Support the Implementation of the Poverty Reduction Programs IV and V

In Viet Nam legislation is often comprehensive but implementation weak. Implementation required close monitoring on an annual basis and ensured continued relevance to the government's reform progress. While the Poverty Reduction Support Credit operations provided financial support for implementing the whole Socioeconomic Development Plan (SEDP), they disbursed against the upfront completion of a number of specific reform measures identified within the SEDP agenda by consultation between partners and the government, led by the World Bank. Implementation was also linked to supporting government systems, including synchronized timing to feed into the formal budget cycle. Lack of understanding of the effectiveness of policy implementation makes it difficult to link the impact of policy reforms to the SEDP indicators in the design, monitoring, and framework of this program.