Cultural heritage - A vector for peace, resilience and sustainable development
WVR - On November 6, at UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France, the Permanent Delegation of Vietnam to UNESCO and the Vietnam National Committee for UNESCO organized the Vietnamese Cultural Night with theme “Vietnam Colors: Cultural heritage as a vector for peace, resilience and sustainable development”.
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| Participants take a group photo at the event - Vietnamese Cultural Night with theme “Vietnam Colors: Cultural heritage as a vector for peace, resilience and sustainable development”. (Photo: The Permanent Delegation of Vietnam to UNESCO) |
On the threshold of the 42nd session of UNESCO’s general conference, nearly 200 foreign ambassadors and representatives to UNESCO were treated to a feast of the Vietnamese culture while attending the event.
The event had the presence of Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chairman of the Vietnam National Committee for UNESCO Ha Kim Ngoc, Head of the Permanent Delegation of Vietnam to UNESCO, Ambassador Le Thi Hong Van, Vietnamese Ambassador to France Dinh Toan Thang on Vietnamese side as well as Deputy Director General of UNESCO Xing Qu, Chairman of the Executive Council Tamara Rastovac Siamashvili, Director of the World Heritage Center Lazare Assomo Eloundou on UNESCO’s side.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Ha Kim Ngoc highlighted the significance of the event which is a continuation of the “International Conference on Promoting the role of world cultural and natural heritage in sustainable development in Vietnam” (July 2023), to share Vietnam's experiences with UNESCO in promoting the role of titles, heritage, and culture for sustainable development and reliance; affirming that cooperation between Vietnam and UNESCO has become a model for peace, cooperation and sustainable development.
In his speech, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Ha Kim Ngoc shared about Vietnam’s contributions to the world’s treasure of heritage, given that the country is bestowed with eight world cultural and natural heritage items, and 15 intangible cultural heritages of humanity.
Deputy Minister laid stress on the role of cultural heritage to provide a source of creative inspiration, and serves as a bridge to bolster mutual understanding among peoples as foundation to build a better future. Respecting and protecting cultural heritage in each nation will help strengthen solidarity, reduce violence and conflict, as well as promote peace and sustainable development.
As a UNESCO member, Vietnam reaffirms its commitment to preserving and promoting the values of cultural heritage at both national and international levels, and contributing more to UNESCO’s efforts by running for a seat in the World Heritage Committee in the 2023-2027 tenure, he added.
For his part, UNESCO Deputy Director-General Xing Qu called the cultural event important as it helps honor the charm and purity of Vietnam’s intangible cultural heritage.
He hailed the sound cooperation between the country and UNESCO over the past 50 years, spoke highly of Vietnam’s contributions to protecting and promoting the values of heritage items, with its organization of a ceremony to mark the 50th anniversary of the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage in 2022 in Ninh Binh province; an international conference on promoting UNESCO titles for sustainable developmen; the new registration of Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba Islands on the world heritage list and recognition of Hoi An and Da Lat as two new creative cities of Vietnam.
UNESCO Deputy Director-General Xing Qu called the cultural event important as it promotes the essence of the Mondiacult conference in 2022 which affirms culture as a global public good and aims to make it a Sustainable Development Goal in the future.
An array of traditional Vietnamese arts was featured at the event, including lion dance, folk singing, performance of Vovinam martial arts, and standout cuisines, helping nudge the image of a dynamic Vietnam during its vibrant international integration process closer to international friends.
