Welcoming the delegation from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Vietnam, Governor Kuroiwa Yuji thanked Deputy Minister Ho An Phong for visiting Kanagawa and attending related activities to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the two sides' coordination in organizing the Vietnam Festival in Kanagawa.
Emotionally recounting the 2015 Vietnam Cultural Festival, on the occasion of welcoming General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong to Japan, Governor Kuroiwa Yuji shared that Kanagawa Prefecture expected to rotate the organization of the Festival with different countries every year. However, with the wishes of Kanagawa people, since then, the Vietnam Cultural Festival in Kanagawa has become an indispensable annual event for the people.
Appreciating the effective cooperation of the Vietnamese Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism with the Vietnam Festival in Kanagawa over the past decade, Governor Kuroiwa Yuji said that the cooperation of the Vietnamese side has become a great driving force for Kanagawa province to be able to annually organize cultural and tourism promotion activities between the two countries, thereby increasingly strengthening the friendship between the people of Kanagawa and Vietnam, as well as between Japan and Vietnam.
Discussing the upcoming plans, Governor Kuroiwa Yuji said that Kanagawa Prefecture will organize the Kanagawa Festival in Vietnam in November 2025 in three localities. Ho Chi Minh City will be the meeting place for businesses; in Da Nang, an exchange program with Vietnamese students will be organized; in Hanoi, the culture and tourism potential of Kanagawa will be introduced and promoted to Vietnamese people and international visitors.
In particular, in the capital of Vietnam, the Japanese side hopes to use the Kanagawa Festival to more widely promote J-pop music to the Vietnamese public and youth.
Recalling the success of the 2023 tour of the opera Princess Anio to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Vietnam-Japan diplomatic relations, Governor Kuroiwa Yuji shared the plan to develop and perform this work as a musical, in which the main character will be Vietnamese. The Governor hopes that the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will coordinate in selecting suitable Vietnamese artists so that the Japanese musical project Princess Anio can soon be deployed and serve the public.
Touched by the sincere sentiments of the Japanese side, Deputy Minister Ho An Phong expressed his deep gratitude to Kanagawa province, as well as Governor Kuroiwa Yuji personally, for their continuous efforts to promote Vietnamese culture and tourism in recent times, helping to strengthen the connection between the two peoples of Vietnam and Japan.
Delighted to share about tourism cooperation, Deputy Minister Ho An Phong informed that recently the United Nations Tourism Organization (UNT) announced that Japan and Vietnam are the two destinations with the best results with an impressive growth rate of 21%. Affirming that culture is the soft power of the nation, a source of connection in international cooperation, Deputy Minister Ho An Phong emphasized that the Vietnamese Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism continues to cooperate with Kanagawa province, and highly appreciated the plan to organize the Kanagawa Festival in 3 localities of Vietnam.
Deputy Minister Ho An Phong affirmed that he will support and propose that Vietnamese localities coordinate to organize the Kanagawa Festival in Vietnam in November 2025 and the Princess Anio musical project .
Regarding the future plan, Deputy Minister Ho An Phong suggested that Kanagawa province prioritize promoting cooperation with Vietnam in the field of cultural industry so that cultural products of Vietnam and Japan will be increasingly known to the world, contributing to promoting the national image.
Also at the meeting, to acknowledge the important contributions in the cooperation in culture, sports and tourism in recent times, especially since 2015 when the first Vietnam Tourism - Culture Promotion Festival was held in Kanagawa, at the reception, on behalf of the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Vietnam, Deputy Minister Ho An Phong presented the Medal "For the cause of Culture, Sports and Tourism" to Governor Kuroiwa Yuji.
Congratulating Governor Kuroiwa Yuji on receiving the noble award from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Vietnam, Deputy Minister Ho An Phong hopes that Kanagawa province and the Governor will continue to promote cooperation between Kanagawa province and Vietnam, continuing to affirm that the Vietnam Festival in Kanagawa and the Kanagawa Festival in Vietnam are models in Vietnam - Japan cooperation.
Moved to receive the Commemorative Medal, Governor Kuroiwa Yuji respectfully thanked the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and affirmed that Kanagawa province will continue to cooperate with the Vietnamese Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism so that the Vietnam Festival in Kanagawa can be held for many years to come, helping to continuously strengthen and enhance the friendship between the two provinces.
Kanagawa Prefecture is one of Japan's economic centers, with strengths in heavy industry, trade and services, high-tech agriculture and healthcare; there are nearly 40 provincial enterprises investing in Vietnam and over 30 Vietnamese enterprises investing in the province.
Kanagawa is one of the five localities with the largest number of Vietnamese people residing, studying and working in Japan, with nearly 40,000 people. With his great contributions to Vietnam-Japan cooperation, Governor Kuroiwa Yuji was awarded the Friendship Medal by the President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in 2024 for his active contributions to the development of Vietnam-Japan friendship and cooperation in many fields.
Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/van-hoa/trao-tang-ky-niem-chuong-cho-thong-doc-tinh-kanagawa-168159.html
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