HANOI, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- The French Development Agency will offer Vietnam financial assistance of 41 million euros (some 59.1 million U.S. dollars) to develop rural areas in the central region, local newspaper Saigon Liberation reported Tuesday.

    Under an agreement signed Monday by representatives of the agency, the French Embassy in Vietnam and the Vietnamese Finance Ministry, the fund will be mainly used to upgrade roads and markets, build irrigation works, provide local residents with wider access to basic services, and facilitate poverty reduction in 13 provinces in the central region.

    The provinces include Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien Hue.