 Participating in the Workshop on Some theoretical and practical issues on promoting new growth drivers - Perspectives from the practice of heritage economic development in Quang Ninh province held in Van Don at the end of December 2024, Prof. Dr. Dinh Xuan Dung (photo) , former Vice Chairman of the Central Council for Theory and Criticism of Literature and Arts, paid special attention to the role of people in heritage economic development. In order to grasp the issue more deeply and comprehensively, reporters from the Provincial Media Center had an interview with him about this content. |
- In your opinion, what role will the people play when developing the heritage economy?
+ It can be affirmed that for thousands of years, the cultural heritage of our nation has been built, protected and preserved by the people. Without that, the heritage cannot exist, so now we use the heritage to develop the heritage economy, the role of the people as owners of the heritage does not change. When we develop the economy, we still have to find ways to nurture and train the indigenous people to become owners of that heritage; coordinate with businesses, traders, and service establishments so that the people can participate, in accordance with their role as the main subjects creating this heritage economy.
Accordingly, the role of the people as the subject must be implemented by a number of very important measures. Firstly, the government must train and foster the most ordinary people, those who work in shops, who have the deepest understanding of heritage so that they can master the knowledge when receiving tourists. Secondly, the government must closely coordinate with foreign investors or overseas investors to create employment opportunities for local people, who are an indispensable element in mastering this heritage economy.
Third, it is necessary to train local tour guides who are knowledgeable about the heritage and love it, so that they can convey the value of that heritage to tourists. Fourth, there must be regulations and sanctions to ensure that investors respect the local people, create jobs for the local people and have the ability to take ownership of that heritage in developing the heritage economy. If this is not done, the heritage economy will deviate and cannot develop sustainably.
I had an experience in a city in Italy, which has many world-famous heritages. The number of visitors and tourists is many times greater than the local population of that city, affecting their lives, both spiritually and materially. They reacted, demanding a reduction in the number of tourists and demanding the protection of the heritage, which cannot be fully exploited and exhausted. In Vietnam, this has not happened yet, but we must be on guard against the possibility that a part of the "local" people will stand aside or become hired workers, or even gradually lose the right to enjoy the values of cultural heritage, the beauty of the landscapes and landscapes of their homeland.
- So, if the heritage economy develops in the right direction, will it contribute to creating new heritage values and encourage people to properly demonstrate their role as subjects?
+ This is an issue that requires leaders and managers to handle it dialectically. On the one hand, it is necessary to make heritage become an economic value, a new characteristic, a new driving force of economic development, which is extremely important. On the other hand, it is necessary to respect the people, love the people, cherish the people and train the people to become masters in that development process. The current government has no experience in this matter and only focuses on the issue of economic exploitation from heritage values without knowing how to turn the people into masters in that process, and if not, such development cannot be sustainable.
In Quang Ninh, in the province's development target, 100% of the people must understand the cultural heritage of their homeland. I think that is a very big, long-term and very necessary goal. And places need to learn and persevere in doing that, so that people are not only beneficiaries of economic results but also affirm the heritage values of their homeland.
And more importantly, it is important to make tour guides deeply understand the heritage that they lead tourists to and create pride for them, while also creating economic efficiency. Currently, we have not resolved these relationships well and invest more in the localities from outside than in the ownership of those who understand the heritage and can develop themselves economically.
I once met a shop owner in Quang Ninh. He knew very well about the heritage of Ha Long Bay and through that I knew that each island here has a name associated with a person. I think that this is a model for training a person who is both an economic master and deeply understands and loves the heritage of his homeland. But to do so requires a very long process of striving.
- Can you elaborate on what people need to do to benefit more from heritage economic development?
+ There are 3 contents here, in which people must clearly and deeply understand their heritage to be proud of and know how to exploit that heritage. In terms of government, these people must be trained so that they can develop their potential and be able to participate in investing in developing the heritage economy in their locality. The second is the close coordination between fields and departments to create the overall strength of the local heritage economy, in which people are an indispensable element. That is very important now and is a problem for the future, but at present we have not done it fully and truly.
- When we talk about heritage economy, we are also talking about development at a certain scale, with the participation of many large enterprises. So, in your opinion, how can we harmonize the interests of enterprises and the role of people in developing heritage economy when their economic potential has a big difference?
+ Actually, this is closely linked to local leadership and management. If we want to exploit the heritage economy, we must call for investment. That is inevitable. However, in signing contracts and discussing and exchanging, we must affirm the investor's responsibility to the local people, to help the local people participate in heritage economic activities.
And conversely, it also requires the efforts of the local people themselves to be able to join investors and entrepreneurs in mastering heritage economic activities. This is a very dialectical process to be able to sustainably develop a new type of economy, the heritage economy, which means that everything is still ahead and we are trying step by step in experimenting...
- Thank you for the conversation!
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