Over the past few years, the armed forces of Ho Chi Minh City have made great achievements in the implementation of the Law on National Defence and Security Education. This lays the basis for the City Party Committee, authorities, people and armed forces to successfully perform national defence and military tasks in the area.
Ho Chi Minh City is a special one with its strategic position in socio-economics, national defence-security and foreign affairs of the South and the whole country. In recent years, despite becoming one of the country’s economic drivers, the City has faced a lot of difficulties, especially in the industrialization, modernization and international integration. It is also a key area where hostile forces attempt to sabotage the revolution. The situation poses to the City in general and its armed forces in particular new requirements about the State management, social order maintenance and construction of a law-governed socialist state, including the State management of military and national defence (hereafter the Law for short). Therefore, effective implementation of the Law on national defence and security education plays an important role in making people increasingly aware of national defence and security, contributing to political stability, social order and safety for the sake of the City’s comprehensive and sustainable development.
In order to make the Law practical and effective, the City attaches importance to promoting the responsibility of all levels, branches and citizens, with the armed forces playing the core role. With this end in view,  the City’s Military Party Committee and High Command have directed the military offices at all levels to concentrate on educating cadres and soldiers about the basic contents of the Law as well as other related legal documents, directives, decrees and plans. This helps improve cadres’ knowledge, responsibilities and practical capabilities, so that they can give advice and successfully implement the Law in their localities. The City High Command - the standing organ of the City’s Council for National Defence and Security Education (the Council for short) has actively advised the People's Council and Committee to promulgate legal documents for comprehensive and unified implementation in the locality. In the first half of 2018 alone, the Council issued 38 guiding documents. At the same time, the heads of concerned agencies and organizations strictly conducted the policies in accordance with local conditions and characteristics. Besides, the City Military Party Committee and High Command regularly advise the Party organizations and administrations at all levels to improve the quality of the Council for National Defence and Security Education, ensuring its prescribed quantity, structure and assigning specific tasks to the members. At the same time, they cooperate with functional agencies in fostering the capacity of advising and guiding the performance, renovating the inspection and supervision of the Law implementation in localities and units. Moreover, comprehensive review is necessary to promptly popularize effective models and deal with shortcomings during the implementation. 
Adhering to laws, functions, assigned tasks and specific situation of the City, the High Command takes the initiative in advising the City’s Party Committee and People's Committee to enhance the knowledge of national defence and security, especially for the heads of agencies, units, localities, enterprises and organizations in their respective localities. Annually, the military agencies at all levels, based on the plan,  conduct surveys, make lists and hold classes for national defence and security education. Meanwhile, they also cooperate with departments, unions and localities to organize training courses on national defense and security for assigned officials and party members. Apart from the training program and contents as prescribed, the City High Command also works out details suitable for each locality and collective. As a result, the key staff members at all levels enhance their awareness, responsibility and management capacity, which contributes to the State management efficiency in national defence and security. In 2017, the Councils at all levels held 23 training courses of legal normative documents on national defence and security education for the leaders of the City agencies and organizations as well as the Central ones working here, with more than 2,500 attendees. 109 courses on national defence and security knowledge were also run for more than 12,000 cadres of 3rd and 4th levels and over 1,000 religious dignitaries, alongside 38 others for more than 4,000 cadres of 2nd, 3rd and 4th levels, which partly raise awareness and strengthen the national unity.
Being a densely populated area with numerous colleges, universities and the human resource training center for the South, the City especially focuses on national defence and security education for students. Annually, the Council directs municipal Department of Education and Training together with the related branches to work out plans on this subject for students. On that basis, schools cooperate with military units and national defence and security education centers in the areas under the guidance of the Joint Circular 123 of the Ministry of National Defence, the Ministry of Education and Training, and the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, ensuring teaching time, contents and programs. The materials and equipment for teaching and learning are fully ensured. In order to continuously improve the quality of education, the Council asks the centers to actively innovate teaching methods with “student-centered” learning and apply information technology in teaching. Importantly, national defence and security contents are integrated with scientific, technical, economic, cultural and social development and students’ majors. At the same time, education is combined with training for students to get acquainted with daily and weekly regulations, regularity formulation, and discipline obedience. In addition to the lessons in the program, the centers also educate local revolutionary tradition, organize national defence and security exercises, social activities, monument and historic evidence visits, light candles in remembrance, hold talks on tradition and open "Army semesters", etc. Hence, students are not only armed with the necessary military knowledge and skills but also directly used to training, collective lifestyle, and discipline. It also helps foster their love for the homeland, the belief in the military fighting power and the willingness to contribute to building and defending the Fatherland. In 2017, the City completed the national defence and security education program for over 400.000 students of 334 secondary and high schools, vocational centers, colleges and universities on a par with the requirements.
In order to make people of all strata fully aware of national defence and security and voluntarily obey the law, the City significantly improves its education. To this end, the City directs the districts’ Party Committees and administrations to promote the synergy of the entire political system during the implementation with various methods. In particular, the means of radio, television, newspapers, internet, reporters as well as communicators and diversified activities of cultural festivals, scientific seminars, sports events and mass meetings are extensively utilized to disseminate the law to people. The city promptly reward people for achievements, "good people, good deeds" examples in military, national defence operations and mass movement of the Homeland security protection. Another focus is to provide formal information on political, economic, cultural, social, national defence and security as well as diplomatic issues of the country and the city for the citizens. Thereby, social views are oriented, which helps to fight against hostile information and promote the City people’s patriotism and responsibility for the cause of national construction and defence.
The City also conducts national defence and security education in a joint program between the armed forces and localities with the activities of training, promoting public relations, "gratitude”, and carrying out military rear policy, etc. Recently, chaos broke out when the National Assembly passed the Law on Cyber Security and the draft law on special administrative-economic units. Together with functional agencies, the City’s armed forces persistently explained the nature of the problem to the people. Meanwhile, they exposed the hostile forces’ conspiracy of distorting the truth and inciting people for political, social order and safety instability. Thus, it helps raise people’s awareness and show their patriotism in total obedience to the law. 
It can be affirmed that strictly obeying the Law on National Defence and Security Education has considerably contributed to building the people's national defence and the people's security posture, strengthening political and spiritual power for the City defensive zone. In the coming time, the City Party, authorities, armed forces and people continuously enhance the quality of national defence and security education with the aim of making the City deserved-to-live, civilized, modern and hospitable.
Major General Ngo Tuan Nghia, Commissar of Ho Chi Minh City’s High Command