The loan was signed on Friday by the Vietnamese Ministries of Finance and of Planning and Investment, and KfW representatives.

This is the third loan for Vietnam to implement its program of developing local SMEs, according to Nguyen Thanh Do, an official of the Finance Ministry.

The program is funded by annual preferential loans by the German government for Vietnam within the framework of the two countries’ development cooperation.

It is also funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) with US$60million, and the French Development Agency (AFD) with $35 million.

After the signing, the program will be launched to support Vietnamese SMEs in the fields of administrative reforms and license issuance under Vietnam’s commitments with KfW, ADB and AFD.

The program also aims to accelerate the issuance of land owner certifications, set up a system of market information, and increase sources of credit for SMEs.

The same day, Vietnam’s Finance Ministry and State Bank and KfW inked a deal of a non-refundable aid totaling 370,000 euros.

The aid will be used to fund a project to provide technical assistance to the State Bank to carry out reforms that would facilitate SME access to financial resources.

(Source: VnExpress, VietnamNet – Compiled by The Vinh)