Construction transparency urged

Construction experts gathered in Ha Noi yesterday as part of an initiative to tackle corruption in the industry.

“The implementation of the initiative proves the Government is serious about fighting corruption although the responsibility does not just lie with the Government, but with society as a whole, ” said World Bank Country Director Victoria Kwakwa.

In December 2009, the Prime Minister agreed for the Ministry of Construction to implement the initiative, which is funded by the World Bank trust fund with assistance from the UK Department for International Development.

Viet Nam is among seven countries, including Ethiopia, Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, the Philippines, and the UK, where the two-year initiative is being piloted.

The Construction Sector Transparency Initiative workshop, a multilateral cooperation that aims to enhance the transparency and accountability of procuring bodies and construction companies that work on publicly financed construction projects, was the first of its kind in Viet Nam.

Participants of the workshop discussed the causes of corruption in the industry before the focus shifted onto State-invested construction projects, which have a bad record of corruption and transparency.

The initiative aims to review regulations and law relating to construction activities and make public information on ongoing construction projects.

Construction is considered one of the most important sectors to the country’s economic development so increasing efficiency in the industry is vital, said Christiaan Poortman from the International Advisory Group. But to increase efficiency, corruption must first be tackled.

The construction sector remained particularly vulnerable to mismanagement and corruption due to the sheer of contracts, he added. Implementation of the initiative would help the Government to regain public confidence in development programmes and increase the social returns from construction projects.

But playing down the severity of the situation, Deputy Minister of Construction Cao Lai Quang said wastefulness and corruption was not unique to the construction industry in Viet Nam: “Viet Nam is a developing country so infrastruction construction is still a big priority. While problems still exist, especially with projects that draw on State capital, construction continues to be one of the largest contributors to the country’s economy.”

But it should be remembered that State capital only makes up a small proportion of total construction capital investment, he added.

“The State has issued many regulations to prevent wastefulness and corruption: the construction law, the bidding law and the anti-corruption law, tartgeted at the construction industry,” Quang said, adding that a regulation which required information relating to construction projects, from preparation to implementation processes, to be made public in the nation’s media.

Another effort to clean up the state of the construction industry was also launched yesterday by the Japan International Co-operation Agency and the Ministry of Construction. At the meeting a memorandum of understanding was signed which expressed the two parties’ intentions to launch a project to enhance the capacity and quality of the industry.

Under the memorandum, the agency agreed to send Japanese experts to Viet Nam, provide implementation equipment, and sponsor Vietnamese experts to study in Japan.

The project aims at enhancing construction project quality by improving project management methods and codify the responsibilities of participants involved in construction project: project owners, investors, engineers and contractors.

Project implementation will take place over three years.

VOVNews

Tags: Vietnam Construction