On August 19, Lao Cai Provincial People's Committee organized a Conference to deploy the Project on arranging public preschool, general education, and continuing education institutions for the period 2026-2030.
According to the Project approved in Decision 2855 dated August 15, 2026, after arrangement, the public education system of Lao Cai province is expected to have 473 facilities, including 132 kindergartens, 77 primary schools, 59 secondary schools, 114 primary and secondary schools, 32 secondary and high schools, 43 high schools and 16 vocational and continuing education centers.
Lao Cai has a large area, divided terrain, scattered population, and many ethnic minorities. Therefore, the school system once had to maintain many remote school sites to bring classrooms closer to students.
However, the overly fragmented network also puts pressure on staff, management, facilities and budget.
The project aims to eliminate 243 satellite school sites, including 87 preschool sites and 156 elementary school sites.
Points with small scale, few students, limited facilities or no longer suitable will be considered for dissolution to focus investment in main schools, boarding schools, and semi-boarding schools.
However, the province emphasized not to mechanically eliminate school sites. Places with stable student numbers, long distances to the main school, difficult traffic or potential safety risks due to terrain and weather will continue to be maintained.
Points that are not eligible for arrangement in 2026 will be invested and completed for implementation in the 2027-2028 school year.
For students in particularly difficult areas, the province orients to bring them to the main school to organize study, boarding and fully enjoy policies; the implementation will only be implemented when the facilities meet the requirements.
Along with arranging schools and classes, Lao Cai will restructure the staff. According to the plan, the arrangement is expected to reduce 3,428 staff according to norms, including 1,347 management officials and 2,081 employees.
Teachers are reassigned according to job positions, subjects and class size; where there is surplus, they can be transferred or assigned to facilities lacking human resources.
Speaking at the conclusion of the conference, Vice Chairman of Lao Cai Provincial People's Committee Vu Thi Hien Hanh requested localities to urgently deploy and ensure the merger of preschool, primary, secondary, primary and secondary education institutions and vocational and continuing education centers to be completed before August 30, 2026.
According to leaders of Lao Cai province, the arrangement of schools directly affects students, parents and teachers, so it is necessary to strengthen propaganda, dialogue, and proactively solve arising problems.
The ultimate goal is not only to reduce the number of schools, school sites or staff, but to use resources more effectively to improve the quality of teaching and learning," Ms. Vu Thi Hien Hanh emphasized.
