Potential and strengths

Hanoi currently has 5,922 recognized cultural and historical relics including a world cultural heritage site, 21 clusters of special national relics, 1,160 national relics and 1,456 city-level relics.

In recent years, according to Hanoi’s Department of Culture and Sports, the relics under the management of the department have been well restored, embellished and preserved to promote their values. As a result, since 2015, the Thang Long Imperial Citadel, Hoa Lo Prison site and the Temple of Literature have welcomed millions of domestic and foreign visitors each year.

Hanoi prides itself on having solved the harmonization and rationality between planning, management and conservation of cultural heritage sites and socioeconomic development in urban spaces. In districts and towns, the coordination among relevant departments and agencies in the management of local relics is promptly and synchronously implemented. Many districts carry out relic restoration and embellishment plans and also provide training to improve their management and protection capacity.

However, according to experts, the management, renovation, embellishment and promotion of the value of relics in Hanoi are hampered by the lack of awareness of their importance by many authorities, sectors and individuals. At the same time, the rapid urbanization, growing population and asynchronous development between urban architecture and traffic have also negatively impacted Hanoi’s historical sites and beauty spots. The inspection and supervision of renovation and embellishment activities in some localities in the city have not been regularly and timely conducted, either, leading to disrepair and vandalism of the relics.

Preserving original values

Historical relics and cultural heritages are valuable assets constituting the living environment of Hanoians. They are also the potential, strength, and resources for Hanoi’s socioeconomic development. Therefore, Hanoi needs to implement detailed planning to preserve cultural heritage space, and mobilize capital and human resources for the work to ensure the preservation of ancient architectural identity, with connection to tourism promotion.

At a recent press conference, Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Chu Xuan Dung emphasized that due to specific architectural characteristics and cultural values ​at each site, renovating and embellishing special relics requires knowledge and workmanship to effectively deploy, preserve and promote their original values.

Dung said that in order to achieve the desired results, Hanoi’s cultural sector must urgently implement a number of key tasks. They include developing a master plan for promoting the value of relics in the city, establishing a steering committee for management of the task, accelerating the digitization of relic names and locations, formulating mechanisms to support the management of relics at grassroots levels, providing remuneration regimes for conservators, as well as for those directly involved in conservation and preservation.

Bao Thoa