The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) plans to provide approximately ¥100 billion ($630 million) in official development assistance (ODA) loans annually to support Vietnam’s economic expansion targets.
Mr. Fukuda Chihiro, Deputy Chief Representative of JICA Vietnam Office, announced the plan at a press conference on October 7.
The agency plans to direct these loan facilities toward projects assisting Vietnamese enterprises with technology transfer, business matching, and improved financial access.
JICA executives also noted that the anticipated upgrade of Vietnam’s stock market to secondary emerging market status could attract additional high-quality capital inflows into the domestic economy.
Mr. Kobayashi Yosuke, Chief Representative of JICA Vietnam Office, detailed that the agency’s support strategy focuses on four primary pillars: science and technology human resources, private sector development, business environment optimization, and strategic infrastructure development.
Mr. Yosuke noted that Vietnam’s economic growth over recent decades relied heavily on labor-intensive manufacturing, foreign direct investment (FDI), and global integration. Policy makers are currently pursuing new growth drivers to achieve Vietnam’s ambition of becoming a high-income nation by 2045.
Over the past fiscal period from October 2025 to September 2026, Japan committed ¥89.3 billion ($567 million) across three strategic projects in Vietnam. Funded initiatives include climate-resilient infrastructure development in northern mountainous and midland regions, rural disaster resilience enhancement, and support for green financing policy formulation.
The green financing policy initiative represents a new-generation ODA loan worth ¥50 billion ($318 million), structured as concessional financing featuring streamlined approval and rapid disbursement protocols.
According to JICA representatives, project efficacy is evaluated based on policy issuance, implementation quality, and measurable impacts rather than total capital disbursed. Specific measurable metrics include green bond issuance volumes and renewable energy penetration ratios.
Japanese development support to Vietnam expanded significantly over the past year following a period from October 2024 to September 2025 when no new loan agreements were executed. Prior to the latest commitments, Japan signed a ¥42 billion ($265.6 million) loan agreement in late 2023 for Ho Chi Minh City’s Urban Railway Line 1 connecting Ben Thanh and Suoi Tien.
Japan remains Vietnam’s largest bilateral ODA provider through late 2025. Cumulative Japanese concessional loans to Vietnam have exceeded ¥3 trillion ($19 billion), according to JICA data.
Google translate