The northern mountainous province of Son La has raised almost 2.9 billion VND in both cash and kind to build 316 semi-boarding and community-based classes for ethnic minority children in remote areas.

These classes, where school children have lunches fed by surrounding families, have contributed to drawing 97.8 percent of ethnic minority children to primary school and 56 percent of the under-fives to day-care centres.

The provincial youth union members have taken part in fixing and building 564 km of inter-hamlet lanes. They have also devoted 9,000 working days to helping local families displaced by the Son La hydro-power plant, the largest of its kind so far in Vietnam, settle down./.