(VOVWORLD) - Vietnam’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has carried out various activities to raise the people’s intellectual standards, including a project to bring books to poor neighborhoods and schools in Hoa Binh province. These are part of the government’s collective effort to improve education for minorities living in the highlands and other remote regions of Vietnam.
 Nhan Nghia school's library in Hoa Binh province. |
The provincial library in downtown Hoa Binh City has recently had its many empty book cases filled with books. Bui Van Dip, Director of the library, said: “The provincial public library has suffered from lack of equipment, facilities, and funding. We don’t have enough books on the shelves.”
Nhan Nghia school in Hoa Binh had trouble attracting students to its library because there were too few books on too few subjects. But that has changed, thanks to the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism’s project to deliver books to remote areas.
“The library didn’t have enough books we wanted to read, so we didn’t come here often. These projects have encouraged us to read more by giving us interesting books. It’s a blessing that so much care has been given to upgrading the libraries,” student Bui Khanh Huyen told VOV.
Thuong Coc is one of the secondary schools given books by the project. The School Rector Ha Thi Nga said the books have changed the students’ behavior.
“Children learn many things from books. Their knowledge and social skills have improved significantly,” said Ms. Nga.
Head of the Library Department of the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism Duong Thuy Nga believes reading is one of the best ways to get people out of poverty.
"Reading is the most basic way to gain knowledge. People need knowledge and skills to escape poverty and contribute to their community’s development. We need to pay more attention to establishing a reading habit among children and people in general," said Ms. Nga.