Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng holds a working session with the Ministry of Education and Training in Hà Nội on Monday morning. The session takes place amid a current shortage of textbooks nationwide. — VNA/VNS Photo Dương Giang

HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng on Monday urged the Ministry of Education and Training to complete all remaining components of 108 multi-level boarding schools in remote border areas that were inaugurated on September 5, and told the ministry to resolve a current textbook shortage by the end of the week.

The Government leader also called for the acceleration of construction in 121 other schools, aiming for full completion by August 30, 2027.

He made the requests during a working session with the ministry in Hà Nội, ahead of a review of the Government’s implementation of Politburo Resolution 71-NQ/TW on creating breakthroughs in education and training.

Designed to narrow the regional education gap, the project to build 248 multi-level boarding schools across 248 border communes is among the most tangible goals of the resolution.

The first phase of the project was completed on August 30, with 108 schools opening on time for the new academic year on September 5.

The second phase, which started on March 19, aims to finish building the 19 remaining schools in the next two or three years.

After reviewing the project, Hưng asked authorities across the country  to collaborate with schools to evaluate the operational effectiveness and educational quality of the newly established schools after the State administrative reorganisation to ensure that their performance is commensurate with the level of State investment.

"In addition, new schools must continue to be built in disadvantaged areas and coastal regions facing difficult conditions," he said.

The education ministry must use data to track student enrolment numbers in these new facilities for the coming academic years to ensure a sufficient supply of schools, classrooms and teachers, according to the PM.

Communication efforts must be increased to facilitate timely reassignment, transfer or replacement of education officials who fail to perform their duties, he said.

The ministry must focus on preparing reports and relevant documentation for an oversight delegation formed by the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Việt Nam on September 16, which has been tasked with reviewing the Government's implementation of Resolution 71 by December 15.

The documents must detail progress in carrying out the key tasks assigned by the Secretariat regarding the resolution's implementation, the PM said.

Hưng also asked the ministry to follow the directives of Party General Secretary and State President Tô Lâm in evaluating the implementation, while also identifying limitations, shortcomings and challenges and proposing specific recommendations.

Textbook shortage

The Government leader also addressed a current shortage of 776,000 textbook sets and asked the education ministry to resolve the shortage by the end of the week.

He pointed out shortcomings in the stages of demand forecasting, textbook ordering, publishing and distribution, and called for urgent measures to rectify the situation by September 25.

The ministry was tasked with reviewing and clarifying the responsibilities of each organisation, unit and individual involved in the failure to ensure supplies, taking disciplinary action and reporting the results to the PM by October 10.

In the future, textbook production and distribution must also be diversified, rather than concentrated among a number of entities while other publishers are also capable of undertaking the work, he added. 

"The education ministry must establish standards, conditions and quality controls for textbook production and coordinate printing operations to ensure an adequate supply," Hưng said.

The Government leader also stressed the need to verify the situation at every educational institution and school to ensure every student receives the necessary textbooks, especially in Lâm Đồng, Đồng Nai, Ninh Bình, Phú Thọ, Khánh Hòa, Đắk Lắk and Cần Thơ.

Organisations nationwide under the education ministry's jurisdiction must offer alternative solutions to support student learning as well as give regular updates on the situation and promptly addressing any issues related to textbooks and teaching and learning activities across all institutions. — VNS