Vietnam will focus on building a new sports infrastructure from now until 2020 in accordance with the national sports development plan recently approved by the Prime Minister.

The plan aims to create a suitable sports foundation to help meet the physical fitness demands of residents all over Vietnam, provide sufficient facilities for professional athlete training, and host regional tournaments.

Current national sports centers in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, and Can Tho will be upgraded, while new centers will be constructed in districts O Mon and Binh Thuy in Can Tho, Sapa, Ha Nam, Da Lat, Kon Tum, and Binh Thuan.

Vietnam will also upgrade and build existing and new sports universities in Ha Nam in the north, Dong Nai in the south, and Da Nang in the central region.

The national sports complex My Dinh in Hanoi will be improved with the addition of new facilities including the drug and sports medicine center, the press and communication center, the sports clinic, and the sports sciences institute.

Grassroots efforts to encourage physical fitness for all Vietnamese are also mentioned in the national plan. These efforts aim to encourage 28 percent of the national population to engage in regular exercise by 2015, and 33 percent in 2020.

Other goals of the plan include instituting sports training programs in all schools by 2015, and for 85-90 percent of all students to meet national standards of physical fitness by 2020.