Japanese Ambassador to Việt Nam Ito Naoki, Project Manager of Plan International Japan Mizukami Yurie and delegates at the signing ceremony. Photo courtesy of the Embassy of Japan

HÀ NỘI — Japan is continuing funding a project aimed at improving learning environments and promoting gender equality in Việt Nam's northern provinces of Tuyên Quang and Lai Châu.

Japanese Ambassador to Việt Nam Ito Naoki and Mizukami Yurie, Project Manager of Plan International Japan, on Thursday signed the funding agreement between the Embassy of Japan and the organisation.

The grant is worth more than VNĐ15 billion (US$569,960) to implement the second year of a project.

The project, titled ‘Improving learning environments from a gender equality perspective in primary and lower secondary schools in Tuyên Quang and Lai Châu (second year)’, is part of the Japanese Government’s NGO-linked grant aid programme for fiscal year 2026.

Under the project, boarding facilities will be built and upgraded, sanitation systems installed and counselling rooms and health corners improved at 26 primary and lower secondary schools across six communes in Tuyên Quang and three communes in Lai Châu.

Beyond infrastructure upgrades, the project also focuses on strengthening the capacity of teachers and school staff in comprehensive sexuality education, while raising awareness among students, parents and communities about reproductive health, children’s rights and gender equality.

Students will be encouraged to take part in knowledge-sharing activities, exchanges and initiatives related to education.

The total project cost is estimated at around VNĐ46 billion ($1.74 million), with implementation scheduled over three years from March 2025 to February 2028.

At the signing ceremony, Japanese Ambassador Ito Naoki expressed hope that the achievements of the first year would be fully leveraged, and that activities in the second year would continue to contribute to socio-economic development in the beneficiary localities.

Japan’s grant aid programme through non-governmental organisations is a form of official development assistance that focuses on grassroots projects in disadvantaged areas. Since 2002, Japan has funded 101 projects in Việt Nam with total support of approximately VNĐ4.43 trillion ($168.3 million).

This latest initiative marks the 102nd project, bringing cumulative assistance to about VNĐ4.6 trillion ($174.7 million). — VNS