The delegation, led by Mr. Bui Van Thong – Deputy General Director of Vietnam Development Bank (VDB), Chairman of the Board of Directors of VIDIFI, and Mr. Tran Anh Tu – General Director of VIDIFI, directly attended the conference and received the award. Also participating in the delegation were Mr. Pham Thai Son – Deputy General Director of VIDIFI and other relevant members.
The delegation, led by Mr. Bui Van Thong – Deputy General Director of Vietnam Development Bank (VDB), Chairman of the Board of Directors of VIDIFI, and Mr. Tran Anh Tu – General Director of VIDIFI, attended the 16th Global Sustainable Finance Conference in Karlsruhe, Germany. Global Sustainable Finance Conference 2026
The Global Sustainable Finance Conference 2026, themed "Transforming Global Volatility into Large-Scale Investment Opportunities," was jointly organized by the Association of National Development Finance Institutions of the Islamic Development Bank Member States (ADFIMI), the European Organisation for Sustainable Development (EOSD), the Association of African Development Finance Institutions (AADFI), the Association of Asian and Pacific Development Financing Institutions (ADFIAP), and the city of Karlsruhe. The conference brought together leaders and senior representatives from numerous banks, development finance institutions, regulatory bodies, and businesses worldwide to discuss solutions for more efficient capital mobilization and allocation for infrastructure, industry, and other growth-potential sectors.
Within the framework of the conference, the Karlsruhe Sustainable Finance Award, organized by EOSD, recognized outstanding initiatives, products, and projects in the field of sustainable finance globally. At the award ceremony held on the evening of August 27, 2026, at Karlsruhe City Hall, the Mayor of Karlsruhe, Dr. Frank Mentrup, and the CEO of EOSD, Mr. Arshad Rab, solemnly announced and presented the Commemorative Plaque and Certificate of Excellence in Innovation in Sustainable Finance Products and Services to VDB for the Hanoi-Hai Phong Expressway Project, in the presence of Karlsruhe city leaders, the Vietnamese Counselor in Germany, and senior leaders and delegates from international financial institutions and development organizations attending the conference.
The Mayor of Karlsruhe, Dr. Frank Mentrup, was present at the ceremony. Frank Mentrup and CEO of EOSD, Mr. Arshad Rab, formally announced and presented the Commemorative Plaque and Certificate for the Outstanding Innovation Award in Sustainable Financial Products and Services in Germany. The delegation also presented
the Commemorative Plaque and Certificate
as a souvenir to the representative of the European Organization for Sustainable Development (EOSD). The selection and recognition of VDB for the Hanoi-Hai Phong Expressway Project affirms the effectiveness of its model for mobilizing, arranging, and utilizing capital for a large-scale transportation infrastructure project with strategic significance for the country's socio-economic development.
The project honored: Hanoi – Hai Phong Expressway
The Hanoi-Hai Phong Expressway project was submitted by VDB for the Karlsruhe Sustainable Finance category. The project was subsequently selected by the European Organization for Sustainable Development (EOSD) as one of the outstanding candidates to advance to the final round.
The Hanoi-Hai Phong Expressway is a strategic transportation infrastructure project invested in by VIDIFI. TheHanoi-Hai Phong Expressway project, invested in by VIDIFI under the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model, was constructed from 2008 and completed in December 2015, with a total investment of approximately VND 45,000 billion (equivalent to USD 1.8 billion). The expressway is 105.5 km long, starting at Ring Road III (Gia Lam District, Hanoi), passing through Hung Yen Province and ending at Dinh Vu Port, Hai Phong; it is designed to international Class A standards with 6 lanes, 2 emergency stopping lanes, and a design speed of 120 km/h.This is a strategic infrastructure project, replacing the dilapidated and frequently congested National Highway 5, and serving as a vital transportation corridor connecting Hanoi, Hai Phong, Ha Long, and the Van Don Economic Zone, creating momentum for the development of the Northern Key Economic Region and the Red River Delta.Financially , the project is structured using a combination of VIDIFI's capital contribution, state budget support, and long-term financing from VDB, with VDB committing a total of VND 37,960 billion (equivalent to USD 1.52 billion), including international loans mobilized from Citi-SMBC (USD 270 million), the German Reconstruction Bank – KfW (USD 100 million), and KEXIM (USD 200 million). After more than 10 years of operation, the project generates annual revenue of approximately VND 4,000 billion (USD 160 million) and has consistently fulfilled its debt repayment obligations on time.
Regarding operation and traffic safety , the Hanoi-Hai Phong expressway is the first road in Vietnam to fully implement a non-stop electronic toll collection system (from June 1, 2022), supported by an intelligent traffic management system and a 24/7 monitoring center. It is also the first expressway to pilot (from August 15, 2025) and then officially implement (from September 19, 2025) a ban on trucks and passenger buses with more than 29 seats from using Lane 1, contributing to a reduction in traffic accidents and serving as a model for other expressways nationwide.
