DECISION

APPROVAL FOR THE STRATEGY FOR DEVELOPMENT OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION DURING THE 2021- 2030 PERIOD WITH VISION TO 2045

PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the Law on Government Organization dated June 19, 2015; the Law on Amending and Supplementing certain Articles of the Law on Government Organization and the Law on Local Government Organization dated November 22, 2019;

Pursuant to the Labor Code dated November 20, 2019;

Pursuant to the Law on Education dated June 14, 2019;

Pursuant to the Law on Vocational Education dated November 27, 2014;

Pursuant to the Government’s Resolution No. 50/NQ-CP dated May 20, 2021 regarding the Government’s Action Program for implementation of the 13^rd National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam;

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Upon the request of the Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs,

HEREIN DECIDES

Article 1. To approve the Strategy for Development of Vocational Education during the 2021- 2030 period with vision to 2045 (hereinafter referred to as Strategy) with the following contents:

I. VIEWPOINTS

1. Vocational education development emerges as one of the most important tasks to be performed to promote human resource in order to take advantage of the golden population, create direct human resources that have high standards, outstanding performance and vocational expertise to suit the needs of socio-economic development of our country.

2. Develop vocational education towards openness, flexibility, modernity, efficiency and integration, putting more emphasis on the training capacity scale, structure and quality; concentrate on investing in and promoting international cooperation to develop a number of vocational education institutions, majors and occupations to reach the regional and global level of educational standards.

3. Develop vocational education towards suiting the labor market’s needs connected with decent work, social security and sustainable and inclusive development activities; maximize the capacity and qualities of learners; promote entrepreneurship, innovation and creativity.

4. Regulatory authorities shall have policies to gradually universalize the vocational education for the youth; prefer to fund vocational education when making the training and education budget allocations, and budgeting for the programs and projects of central and local authorities; strengthen private-sector involvement in vocational education in suitable areas, sectors and industries.

5. Vocational education development shall be assigned to all-level regulatory authorities, agencies, organizations, enterprises, vocational education institutions and people; shall be prioritized when developing the development plans, programs and projects of central and local authorities.

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1. General objectives

Rapidly develop vocational education to meet various needs of the labor market, the people and the increasing requirements as to the quantity, structure and quality of skilled human resources to serve the national development purposes over time.

2. Specific objectives

a) By 2025

Ensure the training capacity scale and structure of majors and occupations are commensurate with the objectives of the country's socio-economic recovery and development; the training quality of several schools approaches the level of training standard of ASEAN-4 countries, especially that of several occupations that is expected to approach the level of training standard of developed countries in the region and the world, and contributes to increasing the percentage of trained workers obtaining qualifications, diplomas or certificates to 30%.

Several major targets:

- Attract 40 - 45% of lower and upper secondary school graduates to the vocational education system; over 30% of female students compared to total enrollment target.

- Provide retraining or continuing education programs for about 25% of the workforce.

- Workers who are ethnic minorities completing vocational training programs are expected to account for 45%.

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- The percentage of workers trained in information technology skills are expected to reach 80%.

- At least 30% of vocational education institutions and 50% of study programs in key majors and occupations are expected to meet education quality accreditation standards.

- Strive for 100% of qualified teachers; about 80% of education administrators who are expected to complete training or refresher courses for improvement of their management and administration skills.

- Strive to reach about 80% of majors and occupations in which expected learning outcomes are developed and updated according to the National Qualifications Framework.

- Strive to develop about 70 schools into high-quality ones, including: 03 schools that function as national centers for high-quality vocational training and practice; 06 schools that function as regional centers for high-quality vocational training and practice; 40 schools that approach the level of training standard of ASEAN-4 countries; 03 schools that reach the level of training standard of G20 developing countries; about 150 key majors and occupations, out of which 05 -10 have outstanding competitiveness in ASEAN-4 member states.

b) By 2030

Focus on improving the quality and effectiveness of vocational education in order to meet the needs of skilled human resources for developing countries with modern industry; actively participate in the international human resource training market; make some schools approach the levels of training standard in ASEAN-4 member states, and make some occupations approach the levels of standard of education in G20 developing countries; contribute to increasing the rate of trained workers attaining qualifications, diplomas and certificates to 35-40%.

