Out of the total, USD250 million will be used for the Can Tho Urban Development and Resilience Project, to reduce flood risk and improve connectivity between Can Tho city center and the new urban areas, benefiting more than 420,000 urban dwellers, and enhance the capacity of city authorities to manage disaster risk.

The remaining USD310 million will be ear-marked to build climate resilience and ensure sustainable livelihoods of 1.2 million people affected by climate change, salinity intrusion, coastal erosion, and flooding.

“Recent extreme weather phenomena in the Mekong River Delta, including flooding, drought and salinity intrusion, are negatively affecting the lives of people in the region - both in urban and rural areas, most of whom are poor. We believe the projects signed today will contribute to efforts to help the region adapt to climate change in a sustainable manner”, said Mr Achim Fock, Acting Country Director for the World Bank in Vietnam.

The Mekong Delta Integrated Climate Resilience and Sustainable Livelihoods Project supports better climate-smart planning and improved climate resilience of land and water management practices. It will benefit farmers (especially rice) in the upper delta provinces and aquaculture farm and fisher-folk households along the coastal provinces in the region, including the Khmer ethnic minority people living in Soc Trang and Tra Vinh provinces.

The project is a critical part of the World Bank’s long-term engagement in the Mekong Delta to strengthen integrated adaptive delta management by bringing together the different sectors and provinces to plan, prioritize, and implement resilient investments.

Meanwhile, the Can Tho Urban Development and Resilience Project supports the construction of surrounding embankment, tidal gates/valves and improved rainwater storage and drainage systems, as well as other non-structural measures to help the city manage urban flood risk. The project will also help increase intra-city connectivity and encourage new urban development in the less flood prone area of Cai Rang. Under the project, management systems will also be built to improve spatial planning, data and information management and public financial management.

The International Development Association finances USD310 million for the Mekong Delta Integrated Climate Resilience and Sustainable Livelihoods Project, and USD125 million for the Can Tho Urban Development and Resilience Project.

While the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) provides USD125 million for the Can Tho Urban Development and Resilience Project./.