Accelerating Progress and Removing Bottlenecks in Public Investment for Education

On July 15, Nguyen Khac Hieu, Member of the Provincial Party Committee and Vice Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee, chaired a meeting to review the education sector’s development plan, the implementation of the 2026 public investment disbursement plan, preparations for new investment projects, and the proposed public investment plan for 2027.

Vice Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Khac Hieu delivers remarks at the meeting.

According to the Department of Education and Training (DOET), despite significant challenges arising from the restructuring of administrative units and the implementation of the two-tier local government model, the province’s education sector has overcome difficulties and largely fulfilled its key targets.

The province currently maintains a streamlined network of 1,957 educational institutions. The quality of gifted education continues to rank third among Vietnam’s 34 provinces and centrally governed cities, while overall education quality ranked sixth nationwide in the 2025–2026 National High School Graduation Examination. The proportion of schools meeting national standards has reached 89.39%. Digital transformation has also made substantial progress, with more than 95% of schools implementing digital academic records and electronic administrative files, while synchronising teacher and student data with the national population database under Project 06.

Director of the Department of Education and Training Trinh The Truyen presents the report.

The education sector is expected to receive more than VND 602 billion in public investment in 2026. Of this amount, over VND 252 billion has already been allocated in detail, including more than VND 7.1 billion assigned to the Department of Education and Training, which has so far disbursed 40.7% of its allocation, while communes and wards have been allocated more than VND 245 billion. Approximately VND 350 billion remains to be allocated.

The sector is currently focusing resources on four major projects: the construction and renovation of nine national-standard high schools (Kim Ngoc, Quang Ha, Yen Lac, Quang Trung, Hung Vuong High School for the Gifted, Long Chau Sa, Phong Chau, Cong Hoa, and Kim Boi); the construction of Hoang Van Thu High School for the Gifted; the construction of Nguyen Van Chat High School; and the construction, renovation and upgrading of eight high schools under Resolution No. 71-NQ/TW, including Minh Hoa, Phu Ninh, Viet Tri, Ngo Gia Tu, Vinh Yen, Ben Tre, Nguyen Duy Thi, and Cu Chinh Lan high schools.

Using recurrent expenditure funding, the sector has also proposed renovating and upgrading 36 projects at 36 high schools, with a total estimated investment exceeding VND 476 billion. Construction is scheduled to commence simultaneously in August 2026, with a target of achieving 100% capital disbursement before December 31, 2026.

During the meeting, representatives of provincial departments, agencies and local authorities openly discussed obstacles related to site clearance and inconsistencies in legal procedures during project implementation. They noted that many older schools no longer retain complete construction completion records, making renovation appraisals difficult. In addition, requirements to comprehensively upgrade fire prevention and firefighting systems at existing school facilities have significantly increased project costs and prolonged investment preparation.

A representative of the Phu Tho Regional Project Management Board speaks at the meeting.

Concluding the meeting, Vice Chairman Nguyen Khac Hieu acknowledged the education sector’s efforts and stressed that achieving 100% public investment disbursement by December 31, 2026 would require stronger responsibility and closer coordination among all departments, agencies and local authorities.

He instructed relevant units to accelerate administrative reform by reviewing and eliminating unnecessary procedures in order to shorten project appraisal timelines. For projects already under implementation, he called for faster site clearance, the prompt completion of investment procedures, strict compliance with legal requirements throughout implementation, and stronger public communication to build local consensus.

To address difficulties related to fire prevention and firefighting (FPF), the Vice Chairman approved a phased approach for existing school facilities, prioritising FPF acceptance for newly renovated and upgraded components. He assigned the Department of Education and Training to prepare a separate province-wide project covering fire prevention and firefighting systems for all schools, ensuring compliance with the new technical standards and regulations that came into effect on July 1, 2026.

Regarding the 2026–2030 medium-term public investment plan, Mr. Hieu instructed the Department of Education and Training to urgently develop a transparent and scientific evaluation framework to prioritise investment projects and avoid fragmented investment. He emphasised that the majority of the medium-term investment programme should be completed during the first half of the planning period, with 95% of planned work targeted for completion by 2029, allowing timely reporting to the Provincial Party Congress and increasing the proportion of nationally accredited schools to at least 95%.

Overview of the meeting.

For the 2027 public investment plan, the Vice Chairman approved the Department’s initial proposal covering eight projects, with a total proposed capital requirement of VND 950 billion, including VND 720 billion for ongoing projects and VND 488 billion for new projects. He also instructed the Department of Education and Training to continue reviewing and proposing additional urgent projects so that the Department of Finance could consider and allocate appropriate funding.

Regarding the mechanism for supporting educational infrastructure investment at the commune and ward levels, as well as the school consolidation scheme, Mr. Hieu assigned the Department of Education and Training to consolidate local investment needs and propose using part of the province’s approximately VND 5 trillion in unallocated budget resources to support investment in lower secondary schools.

He emphasised that future investment must align with the province’s school network consolidation plan following the administrative merger. For lower secondary schools with very small enrolment, where geographical conditions permit, authorities should consider school mergers or reducing satellite campuses in order to maximise the efficiency of public investment and avoid unnecessary expenditure.

Dinh Vu