Businesses join hands to provide computers, Internet connection to needy students

Hanoi (VNA) – In response to the “Telecommunications services and computers for children” programme launched by the Prime Minister, many businesses have donated cash to support disadvantaged children, especially those living in areas under social distancing, in online studying amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Vietnam National Petroleum Group (Petrolimex) contributed 30 billion VND (1.32 million USD) to the programme, hoping to help children in pandemic-hit localities continue their study and promote digital society development.

Along with its efforts to reduce retail prices of petrol in localities affected by the pandemic, the firm has donated more than 268 billion VND for COVID-19 prevention and control activities since the beginning of this year. Last year, Petrolimex also contributed 14.1 billion VND to the activities.

Meanwhile, the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) has also offered 30 billion VND to the programme.

An ACV representative said that the firm aims to join hands with the community to take care of the future generations of the country, especially children in disadvantaged areas.

The firm earlier donated 200 billion VND to the national COVID-19 vaccine fund.

At the same time, the Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group (VNPT) has committed 37,000 tablets to the “Telecommunications services and computers for children” programme and pledged to accompany the education and training sector in narrowing the digital gap between urban and rural areas, ensuring that no student is left behind.

Nguyen Nam Long, Deputy General Director of VNPT, said that the tablets will be provided for poor students in localities applying social distancing under the Prime Minister’s Directive 16.

Alongside, the firm will continue to implement solutions to narrow digital gap among regions, including the providing of free access to VNPT E-Learning programme to all high schools and universities and free 4Gb mobile data each day for 1 million poor students in thee months.

It has also worked to improve the quality of telecommunications services in rural and mountains areas, while investing in the completion of its smart education ecosystem vnEdu 4.0.

The telecommunications service supplier MobiFone has called on its staff to contribute to its target of providing 4,000 tablets to poor students for online learning within September.

MobiFone will supply free mobile Internet connection to all online learning platforms approved by the Ministry of Information and Communications.

It will increase its 4G service coverage, especially in rural and mountainous areas.

MobiFone-developed online learning MobiEdu was launched free of charge in May this year in 400 schools.

Along with its efforts to support State agencies, businesses and people in technology solutions to overcome COVID-19, MobiFone also donated 200 billion VND to the national COVID-19 vaccine fund, raising the total value of its contributions to the pandemic fight to nearly 3 trillion VND./.