Mekong Resilient Regional Connectivity for Three National Highways (NH 53, 62, AND 91B) Project (WB-P507897)

Regions
  • East Asia and Pacific
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Countries
  • Vietnam
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Specific Location
Tay Ninh Province, Vinh Long Province, Ca Mau Province, and Can Tho City
Whenever identified, the area within countries where the impacts of the investment may be experienced. Exact locations of projects may not be identified fully or at all in project documents. Please review updated project documents and community-led assessments.
Financial Institutions
  • World Bank (WB)
International, regional and national development finance institutions. Many of these banks have a public interest mission, such as poverty reduction.
Project Status
Approved
Stage of the project cycle. Stages vary by development bank and can include: pending, approval, implementation, and closed or completed.
Bank Risk Rating
A
Environmental and social categorization assessed by the development bank as a measure of the planned project’s environmental and social impacts. A higher risk rating may require more due diligence to limit or avoid harm to people and the environment. For example, "A" or "B" are risk categories where "A" represents the highest amount of risk. Results will include projects that specifically recorded a rating, all other projects are marked ‘U’ for "Undisclosed."
Voting Date
Nov 9, 2026
Date when project documentation and funding is reviewed by the Board for consideration and approval. Some development banks will state a "board date" or "decision date." When funding approval is obtained, the legal documents are accepted and signed, the implementation phase begins.
Borrower
Government of Vietnam - Ministry of Construction
A public entity (government or state-owned) provided with funds or financial support to manage and/or implement a project.
Sectors
  • Construction
  • Infrastructure
  • Transport
The service or industry focus of the investment. A project can have several sectors.
Investment Type(s)
Loan
The categories of the bank investment: loan, grant, guarantee, technical assistance, advisory services, equity and fund.
Investment Amount (USD)
$ 251.12 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Project Cost (USD)
$ 370.01 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Bank Documents
Primary Source

Original disclosure @ WB website

Updated in EWS Sep 14, 2026

Disclosed by Bank Dec 11, 2025


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Project Description
If provided by the financial institution, the Early Warning System Team writes a short summary describing the purported development objective of the project and project components. Review the complete project documentation for a detailed description.

According to the Bank’s website, the objective of this project is to enhance connectivity, traffic safety, and climate resilience of three national highways (NH53, NH62, and NH91B), connecting Tay Ninh Province, Vinh Long Province, Ca Mau Province, and Can Tho City in the Mekong Delta Region.

The project will upgrade and rehabilitate the following three National Highways in the Mekong Delta Region: a. NH53 in Vinh Long province (41 km)b. NH62 in Long An province (69 km)c. NH91B in Can Tho City (141 km) The investments will be made on the existing road alignment, except for two bypass sections which would require a new alignment. The highway improvement activities will include measures to improve climate resilience and keep a strong focus on traffic safety, including a pilot on School Zone Safety (SZS). The civil works will include (i) repairing, upgrading and/or widening of about 43 existing vulnerable bridges to climate resilient standards, and (ii) constructing 26 new bridges, mainly in the bypass section of NH53, to climate resilient standards.

Early Warning System Project Analysis
For a project with severe or irreversible impacts to local community and natural resources, the Early Warning System Team may conduct a thorough analysis regarding its potential impacts to human and environmental rights.

Environmental risks are Substantial, reflecting the scale and complexity of works across more than 251 km of three NHs—including bridge upgrades, widening, and new bypasses—in urban, peri-urban, and rural settings, with reversible but significant construction-related impacts that require robust mitigation and oversight. Key risks include hazardous and non-hazardous waste generation and management (oils, chemicals, bitumen, concrete), air/noise/water/soil pollution, spill/fire risks from camps, asphalt plants, and fuel storage, resource efficiency concerns (licensed, traceable sourcing of aggregates, water, energy), and localized biodiversity impacts in modified habitats near waterways (turbidity, riparian clearance). Cultural heritage sensitivities warrant chance find and vibration/access controls.

The social risk rating is substantial due to the scale and complexity of land acquisition and resettlement, the presence of vulnerable and ethnic minority communities, and community health and safety risks associated with construction and labor influx. The project will acquire approximately 120 hectares of land and impact nearly 4,400 households. Around 239 households will need to be physically relocated, with 129 of them also having to move their businesses. Resettlement impacts will include loss of agricultural land, disruption to livelihoods, impacts on informal users, vendors, tenants, and graves. While many impacts are expected to be partial—often involving fences, yards, crops, or small sections of shops—40 households will lose more than 30 percent of their productive land, requiring targeted livelihood restoration measures.

Investment Description
Here you can find a list of individual development financial institutions that finance the project.

Total Project Cost:US$ 370.01 million
IBRD Commitment: US$ 251.12 million


Contact Information
This section aims to support the local communities and local CSO to get to know which stakeholders are involved in a project with their roles and responsibilities. If available, there may be a complaint office for the respective bank which operates independently to receive and determine violations in policy and practice. Independent Accountability Mechanisms receive and respond to complaints. Most Independent Accountability Mechanisms offer two functions for addressing complaints: dispute resolution and compliance review.

CONTACT POINT - World Bank

Task Team Leader: Shigeyuki Sakaki
Title: Senior Transport Specialist
Email: ssakaki@worldbank.org

TTL Contact: Sean Michaels
Job Title: Senior Transport Specialist
Email: smichaels@worldbank.org

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

To submit an information request for project information, you will have to create an account to access the Access to Information request form. You can learn more about this process at: https://www.worldbank.org/en/access-to-information/request-submission

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF THE WORLD BANK

The World Bank Inspection Panel is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who believe they are likely to be, or have been, adversely affected by a World Bank-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the Inspection Panel, they may investigate to assess whether the World Bank is following its own policies and procedures for preventing harm to people or the environment. You can contact the Inspection Panel or submit a complaint by emailing ipanel@worldbank.org. Information on how to file a complaint and a complaint request form are available at: https://www.inspectionpanel.org/how-to-file-complaint

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