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| Heritage is a national asset that is especially valuable in tourism development. |
According to the results of the inventory of relics of localities, the whole country currently has about 40,000 historical - cultural relics, scenic spots distributed throughout all regions of the country; 70,000 intangible cultural heritages have been inventoried; nearly 3 million documents and artifacts, of which 265 artifacts and groups of artifacts have been recognized as national treasures...
In particular, Vietnam currently has 8 tangible cultural heritages, 15 intangible cultural heritages, 9 documentary heritages and 3 Global Creative Cities recognized by UNESCO. We are proud to be one of the countries with a rich, diverse culture, imbued with national identity, with unique characteristics of each region, making important contributions to the world's cultural treasure. In recent years, the preservation and promotion of the value of our UNESCO titles and heritages have also achieved many successes. UNESCO Director-General and Director of the Lazare World Heritage Center Eloundou Assomo once affirmed: Vietnam is a "typical model" of a harmonious model between preserving and promoting heritage values associated with sustainable tourism development, economic development and people's livelihoods.
In particular, in 2023, Vietnam recorded historic milestones in implementing multilateral diplomacy at UNESCO. Our country was elected Vice President of the 42nd UNESCO General Assembly, Vice President of the Intergovernmental Committee for the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage and Vice President of the Intergovernmental Committee for the 2005 Convention for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. In particular, Vietnam was elected to the World Heritage Committee for the 2023-2027 term with the highest number of votes in the Asia-Pacific region. Thus, for the first time in history, Vietnam simultaneously assumed responsibilities in 5 key executive mechanisms of UNESCO, including 3 Vice President positions.
This is of great significance in many aspects, affirming the correct foreign policy of the Party and State on multilateralization, diversification, comprehensive, deep and effective international integration, the policy of promoting and elevating multilateral diplomacy, as in the spirit of the Resolution of the 13th National Party Congress, Directive No. 25-CT/TW of the Secretariat and the Cultural Diplomacy Strategy to 2030. These achievements also demonstrate Vietnam's increasingly high international position and prestige, and the trust of the international community in our ability to contribute and our management capacity in global multilateral institutions.
It can be seen that the historical milestones in Vietnam's multilateral foreign affairs implementation at UNESCO recently not only affirm the pioneering role of Vietnam's foreign affairs but also continue to demonstrate soft power and national position.
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| Hue Ancient Capital - one of the heritages honored by UNESCO (Photo: TL) |
Cultural heritages in particular and UNESCO titles in general are considered “prestigious” by the international community, because they are not only valuable assets, reflecting the strong identity of each country and ethnic group, but also have global value, even being a heritage of humanity. Therefore, UNESCO heritages and titles have great potential in attracting tourism, promoting sustainable development, building local brands, enhancing national image and soft power.
However, facing the fierce challenges of the 21st century such as climate change, natural disasters, epidemics, mass tourism, pressure from growth and urbanization, new technology... threatening to erode cultural identity, affecting the preservation and promotion of heritage... Therefore, we need to make efforts to preserve and promote the value of heritage, turning potential into resources, heritage into practical assets to serve the goal of sustainable socio-economic development of people, localities and the nation.
In fact, there are still many relics and heritages in the country that have not been properly preserved and restored, and their values have not been fully promoted. In order for cultural heritages to become red addresses for traditional education and attractive destinations for tourists, we need to continue to build and perfect the legal system on cultural heritage, research, and prepare dossiers to submit to UNESCO to register typical relics and landscapes of Vietnam as world heritages. It is necessary to research and highlight the heritage, cultural and historical values of these areas to promote and attract tourists to visit and develop community tourism. From there, attract investment from economic sectors in tourism and service development activities, improve the cultural, spiritual, economic and social life of local communities.
In addition, we also need to promote investment cooperation between enterprises to improve service infrastructure, welcome tourists at world heritage sites, historical - cultural relics, scenic spots; apply information technology in welcoming and explaining to ensure favorable conditions and comfort for tourists; diversify and improve the quality of products, services, experiences, entertainment, etc. At the same time, support investment and develop community tourism at key relics, both attracting tourists, developing the economy and society, preserving traditional culture, improving the material, cultural and spiritual life of ethnic minorities living in heritage sites, relics, etc.
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