Several major targets:

- Attract 50 - 55% of lower and upper secondary school graduates to the vocational education system; over 40% of female students compared to total enrollment target.

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- Workers who are ethnic minorities completing vocational training programs are expected to account for 50%.

- Handicapped workers still capable of working that have completed appropriate vocational training programs are expected to account for 40%.

- The percentage of workers trained in information technology skills are expected to reach 90%.

- At least 70% of vocational education institutions and 100% of study programs in key majors and occupations are expected to meet education quality accreditation standards.

- Strive for 100% of qualified teachers; about 90% of education administrators who are expected to complete training or refresher courses for improvement of their management and administration skills.

- Strive to reach about 90% of fields and areas of study in which expected learning outcomes are developed and updated according to the National Qualifications Framework.

- Strive to develop about 90 schools into high-quality ones, including: 06 schools that function as national centers for high-quality vocational training and practice; 12 schools that function as regional centers for high-quality vocational training and practice; 60 schools that approach the level of training standard of ASEAN-4 member states; 06 schools that attain the level of training standard of G20 developing countries; about 200 key majors and occupations, out of which 15 -20 have outstanding competitiveness in the ASEAN region and world.

c) Vision towards 2045

Vocational education aims to meet a developing country’s needs for highly skilled human resources; our country is expected to be ranked as one of the leading countries in terms of vocational education in the ASEAN region, catch up with the advanced level of training standard in the world, and have outstanding competitiveness in a number of training fields, majors and occupations.

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In order to achieve the strategic goals, it is necessary to concurrently carry out eight groups of key tasks and measures, especially “Accelerating digital transformation, modernizing facilities and equipment, and innovating new training programs and methods” and “Developing a contingent of teachers, artisans, experts, vocational trainers and administrators for vocational education purposes” which are recognized as breakthrough approaches. Specific tasks are described as follows:

1. Formulate complete regulatory policies, improve the effectiveness and efficiency of state management of vocational education.

- Effectively implement Vietnam's National Qualification Framework for vocational education levels and the National Framework for Vocational Skills Qualification; join in mutual recognition of vocational qualifications and skills with countries in the region and the world, especially ASEAN-4 countries and G20 economies. Scrutinize and supplement higher levels of vocational education to meet the labor market’s needs and international trends.

- Improve regulatory mechanisms and policies to attract investors, businesses and employers to actively participate in vocational education and skill development activities, especially vocational training at the workplace.

- Improve regulatory mechanisms and policies to attract and recruit public officers in charge of vocational education affairs and administrators of vocational education institutions, with an emphasis on developing a contingent of academic administrators in charge of the vocational education sector in severely disadvantaged areas, ethnic minority areas, border areas and islands, while ensuring gender equality.

- Complete regulatory mechanisms and policies on recruitment, employment, treatment and honoring for teachers, artisans, experts and instructors involved in vocational education activities, ensuring gender equality. Complete preferential policies towards teachers teaching in boarding and semi-boarding vocational education institutions for ethnic minorities; teachers teaching in severely disadvantaged areas, border areas and islands; teachers teaching people with disabilities; teachers teaching in specific fields, sectors and industries. Develop incentive policies and open and flexible mechanisms to attract, train and educate scientists, technicians, artisans, people with high vocational skills and hands-on experience in order for them to participate in vocational training activities.

- Study, develop and submit to competent authorities for promulgation of policies to attract learners at different vocational education levels in key fields, majors and occupations; arduous and hazardous, arts, culture, physical training, sports, health,...majors and occupations; policies for learners in specific groups, such as people with disabilities, ethnic minorities, rural workers, female workers, migrant workers, people from poor households, near-poor households, discharged soldiers, etc.; gender equality policies for vocational education activities; policies to grant start-up loans to students and employees completing vocational training programs.

- Study and propose formulation of complete mechanisms and policies to enable freelance workers, workers who are unemployed or at risk of unemployment due to the impacts of the industrial revolution, natural disasters, epidemics, etc. to have access to vocational training programs. Supplement training regulations applied to foreigners in Vietnam.

