Visitors view artifacts at the Oc Eo Cultural Exhibition House. Photo: Phuong Lan
Tăng tốc đưa Óc Eo - Ba Thê ra thế giới
Hồ sơ đề cử Khu di tích khảo cổ Óc Eo - Ba Thê đang bước vào giai đoạn quan trọng trong hành trình hướng đến danh hiệu Di sản thế giới. Nhiều hoạt động đối ngoại, vận động quốc tế và chuẩn bị chuyên môn đang được đẩy mạnh.
Báo An Giang•08/05/2026From April 19-24, a provincial delegation led by Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Le Van Phuoc visited Paris, France. The main objective of the provincial delegation, participating alongside the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs delegation, was to attend the 224th Session of the UNESCO Executive Board. Simultaneously, they sought the goodwill, support, and advice of UNESCO, ICOMOS, the World Heritage Centre, and several member states of the World Heritage Committee for the nomination of the Oc Eo - Ba The archaeological site as a World Heritage site.
According to Nguyen Khac Nguyen, Deputy Director of the Oc Eo Cultural Relics Management Board, the nomination dossier for the Oc Eo - Ba The archaeological site was officially submitted to the World Heritage Centre on January 29, 2026. The dossier was then transferred to ICOMOS for evaluation, and ICOMOS is expected to send experts to An Giang in August 2026 for on-site assessment. The ICOMOS evaluation results will serve as the basis for the World Heritage Committee's decision on inscription in 2027. Therefore, the 224th session of the UNESCO Executive Board is the best time for the province to intensify its international advocacy efforts for the Oc Eo dossier.
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Oc Eo - Ba The on the Road to World Heritage Site - Part 1: From the Foot of Ba The Mountain to the Big MomentIn the western fields of An Giang, from the foot of Ba Thê mountain, traces of an ancient city and port city silently remain through canals, brick foundations, and artifacts, telling the story of transcontinental trade nearly two millennia ago. Today, that archaeological past faces a decisive moment as the nomination dossier for World Heritage status enters its final stages, with the official submission deadline being January 30, 2026. Everything from surveying, demarcation, legal mapping, management plans, to community consensus becomes a test of heritage management capacity. The series "Oc Eo - Ba Thê on the Road to World Heritage" is therefore undertaken as a journalistic journey from the field to the behind-the-scenes of the UNESCO dossier, from outstanding global value to conservation challenges in contemporary life, to clearly show one thing: Heritage does not automatically go out into the world.
It possesses outstanding qualities that qualify it as a World Heritage site.VHO - Possessing numerous relics belonging to various types of settlement sites, burial grounds, and religious architecture, along with millions of discovered artifacts, the central area of Oc Eo - Ba The is also one of the important port cities and major religious centers, providing crucial scientific basis for building the dossier of the Oc Eo - Ba The Archaeological Site to be submitted to UNESCO for consideration and inscription as a World Cultural Heritage site.
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During the program to attend the 224th Session of the UNESCO Executive Board, the provincial delegation, together with the delegation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs , met and worked with the Deputy Director-General of UNESCO, the Director of the World Heritage Centre, the Director-General of ICOMOS, and the President of the 43rd UNESCO General Assembly… “The greatest success of this trip for the provincial delegation was gaining great support and goodwill from UNESCO leaders; at the same time, during the working program with ICOMOS, the delegation received advice on the process of evaluating nomination dossiers and some issues in preparation for the field assessment by ICOMOS experts,” Mr. Nguyen said.
To prepare for the tasks related to the nomination dossier in the next phase, the Oc Eo Cultural Relics Management Board advises the Provincial People's Committee to make good preparations for receiving and working with ICOMOS experts for field assessment and to be ready for working programs, dialogues, and explanations (in person and online) with ICOMOS on the contents of the nomination dossier.
Returning from France, preparations at the Oc Eo - Ba The heritage site are underway with urgency. To welcome the international expert delegation, the Oc Eo Cultural Relics Management Board is focusing its efforts on improving infrastructure, restoring historical sites, and upgrading exhibition spaces and artifact storage facilities. Beyond tangible projects, emphasis is also being placed on raising awareness and mobilizing the local population in the two communes of Oc Eo and My Thuan.
The Oc Eo culture was once distributed across a vast area encompassing most of the provinces in the Mekong Delta and the southeastern region of Vietnam. The Oc Eo - Ba The archaeological site, located in the two communes of Oc Eo and My Thuan, was selected for World Heritage nomination because this area became a religious center and a developed pre-port city, evidenced by traces of settlements, handicraft production, glassmaking, and metalworking. At its peak, it became a renowned maritime trade gateway, connecting Oc Eo to the international trade network.
With its exceptional historical, cultural, and scientific values, the Oc Eo - Ba The archaeological site is not only a source of local pride but also a shared heritage of the community. Preserving and promoting the value of this heritage is not only the responsibility of state management agencies but also requires the direct, voluntary, and continuous participation of every citizen through concrete actions to safeguard, protect, and pass on the precious values of this heritage to future generations.
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The provincial delegation's trip to Paris not only brought back commitments of support from international organizations but also affirmed the position of the Oc Eo - Ba The cultural heritage site on the world's cultural map. With the determination of the entire political system, we believe that the day the Oc Eo - Ba The archaeological site is named a World Heritage Site will soon come.
PHUONG LAN
Source: https://baoangiang.com.vn/tang-toc-dua-oc-eo-ba-the-ra-the-gioi-a484938.html
