How cultural heritage can be preserved

The Hanoitimes – Vietnam currently pursues building a startup nation based on innovation, but there are remaining many difficulties challenging the country. Assoc.Prof.Dr. Bui Hoai Son talks with Hanoitimes about this issue.

In your opinion, why do cities want to participate in the world’s Creative Cities Network?

The new trend of the world today is to tap into creativity as the most important resource for development, because creative resources are unlimited, compared to natural ones. So that people should exploit resources to enrich themselves and the society.

Doan Mon Gate – Thang Long Imperial Citadel. Photo: Pham Hung

Countries that make good use of the creativity potential of human have a better advantage than others. It is evident that many countries with limited natural resources are among the most developed ones, such as Israel, Singapore, Japan, South Korea.

Moreover, innovative products play a more important role in life and economic development, especially when the creativity industry does not make air pollution, which is linked with many of the United Nations sustainable development goals.

The 4th Industrial Revolution also supports the development of the creativity industry.

Vietnam currently pursues building a startup nation based on innovation. What do you think about the role of the creative culture in a startup country?

Dragon Dance at Hoan Kiem Lake. Photo: Duy Khanh.

In addition to the common trend of the world, Vietnam has paid attention to the culture and creativity industry since 2005 when the Convention on Protection and Promotion of Diversity of Cultural Expressions was issued by the United Nations.

The Convention emphasizes the preservation of national cultural identity, the role of cultural products and services associated with customs and traditions as well as the supply and demand of the market in the cultural development.

The investment in culture is still below expectation. How should we measure the value of culture?

Cultural development also requires paying attention to the economic aspect. But it is not only about the revenue of cultural products. Their messages to people are more important. Furthermore, culture and arts improve the spiritual life, making a place becomes a worth-living one. Therefore, towards sustainable development, we must focus on cultural and creative industries.

Co Loa Temple Festival. Photo: Pham Hung.

What should Vietnam do to promote creativity?

In the cultural industry, creativity centers must be set up. For example, the US has Hollywood as a gathering place for creative people with the same vocation such as cinema, art, fashion, among others. These centers help spread creativity to the community and other places. In Vietnam, creative hubs should be Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Danang.

Hanoi is the first city in Vietnam to participate in the world’s Creative Cities Network. As a participant in the preparation and submission of documents to UNESCO, in your opinion, what are the strengths for Hanoi to be selected as a Creative City?

Hanoi was selected as the first city of Vietnam to join the world’s Creative City Network. It can be said that this is a relatively risky choice because Hanoi is not an ideal place for new “experimentation”. Hanoians are usually cautious with changes.

However, it must be Hanoi because it has a huge cultural resource with over a-thousand-year history that not all capital cities in the world have. Hanoi is the land that gathers the most talented people of the country for centuries.

Co Loa Festival. Photo: Pham Hung.

It is also home to plenty of craft villages, valuable tangible and intangible heritages and a rich world of cuisine. If Hanoi promotes creativity based on the potential of craft products and cuisine, many new interesting products and events will be created to attract the public as well as the investment in conservation projects.

Moreover, most important central state organizations are located in Hanoi so that it is easy to promote the national and international brand for cultural events taking place here.

Besides, Hanoians have recently changed with a more open mind that accepts and adapts to innovation and adjustment to create breakthroughs.

After more than one year becoming a creative city, has Hanoi made significant changes, in your opinion?

Hanoi has not achieved the goals that we expected, even though we devised a lot of ambitious plans such as organizing contests, setting up design centers, training about creativity and public art development, among others.

Hanoi has recently organized two seminars, showing the concern of city leaders on the role of creativity to the city’s development. However, Hanoi needs to take more action to achieve its goals on creativity.

Thank you for your time!

The Hanoitimes – Hanoi Party Committee and People’s Committee on September 28 held a seminar on “Culture resource in the development strategy of Hanoi Capital to become a Creative City”.

The seminar is a forum for scientists and managers to share ideas, and propose policies and solutions for Hanoi to become a Creative City, with the participation of leaders of the city’s government, ministries, and departments; scientists and managers.

Seminar on “Culture resource in the development strategy of Hanoi Capital to become a Creative City”

Culture – the foundation of society

Speaking at the event, Hanoi Party Committee’s Permanent Deputy Secretary Ngo Thi Thanh Hang stressed the important role of Hanoi as the capital and the country’s political and administrative head as well as the centre of culture, science, education, economics, and international transactions. Hanoi has a long history of culture and is honored by UNESCO as City of Peace and Creative City for the convergence and spread of values of the nation. In particular, with the history of over 1,000 years of establishment and development, Hanoi has its own advantage of a huge invaluable cultural heritage, where the cultural traits from every regions of Vietnamconverge.

