New secondary school opens in Xekong

The children of Dakcheung district in Xekong province now have a brand new secondary school, built with 9 billion kip (US$1 million) in grant funding from the Vietnamese government.
The school, in Nonsavan village, was officially handed over to Lao authorities last week.
The event was attended by Deputy Minister and Deputy Head of the President’s Office, Mr Kingmano Phommahaxay, Deputy Minister of Education and Sports, Associate Prof. Dr Kongsy Sengmany, and the Ambassador of Vietnam to Laos, Mr Nguyen Ba Hung.
The two-storey school has six classrooms, four laboratories, two computer rooms, a teachers’ office, library, meeting room, and two warehouses as well as toilets and other facilities.
The modern building will facilitate learning and teaching and help raise education levels to international standards, which will support the effort towards much needed education reform in Laos and improved human resource development.
It is hoped the modern facilities will provide students with an improved learning experience so they are better qualified to contribute to the country’s development.
The Lao and Vietnamese governments have collaborated in several areas, including education development.
Over the past year, Vietnam has provided a grant of VNĐ30 billion (US$1.32 million) for the construction of a secondary school in Pakxan district, Borikhamxay province, to mark Laos-Vietnam Friendship Year.
This school will be built next to the existing 30-year-old Sithanaxay Secondary School on a site measuring 2,126 square metres.
The four-storey building will have eight classrooms, two laboratories and a meeting room.
Vietnam also provided a grant of VNĐ120 billion (more than 49 billion kip) to build the new Bounneua Secondary School in Bounneua district, Phongsaly province. Two three-storey buildings containing 40 classrooms will be built, with each room being fully furnished.
There will also be a teachers’ office, a school club and a sports stadium. The school’s more than 1,700 students will benefit by having a larger and improved learning environment.

By Phomphong Laoin
(Latest Update November 18, 2019)