With a bicycle, the way to school is closer.

Có xe đạp, đường đến trường gần hơn - Ảnh 1. — Ms. Nguyen Thi Long (53 years old, residing in Tan Binh village, Phong Binh commune, Phong Dien district, Thua Thien Hue) and her granddaughter went by boat to receive the Sowing seeds of knowledge scholarship - Photo: NHAT LINH

On the afternoon of November 27, Tuoi Tre newspaper coordinated with Thua Thien Hue Provincial Youth Union to award 200 Gieng nuc tri thuc scholarships to poor students who have overcome difficulties in the province, including bicycles and school supplies worth 2 million VND/scholarship.

Previously, the scholarship award ceremony in Hue was scheduled to take place on the morning of November 26 but had to be postponed due to heavy rain and flooding. Many places in Phong Dien district are still flooded about 30-40cm deep.

Grandmother and grandchild came to receive the bicycle together.

On the afternoon of November 27, floodwaters on rivers in Thua Thien Hue gradually receded, and the weather became sunny after many days of heavy rain. However, many low-lying areas in Phong Dien district were still flooded with about 30-40cm of water, making it difficult for people to travel.

Hearing that this afternoon her grandson had received the Gieo nuc tri thuc scholarship from Tuoi Tre newspaper, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Long (53 years old, residing in Tan Binh village, Phong Binh commune, Phong Dien district, Thua Thien Hue) asked a relative to take a boat to take her and her grandson through the flooded area to the awarding point at Phong Binh commune People's Committee very early.

According to Ms. Long, Tan Binh village is more than 8km from the handover point, the water is still about 40cm deep, and travel is mainly by boat.

“The bicycle has been my grandson’s dream for a long time, so I was afraid that if I was late, he wouldn’t receive it. After lunch, the two of us hurriedly packed our bags and called a boat to go to the scholarship receiving location,” Mrs. Long confided.

Vượt nước ngập để đến nhận chiếc xe đạp mơ ước - Ảnh 2. — Ho Thuy Linh (9/2 grade student at Phong Binh Secondary School, Thua Thien Hue) was happy to receive a bicycle from the Sowing Seeds of Knowledge scholarship - Photo: NHAT LINH

Mrs. Long's granddaughter, Vo Thi Lam Phuong (grade 4, Phong Binh Primary School) has no father, her mother also remarried, she has lived with her grandparents since childhood. Despite her difficult family situation, Phuong studies very well, every year she receives a certificate of merit for being a good student from the school.

Her house is more than 8km from school but Phuong has never missed a day of school. She usually gets a ride from a classmate in the same village, and sometimes she walks to school by herself.

"I want to become a doctor in the future to treat my grandparents," Phuong said when asked about her future dreams.

Where there is difficulty, there is the Seed of Knowledge scholarship.

Lam Phuong's situation represents the difficult situation of 200 poor students who overcame difficulties in Phong Dien district, Thua Thien Hue province, who received the Tuoi Tre newspaper's Sowing Seeds of Knowledge scholarship this year.

Có xe đạp, đường đến trường gần hơn - Ảnh 4. — Mr. Pham Van Hoa, Deputy Director of Agribank Phu Nhuan Branch - Photo: NHAT LINH

Each scholarship is worth 2 million VND, including bicycles and school supplies. The total value of the program in Thua Thien Hue is more than 400 million VND, sponsored by Agribank Phu Nhuan branch, Ho Chi Minh City.

After the award ceremony in Thua Thien Hue province, the program will continue to award 200 scholarships to students in Dak Lak and Ca Mau provinces, each province with a total value of more than 400 million VND.

Mr. Pham Van Hoa, deputy director of Agribank Phu Nhuan branch, said that wherever there are difficulties and examples of poor but studious students, the Sowing Seeds of Knowledge scholarship will come to that place.

According to Mr. Hoa, in 2024, Agribank Phu Nhuan branch will continue to sponsor the Seeds of Knowledge program with 800 scholarships worth 1.6 billion VND for the provinces of Thua Thien Hue, Quang Tri, Dak Lak and Ca Mau.

Thus, up to now, in 7 years, the Seeds of Knowledge program has awarded a total of 4,565 scholarships, worth more than 9.31 billion VND.

“The scholarships, including gifts and bicycles, will help students ease the hardships on their journey to knowledge. Hopefully, these meaningful gifts will help them continue their studies and become successful and useful people to society,” said Mr. Hoa.

Since 2018, the Sowing Knowledge Scholarship has spread across the provinces, from the delta regions of Kien Giang, Vinh Long, Ben Tre, Tay Ninh... to the Central Highlands provinces such as Dak Lak, Dak Nong... to the difficult Central provinces of Quang Tri, Phu Yen, Thua Thien Hue... to the northern mountainous provinces such as Tuyen Quang, Nam Dinh...

The program has helped students in the most remote areas have more favorable conditions to go to school.