The Hanoi People’s Committee, in collaboration with the UNESCO Office in Vietnam, on October 2 organized a seminar with the theme ‘Consultation about the initiative: Hanoi – the creative city’.

Hanoi Party Committee Secretary Vuong Dinh Hue

Speaking at the event, Hanoi Party Committee Secretary Vuong Dinh Hue said the city will once again be able to realize the creative vision and aspirations of the name Thang Long of thousands of years ago, deserving to be the capital city and the heart of the country.

Implementing its commitment to UNESCO, Hanoi aims to became a creative city in the design field. The city will have to implement long-term programs and action plans on visions and policies, creating favorable conditions to elevate design creativity, and raise the community’s awareness to realize the initiatives and build the image of Hanoi as a creative capital city.

Hue said there were still many things to do to realize the title of creative city, including balancing immediate and long-term benefits, balancing traditional and modern values, and designing an ecosystem for innovation and creative activities.

Regarding the Red River zoning plan, Hue said both flood control and water drainage need attention.

“Will Vietnam have a ‘Miracle on the Red River’ like South Korea has the ‘Miracle on the Han River’?” Hue asked. “In order to create the Miracle on the Red River, there must be the Red River development plan."

In the past, there were only 40 kilometers of Red River running through the city, but now there are 123 kilometers.

“If we can do this, we will have enormous resources to solve the problem of livelihoods for 1 million residents,” he said.

He expressed willingness to receive the support and cooperation of the international community in city planning.

Shifting from ‘Hanoi – Creative City’ to ‘Hanoi – Creative Capital’

Michael Croft, chief representative of UNESCO in Vietnam, said the task is finding a way to turn the UNESCO-recognized ‘Hanoi - Creative City’ into a foundation for cooperation and support of the city’s socio-economic strategy in the next decade, with a vision until 2045.

Joining the UNESCO network of creative cities, Hanoi can expand cooperation and exchange with other design cities such as Seoul, Singapore, Kobe and Shanghai in the region, and Helsinki, Montreal, Berlin and Turino in other regions.

The UNESCO Chief Representative in Vietnam repeated its commitment to accompany the city in the new path, and make every effort to promote partnerships to shift Hanoi - Creative City to Hanoi - Creative Capital. 

Huong Quynh

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