Hanoi aims to build the World Cultural Festival into an annual event

On the evening of October 4, at Thang Long Imperial Citadel, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the People’s Committee of Hanoi held the closing program of the second World Cultural Festival in Hanoi – 2026.

Attending the program were Vice Chairwoman of the National Assembly Nguyen Thi Thanh; Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Lam Thi Phuong Thanh; Deputy Secretary in charge of the Fatherland Front Party Committee and Central organizations Pham Tat Thang; Vice Chairman of Hanoi People’s Committee Truong Viet Dung and representatives of embassies, international organizations, art troupes and a large domestic and international public. Speaking at the closing ceremony, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Lam Thi Phuong Thanh emphasized that culture for Vietnam is both the spiritual foundation of society, as well as the goal, motivation and resource for the country’s development process. According to the Minister, preserving heritage does not stop at preserving the values ​​​​of the past, but needs to create conditions for heritage to continue to be present in contemporary life, be created, add new values ​​and pass on to future generations. This spirit is also expressed in the theme “Converging Heritage – Creating the Future” of this year’s festival. Reality from the Second World Cultural Festival in Hanoi shows that when heritage, art, cinema, fashion, cuisine, tourism and creativity appear together in one space, cultural values ​​are not only introduced and preserved but also have the ability to create new experiences, products and values. This is also considered one of the specific ways to promote the role of cultural industries, transforming identity, creative capacity and cultural assets into development resources, competitiveness as well as national soft power. The 2026 festival has special meaning as it takes place during Vietnam’s 50th anniversary of joining UNESCO. After half a century, Vietnam has gone from a country that just came out of war to becoming an active, responsible member and increasingly proactively participating and contributing initiatives to common issues of UNESCO as well as the international community. With the theme “Converging Heritage – Creating the Future”, this year’s festival has the participation of 50 countries, 45 cultural spaces, 19 international art troupes, 35 culinary booths and a program introducing works from nearly 20 cinema backgrounds. During the 4 days of the event, Thang Long Imperial Citadel became a colorful exchange space, where many genres such as heritage, performing arts, cinema, fashion, cuisine, tourism and creativity were present and connected. One of the marks of the festival is its ability to spread to the masses. The activities are not limited to Thang Long Imperial Citadel but are also expanded to public spaces and media platforms. Parade programs on walking streets have brought the cultural colors of many countries closer to people and tourists. Through exchange activities, the festival also creates conditions for artists, artisans, creators and the public to directly meet, exchange and share. Thereby, the event contributes to strengthening understanding between cultures, cultivating friendship and opening new connections through culture. Minister Lam Thi Phuong Thanh said that from the results of the two editions in 2025 and 2026, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will continue to coordinate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Hanoi City, UNESCO, diplomatic representative agencies and international partners to develop the World Cultural Festival in Hanoi. The orientation is to gradually build the event into a prestigious international cultural exchange and cooperation platform, held annually, with its own identity and create specific cooperation results after each organization. Accordingly, Hanoi not only takes on the role of host location but also aims to become a regular meeting place for cultures. Here, initiatives related to heritage, creativity, cultural industry and sustainable development can be connected, shared and spread more widely. After 4 days of activities, the festival from Hanoi – City for Peace sends international friends the message of respecting differences to enhance understanding, sharing values ​​to bond and promote cultural cooperation to work towards a world of peace, civilization and development. Vietnam also affirmed its readiness to continue to coordinate with countries and international organizations in expanding dialogue, sharing experiences, protecting cultural diversity and promoting creativity. The closing art program is built into two chapters including “Colors of meeting” and “Greetings from Vietnam”. In the chapter “Colours of Meeting”, performances by artists from Iran, the Russian Federation, Mexico, Myanmar, Belgium and Vietnamese artists create a stage with a variety of cultural colors. Differences in language, tradition and performance style are bridged in a spirit of openness, respect and sharing. Next, “Greetings from Vietnam” takes the audience through an artistic journey from original values ​​and heritage regions to the image of contemporary Vietnam. Traditional musical and artistic materials from many regions are included in new performances, thereby introducing to international friends a Vietnam that is rich in identity but at the same time dynamic, creative, open and ready to connect with the world. On the closing night, many typical Vietnamese works and melodies were introduced such as “Phong Nu”, Central folk songs “Ly Ngua O”, “Da Co Hoai Lang” and “Our people sing folk songs”, in addition to performances by international art troupes. The organizing committee also awarded medals to participating international delegations, recognizing the contributions of artists, artisans and cultural troupes who have brought identity, talent and sharing spirit to Hanoi. The festival ended but the cultural connection orientation continued to be maintained. Through meetings, art programs and exchange activities formed during the event days, Hanoi aims to continue spreading the image of a capital rich in identity, creativity, friendliness and openness, and gradually become a regular cultural connection point between Vietnam and the world.