During an inspection of the Inter-level Boarding School Project for Primary and Lower Secondary Education on June 2, Mr Thái Đại Ngọc, reviewed progress at several construction sites and met with project stakeholders.
The project, managed by the Provincial Project Management Board for Construction Investment, consists of seven school campuses across seven border communes. Once completed, it will provide 212 classrooms and accommodate approximately 7,108 students.
The total investment amounts to VND 1.516 trillion (approximately US$58.3 million), including VND 1.468 trillion (about US$56.5 million) from the central government budget and VND 48.396 billion (about US$1.86 million) from the provincial budget. Authorities said 32% of the planned capital has been disbursed to date.
According to the project owner, construction has begun on major components at all school sites. However, progress remains behind schedule due to labor shortages and persistently high construction material costs.
To help accelerate implementation, local armed forces have deployed an additional 270 workers to support construction activities. The project owner is also completing procedures to select contractors responsible for supplying and installing school equipment.
Current efforts are focused on advancing key construction works, including main building structures and roofing, masonry and plastering, as well as supporting infrastructure such as retaining walls, fire-fighting water tanks, swimming pools, drainage systems, internal roads, perimeter fencing, gates, connecting corridors and water towers.
Mr. Thái Đại Ngọc instructed contractors to strengthen accountability, maintain a regular on-site presence, increase labor, machinery and equipment, and organize additional work shifts to improve progress.
He stressed the importance of completing roofing work on major structures as quickly as possible to reduce the impact of the rainy season and avoid issues such as waterlogged foundations that could affect construction quality and timelines.
The provincial leader also called for a methodical construction approach, emphasizing that each section should be fully completed before work moves to new areas in order to avoid prolonged and fragmented implementation.
In addition, he directed relevant agencies to promptly begin bidding and procurement procedures for school equipment while ensuring transparency, openness and full compliance with legal requirements.
For student admissions, local authorities were instructed to develop enrollment plans based on the actual infrastructure capacity of each school to prevent overcrowding and maintain balanced student numbers.
Admissions policies must prioritize students from ethnic minority communities while ensuring all procedures are conducted through admissions councils to guarantee fairness, objectivity and compliance with regulations.
During the visit, Ngoc also met with construction workers at the Ia Nan and Ia Pnon school sites, offering encouragement and presenting gifts to project teams.