Paris (VNA) – Vietnam has urged stronger implementation of preferential treatment for developing countries under the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (2005 UNESCO Convention) at the 19th session of the Intergovernmental Committee of the convention.
Vietnam is attending the session, which opened at the headquarters of UNESCO in Paris on February 17, as one of the 24 members of the convention’s Intergovernmental Committee.
Ambassador Nguyen Thi Van Anh, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to UNESCO, highlighted the convention’s role in and contributions to peace and sustainable development worldwide through the promotion of dialogue, social cohesion and creative industries.
She called for enhanced capacity building, experience sharing, stronger international cooperation and effective implementation of the recommendations related to Article 16 on preferential treatment for developing countries.
The ambassadors underscored Vietnam’s efforts to implement the convention, highlighting the Politburo’s issuance of Resolution No. 80-NQ/TW on the development of Vietnamese culture in January 2026, which she described as a historic document.
She further noted that Vietnam is implementing its strategy for developing cultural industries to 2030, with a vision to 2045, and reaffirmed the country’s commitment to working closely with the international community to effectively realise the convention.
The session, scheduled to run until February 20, is expected to adopt the 2026–2027 workplan, discuss measures to enhance the convention implementation – including legal options to ensure its effectiveness in the digital environment amid rapid technological and artificial intelligence advances, and review a report on the implementation of the recommendations concerning Article 16. It will also approve the 2026–2027 budget of the International Fund for Cultural Diversity and consider projects seeking financial support from the fund.
To date, the 2005 Convention has 161 parties. To strengthen its implementation and advance its objectives, UNESCO has established the Creative Cities Network, which now comprises 408 cities from more than 100 countries and territories, including four in Vietnam – Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hoi An and Da Lat./.
VNA
