
The simultaneous groundbreaking ceremony for 72 inter-level boarding schools combining primary and lower secondary education in land border communes took place on the morning of November 9. The event was broadcast live and connected with 14 locations via teleconferencing. Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attended the main ceremony held at the Yen Khuong Primary and Lower Secondary Boarding School in Thanh Hoa province.


Ensuring education access for every child in border regions
In his remarks, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasised that the Party and the State always regard education and training as a top national priority, playing a particularly important role in shaping the personality, virtues, and competence of a person. Education, he said, is the decisive factor of the success in making breakthroughs in human resources development in the cause of building and safeguarding the socialist Vietnamese Fatherland.
People are the most valuable asset, serving as both the goal and the driving force, as well as the resource for development. Investing in education means investing in development itself. We must foster the comprehensive development of Vietnamese citizens in morality, intellect, physical fitness, and aesthetics in the new era – that of national ascension toward a strong, prosperous, civilised, and thriving Vietnam steadily advancing toward socialism.

The Government leader underlined that each new school will become a seedbed of knowledge, nurturing dreams and aspirations while embodying the spirit of national solidarity and the Party, State, and people’s care for the compatriots in border areas.
He expressed confidence that the programme on building these inter-level boarding schools will succeed in its goals, ensuring that every border child can study in a socialist educational environment and grow up in a nurturing setting, thereby contributing to the fast and sustainable development of border regions and the nation at large.






The simultaneous groundbreaking ceremony for 72 primary and lower secondary boarding schools in land border communes on the morning of November 9, 2025. (Photo: VNA)
The decision to launch 72 projects simultaneously, with the participation of central and local leaders, reflected strong coordination and determination within the entire political system to care for border students. The goal is to complete 100 schools before the 2026–2027 academic year.



Developing education in ethnic minority areas is set to help narrow regional disparities. (Illustrative photo: VNA)
This initiative is also a step to carry out the Politburo’s Resolution No. 71-NQ/TW on making breakthroughs in education and training, and Notice No. 81-TB/TW on building schools in border communes, along with the Government’s Resolution No. 298/NQ-CP on an action plan for implementing the Politburo’s notice. It aims to enhance education in ethnic minority areas, thereby helping narrow regional disparities and create prerequisites for developing human resources and improving living standards in border regions.
The 72 school projects started on November 9 are part of the 2025 plan to build 100 inter-level boarding schools for primary and lower secondary students, which are scheduled to be completed by August 30, 2026, before the 2026–2027 academic year. Previously, 28 schools had already begun construction. The total investment for all 100 schools amounts to nearly 20 trillion VND (760 million USD).

A humane policy realising the vision of equitable education
After administrative boundary adjustments, Vietnam now has 22 provinces and cities with land borders, with 248 border communes. These communes are currently home to 956 schools of general education serving over 625,000 students. While more than 332,000 students have demand for boarding or semi-boarding schools, just nearly 59,000 students can learn at the 22 boarding and 160 semi-boarding schools for ethnic minority students.

Officers and soldiers of the Huong Lap Border Guard Station (Quang Tri province) carry students across a stream to arrive on time for the opening ceremony of the new academic year on September 5, 2025. (Illustrative photo: VNA)
That leaves over 273,000 children, 43.7%, without access to schools offering accommodation support. Many still have to travel long distances through forests and mountains, which are incredibly dangerous during the rainy season and affect learning quality.
Recognising this urgent situation, on July 18, 2025, the Politburo issued Notice No. 81-TB/TW, approving the plan to build inter-level boarding schools in 248 land border communes. The first phase targets 100 new or renovated schools to be completed before the 2026–2027 academic year, serving as models for later expansion to 248 schools across all communes within two to three years.



The busy construction site of an inter-level school in the highland area of Si Pa Phin, Dien Bien province. (Photo: VNA)
The Politburo emphasised that building schools in border communes is a key mission in socio-economic development and ethnic minority policies. It aims to help improve the educational level, enhance human resources, foster local ethnic leadership, better the material and spiritual well-being of border residents, and strengthen national defence and security.

Following this directive, on July 27, 2025, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chaired a meeting to launch the campaign to construct 100 schools in border areas, calling for joint efforts from ministries, sectors, armed forces, the Vietnam Fatherland Front, and social organisations. He directed localities to mobilise resources to complete all 100 schools by August 30, 2026.
The programme to build 248 inter-level boarding schools in border communes is both a deeply humanitarian decision and a concrete step toward realising the goal of a comprehensive, modern, and equitable education system stated in the Politburo’s Resolution No. 71. It also shows the Party and State’s consistency in both thinking and action for education.
On July 27, 2025, Party General Secretary To Lam and the People’s Committee of Dien Bien province attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the Si Pa Phin Inter-level Boarding School, the first such school implemented under the Politburo’s policy. The event emphasised that the construction of 248 inter-level boarding schools in land border communes is a correct and deeply humanitarian initiative, reflecting the special care of the Party and State for residents in border, remote, and disadvantaged areas.

Party General Secretary To Lam (fifth from left) attends the groundbreaking ceremony for the Si Pa Phin Primary and Lower Secondary Boarding School in Dien Bien province on July 27, 2025. (Photo: VNA)
Each completed school, he said, will not only provide a home of knowledge for children but also stand as a vivid symbol of the unity between the Party and the people, a testament to the nation’s aspiration to rise and to safeguard its borders through education and knowledge./.













































