- Continue to review and perfect regulatory mechanisms, and promulgate policies to manage to channelize the flow of lower and upper secondary graduates into vocational education institutions and gradually universalize the vocational education for the youth.

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- Study and develop regulatory mechanisms and policies to encourage vocational education institutions that meet quality accreditation standards, and vocational education institutions recognized as high-quality ones; develop complete policies for vocational education institutions providing vocational training programs for specific trainees and fields, sectors or industries. Complete regulatory mechanisms and policies regarding high-quality vocational training affairs.

- Arrange and organize the network of vocational education institutions which are open, flexible, modern, accessible, and diverse in terms of types and forms of organization; ensure the proportionate structures of majors and occupations, qualifications and regions; have sufficient capacity to meet the needs for workers graduating from vocational training programs, especially high-quality ones. Encourage the development of private, foreign-invested and intracorporate vocational education institutions.

- Develop the national system for vocational education quality assurance where the risk management principles are adopted and the post-inspection activities are strengthened. Enhance responsibility awareness, self-motivation, self-reliance and accountability, and promote the roles of leaders of vocational education institutions and regulatory authorities at all levels. Renovate the inspection, accreditation, assessment and recognition of vocational education quality. Study the formulation and application of the national framework for vocational education quality assurance and training programs in specific fields, majors and occupations. Develop a team of accreditors and a network of vocational education accrediting organizations.

2. Accelerate digital transformation, modernize facilities and equipment, and innovate new training programs and methods

a) Accelerate digital transformation

- Make radical changes in awareness and rapidly improve digital transformation capacity of regulatory authorities in charge of vocational education affairs and vocational education institutions.

- Develop consistent digital infrastructure, including data infrastructure, technical infrastructure of central and local regulatory authorities in charge of vocational education affairs and vocational education institutions. Develop, upgrade and perfect the database system in sync with the national database system and other dedicated databases, contributing to the formation of the national open database.

- Build digital platforms that can be shared by multiple users and support online teaching at all vocational education levels. Propose incentive policies to encourage Vietnamese digital technology enterprises to invest in developing digital platforms.

- Develop digital depositories to store all-level and multidisciplinary resources and materials that can be shared in the vocational education system and linked with the world. Invest in renovating laboratories, virtual workshops, virtual appliances, and increasing equipment and appliances for appropriate majors and occupations.

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- Update, revise and formulate national standards for vocational education institutions; standards of practice, experimentation and testing facilities; economic - technical norms regarding training activities; lists of mandatory teaching equipment needed for training activities in different majors and occupations according to training levels and qualifications.

- Modernize facilities and equipment of vocational education institutions to ensure that they fit into production technologies of enterprises, match quality stratification orientations and agree with characteristics of specific majors and occupations. Strengthen ties with enterprises to exploit and use equipment available at enterprises. Develop the "smart and modern school" or "green school" model.

c) Innovate new training programs and methods

- Develop and update expected learning outcomes according to the Vietnam National Qualifications Framework with reference to regional and international ones. Innovate the new procedures and methods with the orientation of developing training programs into those which are open, flexible and enable study transfer based on modules, credits and other equivalents, meeting expected minimum learning outcomes and study load. Develop training programs for new, information technology, new technology, future skills application majors and disciplines, and training programs for employees at the workplace in the on-the-job training form at the secondary or post-secondary level.

- Support and encourage association programs with foreign countries and training programs for foreigners in Vietnam.

- Diversify training methods with the strong application of information technology. Strongly promote apprenticeship in the workplace; focus on developing retraining and continuing education programs for workers, and training programs for migrant workers. Strengthen ties between schools and enterprises.

- Pilot and implement a number of new training models, especially those in majors and occupations that meet the requirements of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the digital economy, sustainable and comprehensive development in the vocational education. Assess and make widespread use of adopted foreign training programs. Apply training technology, make widespread use of advanced training models of developed countries; try out foreign visiting lecturers teaching in a number of high-quality majors or occupations according to international standards.

