The department has submitted a proposal to the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee seeking approval to consult the Standing Board of the municipal Party Committee on the proposed restructuring of the city's public education network.
Under the education sector's proposal, the reorganization will be implemented in phases, beginning with pilot models before broader expansion. The phased approach will allow time to assess the impact of the reforms while ensuring consensus among local authorities and communities.
The restructuring plan follows the Ministry of Education and Training's directive not to merge preschools with general education schools, general education schools with vocational and continuing education centers, or specialized education institutions with mainstream schools. Priority will instead be given to consolidating institutions at the same education level or those located in close geographic proximity.
The Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee has tasked the Department of Education and Training with taking the lead, in coordination with the Department of Home Affairs, the Department of Finance, and authorities in wards, communes and special zones, to urgently develop a comprehensive restructuring plan tailored to the city's actual conditions.
Ho Chi Minh City currently has 2,188 public educational institutions, including preschools, general education schools, and continuing education institutions. These comprise 694 preschools, 778 primary schools, 449 secondary schools, 159 high schools, 30 multi-level schools, 41 continuing education and vocational education-continuing education centers, and 37 specialized education institutions.
A review conducted by the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training found that some schools are relatively small and no longer suited to the development space and population scale of the city's newly established administrative units. The review also identified an imbalance in human resources, with some schools having a surplus of administrators while facing a shortage of classroom teachers.
The reorganization of the public education network is therefore aimed at optimizing the allocation of educational resources and enhancing the overall quality of education across Ho Chi Minh City.
