Japanese culture to be highlighted in HCM City and Can Tho

3/11/2009

Ho Chi Minh City will host a series of activities featuring Japanese culture and education that will last for a month, starting on November 10.

The Month of Japanese Culture, part of the Japan-Mekong Year 2009, is co-organised by the Japanese Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City and relevant Vietnamese agencies, according to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

The highlights of the programme will include performances by the Okinawa-Chura art troupe, Japanese films, and the Wa-daiko drum performance and robot show.

The Japan-Mekong Year is also celebrated through the Mekong-Japan Tourism Days which will take place in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho from December 1-5.

During the Tourism Days, a symposium will be held on promoting sustainable tourism in the Mekong Delta, as well as a trade fair, a Mekong-Japan culture-tourism photo exhibition, and a Mekong-Japan traditional art exchange programme.The 2009 Japan-Mekong Year is held under an initiative adopted at the 2008 Mekong-Japan Ministerial Meeting.

In the context of steadily expanding relations between Japan and five Mekong river countries, more than 50 exchange activities are planned to take place in Japan , Cambodia , Laos , Myanmar , Thailand and Vietnam . Among those countries, Vietnam has received special attention from Japan in terms of cooperation and aid—Japan has devoted 50 percent of its ODA for Mekong river countries to Vietnam. VNA/VOVNews