The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors has approved a new project designed to strengthen flood protection and transport connectivity in Da Nang City and Gia Lai Province in central Viet Nam. The initiative will benefit more than 1.2 million people by enhancing flood safety, ensuring reliable evacuation routes, and improving consistent access to markets and essential services.
The Integrated Resilient Development Project focuses on minimizing disruptions caused by storms and flooding while safeguarding critical infrastructure and maintaining year-round economic activity. It targets two highly vulnerable yet economically significant areas — Da Nang, a rapidly growing coastal hub, and Gia Lai, a highlands corridor that links agricultural production and industry to the coast. By reducing closures and detours, the project will lower costs for businesses and households while strengthening logistics efficiency.
Mariam J. Sherman, World Bank Director for Viet Nam, Cambodia, and Lao PDR, emphasized the urgency of adapting infrastructure to withstand severe weather. She noted that the project’s objectives go beyond flood protection to include enhancing community safety, bolstering economic connections, and supporting provincial capacity to manage infrastructure that fosters jobs and long-term growth.
In Da Nang, the project will focus on restoring river channels and constructing a flood bypass canal to reduce inundation in densely populated areas, while also protecting essential facilities such as schools and hospitals. In Gia Lai Province, efforts will center on raising and reinforcing critical roads and bridges to secure year-round connectivity between the Central Highlands and Quy Nhon Port, a key outlet for agricultural and industrial goods.
By strengthening reliable access to ports and urban centers, the project is expected to stimulate private investment, create jobs across agriculture, trade, and services, and open new opportunities for tourism and local businesses.
To finance the initiative, the World Bank will provide a loan of nearly US$145 million. The project aligns with Viet Nam’s national strategies on disaster risk management and sustainable infrastructure, contributing to the country’s long-term climate resilience and economic stability.
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