Korea Eximbank officially opened its first representative office in Hanoi on May 4 with the purpose of supporting Korean businesses operating in Southeast Asia.
The bank also aims to contribute to the development and promotion of economic cooperation between Vietnam and Korea through the effective use of the RoK Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF).
Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai attended the bank’s ribbon-cutting ceremony yesterday.
Vietnam is presently the biggest recipient of EDCF-funded projects. By 2010, more than 1.4 trillion KRW (US$1, 4 billion) supported 36 varied projects in Vietnam.
EDCF funded projects included the Hanoi-Hai Phong highway, Trung Luong highway linking Ho Chi Minh City with the Mekong Delta, Vinh Thinh Bridge in Hanoi and the Van Cong Bridge.
The Korean ambassador stated that Vietnam had received the maximum funding amongst the 45 recipients of EDCF funds. By the end of 2009, the total amount of funds approved for Vietnam reached $985 million for 30 projects, accounting to 20% of the total fund for 2009.
In addition, RoK has provided non-returnable aid worth more than US$ 108 million to Vietnam from 1991 to 2009, in field like communications, education, healthcare, environment and industrial infrastructure.
The ambassador also emphasised that after establishing diplomatic relations in 1992, the economic relations between the two countries have developed rapidly, both in quantity and in quality. The two-way trade relation between Vietnam and Korea has increased 19 times (from US $ 500 million in 1992 to US $ 9.5 billion in 2009) and investments have increased 100-fold (from US $ 200 million to US $ 20.5 billion).