Regarding the environment , the project has proactively cleared a 100-meter-wide corridor, reserving 15–20 meters on each side for planting trees and reserving space for future expansion to 10–12 lanes without large-scale land acquisition; it also conducts periodic monitoring of air quality, noise, and surface water as required by international lenders.
In terms of socio-economic effectiveness , traffic volume on the route has continuously increased: from 6.6 million vehicles (approximately 18,000 vehicles/day) in 2016 to nearly 17 million vehicles (approximately 63,000 vehicles/day) in just the first nine months of 2025 – an increase of about 3.5 times; travel time between Hanoi and Hai Phong has been shortened from 2.5 hours to 1.5 hours. The project previously received the ADFIAP Development Project Award in 2015 in the Infrastructure Development category.
The Hanoi-Hai Phong Expressway project, awarded a sustainable finance initiative prize at an international forum, demonstrates that expressway investment is not simply about building a new road. Behind every strategic transportation project lies the challenge of mobilizing capital, organizing finances, managing resources, and ensuring long-term investment efficiency.
Combining VDB's resources with KfW's participation also demonstrates the role of international financial cooperation in sustainable transport infrastructure development, while opening up the possibility of continuing to attract international resources for important infrastructure projects in the future.
Sustainable value extends beyond a single project.
As the direct investor of the project, VIDIFI views this award not only as recognition of VDB's efforts in arranging and utilizing capital effectively, but also as an affirmation of the quality of investment, construction, and operation that VIDIFI has consistently pursued for over a decade. The fact that the Hanoi-Hai Phong expressway has been selected by the international development finance community as a model of sustainable infrastructure financing, with the potential for replication in other developing economies, motivates VIDIFI to continue investing in infrastructure upgrades, promoting the application of technology (including the ongoing Intelligent Transportation System – ITS upgrade project integrating artificial intelligence), and collaborating with partners on subsequent sustainable development projects. /
Delegation at the 16th Global Sustainable Finance Conference in Karlsruhe, Germany.EOSD's press release regarding the Award On the same day, EOSD issued a press release announcing the awarding of the Karlsruhe Sustainable Finance Award – Outstanding Innovation in Sustainable Financial Products and Services category – to VDB for the Hanoi - Hai Phong Expressway Project. The statement said: “Good infrastructure provides the impetus for economic transformation. Effective financial innovation enables that transformation to be repeated, on an ever-increasing scale.” Through financing the Hanoi-Hai Phong Expressway Project, the Vietnam Development Bank not only demonstrates its capacity to finance a landmark infrastructure project, but also contributes to strengthening a strategic economic transport route – enhancing connectivity, expanding economic development opportunities, and boosting the competitiveness of one of Vietnam's key economic regions. However, the significance of the project lies not only in the highway itself. For a development bank, financing a large-scale project not only generates knowledge, enhances institutional capacity, and provides practical experience, but also creates long-term value that extends far beyond a single project. As these capacities are accumulated, consolidated, and developed into a sustainable financial product, the experience from a successful financing project can become a model for strategically, systematically, and on a large scale financing of infrastructure development. This is particularly important for rapidly transforming economies. Industrial development, urbanization, trade expansion, and enhanced competitiveness all require infrastructure—and consequently, financing models that are repeatable and effective. Therefore, development banks play a crucial role not only in financing individual projects, but also in building the financial infrastructure to transform national economic development goals into capital-capitalizing investment opportunities. The Vietnam Development Bank has laid the foundation for this capacity through financing the Hanoi-Hai Phong Expressway Project. The opportunity now lies in institutionalizing that experience and transforming it into a repeatable financial product capable of mobilizing capital for strategic infrastructure projects and national economic development priorities. While a single project can transform an economic region, a scalable financial model can contribute to the transformation of an entire economy. The Karlsruhe Sustainable Finance Award – an award for outstanding innovation in sustainable financial products and services – recognizes the Vietnam Development Bank for this vision, as well as for the innovations in finance demonstrated through its financing of the Hanoi-Hai Phong Expressway Project. Congratulations to the Board of Directors, the Management Board, and all staff of the Vietnam Development Bank on receiving this award. That ambition needs to be broadened, going beyond the success of a landmark infrastructure project, towards building a financing capacity that can be deployed regularly and systematically, thereby mobilizing capital on a large scale and contributing to shaping infrastructure, industries, and the foundations of economic strength – elements that will build Vietnam's future prosperity. Arshad Rab - Chairman , International Council on Sustainability Standards for Value-Oriented Financial Institutions, Director General, European Organisation for Sustainable Development (EOSD). |
