Thanh Hoa makes a strong breakthrough in cultural diplomacy

Expanding cooperation and enhancing Thanh Hoa's cultural presence in the international arena

In the context of increasingly deep international integration, Thanh Hoa has identified cultural diplomacy as one of the important pillars associated with tourism development, image promotion and investment attraction. Thanks to a flexible and creative approach, the province's cultural diplomacy activities over the past 5 years have recorded many remarkable milestones.

Thanh Hoa has strengthened coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs , embassies, international organizations and foreign localities to organize many exchange and cooperation events.

Relations with Laos are considered a bright spot, typified by the "Vietnam - Laos, Thanh Hoa - Hua Phan Cultural Week 2022", a national event to celebrate the friendship and 55 years of twinning between the two provinces.

The program attracted a large number of delegates and artists from both countries, becoming a profound cultural bridge, contributing to strengthening the special solidarity between Vietnam and Laos.

In its relations with Japan, Thanh Hoa has vigorously implemented promotional and connecting activities. The province signed a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation with Niigata province (Japan); organized a working delegation to promote investment and tourism; welcomed 4 delegations of Japanese partners to learn about the investment environment; coordinated the organization of a large-scale event to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Vietnam-Japan diplomatic relations. These programs help Thanh Hoa expand its cooperation network and attract the attention of Japanese enterprises.

Thanh Hoa makes a strong breakthrough in cultural diplomacy - photo 2 — Art troupes of the two countries perform at the Thanh Hoa - Hua Phan Friendship Cultural Week 2022

Cooperation with India has also achieved positive results: the Indian Embassy sponsored two educational projects worth 50,000 USD each; coordinated the organization of the annual International Yoga Day; and supported the implementation of art and cultural exchange activities.

With the US, educational exchange activities were strongly promoted when 10 English lecturers came to teach at universities in Thanh Hoa, providing funding to organize Access English scholarship programs and career English for students in the province.

The province's cultural diplomacy also made its mark in Europe with investment promotion activities, tourism and heritage introduction in Germany, Hungary, Czech Republic, Netherlands, France and the Russian Federation.

Thanh Hoa also coordinates with embassies to organize many art programs, painting exhibitions, film screenings, and heritage tours to bring the image of Thanh Hoa closer to international friends.

Impressed with his experience in Thanh Hoa, Mr. Thac Lecong (USA) shared: “Pu Luong is very different and interesting in terms of culture, nature and people. I decided to extend my vacation for another week to fully explore this place.”

145 cultural promotion activities, promoting the spread of heritage values

In the period of 2021-2025, Thanh Hoa organized more than 145 cultural promotion activities from the provincial to national and international scale. Highlights include: Sam Son Sea Festival; Italian Day in Thanh Hoa 2023; Vietnam - Laos Cultural Week 2022; Thanh Hoa - Japan Meeting Conference 2023; Lao Cultural Week in Vietnam 2025; along with many activities such as film screenings, art performances, exhibitions, and promotion of cultural and tourism products.

Thanh Hoa makes a strong breakthrough in cultural diplomacy - photo 3 — Foreign tourists join in the bamboo dance of ethnic minorities in Thanh Hoa

The programs help to comprehensively introduce the image of Thanh Hoa, a province rich in historical traditions, possessing a treasure trove of unique heritages such as the World Heritage Site of Ho Dynasty Citadel, Lam Kinh Special National Relic Site, Con Moong Cave, traditional craft villages and rich folk art.

Regarding heritage conservation, the province has completed many large-scale projects: Restoration of the Ho Dynasty Citadel World Heritage Site (phase 1) with a total capital of over 350 billion VND; restoration of Lam Kinh relic site with a total cost of over 81 billion VND; recognition of 3 new national intangible cultural heritages: Quang Trung Temple Festival in Lach Bang, Quang Trung Temple Festival in Cu Lao Bien (2024), Song Ma folk songs (2025).

The province also organized a scientific workshop on the possibility of filing a dossier for Con Moong Cave to submit to UNESCO, opening up the opportunity to have more world heritage sites in the future.

In the process of implementing international cooperation, many heritages of Thanh Hoa have also directly benefited. Mr. Nguyen Ba Linh, Director of the Ho Dynasty Citadel Heritage Conservation Center, said that cultural diplomacy has opened up opportunities to access international knowledge and experience in conservation work.

“The attention of embassies, international organizations and foreign experts has helped the conservation of the Ho Dynasty Citadel access valuable knowledge and experience. The cooperation projects allow us to apply many modern methods in the conservation of ancient stone citadels, geological and architectural research and historical context restoration,” said Mr. Linh.

According to Mr. Linh, the number of international visitors to Ho Dynasty Citadel has increased significantly in the past two years, especially from Japan, France, Germany and the US, showing the widespread effectiveness of foreign cultural promotion work.

Thanh Hoa makes a strong breakthrough in cultural diplomacy - photo 4 — Cultural diplomacy creates new momentum for Ho Dynasty Citadel Heritage

Mr. Nguyen Ba Linh emphasized: "In the coming period, we expect to continue to receive international support in research, restoration and digitization of heritage, turning Ho Dynasty Citadel into an international cultural and historical destination."

Looking back over the past five years, it can be seen that cultural diplomacy has become an important channel to help Thanh Hoa effectively exploit its heritage potential, expand exchanges and cooperation, and attract development resources.

Ms. Vuong Thi Hai Yen, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Thanh Hoa, affirmed: "The cultural activities of foreign affairs have left a good impression on international friends, and at the same time are an opportunity to absorb the quintessence of human culture. In the coming time, the province will continue to mobilize social resources, expand international cooperation, improve the quality of cultural diplomacy and strongly promote the image of Thanh Hoa in the international arena."

With a clear strategic orientation, the support of international partners and efforts to enhance heritage and tourism, Thanh Hoa is gradually affirming its position as one of the major cultural centers of the country, contributing to the integration and sustainable development process.

Comment (0)