Improving Infrastructure Quality

 

Lang Son province is the starting point of Vietnam in the Nanjing (China) - Lang Son - Hanoi - Hai Phong Economic Corridor; thus, it has received strong supports for synchronous infrastructure development from the Government. At present, the 170-km two-lane Huu Nghi (Lang Son) - Hanoi section on the National Road 1A is in use but the Government is carrying a six-lane highway to link the two important localities. Besides, the province links to other localities with major traffic routes, including a 114-km section of National Road 4B connecting Lang Son with Mui Chua Port, Quang Ninh province, the 160-km section of National Road 1B linking Lang Son with Thai Nguyen province, the 148-km section of National Road 4B hooking up Lang Son with Cao Bang province, and the effective-operating railway linking Hanoi, Lang Son and Dong Dang with China. The Government plans to upgrade this rail route after 2010. Lang Son province also attaches much importance to building and connecting provincial and district roads to interconnect villages.

 

The province is now using the national power grid with two 110 KV transformer stations, 35/0.4 KV and 22/0.4 KV transformer stations, and transmission lines reaching 224 out of 226 communes, wards and townships. The locality is running the 100-MW Na Duong thermal power plant and is planning to build a second facility in this plant with the same capacity. Lang Son is investing in six 30-MW hydropower plants and one 15 MW wind power plant.

 

The water supply system is supplying 10,000 cubic metres a day to residents in Lang Son Town. Water supply facilities in smaller urban zones and towns meet a part of the demand.

 

The telecom network covers all 11 districts, all communes and border gates. The tele-density reaches 12.6 phone lines per 100 residents.

 

As regards education, the province now has 110 preschool and kindergarten facilities, 221 primary schools, 219 junior schools, 23 high schools, 12 continuing education centres, two colleges, and four vocational training schools. The Northwest Mechano-electric and Agro-forestry Technique School and the Vietnam - Germany Vocational Training School train 2,700 students and 1,200 students a year, respectively. The province was recognised for universalisation of secondary education in 2006 and had 58 schools rated national standards. It is establishing a project to set up the University of Lang Son capable of training 1,500 - 1,800 students a year.

 

Lang Son has four provincial hospitals, 10 district hospitals and one medical centre in Lang Son City, 24 regional clinics, and medical wards in all 226 communes. The province has 2398 health workers, an average of 9.5 doctors per 1,000 residents. As many as 170 commune medical wards have doctors; 190 communes meet national medical standards; 36 percent of villages have cultural houses; 137 communes have cultural post offices; and 55.8 percent of communes have sporting stadiums.

 

The province has 10 districts and one third-grade city, with 212 communes and 14 townships. Five border districts are Trang Dinh, Van Lang, Cao Loc, Loc Binh and Dinh Lap; five non-border districts are Van Quan, Binh Gia, Bac Son, Chi Lang and Huu Lung. Lang Son City is a provincial political, economic and social centre. The province is upgrading the city to make it a second-grade urban zone (115 square kilometres and 120,000 residents in 2010) and promoting Dong Dang into a town. It also has two international border gates (Huu Nghi and Dong Dang), two national border and seven border markets.