Over 2 trillion VND to build a high school.

From September 30th to October 3rd, the Saigon Giai Phong newspaper published a series of articles titled "Expectations for 4,500 New Classrooms in Ho Chi Minh City," following the city's plan to build 4,500 new classrooms to celebrate major national and city holidays in 2025. After the series, many opinions suggested that more decisive support and involvement from relevant departments, districts, and wards are needed for this large-scale project to be successfully implemented.

• Mr. NGUYEN VAN TRUONG, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Civil and Industrial Construction Investment Project Management Board:

25 high school projects will be renovated or newly constructed.

In order to gradually improve and modernize the city's school network, during the medium-term public investment period of 2021-2025, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee assigned the Ho Chi Minh City Civil and Industrial Construction Project Management Board (abbreviated as DDCN Board) to research and develop projects to upgrade, repair, and build 8 new facilities with a total of 276 classrooms (excluding subject-specific classrooms), with a total investment from the city budget of over 1,270 billion VND. When Ho Chi Minh City developed the plan to build 4,500 new classrooms to celebrate major national and Ho Chi Minh City holidays in 2025, the board was assigned to implement an additional 17 high school construction projects. According to initial calculations, these 17 projects will have 418 new classrooms built, with an investment of over 1,107 billion VND from the city budget.

Construction work is underway on the access road to the Le Minh Xuan 2 Primary School project and the Le Minh Xuan 2 Secondary School project in Binh Chanh District, Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: QUANG HUY

The Steering Committee for New Education Development (SID) is striving to commence construction on 8 projects whose investment plans for the 2021-2025 medium-term period have been approved by the Ho Chi Minh City People's Council in the fourth quarter of 2024 and in 2025. For the remaining 17 school projects, the SDC and the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training have encountered some obstacles during the investment preparation process, affecting project progress. These obstacles are divided into two groups.

Group 1 consists of projects whose scale is determined to meet actual needs, but which are not yet consistent with the 1/2000 scale planning and the city's master plan. Recently, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee issued decisions delegating the authority to approve and adjust planning projects to local authorities, and also issued a process to shorten the time for appraisal and approval of planning projects for public investment projects. This provides a basis for the 21 districts and Thu Duc City to take more decisive action in making localized adjustments to the 1/2000 scale planning and the master plan, as a basis for approving detailed 1/500 scale planning (master plan). If the relevant units do not get involved in resolving these "bottlenecks," the committee alone cannot accomplish it.

Group 2 consists of school projects affected by the average land area allocation according to Circular 13/2020/TT-BGDĐT dated May 26, 2020, of the Ministry of Education and Training. This circular stipulates the standards for physical facilities in preschools, primary schools, junior high schools, high schools, and multi-level general education schools, including an average land area allocation of 10m2/student for high school students. This allocation is not suitable for the specific characteristics of the city, leading to limited investment potential. This issue needs to be resolved by the Ministry of Education and Training.

One of the projects that has been ongoing for the past 17 years is the Ernst Thälmann High School project. In terms of planning, this school is located entirely within the detailed urban planning scheme at a scale of 1/2000 (zoning plan) for the existing central area of ​​Ho Chi Minh City (930ha), approved by the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee in Decision No. 6708/QD-UBND dated December 29, 2012. Therefore, to implement the project, the detailed 1/2000 planning must be adjusted. In addition, the school's land area is 5,494m2, which does not meet the standards for school facilities as stipulated in Circular 13/2020/TT-BGDĐT. At the same time, due to its connection to historical and cultural elements, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Culture and Sports is studying the historical site dossier of Ernst Thälmann High School to gather opinions from relevant units regarding the protected area and finalize the dossier for submission to the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee for consideration and decision on classifying the school as a historical site. Regarding this matter, the Cultural Heritage Management Board has coordinated with the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training to implement a conservation plan for building A (the historical building block).

If this project passes the investment procedures in 2024, the board will submit the project for approval, striving to implement design, bidding, and construction in the fourth quarter of 2025.

• Mr. Vu Nguyen Quang Vinh, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of District 1, Ho Chi Minh City:

The "birdcage" classroom will be renovated and rebuilt.

