The government of Vietnam will invest VND50 billion ($2.35 million) in programs and projects to enhance education for ethnic minority people. The plan is part of the national ethnic affairs strategy by 2020 which was recently approved by the Prime Minister. Vice Chairman of the Government’s Committee for Ethnic Minority Affairs Son Minh Thang said at a seminar in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho on July 1 that the strategy will focus on nine tasks, including improving the quality of human resources among ethnic minorities. It will also focus on poverty reduction in combination with implementing social security policies and maintaining a great national unity bloc. Participations emphasized the need to boost socio-economic development and preserve the unique cultural identities of each ethnic group while expanding the teaching and learning of ethnic languages and attracting human resources for areas inhabited by ethnic minorities. Vietnam has 54 ethnic minorities, with the majority of Viet people making up 85.7% of total population while ethnic people account for one seventh of Vietnam’s population living mainly in mountainous, boundary and remote areas, where literacy levels are between 30% and 40% and only 15% of the people can speak the national language. Most ethnic minority children from the groups drop out of school after second or third grade and few can continue their high school or higher education. (VOV July 2, http://nongnghiep.vn [1] July 2, http://thethaovanhoa.vn [2] July 2)
