A Conceptualization Workshop was conducted by the PRIMEX PPTA Team that is preparing the design of the Water Efficiency Improvement in Drought Affected Provinces (WEIDAP) in Viet Nam under TA 9147-VIE. The workshop was held on 27–28 February 2017 at the Anise Hotel in Ninh Thuan Province.
It served as the venue for the PPTA Team, ADB, and government stakeholders led by the Central Projects Office (CPO) of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) to refine the project design by integrating the results of the field visits following the views and agreements reached at the Inception Workshop held on 21 December 2016 in Ninh Thuan.
The 32 workshop participants were led by Mr. Sanath Ranawana, ADB Senior Natural Resources Economist, and Dr. Vu Ngoc Chau, CPO Project Manager. Mr. Kevin Rutter, PPTA Team Leader/Irrigation Institutions Specialist, was workshop facilitator. Two irrigation specialists, Mr Ron Rendell and Mr. Alan Clark, served as technical resource persons. PRIMEX President and CEO Elvira Ablaza, who is also the Consultant Project Director, also attended the workshop together with Hanoi-based PRIMEX Country Manager Bui Van Thanh.
The workshop focused on Outputs 1 and 3 of the proposed project as Output 2 has been the focus of most of the PPTA activities to date, as government-financed consultants have prepared feasibility-level studies for eight identified subprojects.
To cap the discussions during Day 1, PRIMEX hosted dinner for the workshop participants at the beachfront Thuy Tien Restaurant in Ninh Hai district, Ninh Thuan province. Dr. Tran Quoc Nam, Vice Chairman of the Ninh Thuan Provincial People’s Committee (PPC), and Dr. Trinh Minh Hoang, Director of the Ninh Thuan Department of Agricultural and Rural Development (DARD), graced the occasion and socialized with the participants.
