Hanoi is celebrating the 60th anniversary of its liberation in a joyous and proud atmosphere and a spirit over a thousand years old – a driving force for the capital city’s modernisation process.

The sound leadership of the Party and President Ho Chi Minh, the command of General Vo Nguyen Giap and the sacrifice of the people during the nine-year resistance war led to the celebrated Dien Bien Phu Victory. On October 10, 1954, the people of Hanoi welcomed the victorious troops who returned to liberate the capital city.

“From a city with a small economy and population, Hanoi has risen strongly from the debris of war, affirming its role as a major national hub,” Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Pham Quang Nghi told the Vietnam News Agency on the occasion.

Harbouring vast potentials, spiritual and material strengths, glorious traditions and noble dignities, Hanoi has made outstanding achievements, praised by international friends as “the Capital City of Human Dignity” and honoured by UNESCO as “the City for Peace”.

The expansion of Hanoi’s administrative boundaries in August 2008 marked an event of strategic significance and historical importance, providing opportunities for sustainable development both today and in the future.

Over the past six years, Hanoi has strengthened its role as a major economic centre, with its economy growing steadily and its economic structure being positively transformed, Nghi said.

The city’s gross regional domestic product (GRDP) accounts for 10 percent of the national GDP, with an economic growth rate of more than 9.5 percent, 1.5 times higher than the country’s average. The municipal budget revenues totalled 163 trillion VND (7.7 billion USD) in 2013, 2.8 times higher than before the expansion in 2008, and accounting for 20 percent of the country’s total budget revenue. The city’s per capita income reached 52.3 million VND (2,490 USD) last year.

Hanoi has also increased its efforts in the fields of foreign relations, global integration and development cooperation with other localities and international friends, he said, adding that the city now boasts ties with more than 100 countries and territories.

Hover, the city’s leader noted that despite its high growth rate, Hanoi’s economy still has a number of unsustainable features that need to be addressed in the near future, particularly with regard to urban planning and management, land management, administrative reform and socio-economic issues.

In the new millennium, the capital city of Hanoi is growing day by day, with new bridges and modern urban areas emerging near the Red River, silhouetted against the historical Long Bien Bridge.

Efforts to preserve Thang Long Imperial Citadel and the Old Quarter’s 36 ancient streets have also been undertaken, as well as new infrastructure development around the legendary Hoan Kiem Lake (Sword Lake), combining tradition and modernity.

Experiencing ups and downs throughout its history, witnessing the return of victorious troops and rising once more from the ravages of war, Hanoi has nurtured the national soul for more than a thousand years, and is at the heart of the historical roots and essence of the nation, Nghi said.

“It is also a place for the convergence and expression of patriotism, pacifism, solidarity and aspirations for progress,” he concluded.-VNA