Can Tho eyes two highway works at $118-mln cost

In a recent report it sent to the central government on using official development assistance in 2022-26, the city administration called for widening 10-km section of National Highway 61C that runs to Hau Giang at a cost of VND900 billion.

The section will be doubled to 23m and six lanes, including two emergency lanes.

This section is seriously degraded, affecting connectivity between Can Tho and Vi Thanh Town in Hau Giang.

The other project involves the construction of a 27km, 22m wide highway from the city’s Thoi Lai District to Giong Rieng District in Kien Giang Province.

The VND1.8-trillion road will also link up with National Highways 91 and 61, thus strengthening east-west connectivity in the delta.

The city said it wants to use VND1.9 trillion borrowed from the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, German Reconstruction Bank, and French Development Agency for the two projects, and obtain the rest from the government.

The delta, home to Can Tho and 12 provinces and over 17 million people, contributes 17.7 percent of the nation’s GDP.

An agricultural powerhouse, it accounts for 54 percent of the country’s rice output, 70 percent of seafood and 60 percent of fruits.

Lawmakers and officials have been saying for years that the poor connectivity between Ho Chi Minh City and the delta is a developmental bottleneck for the region.