Over the years, the student loan program has been effectively implemented by the Trieu Son District Branch of the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies (VBSP). Preferential loan funds have been disbursed smoothly, and loan amounts have been adjusted upwards to suit the actual situation, becoming a supportive companion and empowering students to pursue their educational dreams and build their future.
Officials from the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies (VBSP) in Trieu Son district inspect the use of policy credit funds at the home of Ms. Le Thi Tam, in Hamlet 4, Van Son commune (Trieu Son).
With the goal of preventing students from dropping out due to financial difficulties, the Trieu Son branch of the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies (VBSP) annually strengthens its extensive dissemination of information from the district to the commune and town levels regarding student loan policies. In addition, it closely coordinates with entrusted socio- political organizations and local savings and loan groups to disseminate information to each household, compile statistics on the number of students in need, guide them through loan procedures, and disburse funds promptly, easing the burden on parents in covering their children's living and study expenses.
Ms. Dang Thi Hoai's family in Hamlet 2, Dan Quyen Commune, was previously classified as a poor household. Thanks to a loan from the Social Policy Bank, she invested in opening a motorbike repair shop, gradually overcoming difficulties and rising out of poverty. In 2022, her daughter, Le Thi Thuy Linh, was admitted to Hanoi University of Traditional Medicine. Ms. Hoai was both happy and worried. Happy because her daughter had achieved academic success, but worried because the cost of six years of university education was a difficult problem for the family. However, having access to preferential loan policies for students through the Social Policy Bank, she and her husband had additional funds to support their daughter's education.
Thanks to a loan from the student credit program, Ms. Le Thi Tam's daughter from Hamlet 4, Van Son Commune, had the opportunity to continue pursuing her dream of attending university. It is known that Ms. Tam and her husband are self-employed, working multiple jobs to support their children's education, and their lives are still difficult and challenging. In 2021, when their daughter received her acceptance letter to the Vietnam Academy of Agriculture , Ms. Tam was worried about how to manage the finances. She was then introduced to and supported in accessing a preferential student loan program for families with preferential policies, totaling nearly 40 million VND per academic year. This reassured them about the cost of their daughter's enrollment.
These are just two of thousands of households that have access to student loan funds from the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies in Trieu Son. According to Decision No. 05/2022 of the Prime Minister, from May 19, 2022, the loan program for disadvantaged students under Decision 157/2007 has been amended and supplemented. Specifically, the eligible borrowers are students who are orphans of both parents or only one parent, but the remaining parent is unable to work; students who are members of households classified as poor, near-poor, or with an average standard of living as defined by law; and students whose families face financial difficulties due to accidents, illness, natural disasters, fires, or epidemics during their studies, as confirmed by the People's Committee of the commune or town where they reside. The maximum loan amount is 4 million VND/month, an increase of 3.2 million VND/month compared to the loan amount at the beginning of the program. By the end of February 2024, the student loan program had outstanding loans of nearly 34 billion VND with 690 households receiving loans and 700 students receiving loans. Many students who received loans have found stable employment after graduation and have repaid the principal in full to the bank; at the same time, they have stable incomes, contributing to the economic development of their families.
According to Pham Anh Tuan, Deputy Director of the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies in Trieu Son district: “To ensure that preferential student loans truly become a ‘support system’ for many poor families and policy beneficiaries, the unit will continue to strengthen coordination with Party committees and local authorities to promote awareness of preferential student loans to poor households and other policy beneficiaries. At the same time, we will review and compile the needs of households in the area where students are eligible for loans to continue their studies. When eligible, the bank will facilitate the quick and timely disbursement of funds to help students partially cover school fees and living and study expenses.”
The achievements demonstrate the humanitarian nature of the student loan program. The program has helped fulfill the dreams of education and build a future for poor and disadvantaged students. At the same time, it has motivated students to study, not only helping them overcome immediate difficulties but also equipping them with life skills, responsibilities towards their families and society, enabling them to plan a proper path and use their acquired knowledge to contribute to the development of their homeland.
Text and photos: Minh Ha
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