Nurturing human values

In addition, all the heritage and cultural and artistic works of Hanoi should also be nurtured and developed to shape the human personality of those who live and work in Hanoi.

The Hanoitimes – UNESCO will help Hanoi connect with cities in other countries as well as those who are interested in the city’s development.

The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is willing to help Hanoi become a hub of innovation in Southeast Asia and Asia, Kinh Te & Do Thi quoted UNESCO Representative to Vietnam Michael Croft as stating at a meeting with Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Vuong Dinh Hue in Hanoi on September 9.

During its development, Hanoi has attached special importance to upholding the values of cultural heritage, Mr. Michael Croft said, adding that by including Hanoi in the Creative Cities Network, UNESCO hopes to promote such values.

Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Vuong Dinh Hue receives UNESCO Representative to Vietnam Michael Croft. Photo: Thanh Hai

The UNESCO representative said that Hanoi is expected to change from a creative city to a creative center and then the creative capital of Southeast Asia and Asia, on the basis of heritage, culture, and peace. After that, the city can become a dynamic and creative city worth living in the 21st century.

To accomplish the above-mentioned goal, UNESCO is working on a project with the major pillars of education, urbanization, culture, and soft power that have attracted the attention from many partners worldwide, including those in Vietnam, according to Mr. Croft.

He stressed that, under the project, UNESCO will help Hanoi connect with cities in other countries as well as those who are interested in the city’s development.

Mr. Croft also congratulated Vietnam in general and Hanoi in particular on their achievements in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

For his part, Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Vuong Dinh Hue highly valued UNESCO’s activities in Hanoi as well as in Vietnam recently.

Hanoi was honored to be recognized by UNESCO as a “City for Peace” and included in the UNESCO Creative Cities Network, Mr. Hue said, describing this as momentum for Hanoi to develop more sustainably and rapidly in the time ahead.

The municipal Party chief stressed that Hanoi aims to become a green, smart, and modern city by 2030, and a livable city in by 2045, with importance attached to traditional values and its image as a heroic city and “City for Peace”.

In the coming time, Hanoi will coordinate with UNESCO to organize workshops to complete UNESCO’s project, promote and mobilize resources to realize the project, Mr. Hue said, adding that the city is building a project that gathers ideas and initiatives from experts, scientists, and lovers of Hanoi, to build a creative city which is worth living in.

The Hanoitimes – Nowadays, in a modern world, many traditional crafts have disappeared but still remained artisans who are trying to keep the tradition in every corner of Hanoi’s Old Quarter, helping ensure that the past is not forgotten but preserved as evidence of a city with history of thousands of years.

Once known as the street specialized in supplying high quality metal forging utensils in Hanoi, Lo Ren street (Street of the Blacksmith) now has only one workshop that keeps furnace burning.

The best shopping places in Hanoi’s Old Quarter can be found along narrow alleyways close to Hoan Kiem lake, where you can find retailers that have managed to retain their particular trades for generations.

In the memories of Hanoians, the Old Quarter is not only the representation of Hanoi’s cultural values, but also the concentration of many old trades that were once part of the routine in the capital city.

Nowadays, in a modern world, many tradition crafts have disappeared but there remain artisans who are trying to keep the tradition going in every corner of the Old Quarter, which helps ensure that the past is not forgotten but preserved as evidence of a city with history of thousands of years.

Located on the corner of Hang Dong – Lo Ren street, Hoan Kiem district, a 60-year-old blacksmith is still hammering metal in front of a fiery furnace which lights a street corner.

This is Mr. Nguyen Van Hung, who is preserving the metal-smith tradition left by his father.

Blacksmithing is the craft of working with soot, grease and heavy hammers.

Mr. Hung said that this shop was passed on to his father by his grandfather and now it is his turn to take over.

”My grandfather moved from Nam Tu Liem district to settle down in Lo Ren street with his profession,” said Mr. Hung.

He added that his family’s shop was located down the street for only a few hundred meters but there were dozens of blacksmith shops. In its heyday, Lo Ren street was lit up and kept warm by the flame all year round and noisy with the harsh sound of the hammer.

In sunny or rainy weather, the fire is always burning. Currently, the item he usually makes is tools for concrete chisels.

The most important items of blacksmithing are anvils and hammers.

Especially, Mr. Hung is the only blacksmith left in the street.

”I remain forging not only for earning a living, I want to “keep the fire” for the whole street of Lo Ren. I will be practicing the profession to the last breath. I am proud of that, although this profession is so hard. But most importantly, I myself can live on it with my own passion,” Mr. Hung said.

Products made by Mr. Hung every day.

Over the years, Mr. Hung has not found a disciple who is dedicated to pass on his valuable experiences.

