Archivists from Cuba , China and the Republic of Korea shared their experiences at a workshop in Hanoi on August 18, helping to promote their Vietnamese counterparts’ confidence in keeping UNESCO-recognised heritages and valuable historic documents.

The workshop heard reports on conserving and promoting centuries-old records in China and analysing bibliographic statistics on scientific products in Latin America .

Experience from the National Archive of Cuba emphasised a need to develop a relevant national strategy, which contributed to collecting valuable archive holdings scattered across the country for the best possible preservation.

Such an action has helped strengthen the national identity and safeguard national security, said its Director Martha M. Ferriol Marchena.

Vietnamese delegates also shared experiences in preserving and promoting the value of wooden printing blocks from the Nguyen dynasty, 1802-1945, and the world of stone steles engraved with names of doctorate holders during the period 1442-1779. These steles were built at Vietnam ’s first university and cultural temple called Van Mieu-Quoc Tu Giam – the Temple of Literature in Hanoi .

The wooden printing blocks and steles were recognised by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) as documentary heritages of the world in 2009.

The head of the State Records and Archive Department, Vu Thi Minh Huong, said at the workshop that Vietnam was proud of the UNESCO honours but the recognition also set an important and urgent task for the country to guard against collective amnesia and preserve valuable archive holdings.

Huong said her agency is also working hard to trace other valuable archives in the hand of institutions and individuals, to nominate them to the list of documentary heritages under the UNESCO-sponsored Memory of the World programme./.