Vice State President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh paid a visit to pupils at the Kim Dong Primary School in the central province of Quang Nam’s Bac Tra My district on June 1, offering them boxes of milk as a gift to commemorate International Children Day.

Vice State President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh makes a visit to pupils at the Kim Dong Primary School in the central province of Quang Nam’s Bac Tra My district on International Children's Day.

The visit marked the first boxes of milk distributed through the national School Milk Project which aims to reach children living in the province’s mountainous areas.

As of June 1, over 33,000 pupils at 575 kindergartens and primary schools across Quang Nam’s six mountainous districts, Bac Tra My, Nam Tra My, Dong Giang, Nam Giang, Tay Giang, and Phuoc Son, are set to receive a free box of milk on every school day.

According to Ho Quang Buu, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, the school milk project being launched in the six districts will cost a figure of VND110 billion, equivalent to US$4.7 million.

At present, Quang Nam is home to approximately 362,000 children, Buu stated, therefore making up over 23% of the province’s population.
Vice President Thinh, who also serves as Chair of the Council of the National Fund for Vietnamese Children,  handed over a sum of VND3 billion from the fund to authorities in Bac Tra My as a means of supporting the construction of additional boarding houses.

The School Milk Project, which is set to cover costs for poor and ethnic minority children, is a scheme that is jointly funded by the Government, parents, and national milk producer Vinamilk.

The programme aims to improve the nutritional status of preschool and primary children through daily milk supplies, therefore cutting malnutrition rates, raising the stature and physical strength of Vietnamese children, whilst simultaneously contributing to the development of future human resources.

Together, the State and Vinamilk will cover 53% of the overall cost, with the remaining 47% coming from families.