Under the resolution, the fees for nursery, primary, secondary and high schools will all be raised in the urban, rural and mountainous areas.

The monthly tuition fee per pupil in the urban areas will be raised by VND45,000 (US$2) to VND155,000 ($7), according to director of the municipal Department of Education and Training Chử Xuân Dũng.

Monthly tuition fees for a pupil in rural and mountainous areas will be raised by VND20,000 and VND5,000 to VND75,000 and VND19,000, respectively.

The increase was aimed at improving salaries for teachers and professional development, he said.

The new fee was affordable for urban households while it will not affect students of poor families as they receive Government tuition fee reductions and exemption, he added.

The city would collect a total of nearly VND940 billion ($42 million) from the new tuition fees, accounting for 11.3 per cent of its spending activities.

Head of the municipal People’s Council’s Social and Culture Department Tran The Cuong said the municipal authorities would increase management and inspection to prevent the collection of additional fees and organisation of extra classes at public schools as part of measures to ensure education and training quality.

VNS