25th SEA Games, Laos

Photo:Mr Somsavat Lengsavad ( second left ) accepts funding from the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam and Hong Quang company of Vietnam at a handover ceremony in Vientiane yesterday. –Photo Khamphanh

The Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) and the Vietnamese company Hong Quang have each presented about 850 million kip (US$100,000) to help fund the opening ceremony of the 25th SEA Games.

The handover ceremony took place on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the Lao-Viet Bank in Vientiane yesterday.

Standing Deputy Prime Minister Somsavat Lengsavad, who is also the Chairman of the 25th SEA Games Organising Committee, accepted the funds from BIDV and Hong Quang on behalf of the Lao government.

BIDV Board of Directors Chairman Tran Bac Ha said it was part of the bank's commitment to the development of Laos .

“The bank is not only supporting the Lao-Viet Bank; we have also supported socio-economic development in Laos , including poverty reduction and education in the rural areas,” he said.

Mr Somsavat thanked Vietnam for supporting Laos in several fields of development, and the upcoming SEA Games in particular.

The 25th SEA Games is the first such event to be hosted by Laos , and the country hopes to produce some interesting surprises at the opening and closing ceremonies.

The organising committee has approved the date of the opening ceremony for December 9, while the closing ceremony will take place on December 18.

In regard to this year's SEA Games, the Vietnamese government has helped Laos by training athletes at Vietnamese camps.

Vietnam has also supported Laos by building an athletes' training centre in Vientiane at a cost of about 34 billion kip (US$4 million).

The centre, located in Sikeuth village, Naxaithong district, was officially opened earlier this year.

Another major SEA Games project receiving a grant and soft loan from the government of Vietnam is the athletes' village. The village is being built on a 42,000sqm site at the Dongdok campus of the National University of Laos. It is now 80 percent complete.

The government will spend more than 161 billion kip (US$19 million) on the project.

This amount comprises a loan of more than 127 billion kip (US$15 million) and a grant of 34 billion kip (US$4 million) from Hoang Anh Gia Lai Joint Stock Co of Vietnam . The remainder comes in the form of a soft loan with no defined interest rate.



By Sisay Vilaysack