The Khai Ha Festival of Muong ethnic group in Hoa Binh province was held on a provincial scale from February 16 - 18 in Phong Phu commune, Tan Lac district.
A special musical performance at the opening ceremony of the festival.
At the opening ceremony, festival-goers took part in a palanquin procession and rituals, worshipping the gods of the land and heads of the village.
They also joined a mass gong performance, which featured the participation of more than 500 local artisans, a fashion show introducing Muong ethnic costumes, a fair displaying typical agricultural and tourism products, and various sporting events, such as tug of war, stick-pushing, and crossbow shooting.
Khai Ha Festival, also known as the ploughing or forest opening festival, has a connection with wet rice cultivation, which carries a sign of the civilisation of the ancient Vietnamese.
The event, the largest traditional festival in Hoa Binh, is an indispensable cultural practice of Muong ethnic people in the province every spring.
The Khai Ha festival of the Muong people in Tan Lac, Lac Son, Cao Phong, and Kim Boi districts was recognised as a national intangible cultural heritage.
As part of Project 6 under the national target program for socio-economic development in ethnic minority and mountainous areas in 2024, Lạc Sơn District, Hoa Binh province focuses on diverse and practical activities to promote the project's goal: "Preserving and promoting the beautiful traditional cultural values of ethnic groups in conjunction with tourism development."
After 3 years of implementing Resolution No. 04-NQ/TU, dated October 11, 2021 of the Provincial Party Standing Committee on preserving and promoting the cultural heritage values of Hoa Binh province's ethnic groups in the period of 2021 – 2025 with the orientation to 2030 (NQ04), it has mobilized the participation of the entire political system, the people from all walks of life and there have been positive changes. So far, out of the 10 targets of NQ04, 3 targets have been met and exceeded the plan set for 2025. Typically, 70% of the intangible cultural heritage (ICH) of ethnic groups in the province is on the list of the national ICH items and they have been protected and restored, exceeding 20% of the proposed Resolution.
Great National Unity Day has been recently celebrated in Duong hamlet, Vay Nua commune, Da Bac district, in an atmosphere of warmth and community spirit. The event highlighted national identity and strengthened the bond of solidarity among residents.
On November 28, the People's Committee of Cao Phong district organized the Cultural and Sports Festival of Cao Phong district's ethnic groups in 2024.