- Innovate and diversify new testing and assessment methods in which the participation and recognition of employers are welcomed. Grant students and employees recognition of skills and qualifications that they succeed in attaining when studying and working domestically and abroad.

- Embark on whole person education that focuses on improving personal qualities, gender equality, forming core skills, soft skills, digital skills, foreign language proficiency and individualizing training programs for learners.

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a) Develop a team of teachers, artisans, experts and trainers

- Complete teacher standards and standardization which focus on practical experience and professional competence in the digital era, and modern teaching methods integrated with core skills required in the 21^st century, together with soft skills, digital skills, to ensure that they are adaptable to the industrial revolution.

- Develop and implement a mechanism to provide pedagogical training and refresher courses for teachers on a regular basis.

- Innovate and improve quality, diversify training and drilling programs and methods for teachers. Send teachers teaching in key majors and occupations at ASEAN and international levels abroad to take part in training courses in countries with developed vocational education systems.

- Set up and organize the system of teacher training and coaching institutions according to the principles that these institutions are distributed proportionally to regions, zones and meet the needs for development of the teaching staff.

- Consider recognizing skills and qualifications of people from other fields of expertise if they wish to become vocational teachers or lecturers.

- Robustly develop a team of qualified artisans, experts and trainers participating in providing training programs at all levels of vocational education.

- Effectively deploy communities and networks where teachers, artisans, experts and trainers are connected together in vocational education activities.

b) Develop a team of vocational education administrators

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- On a periodic basis, provide regular training and coaching courses for improvement of the competence of administrators of vocational education institutions, public officers in charge of vocational education affairs at all levels, especially those holding managerial positions at the local level. Support and encourage the development of intracorporate administrators.

- Train and coach all-level administrators in countries with developed vocational education systems in terms of models of vocational education organization and management machinery, and management of vocational education institutions, etc. to create a contingent of planned administrators ready to take up positions in the entire system.

4. Closely link vocational education with businesses and the labor market

- Develop and implement a mechanism for cooperation between regulatory authorities, schools, enterprises, employers, socio-political organizations, socio-political-professional organizations, social organizations, professional social organizations in vocational education activities on the basis of harmonization of social interests and responsibilities.

- Build models of connection between vocational education and enterprises, cooperatives, production and business establishments and the labor market in specific regions and localities which are suitable for specific target groups of students and workers, with emphasis on special ones from the informal sector, workers who are unemployed or at risk of being unemployed.

- Offer more technical support to businesses and employers through improving capacity, developing processes and tools for collecting, updating and synthesizing data and information on vocational education supply and demand.

- Promote the forecasting of vocational training needs, especially in science - engineering - technology majors and occupations, with priority given to information technology, new technology, high technology, and future skills ones. Effectively exploit national labor market data and information, conduct periodic or irregular surveys on job vacancies, skill expectations and training needs of enterprises, employers and feedback from vocational education graduates for management and education purposes.

- Strengthen connection between vocational education institutions, employment service centers, job exchanges, job fairs and innovative start-up centers; support learners to find jobs after graduation; link training activities with sending workers to work abroad under contracts.

- Strengthen the capacity of the national vocational skills assessment, recognition and certification system. Strongly promote vocational skills contests at all levels. Pilot the establishment of a number of key occupational skills councils/vocational groups in the period of 2021 - 2025. Based on assessment and review results, vocational education is expected to extend to more other occupations/industries in the period 2026 - 2030.

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- Build the capacity of administrators and teachers for scientific research and technology transfer, career and business start-up counseling, and science - technology organizations for vocational education, especially research units, to serve state management purposes. Set up innovative start-up centers operating at high-quality vocational education institutions.

- Strengthen scientific research in vocational education with the orientation of technology application and transfer with the participation of students, teachers, experts, artisans and employers. Associate training activities with technology transfer, commercialization of scientific research findings and technology transfer results. Boost up conducting scientific researches according to the order placement mechanism; link scientific research organizations with schools and businesses.

- Promote career guidance before, during and after vocational training; promote the spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation amongst students and activities aiming to support students to start up and run their own business; build start-up and innovation spaces at vocational education institutions and vocational education start-up ecosystems in regions.

