in a way rarely seen at such gatherings.  This 
effectively galvanized the donors and illustrated to the 
GVN the need to continue to address this issue more 
openly. 
 
¶21.  (U) The U.S., represented by Leon Waskin, made a 
resounding statement, which was backed by the World Bank, 
France, and New Zealand. Waskin congratulated the GVN for 
including HIV on the agenda for this year's CG meeting 
and referred to the fact that HIV is one of the top 
priorities on Secretary Powell's foreign policy program. 
He aligned the U.S. with the LMDG recommendations, noting 
that the GVN is still capable of curbing the epidemic 
with strong political will and commitment. Waskin then 
encouraged the GVN and other donors to consider including 
HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and support in all development 
programs. He identified four major focal areas necessary 
for an effective response, including a super-ministerial 
and multisectoral coordinating body, strong political 
leadership at all levels, effective efforts to reduce 
stigma and discrimination for people living with 
HIV/AIDS, and involvement of HIV positive people in 
policy and program decision making. Waskin then 
recommended that members of the CG should maintain 
HIV/AIDS on the agenda in the ensuing years and monitor 
progress. The statement was well-received by the GVN, 
after which Minister Phuc thanked the United States for 
its estimated commitment of 8 million USD for HIV/AIDS 
programs for the year 2004 and Waskin for his 
recommendation that HIV be a part of subsequent meetings. 
 
¶22.   (U) Other delegations, including Canada, Australia, 
Great Britain, and France, stressed concerns regarding 
the cumbersome and lengthy disbursement process for HIV- 
funded programs. The NGO representative noted the need to 
increase the focus on youth, because they are at the 
center of the growing epidemic - a comment also made in 
the UNAIDS presentation in which youth were identified as 
representing almost two-thirds of all new cases. Both the 
European Commission and the ADB hailed the GVN for its 
coordinated response to SARS and encouraged the GVN to 
mobilize parallel efforts across sectors to respond to 
the HIV/AIDS epidemic. 
 
¶23.  (U) In response, Vice Minister Trong of the Ministry 
of Health gave a rather unprepared and relatively 
inadequate response to the concerns raised by the 
delegates. Trong highlighted a few new GVN efforts to 
boost care and support for people living with HIV/AIDS 
and limitations in coordinating all donor support. The 
GVN has not yet implemented its National HIV Strategy and 
will look to do so beginning next year. Minister Phuc 
noted the need to revise the 1995 Ordinance for HIV and 
the increased involvement of higher-level leaders. 
 
ODA Effectiveness and Reducing Transaction Costs 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶24.  (U) The fourth session focused on improving ODA 
effectiveness and reducing transaction costs.  The 
Government presented the details of its "Action Plan on 
Simplification and Harmonization of ODA Procedures" as 
well as its comprehensive capacity building plan for 
effective official development assistance (ODA) 
management. The GVN announced the upgrading of Decree 17 
on ODA management to an ordinance. It noted a number of 
weaknesses in ODA effectiveness, including the absence of 
an ODA master plan, inconsistencies among some government 
regulations on various ODA-related aspects, limited 
capacity among project management units, and complex 
internal GVN decision-making procedures, in addition to 
complex and vague procedures vis--vis some donors. 
 
¶25.  (U) Generally, delegates welcomed the GVN's capacity- 
building plan and ownership of a harmonization action 
plan as a follow up to the DAC/OECD conference in Rome. 
Many also presented their own plans for simplification 
and harmonization of procedures.  Some urged the GVN to 
use the "Harmonization Action Plan" as a framework for 
donor-donor, donor-government and intra-government action 
and to develop a joint Government-Donor forum. They 
suggested that guidelines provided by the DAC/OECD good 
practice paper could be used to improve harmonization 
across various stages of the project cycle. 
 
¶26.  (U) In addition, some delegates urged the GVN to 
continue to develop and improve the GVN's own core 
systems, including public financial management and 
procurement systems, and encourage donors to support 
these efforts. Others stressed the need to maintain a 
diversity of aid instruments, suggesting that aid 
modalities should not be mixed up with aid effectiveness. 
One donor requested that the GVN more clearly elaborate 
its selection criteria in the PIP, as well as the 
relationship between capital and recurrent costs. Many 
agreed that the diversity of views on aid instruments 
should not distract donor attention from the need to look 
for common ground on harmonization and focus on practical 
issues. 
 
¶27.  (U) The NGO representative stressed that the GVN 
should focus on areas with higher poverty rates and 
consider marginalized communities, such as those living 
with HIV/AIDS, trafficking victims, and women and 
children. The delegation noted that infrastructure alone 
will not bring about change - it must be balanced with 
supportive policies that encourage capacity building at 
the grassroots level. The UNDP noted the sensibility of a 
pooled funding mechanism, because it reduces transaction 
costs. The delegation also noted that ODA effectiveness 
depends on the quality of investments and their level of 
efficiency. Some noted that the quality of ODA use 
depends on the quality of public expenditures. Donors 
pointed to a strong role for public administration reform 
at all levels of government in improving aid 
effectiveness. In this regard, the importance of 
distinguishing between administrative efficiency and 
allocative efficiency was observed. 
 
¶28.  (U) Delegates agreed on the need to proceed quickly 
with the design of the "Comprehensive Capacity Building 
Program" with a view to finalizing this program by the 
time of the mid-term CG in June 2004 at the latest.  This 
project would support improvements in the overall 
framework for ODA management, enhance the GVN's capacity 
to manage ODA project instruments, and explore non- 
project aid modalities. The GVN stressed that the 
capacity-building initiative should cover the local 
levels, not being limited to the central level. A number 
of donors offered to help with capacity building at the 
local level and emphasized the importance of greater 
coordination and participation at this level regarding 
ODA utilization and management. The GVN also noted the 
need to build awareness about new aid instruments, 
coordinate national execution of ODA, and provide 
technical assistance in improving effectiveness and 
management. 
 
¶29.  (U) Donors collectively pledged 2.8 billion USD in 
assistance, exceeding the prior year's pledge level by 
three hundred million dollars (i.e. an increase of 12 
percent from the previous year). Waskin indicated the 
USG's intention to provide 50 million USD in assistance 
to Vietnam, subject to Congressional approval and 
availability of funds. In support of Embassy MPP goals, 
this assistance will be comprised of technical training 
and support in numerous faculties including health, 
trade, and the environment, as well as humanitarian 
assistance, disaster relief, education, and food 
assistance. USG agencies involved include USAID, the 
Centers for Disease Control, the Department of Labor, the 
Department of Defense, the Department of Agriculture, and 
the Ambassador's Emergency Response Funding Mechanism. 
 
¶30.  (U) Comment: This year's CG was characterized by 
continued positive support for the GVN's progress in 
developing plans and strategies to increase development 
and combat poverty, with simultaneous concern over the 
need for faster reforms in the banking and SOE sectors. 
Delegates noted a need for more efficient transactions 
and harmonization in ODA disbursement and utilization. 
Comments by the U.S. were well received and supported. 
Following the final session, the World Bank co-chairman 
requested that Waskin report to the Prime Minister in the 
Heads of Delegation and Ambassadors session following the 
CG on concerns raised regarding HIV. Waskin accepted and 
delegated a part of his report to the UNAIDS coordinator 
in a joint collaborative effort. Their presentation was 
well received, with the Prime Minister affirming his 
support and expressing a commitment to the effort. 
BURGHARDT