Promoting the cultural values of ethnic minorities associated with tourism development

From policy to practical effectiveness

Implementing Project 6 under the National Target Program for Socio-Economic Development of Ethnic Minorities and Mountainous Areas, 2021-2030 period, in Vinh Son, Vinh Thanh, Vinh Thinh communes, brocade weaving, gong and xoang performance, and traditional musical instrument performances of the Bahnar K'riêm people were trained and taught for the younger generation to preserve. In particular, the new rice celebration was restored to become a product serving tourism .

The unique art of playing the Kơ Toang drum of the Cham H'roi people is taught to the next generation. **Photo: Ngoc Nhuận**

In Van Canh commune, from 2023 to present, maintaining the activities of gong clubs, opening brocade weaving training classes for Bahnar people, teaching kơ toang and xoang drums, and recreating the village god worshiping festival of the Cham H'roi people have created conditions for ethnic minorities to bond and promote their identity; at the same time, opening up a direction for exploiting community tourism.

In An Vinh, An Toan, and An Hoa communes, prioritizing resources to implement Project 6 has brought practical results in improving the activities of 40 Bana and H're ethnic art troupes; investing in building and upgrading village cultural houses; and training in building models to preserve and promote folk songs, dances, and music of the H're ethnic group.

The brocade weaving craft of the Bahnar K'riêm people has been revived and is now serving tourism. **Photo: Ngoc Nhuan**

In the western region of Gia Lai, in the period of 2021-2025, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism will implement Project 6 through many practical activities. Notable are the professional training courses on intangible cultural heritage; implementing the model "Heritage connecting with tourism journeys to develop ethnic minority communities with similar heritages"... to hundreds of Jrai and Bahnar artisans in the area.

Jrai artisans participate in a gong tuning class organized by the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism. **Photo: Lam Nguyen**

Attending a class on how to tune gongs taught by researcher Bui Trong Hien (Vietnam National Institute of Culture and Arts), artisan Rah Lan Nhin (Ia Dok commune) said: “In the past, Jrai people tuned gongs by ear, based on the experience passed down by their ancestors. Now that I have the theory, I find it easier to understand and can tune according to the standard scale of our people. From now on, if a gong sounds out of tune, I don’t have to spend money on someone to tune it.”

The provincial Department of Culture also awarded certificates and provided financial support to four outstanding ethnic minority artisans to teach traditional culture in the community; and established five folk culture clubs.

In particular, the program "Weekend Gong - Enjoy and Experience" with over 70 performances at Dai Doan Ket Square (Pleiku ward) and other localities, received enthusiastic response from artists and created a good impression for a large number of people and tourists.

The model “ Gia Lai Cultural Colors - Preservation and Development” also creates a unique attraction, imbued with folk colors with 12 programs held at the Provincial Museum, helping to recreate traditional festivals of the Jrai and Bahnar people...

Artists accompany, people agree

One of the decisive factors for the success of Project 6 is the dedicated contribution of artisans - the "fire keepers" of culture in each village. A typical example is People's Artisan Dinh Chuong (86 years old, Vinh Son commune), despite his old age, still works hard to "light the fire" for the young generation of Bana K'riêm people to preserve traditional culture.

Mr. Dinh Chuong expressed: "The Bana K'riêm people thank the Party and the State for their policies and support in preserving the precious heritage left by our ancestors. I am very happy to take on the responsibility of teaching gongs, traditional musical instruments, and traditional festival rituals to the young generation.

What is even more gratifying is that the children understand the cultural values of their nation and are willing to learn to inherit and practice them in their cultural and religious lives, creating a force to participate in performances in activities serving the development of local tourism.

The traditional cultural heritage of the H're people is preserved and promoted.
**Photo: Ngoc Nhuan**

Artisan Dinh Van Hai (An Vinh commune) confided: "Not only does the State care about preserving folk songs, folk dances, and folk music of the H're people, it also supports teaching and practicing many traditional musical instruments, such as gongs, gongs, v'roac, p'rang, vin vut, flutes (ta lia)...

That makes us even more confident and proud that traditional cultural heritages will be preserved and promoted, especially when performed to serve tourists who come to visit and experience the locality."

“The policy of expressing the Party and State's concern, concretized through Project 6, has received consensus and response from the ethnic minority communities. Through material support, skills training, and promoting the role of artisans, all aim to build a foundation so that the cultural identity of ethnic minorities is not lost in the integration process, while at the same time turning traditional culture into a resource for tourism development in particular and local socio-economic development in general.”
Folklore researcher - Meritorious Artisan Yang Danh (Vinh Thanh commune)

Young people are not left out of the flow of preserving and promoting to further love their ethnic cultural identity. Ms. Dinh Thi Hien (Vinh Thinh commune) excitedly said: “Thanks to the attention of the Party and the State, the brocade weaving profession of the Bana K'riêm people has been revived. The products are not only sold in the village but also to tourists, creating more income for the people”.

As the leader of the Po To commune artisans participating in the program "Weekend Gong - Enjoy and Experience", artisan Dinh Byech shared: "The Bahnar people in Po To commune pay great attention to preserving the traditional culture of their people. They all share a love for gongs and a desire to introduce and promote the cultural beauty of their people to friends and tourists near and far."

The above sharing is vivid evidence of the ethnic minority community's belief in the Party and State's policy of preserving and promoting traditional culture in parallel with tourism development.

Since then, many cultural heritages have been better preserved and appear more in today's life, becoming an important foundation for developing sustainable community tourism in localities in the province.

Source: https://baogialai.com.vn/phat-huy-gia-tri-van-hoa-cac-dan-toc-thieu-so-gan-voi-phat-trien-du-lich-post568258.html