(HBO) – Over the past years, Hoa Binh province has prioritised resources for cultural heritage preservation and optimisation so as to create a strong impulse for tourism development.
Preserving
and optimising ethnic groups’ cultural heritage are hoped to help with tourism
development. Photo: A ritual performed at the Khai ha (going to the field)
Muong Bi Festival.
Statistics show that there were about 600
historical and cultural relic sites in Hoa Binh by the end of 2021, including
41 national and 61 provincial, with nearly 100 sites in the list of those
needing protection.
Meanwhile, the province is home to 786 tangible
cultural heritages and two national intangible ones, namely Mo Muong and the
gong art of the Muong ethnic group. At present, a national-level dossier is
being compiled to seek the UNESCO recognition of Mo Muong as part of the
intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent safeguarding.
All the relics and heritages are an important
resource helping with local tourism development over the past years.
On October 19, 2021, the provincial Party
Committee’s Standing Board issued Resolution No. 04-NQ/TU on the preservation
and optimisation of local ethnic groups’ cultural heritage values for the 2021
- 2025 period, with a vision to 2030. This resolution continued attaching importance
to preserving and bringing into play historical and cultural values so as to
develop tourism. It also devised many measures for capitalising on cultural and
historical values for tourism development.
However, it is a fact that there remain
shortcomings in this work, leading to a lack of high-quality tourism products
and services.
Luu Huy Linh, Deputy Director of the provincial
Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said to effectively tap into
cultural heritage values, the sector needs to prioritise collection and
research activities so as to identify the values of ethnic groups’ cultural
heritage; step up dissemination to raise authorities, people, and businesses’
awareness of the role, importance, and benefits of heritage; attract private
resources to building tourism infrastructure; and develop the tourism brand of
Hoa Binh in a professional manner, thereby helping turn tourism into a key economic
sector./.
Hoa Binh province has carried out multiple programmes and initiatives to revive its cultural heritage which has gradually fallen into oblivion through the ebbs and flows of history.
The most prominent and defining feature in the prehistoric era of Hoa Binh is the Hoa Binh Culture. The Culture was first discovered in Hoa Binh. The significant prehistoric culture represents not only Vietnam but also Southeast Asia and southern China. Through excavations of cave sites in the limestone regions of Hoa Binh, French archaeologist M. Colani introduced the world to a "Stone Age in Hoa Binh province – Northern Vietnam" in 1927. On January 30, 1932, the First Congress of Far Eastern Prehistorians, held in Hanoi, officially recognised the Hoa Binh Culture.
Known as the "Land of Epic History”, Hoa Binh province, the gateway to Vietnam’s northwest, boasts a strategic location and a unique cultural tapestry woven by its ethnic minority communities.
The People's Committee of Luong Son District recently held a ceremony to receive the certificate recognizing Sau Communal House in Thanh Cao Commune as a provincial-level historical and cultural site.
Recognising the importance of cultural heritage preservation in protecting and promoting the value system of Vietnamese culture, and serving socio-economic development in the new period, Party committees and local administrations in Hoa Binh province have identified it as a key task in the cultural development strategy. The province has been making efforts in mobilising resources, creating consensus among people and engaging ethnic communities in preserving and promoting cultural identity.
Hoa Binh province has captured growing attention both domestically and internationally for its distinctive cultural heritage and rich history. Most notably, it has been renowned for its famous Hoa Binh culture, considered the cradle of ancient Vietnamese civilisation. Looking ahead to significant milestones in 2025 and the 140th anniversary of province establishment in 2026, Hoa Binh Newspaper presents a comprehensive overview of the province's development across economic, social, cultural, tourism, and security domains.