USD155 million to support nation’s autonomous higher education

More than 150,000 students and 3,900 members of faculty will benefit from the investments for Vietnam’s National University of Agriculture, Hanoi-based University of Science and Technology, and Ho Chi Minh city-based Industry University. Some 600,000 students and 27,000 lecturers from other higher education institutions will also broaden their learning resources by gaining access to a digital library at the National Economics University.

The project will support the financing of new facilities and equipment for teaching and research, as well as the strengthening management systems. Science and technology universities as well as research-oriented institutions will benefit, so that lessons can be generalized to inform policies on autonomy and quality assurance for the universities.

Apart from strengthening key components of higher education such as the national accreditation system, it will also support policy analysis for sustainable financing and autonomy and the development of an information management system and a shared e-library system.

“Vietnam’s gains in higher education are evident in the numbers: 17 times more students enrolled since 1991. But the nation needs stronger growth in labor productivity and further significant shifts of the workforce to more productive sectors. Addressing this challenge requires different skills sets and competencies and further strengthening the access to, and quality of higher education. This is at the core of what this project aims to achieve”, stressed Mr Ousmane Dione, the World Bank Country Director for Vietnam.

The International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank’s fund for low income countries, will provide USD155 million to the USD174 million project, while the remaining financing will be covered by Vietnamese Government./.