Hanoi Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Lund University (Sweden) and the World Crafts Council (WCC) jointly signed a cooperation agreement on November 10 to promote the development of traditional craft villages.

Hanoi signed agreements with foreign partners. Photo: Trong Tung

The signing ceremony was part of an international workshop to boost cooperation between Hanoi and international organizations on developing traditional craft villages in Vietnam.

The event was also one of the activities of the Vietnam Craft Villages Festival 2023, which is taking place until November 12 in Hanoi.

Speaking at the event, Deputy Director of the Hanoi Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Ta Van Tuong said that the agreements will strengthen cooperation between Hanoi and foreign partners to develop traditional trades in the capital city.

He hoped it would help preserve craft villages' traditional values and cultural identity.

Vice President of the World Crafts Council Kevin Murray stressed the importance of applying technology and social networking platforms to promote traditional crafts and craft villages in the community, contributing to developing Vietnamese handicrafts.

He also shared the experience of some other countries in developing traditional craft villages, such as Stoke on Trent craft village in the UK, Kandangan Village in Indonesia, and Ballarat in Australia.

Kevin hoped that both sides would soon specify the contents to preserve and develop the craft villages of Hanoi.

The event aims to attract young people to learn traditional crafts and motivate them to join in production and career development.
It is expected to strengthen cooperation in the preservation and development of handicrafts and promote the model of creative craft villages, which aligns with Hanoi's policy of developing craft villages and enhancing creative design based on the objectives of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network, in which Hanoi is a member.