Lao-Viet bilingual school begins new school year

The Nguyen Du Lao-Vietnamese bilingual language school in Vientiane held a ceremony on September 6 to start the 2023-2024 school year.

Sisouk Vongvichith, Lao Deputy Minister of Education and Sports; Le Thi Thu Hang, Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chairwoman of the State Committee on Overseas Vietnamese Affairs; Phan Minh Chien, Counselor of the Vietnamese Embassy in Laos; representatives of the Vietnamese community in Laos as well as parents of the students attended the event.

Speaking at the ceremony, Rector of the school Sivanheuang Phengkhammay said that despite many challenges, educational activities have achieved encouraging results. Specifically, the rate of excellent students reached 18.88%, and all students graduated from primary, secondary, and high school, she continued, adding that it reflects the great efforts of the teachers and students.

Lauding the school’s achievements in learning and teaching over the past year, Vongvichith underscored the importance of the teaching of the Vietnamese language and the deepening of the special friendship between Vietnam and Laos.

On this occasion, Hang presented gifts worth 24 million VND (1,000 USD) and a number of textbooks and school equipment to the school’s students.

Within the framework of the event, Chien launched a week honouring the Vietnamese language among the Vietnamese community in the Southeast Asian nation.

The school is a place for children of Vietnamese expatriates in Vientiane to study after the Lao national curriculum along with the Vietnamese language.

In 2005, Vietnam offered over 500,000 USD in funding to build the school. Currently, it has 66 teachers and over 1,000 students from kindergarten to the 12th grade. The Vietnamese students account for about 30%.