On June 14, the Australian Government and the World Bank formally agreed to extend their partnership in support of Vietnam’s sustainable and inclusive development agenda. The partnership started in 2012 and will now continue until 2026, valued at AUD95 million ($64.37 million).

According to H.E. Andrew Goledzinowski, Australian Ambassador to Vietnam, the extended partnership with the World Bank comes during the 50^th anniversary of bilateral relations between Australia and Vietnam and demonstrates Australia’s ongoing commitment to Vietnamese men and women.

“For Vietnam to realize its ambition of becoming a high-income country in 2045, legislative reform and strong governance continue to be essential,” he said. “We are proud to be supporting this ambition in partnership with the World Bank.”

The partnership is designed to support Vietnam’s development agenda by providing data, analysis, and technical assistance to support policies that are informed, inclusive, and sustainable.

“We are grateful that Australia has made available this additional resource to enable our Australia - World Bank Partnership to support Vietnam in this critical stage of its development as the country looks for ways to achieve its aspiration for high income status in 2045,” said Ms. Carolyn Turk, World Bank Country Director for Vietnam. “The areas of support are of strategic importance for the country, including institutional reforms, social equity and inclusion, the transition to a low carbon economy and innovation-driven growth.”

Over the past five years, the Australian and World Bank partnership has had an impact on more than 58 policies and regulations and helped drive meaningful legislative change.

Recent examples include the Prime Minister’s decision on the Mekong Delta Regional Master Plan for 2021-2030, the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs’ circular on career guidance and job counseling that is estimated to benefit over 2 million students, and its guidance on the rollout of digital social assistance payments to all 63 cities and provinces with approximately 3.5 million beneficiaries. The partnership also provided data that helped informed improvements in childcare services for the Labor Code of 2019.

These successes have led to a renewed commitment to 2026. The partnership will continue to work closely with Vietnam to reflect the needs of the country and its people.