6. Increase mobilization and improve the efficiency of financial investments in vocational education

- Increase more state budget allocations for vocational education every year. Prefer giving budget allocations for vocational education activities in national, central and local programs and projects.

- Diversify investment resources for vocational education, and encourage the private sector participation in vocational education. Seek more support and grants or aids from developed countries and international organizations to invest in vocational education.

- Grant public vocational education institutions greater autonomy. Increase state budget revenues from production and business activities, joint venture, affiliation activities and lease of public assets in accordance with law.

- Mobilize and improve the efficiency in using contributions to the Unemployment Insurance Fund, trade union financing and financial resources of socio-political organizations, and other lawful funds for training, retraining and mentoring activities for workers.

- Prefer synchronously investing in high-quality vocational education institutions, especially those that function as regional and national training and practice institutions; specialized vocational education institutions; vocational education institutions in severely disadvantaged areas, ethnic minority areas, border areas and islands; those that teach in key and high-tech majors and occupations; "green" occupations; new training majors or occupations, future skills; other particular majors and occupations.

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7. Communicate and enhance the images, brands and social values of vocational education

- Form a vocational education communications ecosystem with the participation of the political system, regulatory authorities at all levels, training institutions, students, employers and society in order to raise public awareness of roles, implications of vocational education, importance of labor skills, employability and opportunities to seek jobs and earn stable income after graduation from vocational education programs.

- Set up a communications team in charge of vocational education and develop the capacity of communication staff members at regulatory authorities and vocational education institutions.

- Diversify communication activities and forms; develop newspapers, magazines, websites, links, channels, television broadcasts on vocational education and radio programs in rural areas to ensure that reliable, complete, timely and audience-specific information about the national image, position and message related to vocational education, Vietnam labor skills day, vocational skills week, etc. are available. Increasingly communicate and propagate legislation on vocational education.

- Organize programs, events, contests; launch awards and titles to honor students, teachers, trainers, administrators, employers, skilled workers, organizations with a lot of achievements and contributions to vocational education and skill development activities.

- Build a national communication program to share the success of graduates at all vocational education levels, successful innovative and startup models in the vocational education sector. Every year, appoint and improve the capacity of vocational skill ambassadors.

- Actively participate in and orientate social networks towards vocational education to ensure consistency; create a digital environment for connection and sharing among regulatory authorities, vocational education institutions, employers, families, teachers and students; develop an open vocational education social network of Vietnam.

8. Take initiative in and improve the efficiency in international integration in the vocational education field

- Expand and improve the effectiveness of comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and other countries and international organizations in the vocational education field; step up the negotiation, signing and implementation of cooperation agreements and programs with international partners and foreign-invested enterprises operating in Vietnam in providing vocational education institutions and students with support for improvement of vocational skills.

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- Form an international network of experts in the field of vocational education. Strengthen cooperation between Vietnamese and foreign vocational education institutions, especially in receiving and transferring programs, textbooks, learning materials, teaching and learning methods; exchanges of teachers, lecturers, students and international experts.

- Diversify cultural and sports exchanges between students from regional and international vocational education institutions.

IV. FUNDING FOR IMPLEMENTATION

Funding for implementation of this Strategy is derived from:

1. State budget allocations given on an annual basis according to state budget distribution policies currently in effect.

2. Capital that is integrated in national target programs, other programs, plans and projects.

3. ODA and other foreign concessional loans.

4. Tuition fees; revenues generated from production, business and service activities, joint venture, affiliation activities, and lease of public assets in accordance with law.

5. Funds contributed by domestic and foreign individuals and organizations, lawful revenues and funds in accordance with law.

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1. Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs

- Lead the implementation of the Strategy nationwide; cooperate with relevant ministries, central and local authorities to concretize it into five-year or annual programs, plans, schemes, projects or assignments; formulate mechanisms, policies, programs, schemes and projects on vocational education and submit them to competent authorities for approval and implementation.

- Provide instructions on, inspect, facilitate, monitor and evaluate the implementation of the Strategy. Conduct the 5-year preliminary review and 10-year final review of the implementation of the Strategy and submit review reports to the Prime Minister.

