Vietnam will not conceal any irregularities relating to three Danish-funded projects and will punish violators strictly, said Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Tran Viet Thanh.

Denmark does not cut ODA grant yet, Minister

Thanh made the affirmation in Hanoi on June 7 while granting an interview to the Vietnam News Agency on Denmark’s decision to suspend three out of four climate change response projects using Danish aid to wait for clearer explanations from project developers.

According to the Deputy Minister, on June 6, the managers of the three projects and the representatives from the Danish Embassy and the Ministry of Science and Technology met in Hanoi on this case.

At the meeting, the project managers submitted reports on issues that the independent audit company PriceWaterhouseCooper (PWC) said “unusual” to the Danish side.

The Danish side said they will wait for a report from the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA) to verify this initial information and will invite relevant Vietnamese agencies to discuss and make the case clear just after it has verification results.

The Danish side also said this is only the initial opinion of an independent audit agency which could not be considered right or wrong and needs to be verified, Thanh added.

To avoid regrettable misunderstanding, the Danish side suggested not commenting on this case to wait for verification results, he said.

The Danish Embassy on June 1 announced that Denmark has temporarily suspended three Danish-funded projects in Vietnam on suspicion of irregularities following the results of an in-depth financial audit.

The issues observed during the procedures include use of consultancies for personal benefit, overcharge of internal facilities and cash deficits compared to the balance of cash book, according to the announcement.

VOV