A UNESCO representative presents certificate in recognition of Ho Chi Minh City as a member of the Global Network of Learning Cities.

The UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities is a network of cities that promote lifelong learning in their communities. It has 356 member cities that provide inspiration, know-how, and best practices.

Ho Chi Minh City’s membership recognizes the policies, commitment, and effort of Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh City to ensure a comprehensive education and lifelong learning opportunities for everyone, and raise the status of Vietnamese education in the international arena.

Jonathan Wallace Baker, Chief Representative of UNESCO in Vietnam, said, “UNESCO is very interested in the city's initiative on building a set of criteria for happy schools based on UNESCO's global happy schools framework. This model will be at the heart of educational innovation, making happiness a key factor in improving education quality.”

Jonathan Wallace Baker, Chief Representative of UNESCO in Vietnam

Over the years, Ho Chi Minh City’s education and training sector has grown in both quantity and quality, becoming an important resource for socio-economic development.

Its school network covers every district and Thu Duc city, with 5,700 educational and training establishments from preschool to the tertiary level. The city has supported people’s studies and encouraged life-long learning to raise awareness, develop skills, and improve the nation’s human resources to achieve breakthroughs in labor productivity and quality of life.

Nguyen Thi Le, Chairwoman of Ho Chi Minh City People’s Council

Nguyen Thi Le, Chairwoman of the municipal People’s Council, said that Ho Chi Minh City has developed a smart education and lifelong learning project from 2021 to 2030. To date, more than 1.6 million families have earned the title ‘learning family’, 1,000 clans have been recognized as ‘learning clans’, and 10,000 people have been recognized as ‘learning citizens’.

“We’ll continue to strive to become a leading educational center in Southeast Asia and achieve high rankings in world assessments. The city will do its utmost to ensure that every citizen has the opportunity to learn and develop, and pledges to work closely with other members of the network to share experience and build a better learning environment for all,” said Le.

Ho Chi Minh City recently launched an action program to build a "UNESCO Global Learning City until 2030", a place where everyone, regardless of their age or nationality, can continue to learn.

Nguyen Ho Hai, Deputy Secretary of the municipal Party Committee, said, “To promote the achievements so far, Ho Chi Minh City has enhanced the spirit of self-study and self-training and inspired the desire for lifelong learning. We’ll continue to encourage efficient learning models and efforts to build a learning society, focusing on digital transformation, integrated platforms, and data sharing.”

49 years after liberation, Ho Chi Minh City is ready for a future in which every citizen is a digital citizen, a global learning citizen building a learning community, a learning society, and a learning world.