”There are also many people who want to learn the job, but they give up after only a few days. Now that I’m 60 years old, I can’t be doing the job any longer. By the time I stop hammering, blacksmith would remain just… the name of a street ” said Mr. Hung.

Vietnam is currently going through a growth spurt while entering an era with more modern and people-centred considerations rising in prevalence. What role does “soft power” play in GDP growth as well as regional and global success?

Vu Ba Phu, director general of the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency under the Ministry of Industry and Trade

Vietnam’s soft power stems from not only the promotion of its own values such as the heroic history, rich culture and traditions, and pacifist foreign policy but also the development and optimisation of a range of new positions and advantages.

Amid the difficulties of 2020, the successful dispensing of its dual role as both ASEAN chair and non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council is testament to the successful application of soft power in Vietnam’s foreign policy. In 2020, the world lauded Vietnam’s rapid response and contributions to regional and international affairs thanks to its ability to grasp opportunities, taking the initiative in coping with dynamic situations and ensuring economic recovery while promoting multilateralism and international solidarity to get through the COVID-19 crisis.

Vietnam not only dived deeper into the global economy and made increasing contributions to shaping the ground rules of international organisations, it also prepared for further comprehensive integration. Possibly the greatest achievements were extending Vietnam’s diplomatic relations to 187 out of 193 member states of the United Nations while completing negotiating and signing new-generation free trade agreements (FTAs), making the country an integral factor in all regional and intra-regional economic links.

With these steps, Vietnam is now one of the most open economies in the world, with the ratio of foreign trade to GDP increasing from 136 per cent in 2010 to approximately 200 per cent in 2019. Amid COVID-19 shutdowns in early 2020, Vietnam was among the very few countries to achieve positive GDP growth of nearly 3 per cent.

Vietnam’s soft power is a combination of many factors and has made significant contributions to increasing its prestige and position in the regional and international arena.

Branding is a strong tool for advocacy among global stakeholders. How is Vietnam globalising its homegrown brands?

In today’s continuously evolving economy, the greater a brand’s recognition in the international market, the more strength it provides to its country. Notably, branding will play a crucial role as Vietnam steps up participation in more and more new-generation FTAs.

Recognising this, the Vietnam Value Programme, launched in 2003, is the government’s unique and long-term trade promotion programme aiming to build Vietnam’s image as a country of high-quality products and services, to increase the pride and attraction of the country and its people, and to boost foreign trade and national competitiveness.

As the programme management agency, the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam (MoIT) has been actively supporting Vietnamese enterprises to improve their capacity through business development consultancy, establishing information systems, and updating branding knowledge. Promotion and public relations have also received a lot of attention to increase public and international awareness about the programme and Vietnam Value products through various channels.

The MoIT also builds and promotes geographical indications and collective trademarks from across the country in foreign markets, improving competitiveness of businesses based on a reputation for quality, environmentally-friendly production, and professionalism, thereby consolidating the position of Vietnamese brands globally.

Thanks to the support of the programme, many Vietnamese corporations and businesses have become aware of the importance of branding. Enterprises have gradually learned to promote their brands professionally, improving their competitiveness and reaffirming their position in the domestic and foreign markets.

Many outstanding Vietnamese brands have resonated with regional and international consumers and partners. For example, Viettel is in the globe’s top 15 in terms of mobile subscribers and the top 40 in terms of revenue. Meanwhile, Truong Hai Auto Corporation is gradually rising to the top position in the ASEAN region and state-owned Khanh Hoa Salanganes Nest One Member LLC has the largest swiftlet exploitation output. TH Group is the first Vietnamese company to successfully penetrate the Chinese market, the second-largest dairy consumption market in the world.

All these successes by individual brands have been continuously raising Vietnam’s national brand to a stronger global position.

How has COVID-19 impacted Vietnam’s international relations?

The far-reaching impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have pushed many countries into a health and economic crisis. Despite the unprecedented challenges, Vietnam has been one of the world’s success stories in getting the outbreak under control, maintaining socioeconomic stability, and promoting bilateral and multilateral diplomatic activities. The initial great successes in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic were due to the successful combination of the nation’s strength, in which soft power played a significant role.

Vietnam has proactively deployed its diplomatic strategy to orchestrate COVID-19 response, committed and stood ready to share information, and donated medical supplies to countries in need. The message of leaving no-one behind is one of the most vivid demonstrations of Vietnam’s wielding of soft power, proving the Vietnamese spirit of solidarity. That humanitarian spirit is also reflected in the help provided to overseas Vietnamese to return or the messages foreigners have posted about how fortunate they feel to be staying in the country during the outbreak.

Its effective anti-pandemic policies, along with the responsibility and dignity Vietnam has shown on the international stage, have been highly appreciated by international friends.

