Vietnam: The Political Economy of Education in a “Socialist” Periphery

Welfare Regimes in China and Vietnam

“…Total expenditure for national target programmes increased 6-to 7-fold between 2002 and 2006, but only roughly 2% of recurrent spending was allocated to national target programmes in the 2008 state budget (Ministry of Finance 2008). While the idea of highly commodified education and health systems may not conform to CPV rhetoric, it is none the less a real institutionalised feature of social life in contemporary Vietnam (London 2003(London , 2006.…”

Education and inequalities in rural Vietnam in the 1990s

“…A direct consequence of the state shifting school financing onto households has been the sharpening of socioeconomic differentiations in terms of access to education (Bray & Borevskaya, 2001;London, 2006). Existing research clearly shows that this cost shifting has increased inequity in access to primary and secondary education, putting poor households at a clear disadvantage (Lee, 2002).…”

“…By the mid-1990s, Bray (1996) estimated that households in Vietnam financed nearly half of the primary and secondary school costs. Although many studies emphasise the difficulty that households have in keeping up with rising education costs, which surpass increases in income (Glewwe & Jacoby, 2004), financial pressure on households to cover education costs is most likely underestimated (London, 2006). Official data do not capture the indirect costs incurred by households -for example, the widespread and frequent unofficial payments and gifts required to secure admission into good schools, to ensure favourable treatment of their children, or simply to maintain good relationships with teachers and school administrators.…”

The Vietnamese Agenda of Adopting English as a Medium of Instruction

“…The year 1986 was a milestone for major political, economic and social changes in Vietnam (Le, 2007;London, 2006;World Bank, 2014;Wright, 2002). The 6 th National Assembly of the CPV acknowledged the weaknesses of the existing practices and resolved to comprehensively reform the economy through ten missions, notably: improving socialism (cải tạo xã hội chủ nghĩa) (mission 2), reforming economic management mechanism (Đổi mới cơ chế quản lý kinh tế) (mission 3), and actively promoting diplomatic activities (mission 7) (Communist Party of Vietnam, 1986).…”