On the afternoon of January 28, while working in Cao Bang province, General Secretary To Lam attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the Truong Ha Primary and Secondary Ethnic Boarding School.

The ceremony took place in a joyful atmosphere following the great success of the 14th National Party Congress and coincided with the 85th anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh’s return to the country to directly lead the Vietnamese revolution (January 28, 1941 - 2026).

Also attending the event were Politburo members: Le Minh Hung, head of the Party Central Committee’s Organisation Commission; General Phan Van Giang, Deputy Secretary of the Central Military Commission and Minister of National Defense; General Luong Tam Quang, Minister of Public Security; Nguyen Duy Ngoc, Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee; Trinh Van Quyet, Head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Dissemination, Education, and Mass Mobilisation; Nguyen Thanh Nghi, Head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Policy and Strategy; along with members and alternate members of the Party Central Committee, leaders of the Government and the National Assembly, representatives of central ministries and agencies, and leaders of Cao Bang province.

Launching a border-area boarding school system

At the ceremony, Le Hai Hoa, Deputy Secretary of the Cao Bang provincial Party Committee and chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, stressed that the programme to build 248 inter-level boarding schools in border communes is a major policy with strategic significance. Implemented in line with Conclusion 81 of the Politburo, the programme reflects the Party’s long-term vision for education and training, population stabilisation, and safeguarding national sovereignty from the grassroots level.

The policy not only addresses immediate learning conditions for children of ethnic minorities in border areas, but also serves long-term objectives: developing local human resources, nurturing a new generation of local officials and intellectuals who understand the terrain, remain deeply rooted in their homeland, and are capable of contributing to the construction and defence of the national border in the new context.

The Truong Ha Primary and Secondary Ethnic Boarding School in Cao Bang is designed to selectively inherit and standardise the core strengths of the model school, while being adjusted to local terrain, scale and practical requirements. This approach ensures consistency across the programme without rigid replication or formalism.

From the investment preparation stage, Cao Bang province clearly identified the guiding principle that investment in border-area education must be well-prepared, methodical and sustainable. The design was developed based on careful studies of terrain and climate, with spatial organisation adapted to natural topography to minimise excavation and reduce costs. The project features a central community activity hub, rational layouts for classrooms, boarding facilities and common areas, optimised natural ventilation and lighting, and safe, continuous and sustainable operation suited to highland conditions.

In this phase, Cao Bang is constructing 11 boarding school projects, including one sponsored by Hanoi, demonstrating the deep solidarity and shared responsibility of the capital with mountainous and border localities. The province has set a clear goal: all 11 schools will be completed on schedule and put into synchronous operation for the 2026 - 2027 academic year, ensuring stable and long-term learning and living conditions for students and teachers.

Cao Bang pledged to strictly direct implementation in a transparent and lawful manner, ensuring progress, quality, safety and efficiency, so that each school truly becomes a solid foundation for education development in border areas.

Lighting up the future along the frontier

Addressing the ceremony, General Secretary To Lam underscored that investing in an inter-level boarding school at this location vividly demonstrates the Party and State’s deep concern for education and training. The project aims to improve learning conditions for border-area students, narrow regional disparities, reinforce national defence and security, and promote socio-economic development in frontier regions.

The school, built on this sacred land, also represents a meaningful, lasting tribute to President Ho Chi Minh. It continues the path he chose, a path devoted to national independence, the happiness of the people, and the future of generations to come.

Commending Cao Bang province and relevant agencies for their proactive and responsible preparation and completion of procedures, the Party leader emphasised that this is a major decision and an urgent campaign requiring strong, coordinated efforts by all levels and sectors. Each project must ensure genuine quality, effectiveness and sustainability, worthy of the trust and expectations of the people.

He stressed that school construction must go hand in hand with building a modern, comprehensive educational environment. Beyond imparting knowledge, schools must focus on character building, fostering ideals, patriotism, ethics and discipline. A school should not only be a place of teaching and learning, but a warm second home for students, with the best possible conditions for accommodation, daily life, hygiene and food safety, so that parents can feel secure.

Praising Petrovietnam’s initiative in implementing the “STEM education and practice classrooms” programme, General Secretary To Lam called on the Ministry of Education and Training, provincial and municipal Party committees, and Vietnam Television to closely coordinate with Petrovietnam to deploy the programme in a systematic and well-structured manner, regularly review outcomes, and expand this meaningful model nationwide.

He expressed his hope that Truong Ha students will not only study to escape poverty, but study with the aspiration to rise, to prosper themselves and their families, and to contribute to building their homeland of Pac Bo into an increasingly prosperous place. Each student, he said, should become a “living landmark” of culture, knowledge and patriotism on this sacred borderland.

With the tradition of solidarity, responsibility and high determination of the Party organisation, authorities and people of Cao Bang, the General Secretary expressed confidence that the Truong Ha boarding school will soon be completed and operate effectively, becoming a bright spot in border-area education, contributing to human resource development and a sustainable future for the locality, and making a tangible contribution to national construction and defence. Every classroom built, he affirmed, lights up a new hope for the future of the frontier.

On the occasion of the New Year 2026 and ahead of the traditional Lunar New Year, the General Secretary extended warm greetings and best wishes to revolutionary veterans and all ethnic communities in Truong Ha commune. He wished every family and village a peaceful, happy spring and many new achievements in the year ahead; encouraged teachers to continue nurturing their dedication as the most inspiring torchbearers for border-area students; and wished students, the future of the nation, a joyful and safe traditional holiday, with renewed determination to study and train well to become worthy future custodians of the country.

At the ceremony, General Secretary To Lam and other Party and State leaders presented gifts to policy beneficiary families, people with meritorious service to the revolution, and disadvantaged households in the area, and conducted the official groundbreaking ceremony for the Truong Ha Primary and Secondary Ethnic Boarding School in Truong Ha commune, Cao Bang province.