2. Ministry of Education and Training

Lead, and coordinate with the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs and relevant ministries and central authorities on, completion of mechanisms and promulgation of policies to promote the channelization of the flow of graduates from lower and upper secondary schools into vocational education institutions; build a mechanism for educational transfer between vocational education and other education forms in the national education system.

3. Ministry of Planning and Investment

- Take charge of making arrangements for funding for implementation of the Strategy in accordance with legislation on public investment.

- Lead, and cooperate with the Ministry of Finance and relevant ministries and central authorities on, formulation of the complete legal framework to attract foreign investments in vocational education, mobilization, balancing of resources and allocation of investment capital for vocational education development purposes.

4. Ministry of Finance

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- Develop, review and finalize regulations on the Government’s on-lending of ODA loans and foreign concessional loans so that public vocational education institutions can access these loans.

5. Committee for Ethnic Affairs

Take charge of and cooperate with the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs on communicating, inspecting and supervising the implementation of vocational education in ethnic minority and mountainous areas; concretizing the Strategy into the national target program for socio-economic development in ethnic minority and mountainous areas.

6. Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

Take charge of and cooperate with the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs on communicating, inspecting and supervising the implementation of vocational education for rural workers; concretizing the Strategy into the national target program for new rural construction.

7. Ministry of Science and Technology

Lead and propose programs, projects, scientific researches, innovation and entrepreneurship activities in the vocational education field.

8. Ministries, Ministry-level, Governmental and other relevant agencies

- Formulate five-year and annual programs, plans, schemes, projects and tasks to develop vocational education under its management; at the same time, arrange funds for implementation thereof in accordance with law on state budget decentralization.

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- Conduct the 5-year preliminary review and 10-year final review of the implementation of the Strategy and submit review reports to the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs for compiling a synthesis report to the Prime Minister.

9. Vietnam Television, Voice of Vietnam, other press and media agencies

Propagate vocational education and skill development. Increase time length and quality of media products regarding vocational education.

10. Vietnam Association for Promoting Education is expected to

Concretize the Strategy's viewpoints, goals, tasks and solutions into the plan for implementation of the "Building a learning society in the period of 2021-2030" project.

11. Central Committee of Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union is expected to

- Concretize this Strategy's viewpoints, goals, tasks and solutions into the plan for implementation of the Strategy for Development of Vietnamese Youth in the period of 2021-2030.

- Communicate the roles and implications of vocational education and the importance of labor skills, job opportunities and stable income after vocational training.

12. Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Vietnam Small and Medium Enterprise Association, Vietnam Association of Vocational Education and Social Work, socio-political organizations, social-political-professional organizations, social organizations, socio-professional organizations

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- Every year, make recommendations about requirements and needs for skilled human resources for different types of businesses.

- Mobilize members to actively implement the strategy, participate in vocational education activities, and engage in programs, schemes and projects in line with the Strategy's orientation.

- Call on businesses and employers to take active part in supporting the improvement of vocational skills for employees.

- Supervise vocational education activities, counseling and social criticism against mechanisms and policies for vocational education development.

13. People’s Committees of centrally-affiliated cities and provinces

- Formulate five-year and annual programs, plans, schemes, projects and tasks to develop vocational education under its management; at the same time, arrange funds for implementation thereof in accordance with law on state budget decentralization.

- Encourage establishment of local vocational education councils playing the role as interdisciplinary agencies giving advice on policies, recommendations, and coordinating, developing, and supervising local programs for support for vocational education reform.

- Communicate, inspect and supervise the implementation of programs, projects, subprojects in the vocational education field.

- Conduct the 5-year preliminary review and 10-year final review of the implementation of the Strategy and submit review reports to the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs for compiling a synthesis report to the Prime Minister.

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Article 3. Ministers, Heads of Ministry-level agencies, Heads of Governmental bodies, and Chairpersons of People’s Committees of centrally-affiliated cities and provinces, shall be responsible for implementing this Decision./.

PP. PRIME MINISTER
DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER




Vu Duc Dam