Mekong Delta channel to get $56-mln upgrade

By Hoang Nam November 10, 2020 | 08:04 pm PT

Barges traverse the Cho Gao Channel in Tien Giang Province, December 2019. Photo by VnExpress/Hoang Nam.

A channel in Tien Giang Province in the Mekong Delta will be upgraded by 2023 to ease waterway traffic and check erosion, the Ministry of Transport has said.

It said it has approved the VND1.3-trillion ($56.2 million) second phase Cho Gao Channel upgrade entailing dredging and removal of sludge and trash along a 10-km section and construction of roads and revetments.

The work is expected to begin next year.

The first phase was completed five years ago at a cost of VND786 billion, helping reduce waterway traffic congestion and improve safety.

The 28.5-km Cho Gao Channel runs through Long An Province’s Chau Thanh District and Tien Giang’s Go Cong Town, Go Cong Tay District and My Tho City.

It was dug by the French in 1876 to connect the Tien and Vam Co Rivers, creating a waterway route between HCMC and the delta.

But traffic congestion and accidents are common in the channel as around 1,800 ships weighing 200-1,000 tons sail on it every day.

Erosion is also a problem, with the channel cutting 2-20 m into its banks at around 150 places, affecting 2,000 families.