Can Tho strives to preserve and promote Khmer cultural identity

From policy to practical action

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the Ooc Om Boc Festival - Ngo Boat Race in Can Tho City in 2025 of the Khmer ethnic group recently, Vice Chairman of the City People's Committee Nguyen Van Khoi affirmed: with more than 411,000 Khmer ethnic people, accounting for nearly 12.8% of the population, the city identified taking care of the culture and spirit of ethnic people as a central and continuous task; in that spirit, right after the merger, the city's leaders have had a policy to continue implementing the Project "Preserving and promoting the fine traditional cultural values of ethnic minorities associated with tourism development" and expanding the scope of the Project implementation in areas with a large population of Khmer people.

To bring policies to the people, the Standing Committee of the City People's Council coordinated with Can Tho Newspaper and Can Tho Radio and Television Station to organize the "Listening and Exchange" Forum on social security policies for ethnic minorities. At the forum, many practical issues were discussed frankly such as: policies to support bilingual education , health insurance, vocational training, preferential credit, cultural preservation, etc. The highlight of the program is the spirit of "government listening - people accompanying", contributing to strengthening trust, arousing the sense of self-reliance and self-reliance in the development of ethnic communities.

Khmer Culture 2 — *Khmer people perform moon worship rituals*

Along with preserving traditional cultural values, the city focuses on implementing many policies to care for Khmer people in various fields. According to the Department of Ethnic Minorities and Religions of Can Tho city, after the merger, the Khmer - Vietnamese bilingual education system continues to be maintained and expanded. Currently, more than 140 schools in the area teach Khmer, of which many ethnic boarding schools provide comprehensive care for ethnic children from scholarships, accommodation to life skills. Khmer classes at pagodas continue to be supported by the local budget; the coordination model between the pagoda management board, local authorities and the education sector helps tens of thousands of Khmer students learn to read and write and preserve their mother tongue.

In the health sector, the city has implemented a policy of supporting 100% of health insurance premiums for Khmer people in difficult circumstances; at the same time, expanding community health care programs in villages and hamlets. Commune health stations with a large Khmer population have been strengthened with human resources and equipment, organized mobile medical examinations, and implemented nutrition guidance and disease prevention programs in Khmer to improve the effectiveness of health communication.

Making culture a driving force for endogenous development

The Resolution of the First Congress of the Can Tho City Party Committee (term 2025 - 2030) clearly identified: taking care of cultural and spiritual life, improving people's knowledge and promoting traditional cultural values of ethnic minorities, especially the Khmer people, is one of the key tasks to build a civilized city, rich in identity, with harmonious and sustainable development.

Khmer culture — *Ngo boat racing festival of Khmer people*

Following that direction, the City People's Committee has coordinated with the Khmer Theravada Buddhist Sangha to establish the Khmer Cultural and Religious Activities Support Board, creating conditions for more than 120 pagodas to operate in accordance with the law, both meeting the religious and belief needs of the people and becoming cultural centers, places to preserve the language, writing and traditional arts of the Khmer people. At the same time, the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of the city and organizations have coordinated to mobilize the Khmer people to effectively implement the movements "All people unite to build cultural life in residential areas", "Preserving Khmer cultural identity in the new life" ... contributing to spreading the spirit of great national unity, improving cultural and spiritual life and strengthening the Khmer people's trust in the Party and the State.

In the coming time, the city plans to focus on investing in building the Khmer Cultural Center of Can Tho city, consolidating the system of specialized museums and expanding the space for performing Khmer folk arts, replicating community tourism projects associated with Khmer pagodas and traditional craft villages. At the same time, training and fostering Khmer cadres, improving management skills and leadership capacity in the grassroots political system are considered key factors to ensure that policies and guidelines for the Khmer ethnic group are put into practice.

These efforts show that Can Tho city not only cares about preserving the cultural heritage of the Khmer people but also aims to make that culture an endogenous driving force for development. Each policy, each cultural project, each Khmer class... is contributing to nurturing the soul, strengthening the faith and arousing the aspirations of the Khmer people, contributing to creating a new face of Can Tho city that is civilized, modern, and rich in cultural identity.

Source: https://daibieunhandan.vn/can-tho-no-luc-bao-ton-va-phat-huy-ban-sac-van-hoa-khmer-10394989.html