The Ministry of Education and Sports (MOES) warned the public last week about fake scholarships being offered to study in China.
The warning came after a number of private companies and individuals posted ads on Facebook about alleged scholarships on offer from the Chinese Scholarship Council (CSC) and the Vietnamese government.
The MOES has stated that no scholarships offered by private companies or individuals are authorized by the government, and the MOES Student Affairs Department is willing to help people in identifying and avoid applying for them.
The ministry has not yet explicitly confirmed whether the scholarships advertised on social media were genuine or just a scam. But it has warned people to be careful when applying for any form of financial aid that is not affiliated with the government, the Vientiane Times reported.
A senior officer from the Ministry of Education and Sports (MOES) revealed that China awards scholarships to Lao nationals every year, mainly through the CSC, a Chinese educational non-profit organization that supports international academic exchanges with China.
He added that these scholarships can only be promoted and requested through the ministry, not through privately owned businesses or individuals.
From 2018 to 2022, the Chinese government has given more than 6,000 scholarships to Lao nationals.
The Chinese government recently awarded 350 scholarships to Lao students and civil servants to study in China for undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees in the 2023–2024 academic year.
China has provided support to Laos in a variety of areas, including education, infrastructure, human resources, teacher training, school construction, and a railway operations training college.
PM Sonexay Siphandone also met with the Vietnamese President at the ASEAN Summit this week to discuss educational exchanges between the two countries, among other issues.
