On 10/12, the National Assembly passed a resolution on specific, outstanding mechanisms and policies designed to create a breakthrough in education and training development, effective from 1/1/2026. In addition to the preferential professional allowance for teachers, staff at public preschools and general education schools will also receive a minimum 30% preferential professional allowance.

Currently, the country has over 1,05 million preschool and general education teachers whose salaries are paid from the state budget. Monthly salaries range from 4,9 to 15,87 million VND, depending on the educational level. After adding allowances, the total monthly income is approximately 6,6 to 30 million VND.

The National Assembly allows vocational education institutions and universities to autonomously decide on additional income levels for teachers, public employees, and workers. This income will come from legitimate non-state budget revenues retained by the institutions, in line with internal spending regulations and the unit's operational results.

Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Kim Son presented the report on reception and explanation before the National Assembly passed the law, on the morning of 10/12. Photo: Hoang Phong

According to the resolution, directors of departments of education and training are authorized to recruit, receive, and manage teachers, management officials, and staff for public preschools, general education, continuing education, specialized schools, and vocational high schools within their provincial area. Commune-level chairmen are empowered to assign, transfer, second, appoint, dismiss, and change job positions for teachers, management officials, and staff of public schools under their management.

Vocational education institutions and universities are granted autonomy to determine job positions, recruit, and sign labor contracts with foreign experts and scientists holding doctoral degrees, as well as overseas Vietnamese.

The Minister of Education and Training is tasked with deciding on one set of general education textbooks to be used uniformly nationwide starting from the 2026-2027 academic year. By 2030, the state will provide free textbooks to students, prioritizing areas with exceptionally difficult conditions, ethnic minority and mountainous regions, border areas, and islands.

The state will also ensure resources for free tuition and textbooks for national defense and security education subjects at vocational schools and universities. Students will have access to preferential credit from the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies to cover study and living expenses. PhD students participating in key training programs commissioned by the state, linked to national priority scientific and technological tasks, will receive scholarships and living costs.

The law stipulates that the state will ensure a minimum expenditure of 20% of the total state budget for education and training. It will also allocate budget from increased revenue for education development, prioritizing areas with exceptionally difficult socio-economic conditions. Within six months from the conclusion of a school council's operations, the direct management agency of public educational institutions will decide on the management and operational tasks previously handled by the school council concerning organization and personnel.

580,000 billion VND for education modernization by 2035

On the same morning, the National Assembly also approved a resolution endorsing the investment policy for the national target program for modernizing and enhancing the quality of education and training for the 2026-2035 period. The projected cost for the program's 2026-2030 phase is 174,600 billion VND, including 100,000 billion VND from the central budget, 45,100 billion VND in local counterpart funds, 20,400 billion VND in counterpart funds from universities and colleges, and 9,100 billion VND from other mobilized sources.

For the 2031-2035 phase, based on the results of the initial phase, the government will submit to the National Assembly a proposal for continued program implementation resources. The total resources expected to be mobilized over 10 years are 580,100 billion VND.

Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Do Van Chien and delegates at the session on the morning of 10/12. Photo: National Assembly Media

The program aims to comprehensively modernize the education and training system, creating a fundamental shift in quality. It seeks to expand learning opportunities for citizens, ensure equity in accessing education, and uphold the right to lifelong learning. Ultimately, it will meet human resource demands, especially for high-quality personnel, for national development.

By 2030, the entire country will complete compulsory education up to the end of lower secondary school, and all classrooms will be reinforced. Also, 30% of preschools and general education schools will have equipment to teach and learn some subjects in English, gradually making English a second language.

Eighteen key colleges will receive investment to train highly skilled human resources in technical and technological fields, serving national key programs and projects. Half of all universities will meet standards, with at least 30 universities receiving modern investment comparable to developed Asian countries. Eight universities will be among Asia's top 200, and one university will be among the world's top 100 in specific fields.

By 2035, Vietnam strives to have 60 colleges reaching the level of ASEAN-4 countries and 6 universities reaching the level of developed countries in the Group of 20 leading economies. At least 12 universities will be among Asia's top universities, and two universities among the world's top 100.

Vu Tuan