How will this successful use of soft power be turned into economic gains?

With the efforts of the government and the collaboration of the Vietnamese people to prevent and control the pandemic, Vietnam is now well-known as a safe country. This renown makes it easy for Vietnam to draw international investment, events, and tourists, which bring great opportunities for economic development.

Not only that, Vietnam has succeeded in turning the challenges of the COVID-19 crisis into advantages to enhance the image of Vietnamese products and national brands. Vietnam has defied the global trend with its brand value skyrocketing 29 per cent on-year, from $247 billion to $319 billion, ranking 33rd among the world’s top 100 national brands, and being the fastest-growing national brand in 2020.

Soft power is an extremely valuable asset for Vietnam to turn challenges into opportunities. In the midst of difficulties, Vietnam’s use of soft power was not weakened but became stronger than ever. Thanks to strong social consensus, national solidarity, and unity, Vietnam has gained impressive achievements which effectively improved its image in the international arena.

What are Vietnam’s goals for the next decade in terms of building up its soft power capabilities?

Vietnam aspires to achieve comprehensive innovation and extensive international integration, to become a country with modern industries and high average income by 2030, then a developed country with high income by 2045. To reach higher international stature, soft power will play an even more cardinal role, requiring efforts from the entire political system, each enterprise, and each Vietnamese citizen.

Firstly, Vietnam needs to create a systematic and long-term plan to promote soft power. It is also necessary to improve growth quality and labour productivity, and to promote creative industries, thereby improving the competitiveness of the economy as a whole.

At the same time, it is necessary to continue to preserve and promote the diverse and rich values of Vietnamese culture. Concurrently, studies and assessments by experts drawing comments from the community will also pave the way to pick out the unique, remarkable cultural elements for focused investment and development, thereby making great contributions to Vietnam’s socioeconomic development.

Vietnam should also increase its use of soft power in diplomacy. Globalisation is creating ever more complex interdependencies and in this environment, regional and global diplomacy should concentrate on leadership and mediation through softer means.

It will also be necessary to prioritise and focus investment on scientific and technological development to ensure Vietnam’s competitiveness. The creation of high-quality and highly competitive products requires proper appreciation of ICT in building national soft power as well as applying new and innovative technologies in production.

In addition to building and promoting soft power, Vietnam also needs to strengthen its hard power to create synergies, creating “smart power” in the new era to enhance integration and enhance its global strategic and economic position.

Vietnam rises in global soft power rankings Vietnam has moved up three places to 47th in the Global Soft Power Index for 2021, which ranks the world’s top 60 soft power nations, it was revealed last week. According to the Brand Finance report, Vietnam was the only country in ASEAN to earn an upgrade in the rankings. Vietnam has been considered a bright spot globally thanks to the increasing value of its national brand, along with socioeconomic results reached during a tough 2020. As an obvious highlight, according to the report, Vietnam objectively managed COVID-19 extremely well. The country was spared a year of lockdowns and besieged hospitals, and has one of the lowest infection and death rates in the world. Not only has the response to the pandemic been impressive, given its shared border with China, but Vietnam also experienced one of the highest economic growth rates globally in 2020. Commenting on the achievement, Samir Dixit, managing director of Brand Finance Asia-Pacific, stressed that economic growth in the 21st century is all about sustained collaborations amongst various stakeholders and the correlation of perceptions of the nation brand with the brands from the country, which can truly enhance the country’s soft power, both internally and externally – something which Dixit says Vietnam seems to be managing well. At a national level, Vietnam had established diplomatic relations with 187 out of 193 member states of the United Nations and completed the process of negotiating and signing new-generation free trade agreements, making the country an important factor in all regional and intra-regional economic links, which is a booster for Vietnam’s imports and exports. Dixit added that the Vietnam Value Programme management agency, through the Ministry of Industry and Trade, has actively supported Vietnamese enterprises to improve their capacity through consulting business development, establishing information systems, and updating branding knowledge. All these initiatives and efforts have helped increase the awareness of the public, international consumers, and customers about the programme and products through various domestic and international media channels. “Thanks to the efforts of the Vietnam Value Programme, Vietnam’s processed food industry now contributes upwards of $17 billion of the country’s exports, and the apparel industry makes up over $22 billion of Vietnam’s exports. These economic contributions are absolutely crucial for Vietnam’s overall growth, its reputation, and contribution to Vietnam’s soft power,” he added. The Global Soft Power Index covers over 75,000 respondents in 100 countries, and aggregates how the world views the top soft power nations, as well as enables a more granular snapshot of nation-to-nation attitudes. The findings are often deemed crucial for governments seeking to better manage their national brands and improves their soft power metrics.