With a loan portfolio of more than 367 projects, VDB has extensive experience in loan selection, appraisal, management and financing for climate change projects, mitigation and adaptation projects. For those projects, VDB has to comply with the regulations of the Government of Vietnam under the Laws, Decrees and Circulars for the projects that borrow the State investment credit (domestic investment capital) and regulations of foreign donors (for projects invested with ODA capital). However, the contents of the IRMF approved by the GCF Board are very new and completely different from the regulations that VDB is complying with for existing projects, especially related to the environment and social and gender safeguards. 

VDB wishes to increase its portfolio of green projects with climate change targets in Vietnam. It is expected to mobilize investment capital for these projects from many sources: capital of VDB, capital of foreign financial institutions. 

Additional capacity/support provided for VDB through this IRMF readiness support will play an important role in ensuring that the bank can further enhance staff capacity and improve its policy framework in developing the three above-mentioned project ideas and next possible initiatives in a way that is fully aligned with the requirements of new improved lending policies and procedures as well as the new GCF IRMF. This will play an important role in allowing VDB to complete the preparation of these CNs and FPs in a timely manner and in accordance with the required standards to ensure a smooth and successful GCF review process. This will also allow VDB to scale up climate finance flows for Vietnam to achieve its climate change mitigation and adaptation goals, contributing to the fulfillment of the Vietnamese Prime Minister's commitment at COP26, which is “to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050”.