Seoul-Hanoi Cooperation

Seoul Mayor Oh delivers Red River Development Plan to Hanoi patterned after work on the Han River

Seoul City officially launched its project to advise the city of Hanoi to develop the area along the Red River, which flows through Vietnam's capital city, with Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon delivering the basic outline of the Red River Development Plan to his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Thao in Hanoi Nov. 3, Seoul City announced.
The two mayors signed a memorandum on the cooperation between their cities in developing the Red River area along with a guarantee for the participation of Korean construction firms in the mammoth project.
Seoul City took a year of hard work to draw up the development plan, which will require some 7.5 trillion won from 2009 when the huge project will be launched.
Former Seoul Mayor Lee Myung-bak, who is the presidential candidate for the opposition Grand National Party, agreed to provide Seoul City's experience from developing the Han River area when he visited Hanoi in 2005 in response to Hanoi's request for the development plan.
Seoul City spent some 3.5 billion won for the plan, including expenses for holding workshops and seminars and the collection of opinions of Hanoi citizens and government leaders.
Seoul Mayor Oh said the deal is a win-win strategy for both Hanoi and Seoul as the development plan will be a symbol of Korea's help to Vietnam long after the project is completed.
Oh said the project will benefit both countries and is very significant in that respect. The plan was drawn up with the participation of Korean builders interested in the project. The information they provided to Hanoi was unique in that it comes from Korea's own experiences in going through various stages of development in its recent history.
The Red River cuts through Hanoi like the Han River does with Seoul, and often brings with it flooding, causing damage and traffic jams in a city divided by the river.
The major gist of the plan is to tame the river to prevent flood damage and to develop both sides of the riverbank as residential areas and use the river as a means for transportation to help ease traffic jams in the city.
The plan calls for the construction of river banks as long as 75 km along the Red River to control water levels and to build six wharfs for tourists, in addition to building six main streets some 80 km long and four bridges for the transportation of people and cargo. Also in the plan are the construction of four underground parking lots, parks and cultural facilities along the river. The plan also includes a project on the river to make it a source of potable water for Hanoi residents as the Han River is for Seoul, the construction of a logistics center and an international business complex. The project is expected to create 60,000 jobs.
Korean construction firms that want to participate in the huge project will form a consortium by the end of the year as the memorandum by the mayors of the two cities calls for. In the memorandum, Hanoi is obliged to employ the services of Korean construction firms recommended by the Seoul mayor in the Red River project. Hanoi will try to get the plan approved by the central government as soon as possible next year so that the project can begin in early 2009.
GS Engineering and Construction is leading the effort to form a consortium tentatively named the "Red River Development Project Promotion Group,"with as many as 16 builders with overseas experiences expected to join the group.
GS E&C officials said they are considering many aspects of the work to be involved including the opening of a subsidiary in Hanoi and the distribution of stakes in the subsidiary among the 16 construction firms to be part of the consortium. The consortium will include GS Construction, Hyundai, Daelim, Kumho, Doosan, Ssangyong, Kolon, C&, Woobang, Bando, STX and Donghoon, among others.
Hanoi Mayor Thao said he is grateful to Seoul City for providing him with the Red River Development Plan and he will do everything possible to give Korean builders the chance to participate in the project. nw

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, left, holds the Red River Development Plan with Hanoi Mayor Nguyen Thao at his office in Hanoi Nov.3. Seoul City drew up the plan and delivered it to Hanoi at the request of the mayor of Hanoi.

A view of the Red River that cuts through Hanoi, the Vietnamese capital.