Preschool students in border areas still waiting for benefits

A teacher at Minh Tan Kindergarten in Minh Tan commune teaches children to arrange letters.

Students are waiting for the system.

At Thanh Thuy Kindergarten, a border school facing many difficulties with a large number of poor and near-poor households, Principal Nguyen Kim Phuong is accustomed to the hardships of managing and educating 185 students across two distant school locations. However, this school year, she is facing a completely new problem: delays in the disbursement of support funds. Ms. Phuong confided: “All policies and regulations for students have always been guided by the former District Education Department and the District People's Committee. Now, this has been transferred to the commune, but to date, the commune has not issued any official guidance documents. We have proactively reviewed the list of students eligible for support under the latest decrees, but without specific guidance on procedures and documents, we cannot submit them for approval.”

To address this situation, the school had to find a temporary solution. At the central school location, parents who can afford it will pay for meals on a daily basis. At the outlying school locations, where living conditions are more difficult, the school will agree with parents on payment after the meal allowance is approved.

Confusion arose from everyone, from the government to the schools.

A similar situation unfolded at Minh Tan Kindergarten. The school has 19 classes and 445 students scattered across 12 locations, and the teachers have worked tirelessly to encourage parents to send their children to school. Ms. Ly Thi Ut, the school principal, shared: “Most of the children come from poor or near-poor households. They are entitled to many preferential policies such as tuition waivers, learning cost support, and lunch money… but we are still waiting because we have not yet received official guidance on reviewing and compiling a list of students eligible for these state benefits and policies.”

Regarding this issue, Ms. Xuan Thi Dan, Deputy Head of the Culture and Social Affairs Department of Minh Tan Commune, said: The 2025-2026 school year will be the first year that education will no longer be under the direct management of the District Education and Training Department. Education is now decentralized and managed according to the vertical structure of the Department of Education and Training, while the commune manages it through the direct advisory work of the Culture and Social Affairs Department. This is a new model, so the commune and schools are still unfamiliar with it, while the area is large, with many scattered schools and a lack of facilities.

Despite countless difficulties, the determination of teachers and students in border schools has never wavered. They continue to strive to improve the quality of education, enhance the quality of school meals, and gradually bridge the gap with schools in urban areas.

However, the efforts of the schools alone are not enough. It is time for all levels and sectors to join hands and take decisive action to quickly resolve administrative procedural obstacles and promptly issue necessary guidelines to address the entitlements of students in border areas.

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