The Vietnam Bank for Social Policy will set aside VND45 trillion ($2.16 billion) for a five-year lending program for poor students from this year, according to its general director Duong Quyet Thang.He was speaking at a conference in Hanoi chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan reviewing the implementation of a Government decree on financial support for disadvantaged students.Thang said that no student would be left without schooling because of money shortages under the bank’s program.However, some education experts disagreed and have warned that the amount was still not enough to cater for the need of students nation-wide.Among the beneficiaries of the program are orphans, students whose families are living under or near the poverty line, and those who have suffered financial difficulties as a result of illness, injury or natural disaster.Since November 2011, every eligible student has been able to receive a maximum loan of VND10 million ($480) per academic year, equivalent to VND1 million ($48) per month.Bui Xuan Giap from central Nghe An Province is among those supported by the program. The money is helping five out of his six children continue their study at university.“Thanks to a simple and easy procedure of taking out loans, our family has borrowed VND83.2 million to aid our children in their studies,” Giap said.Tong Minh Ha, a poor student from Phu Chau Vocational Training College in Hanoi’s Tu Liem District, said he would continue to borrow money and repay the debt when he finds a job.Deputy PM Nhan praised the bank’s program for undertaking thorough inspections and supervision to ensure that the loans are reaching the right beneficiaries.Last year the bank decided that 3,639 candidates, or 0.62 per cent of the applicants, were ineligible for a loan.Upon hearing recommendations to raise the loan limit, Nhan said that the amount will continue to change to match fluctuating living costs.He confirmed that in the near future the Government may consider lending money to support students with their accommodation as well as their tuition fees. (Vietnam News Feb 23)
