More than 24 million students across the country began the 2019-2020 academic year following brief and solemn ceremonies without balloons today, September 5.

A primary school student in Hanoi wrote a letter recently asking schools to ban the use of balloons used to open the new academic year.

Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung rang the gong this evening kicking off the 132nd Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU-132) at the National Convention Centre in Ha Noi.