Currently, in District 1, there are several schools that are over 50 years old and have deteriorated, such as Van Lang Secondary School and Nguyen Hue Primary School. To successfully implement the city's 4,500 new classroom project, District 1 has sent numerous documents to higher authorities proposing support to resolve the issues. Most recently, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Tran Thi Dieu Thuy signed Submission No. 5655/TTr-UBND regarding the decision to adjust the investment policy for the new construction project of Nguyen Hue Primary School (District 1), submitting it to the Ho Chi Minh City People's Council for consideration and decision. The adjustment will result in a new school with 30 classrooms (11 classrooms and 19 functional rooms); and the project implementation time will be adjusted to 2024-2025.

Regarding the renovation project of Van Lang Secondary School, District 1 has initially directed the District 1 Investment and Construction Management Board to implement renovations and repairs to several items such as restrooms and playgrounds. Simultaneously, they have assigned relevant units to review planning obstacles and persuade the three households with houses within the school grounds to agree with the district's plans, aiming to begin renovations and repairs in 2025.

• Mr. VO THANH CONG, Chairman of the People's Committee of Le Minh Xuan Commune, Binh Chanh District, Ho Chi Minh City:

The initial steps have been taken to address the shortage of classrooms.

Le Minh Xuan commune currently has 41,541 inhabitants/13,185 households. Due to the annual increase in population, despite having 3 kindergartens, 3 primary schools, 1 secondary school, 1 high school, and 1 gifted school, the problem of student overcrowding persists. Thanks to the decisive leadership of Binh Chanh district, especially the strong involvement of the Binh Chanh District Investment and Construction Management Board, and the support of relevant units in resolving difficulties in land compensation and clearance, and organizing open and transparent bidding, the two new school projects in the commune have exceeded the district's set schedule. In September, the Investment and Construction Management Board of Binh Chanh District commenced the construction of the new Le Minh Xuan 2 Primary School with 30 classrooms and full functional rooms on an area of ​​nearly 13,000 ^m² , with a total investment of over 135 billion VND, and the Le Minh Xuan 2 Secondary School project with 45 classrooms and full functional rooms on an area of ​​nearly 24,114 ^m² , with a total investment of nearly 158 billion VND.

These two projects will be put into use in the new school year 2025-2026. This is a source of joy and excitement for the people of Le Minh Xuan commune, helping the locality to no longer worry about overcrowded schools and classrooms.

25 school upgrading, repair, and new construction projects were implemented by the Education and Training Department.

• 8 projects in the medium-term public investment plan 2021-2025

Tran Van Giau High School (renovating 45 classrooms, total investment nearly 80 billion VND); Vo Truong Toan High School (renovating 45 classrooms, nearly 176 billion VND); Trung Phu High School (renovating 45 classrooms, over 279 billion VND); Nguyen Thuong Hien High School (renovating 36 classrooms, over 215 billion VND); Marie Curie High School (building 13 new classrooms, over 42 billion VND); Hung Vuong High School (renovating 20 classrooms, building 25 new classrooms, nearly 300 billion VND); Trung Vuong High School (renovating and building 45 new classrooms, 95 billion VND); Le Thi Hong Gam High School branch's Vocational Training and Technical Education Center (renovating 40 classrooms, building 5 new classrooms, over 95 billion VND).

• 17 projects in the 4,500 New Classrooms Project.

Construction and expansion of Nguyen Du High School; renovation and expansion of Nguyen Trai High School; construction of a new Nguyen Thai Binh High School; upgrading and renovation of Dien Hong High School; renovation and expansion of Ngo Quyen High School; construction and renovation of Ernst Thälmann High School; construction and upgrading of Truong Chinh High School; renovation and expansion of Le Thanh Ton High School; construction and upgrading of Binh Phu High School; renovation and upgrading (phase 1) of Suong Nguyet Anh High School; renovation and expansion of Nguyen Trung Truc High School.

QUANG HUY - AN KHÁNH wrote

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/hon-2000-ty-dong-xay-truong-thpt-post763505.html