PM calls for joint efforts to preserve cultural heritage

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As a country comprised of 54 ethnic minorities, Vietnam boasts a dizzying amount of diverse cultural identities. At present, Vietnam has more than 13,000 heritage sites and more than 61,000 intangible heritages. Eight of them have been recognized as the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, and 12 others as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.

In 2017, Vietnam welcomed more than 16 million visitors to its 8 World Cultural and Natural Heritages, earning more than US$110 million from ticketing and service fees.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism recently held a meeting in Hanoi, centered around preserving and promoting Vietnam’s cultural heritage for sustainable development. Addressing the attendees, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc underscored that protecting tangible and intangible cultural heritage is of great importance to national construction and defense.

“Heritage is a valuable endowment of nature or essence of our predecessors’ creativity, generation after generation. We should understand that anything can be built, produced, and created, but heritage cannot. We are not allowed to destroy, damage or sacrifice heritage for anything, even growth. Losing heritage means losing national identity,” said Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc. 

The Prime Minister called for creativity and dynamism to ensure the value of heritage lingers in modern society, and education of the nation’s heritage to inspire national pride and self-respect.

"Education of national heritage is of great necessity to nurture patriotism and national pride. Proper policies and measures are needed through revising laws and improving the management and personnel training for heritage preservation, to better protect national identities and promote Vietnam’s unique tourism trademarks. This will contribute to ending poverty and improving people’s livelihood," added Mr. Phuc.

Prime Minister Phuc said that protecting and promoting the value of Vietnam’s heritage is the responsibility of both the Government and the entire society. While the government creates legal frameworks and policies, the community plays a key role in maintaining and passing the value of their heritage to younger generations, he added.