Reshaping education for deeper impact

Dong Nai City is committed to investing in Dong Nai University to develop it into a training institution for high-quality human resources. Photo: Cong Nghia

Truong Thi Kim Hue, Member of the City Party Committee and Director of the Department of Education and Training, said, “The orientation to develop Dong Nai into an urban growth driver for the country is a major policy. The education sector is deeply aware of its role and is therefore implementing comprehensive solutions to improve the quality of all-around education, meeting the human-resource requirements for the city’s goal of rapid and sustainable development.”

General education is the foundation

Dong Nai City currently has more than 1,130 educational institutions from preschool through high school levels, along with four universities, three university branches, and 10 colleges, serving more than one million pupils and students. Dong Nai’s education sector ranks among the largest in the country in terms of scale. In recent years, the city has consistently prioritized investing in standardizing its school system in line with national criteria. As of early 2026, 70.66% of the city’s schools from preschool through high school had met national standards, with the city aiming to raise that rate to more than 80% by 2030.

According to the leadership of the Department of Education and Training, the sector continues to advise the City People’s Committee on solutions to improve the quality of education and human resources. In particular, the city is closely implementing Resolution No. 71-NQ/TW dated August 22, 2025, issued by the Politburo on breakthroughs in education and training development. The resolution sets the goal of ensuring permanent schools and classrooms by 2030, completely eliminating temporary classrooms, and developing a school network that meets learning demands. Alongside modernizing infrastructure, the city is also prioritizing investment in information technology equipment, laying the foundation for digital transformation in management, teaching, and learning activities.

Dong Nai needs to continue restructuring public vocational education institutions to ensure they are streamlined, efficient, and effective. Priority should be given to clearly identifying and making in-depth investments in key training fields aligned with sectors in which the city is actively attracting investment. The city needs to act as a bridge, helping high-tech enterprises “join hands” with training institutions to share training opportunities and supply human resources for the rapid, in-depth development of high-tech and core technology industries.

In central areas, priority is being given to addressing student overcrowding in wards with large concentrations of workers, such as Trang Dai, Long Binh, and Phuoc Tan. The planning and construction of new schools in these areas are being carefully considered to meet long-term educational demands. In border areas, in line with Conclusion Notice No. 81-TB/TW dated August 18, 2025, issued by the Politburo, the Department of Education and Training has coordinated in advising the issuance of a project to invest in the construction of schools in eight border communes, with a total budget of 1 trillion VND for the 2025–2027 period. In 2025 alone, the city allocated more than 100 billion VND to commence urgent projects.

To reduce pressure on the state budget, Dong Nai continues to promote the socialization of education. Among the more than 1,130 educational institutions across the city, 243 are private institutions, accounting for 18% of the total and ranking Dong Nai among the localities with the highest rate nationwide. The private school system has developed in diverse forms, meeting the educational needs and economic conditions of many different groups.

Do Dang Bao Linh, Deputy Director of the Department of Education and Training, said, “Many non-public educational institutions in the city are implementing international programs, notably International Schools of North America (SNA), Asia Bilingual College, and Thai Binh Duong Primary-Middle-High School, all located in Tran Bien ward.”

Keeping pace with high-tech workforce training

Dong Nai is implementing numerous key projects and attracting investment into high-tech sectors such as semiconductors, chip manufacturing, automotive components, aviation, and logistics. To meet emerging development requirements, training institutions in the city need to advance comprehensively in both scale and quality. Dr. Dinh Cong Khai, Vice President of the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City, said that training institutions in Dong Nai need to undergo comprehensive reforms to ensure a supply of high-quality human resources for the city, particularly in high-tech industries.

Businesses have sponsored electric vehicle training equipment for Lac Hong University.

Currently, Dong Nai has established a system of training institutions from the intermediate to the university level. However, most of these institutions still face difficulties in meeting human resource needs, particularly in scientific research, technology transfer, and training for core technology sectors. The capacity of training institutions to supply human resources for modern technology projects in the city remains limited in certain respects. Many enterprises said that when recruiting, they still have to retrain personnel, which takes considerable time and costs and has a certain impact on investment efficiency.

According to Assoc. Prof. Dr. Lam Thanh Hien, Rector of Lac Hong University, higher education institutions in Dong Nai have clearly recognized opportunities to provide high-quality human resources, particularly as the city accelerates infrastructure completion and shifts toward attracting investment in modern technology sectors. However, deeper involvement in this field requires substantial resources and strong support from the city through land and capital policies to create a foundation for development. During meetings with city leaders, representatives of universities proposed that the city should soon establish a high-quality human resource development investment fund, with priority given to training institutions in core technology sectors.

Dr. Dang Anh Tuan, Rector of Dong Nai University:

Expectations for the city's policy decisions

Recently, Dong Nai University received the city's approval to implement a policy to support the institution in attracting lecturers holding doctoral degrees or higher, with a maximum support of up to 450 million VND per person. Since its implementation, the policy has created strong motivation and trust among intellectuals, as it reflects not only material support but also the city’s genuine commitment to valuing and attracting talent.

Regarding vocational education, Rector of Lilama 2 International Technology College Nguyen Khanh Cuong said the school is working to build an aviation engineering training center based on its strengths in mechanical, electrical, and electronic engineering, in line with international standards set by the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom. This goal is gradually becoming a reality as Long Thanh International Airport is expected to begin commercial operations soon. The school has partnered with the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) and Vietjet Air to train ground service personnel and aircraft maintenance and repair staff. At the same time, the institution is moving forward with the launch of a new training major in unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) manufacturing to support industrial production.