Hanoi (VNA) – The 9th Buon Ma Thuot Coffee Festival will take place in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak from March 9 to 13, as part of activities to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Victory of Buon Ma Thuot and the liberation of Dak Lak (March 10, 1975–2025).
Through the festival, the organiser aims to elevate Vietnamese coffee as a global culture and art, heard a press conference in Hanoi on February 12.
Vice Chairman of the Dak Lak provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Tuan Ha, who is also head of the organising board, said Executive Director of the International Coffee Organisation (ICO) Vanusia Nogueira will officially recognise Vietnam as the land of Robusta coffee at the opening ceremony of the festival.
The opening ceremony on March 10 will be a highlight of the event, showcasing vivid images of coffee, coffee culture, people, the Central Highlands gong culture space, as well as potential, strengths and tourism of Dak Lak.
Ha said that the festival, themed “Buon Ma Thuot - Destination of World Coffee”, will feature 15 official activities, along with supporting events organised by local communities. In particular, a digital content creation contest to promote the event online will be held, as well as a groundbreaking ceremony for the Trung Nguyen Legend energy coffee factory.
As part of the main activities, a street festival will be organised, gathering art troupes from many countries, artists, students, and employees from coffee companies and factories, as well as coffee farmers in the province.
Deputy Director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism Lai Duc Dai said other activities include an exhibition of coffee products, machinery and equipment serving the industry, specialty coffee and OCOP products. There will also be a specialty coffee roasting competition, an international business matching conference, a coffee camp, a photo exhibition, together with cultural and art exchange programmes.
Additionally, there will be other exciting activities such as a light festival, a rock festival, an international off-road car racing competition, and a traditional boat race festival.
Notably, domestic and international visitors will have a chance to enjoy free coffee at the festival, and join coffee-related experience tours, as well as eco-tourism, cultural, adventure, and community-based tours to local villages.
Dai said the festival is expected to help elevate the position of Vietnam’s coffee industry in the international arena, and boost socio-economic and tourism development in Dak Lak.
It also aims to honour coffee growers and businesses, introduce tourism potential and investment opportunities for coffee and agricultural products, and introduce the traditional culture of local ethnic minorities, especially the Central Highlands Gong Culture Space – the World Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, he added.
Miss Universe Vietnam 2017 and top five finalist at the 2018 Miss Universe competition, H’Hen Nie, and Miss Vietnam Tourism Ambassador 2024 Dinh Thi Hoa, who are from Dak Lak, are media ambassadors for this year's festival.
Dak Lak is considered the “coffee capital” of Vietnam. It is home to the largest coffee farming area and output in the country, about 210,000ha and over 520,000 tonnes each year – more than 30% of the nationwide production. Dak Lak is known for its coffee products with exquisite and flavourful blends that are highly favoured worldwide./.
