A volcanic cave in the Dak Nong Geopark (Photo: VNA) Dak Nong (VNA) – The Central Highlands province of Dak Nong on November 24received a certificate recognising its geopark as part of the UNESCO GlobalGeoparks Network.
The Dak Nong Geopark is the latest member of theglobal network and the third to obtain this title in Vietnam.
It covers more than 4,700 sq.km. of land in sixof the eight district-level localities in Dak Nong, namely Krong No, Cu Jut,Dak Mil, Dak Song, Dak G’Long, and Gia Nghia, equivalent to two-fifths of theprovince’s total area.
According to domestic and foreign scientists,there are 65 heritage and geomorphological sites in the Dak Nong Geopark,including volcanic craters, volcanic caves, and waterfalls.
Notably, this geopark is home to the largestsystem of volcanic caves in Southeast Asia, with more than 50 caves and a totallength of over 10,000m.
Once coming to the Dak Nong Geopark, visitorscan also explore the Central Highlands’ space of gong culture – a UNESCO-recognisedmasterpiece of the intangible heritage of humanity, the culture of M’Nongpeople – the ethnic group that has the longest residence history in theprovince, along with the culture of other ethnic minorities.
UNESCO Representative in Vietnam Michael Croftsaid the Dak Nong Geopark boasts the combination of natural beauty and locals’unique culture, both of which need to be preserved and capitalised on viaeconomic and tourism activities.
He highlighted the importance of localresidents’ participation and pledged UNESCO’s close cooperation to help tapinto tourism potential of this geopark.
On July 7, the Programme and ExternalRelations Commission of the 209th UNESCO Executive Board approved theGlobal Geoparks Council’s proposal to recognise the Dak NongGeopark as a global geopark,
Earlier, the Dong Van Karst Plateau in Ha Giangprovince and the Non Nuoc Cao Bang Geopark in Cao Bang province, both in thenorth of Vietnam, had been named members of the Global Geoparks Network./.
VNA
