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Swathes of Hanoi demolished for urban redevelopment

logged, according to three sources familiar with the matter. “Countries are definitely in wait-and see mode,” said one of the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Kevin Gallagher, director of the Global Development Policy Center at Boston University, said countries were more willing to seek World Bank funds than negotiate with the IMF because IMF programmes generally require austerity measures that could compound the social unrest already seen in countries like Kenya. – Reuters India fuel retailers raise prices for third time this month NEW DELHI: Indian state owned fuel retailers raised petrol and diesel prices for the third time this month, dealers said on Saturday, as the companies look to recoup losses caused by elevated crude oil prices amid the Iran war. Petrol in New Delhi will cost 0.87 rupees more at 99.51 rupees (RM4.10) a litre, while diesel prices will be raised 0.91 rupees to 92.49 rupees per litre, dealers said. India, the world’s third largest importer and consumer of oil, was one of the last major economies to raise retail fuel prices after the US-Israeli war on Iran triggered a surge in prices globally. The price of fuel has become roughly 5 rupees more expensive over the three price increases. The fuel price rise announced on May 15 was India’s first in four years. The companies are raising pump prices in a staggered manner, similar to the way they did in April 2022, when they increased retail prices after elections in some key states, including northern Uttar Pradesh. Opposition parties have said the government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi had postponed the current price increases to try to win votes in recent state elections. Still, sources at refiners have said more price increases are needed to recoup the losses. Bharat Petroleum (BPCL) continues to incur a revenue loss of 25 to 30 rupees per litre on diesel and 10 to 14 rupees per litre on petrol despite the higher prices, the refiner’s chairman said earlier this week. India’s oil ministry has said the government has no plans to provide financial support for refiners. BPCL, Indian Oil Corp and Hindustan Petroleum together control more than 90% of a network of 103,000 fuel stations and tend to set prices in tandem. – Reuters

in this giant restructuring of Hanoi.” A city of less than half a million for most of its thousand-year history, Hanoi grew dramatically in the 1980s and 1990s as Vietnam underwent market-oriented reforms. Many migrants from the countryside built homes on land they did not formally own, creating sprawling, semi-planned neighbour hoods with narrow, winding streets. The city has since formalised construction and embarked on multiple rounds of renovation. But those plans “were often joked about because they stayed as posters on the wall and little was implemented”, according to Danielle Labbe, an urban planning professor at the University of Montreal who focuses on Vietnam. Now the 100-year master plan is charging ahead. Top leader To Lam has declared a “new growth model” that includes a major building blitz. He preaches less red tape and faster decision-making, leading to a flurry of project approvals, analysts say. With seven new bridges planned and more than 1,200km of metro and rail lines, the Hanoi redevelopment is

(RM79.3 billion to RM 99.1 billion). He said the bank could also reorient parts of its portfolio to bring the total to US$60 billion over six months, with further longer-term changes possible to bring the total to around US$100 billion. At the time, the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Georgieva, said she expected up to a dozen countries to seek US$20 billion to US$50 billion in near-term assistance from the global lender. But few requests have been expected to cost more than US$2.5 trillion over two decades. Roads are also being widened and drainage systems improved in anti cipation of flooding risks stemming from climate change. More than 11,000 hectares along the river is slated to become a network of residential developments and parks – with roughly 250,000 residents relocated to make way. State media reported that overall, as many 860,000 could be uprooted. Authorities denied the figure but did not specify an alternative. Hanoi’s architecture and planning department did not immediately respond to AFP requests for comment. Many Hanoi residents support modernisation, with Labbe calling the population “very pro-development”. But the rapid pace of change and lack of public consultation has bred resentment. The master plan ran to more than 1,000 pages, according to Labbe, but was only “opened for comment for something like 10 or 15 days”. “Plans didn’t use to be approved and implemented so fast,” she said. Ho Chi Minh City also has a 100 year master plan, as Vietnam embarks on an infrastructure drive that parallels its giant Communist neighbour to the north, both in scale and execution. “To me, the influence of Chinese planning is very clear,” said Labbe. Retired house cleaner Phan received her final eviction notice in February and her four-storey home is slated for demolition this week. The 10-person, three-generation household split up and moved in with other relatives. Authorities offered a slight discount on a much smaller apartment costing US$76,000. But because like many they did not have title to the land under their home, they were only compensated $19,000 for building costs. “So now the family is in a very difficult situation and has to borrow money,” said Phan, 69. “Our family used to eat together, sit together, and live happily as three generations under one roof,” she said, breaking into tears. “Now the family is broken apart, everyone scattered in different places. There is no pain greater than this.” – AFP

o Hundreds of thousands could be displaced for construction of new bridges, subway lines and riverside developments under a ‘100-year master plan’ for the Vietnamese capital

HANOI: Rows of townhouses torn down in hours, roads ripped up by bulldozers and city blocks reduced to rubble in the name of progress – giant construction sites litter Hanoi as it races ahead with urban renewal. A “100-year master plan” for the Vietnamese capital includes new bridges, subway lines and riverside developments. Hundreds of thousands could be displaced to make way for construction, authorities say, as the city of eight million prepares to accommodate twice as many people by 2045. The country’s leaders hope Vietnam will be a developed nation by then, buoyed by breakneck growth and spurred by their huge infra structure investments. But the speed of implementation has unnerved residents, made some

homeless and left many more fearing the same fate. “I have never seen authorities acting that quick,” said Hung, a 51 year-old businessman whose house was torn down last month for a US$750 million (RM2.97 billion) bridge spanning the Red River. “My dad had lived there all his life, he got to know every corner, everyone, now he saw it all demolished in a blink,” he added, asking to be identified only by his first name. He said he received 10 billion dong (RM1.5 million) as com pensation along with a rural plot of land – but that the home’s market value was nearly triple that. The city having another bridge is “good for all, but not for us”, he added. “We are unlucky to be the sufferers

A worker walking over debris of residential buildings torn down to make way for an expanded road network in Hanoi on May 20. Giant construction sites litter Hanoi as it races ahead with urban renewal. – AFPPIC

World Bank document shows 27 countries seek to ensure access to crisis funds WASHINGTON: Twenty-seven

conflict began on Feb 28 while the others were still completing the process. The war and resulting disruption of global energy markets have hit global supply chains and prevented vital fertiliser shipments from reaching developing countries. Officials in Kenya and Iraq have confirmed they are seeking rapid financial support from the World Bank to deal with the war’s fallout such as surging fuel prices hitting the African nation to a massive drop in oil revenue for Iraq.

The 27 countries are among 101 that had access to some form of pre arranged financing instrument that they could tap in a crisis, including 54 that signed up to the Rapid Response Option, which allows countries to use up to 10% of their undisbursed financing. World Bank president Ajay Banga said last month the bank’s crisis toolkit would allow countries to draw on prearranged contingent financing, existing project balances and fast disbursing instruments to access an estimated US$20 billion to US$25 billion

countries have moved since the Iran war started to put in place crisis instruments that could quickly access funding from existing World Bank programmes, according to an internal document viewed by Reuters. The World Bank document did not name the countries or the total amount of funds potentially being sought. The World Bank declined to comment. The document showed that three countries had approved new instruments since the Middle East