Nguyen Thu Ngan

Every morning, Nguyen Thu Ngan cycles three kilometres to school, carrying not only her books but also her family’s hopes for a better future.

Since her parents divorced, Ngan has lived with her grandmother while her mother works at a factory in Binh Duong. The family shares a small charity house with an uncle affected by Agent Orange and two other school-aged children. They have no farmland or stable livelihood.

Despite these hardships, Ngan studies diligently and consistently achieves good academic results. However, the costs of transportation, textbooks, uniforms and school supplies remain a heavy burden on her grandmother.