On August 2, 2018, at the headquarters of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), Deputy Governor Dao Minh Tu had a meeting with the delegation led by Mr. Rudolf Schuetz, Project Director, on the Project of Strengthening the People’s Credit Funds Network (STEP project).
Also attending the meeting were representatives from the Banking Supervision Agency, the SBV Office, the Monetary Policy Department, the International Cooperation Department, the Forecasting and Statistics Department, the Information Technology Department. Besides, there were representatives from the Cooperative Bank of Vietnam (Co-op Bank), Deposit Insurance of Vietnam (DIV) and specialists from STEP project.
Développement international Desjardins (DID) and the STEP team in cooperation with Co-op Bank have been implementing the project in 14 provinces across the three main regions of Vietnam: the North, the Center, and the South.
As part of the national strategy to move towards a model of sustainable and inclusive economic growth, the STEP project (DID in partnership with Co-op Bank) aims to increase financial access for Vietnamese men and women in the rural and agricultural areas thanks to a more integrated and better-performing people’s credit funds (PCFs) network and Co-op Bank.
The STEP team shared the survey results and made recommendations on the participation and responsibilities for the overall risk management; official framework for risk management through standardized and specific methods and instruments, especially for internal audits; at the same time, the enhancement of the management framework and the addition of detailed provisions on the roles and responsibilities of key positions at the PCFs.
The representatives from the Banking Supervision Agency and other SBV functional departments discussed with the STEP team about the measures of formulating a mechanism for risk management, internal audits and IT development, as well as the PCFs’ product development, with the aim of meeting the demand for management and better services.
In his conclusion at the meeting, Deputy Governor Dao Minh Tu agreed with the substances and findings of the survey team and considered them as very relevant and important for the upcoming PCF network re-organization and re-structuring. He acknowledged and appreciated the continued support from STEP, and encouraged a continued cooperation and further consultation meetings between STEP Project and the relevant SBV units.
Le Hang