At the meeting, Vice Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Ngoc Diep expressed her delight in welcoming Ms. Hoang Phuong Thao to visit and work in Can Tho City. She acknowledged and highly appreciated Ms. Thao’s role in facilitating connections, particularly in supporting the city’s coordination with ActionAid in the Netherlands, which contributed to the success of the city leadership’s working trip to the Netherlands in July 2024.

Providing information on the reorganization of administrative units in line with the Central Government’s policy, the Vice Chairwoman stated that by September 2025, Can Tho City will merge with Soc Trang and Hau Giang provinces to form a new city with an area of over 6,360 km² and a population exceeding 3.2 million people. This is a strategic step aimed at restructuring the management model and maximizing the potential and advantages of the Mekong Delta region.

The Vice Chairwoman emphasized that, according to Decision No. 1519/QD-TTg by the Prime Minister approving the Can Tho City Master Plan for the 2021 - 2030 period with a vision to 2050, Can Tho is designated as a growth pole for the Mekong Delta. It will serve as a center for economy, culture, education, healthcare, logistics, science and technology, and a modern, smart, ecological urban area deeply imbued with the riverine identity of the Southwestern region.

To realize these strategic objectives, the city greatly needs the collaboration of international organizations, businesses, and development partners. In this regard, the Vice Chairwoman expressed her hope to continue receiving support from ActionAid in implementing practical programs and projects aligned with the city’s development goals, such as climate change adaptation, waste management, education and training development, smart urban development, and support for vulnerable groups.

The city leadership committed to creating all favorable conditions for international organizations and foreign non-governmental organizations, including ActionAid, to explore cooperation opportunities and implement programs and projects in the locality. The Vice Chairwoman assigned the Can Tho City Department of Foreign Affairs as the focal point for coordination and urged relevant departments and agencies to collaborate closely, promptly address challenges, and ensure that cooperative programs with ActionAid are implemented effectively and on schedule.

Scene at the working session.

Speaking at the session, Ms. Hoang Phuong Thao, Chief Representative of ActionAid in Vietnam, expressed her gratitude to the leadership of the Can Tho City People’s Committee for taking the time to meet and share important information about the city’s development orientation for the coming period.

Ms. Hoang Phuong Thao noted that, over more than 30 years of operation in Vietnam, ActionAid has been implementing numerous programs and projects in challenging areas such as the Northwest, Central Highlands, and Mekong Delta, focusing on fields like poverty reduction, sustainable agricultural development, women’s rights, children’s rights, gender equality, climate change response, and improving the quality of public services.

In Can Tho City, ActionAid has collaborated with Can Tho University to implement notable projects, including “Community-Based Surface Water Quality Management in the Mekong Delta” and “Enhancing Knowledge on Preventing and Combating Sexual Harassment for Students”. These activities have been carried out in line with commitments, ensuring effectiveness, compliance with legal regulations, and no impact on national security.

Ms. Hoang Phuong Thao expressed her desire to further expand cooperation with Can Tho’s departments, agencies, and social organizations to develop in-depth, practical programs tailored to the locality’s development needs. She also expressed hope that, during the upcoming administrative merger process, ActionAid would continue to receive close coordination from relevant authorities to ensure that ongoing and future projects in Can Tho, Soc Trang, and the broader Mekong Delta region proceed smoothly, on schedule, and with high effectiveness.