HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc urged Vietnamese students to equip themselves with broad knowledge in the digital era at a plenary session of the 10th national congress of the Việt Nam Students’ Association (VSA) in Hà Nội yesterday.

The PM lauded outstanding achievements the VSA has recorded over the years, saying the association has proven its role in representing students.

The PM underlined the need to step up the education of revolutionary ideology, morality, lifestyle and culture among students, while asking the VSA to protect the interests of students, as well as encourage them to engage in research and innovation in science-technology and start-ups.

Students must be pioneers in innovative start-ups, think big, not flinch from difficulties and rise from failures, he said.

The Government will create the best possible conditions for students to turn their start-up initiatives into reality, the leader pledged.

The Party and State have pinned their hopes on students and the VSA to help develop high-quality human resources to serve national construction and defence, he noted.

Lê Quốc Phong, First Secretary of the Hồ Chií Minh Communist Youth Union Central Committee and Chairman of the Vietnam Youth Federation and the VSA, said the VSA has been consolidated with more than 1.3 million members from 28 provincial chapters, 283 chapters at schools and eight others abroad.

In the 2018-2023, the association hopes to develop a contingent of students with revolutionary ideology, firm political will, patriotism and responsibility.

It aims to introduce jobs to 1 million students, present scholarships and awards worth VNĐ250 billion (10.75 billion) to students and raise its membership to 1.5 million.

The congress brings together 700 delegates representing more than 2.4 million Vietnamese students at home and abroad. — VNS