The Tich Dien Doi Son Festival (King’s Ploughing Festival), which was initiated more than 1,000 years ago to promote agriculture, has been restored in the northern province of Ha Nam.

VietNamNet Bridge – The current Lim Festival is very bustling, attracting thousands of visitors. Quan ho is sung everywhere from houses to boats. People, including cultural experts, are optimistic about the development of Quan ho.

VietNamNet Bridge – Elite Vietnam has refused to repurchase the copyright to send Vietnamese candidates to the Miss World, Miss Universe 2009 pageants. This means that Vietnam may miss the two big beauty contests this year.

VietNamNet Bridge – Anyone who can write in Vietnamese is invited to participate in a writing contest with the theme of travel in Viet Nam.

“Violence against women is always a violation of human rights; it is always a crime; and it is always unacceptable.” — United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon

"Non la” (translated as “conical hat”) is not only a normal hat, but also one of Vietnam’s symbols of charm

The history of women's ao dai, a costume characteristic of Vietnam, is also the story of changes in cultural life of Vietnamese people.

Family structure

Since early this year, a number of tourists from ASEAN countries traveling to Vietnam has increased by 21%, surpassing the growth of 10.6% in the total number of international tourists to Vietnam.

She will be awarded during the final night of the Miss Vietnam 2008 which will be held on August 31.

Entitled “Clouds and Sunshine”, the fashion collection by Dao Le Dieu Anh shows the beauty of nature. After the rain in summer, the sky becomes clear with bright sunshine and floating white and grey clouds.

Thirty young women will participate in the final round of the Miss Vietnam beauty contest to take place at the Hoai River Square in the ancient city of Hoi An from August 19 to 30.

Phan Thi Ngoc Diem beat 35 contestants to become the new Miss Tourism Vietnam at the pageant’s finale held Saturday at Ho Chi Minh City’s Phan Dinh Phung Sports Complex.

For the first time, Binh Dinh central province will host big cultural festival named Tay Son – Binh Dinh with theme “Converging and Development”. This is a good chance to promote special culture of the land of martial arts.

A signing ceremony on the organisation of Miss World 2010 in Vietnam took place in Ho Chi Minh City on July 9.

The contest organised by HTV in collaboration with Cat Tien Sa Co. was held since 2006 to recognize new best albums of Vietnamese singers of the month and the year.

Tại Trường tiểu học "B" Khánh Bình (An Phú, An Giang), Hội Liên hiệp Phụ nữ tỉnh An Giang phối hợp Hội Phụ nữ vì Hòa bình và phát triển 2 tỉnh Tàkeo, Kandal (vương quốc Campuchia)vừa tổ chức chiến dịch truyền thông phòng chống buôn bán phụ nữ, trẻ em.

Representatives from the Foreign Ministry of Vietnam and the United Nations Development Programme on July 21 signed a document on the project called Empowerment of Women in the Public Sector in the Context of International Economic Integration.

Spotlighting a surge in the number of women having a third child since the beginning of the year, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has asked the entire government system to implement population and family planning policies.

Nearly one billion from 170 countries and territories worldwide watched the crowning ceremony of the Miss Universe pageant 2008 through television broadcast live from Diamond Bay resort of Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa. Together with beauty queens, natural landscapes, culture imbued with national identity and hospitable people of Vietnam has been advertised worldwide.

Vietnam Children Choir (VCC) has won the silver medal at the fifth World Choir Games (WCG) held in Graz, Austria from July 9 to 19.

The first national survey on Vietnamese families was released on June 26, revealing surprising information. Notably, there are a lot of parents who don’t pay attention to their children and domestic violence exists in a high number of families.

Six-year-old Nguyen Khanh Linh is astonished to see a television cartoon of a male bear teaching a class.

Vietnamese women spend up to thrice as much time on unpaid housework compared to men, according to a recent survey conducted by Healthbrigde Canada and the Institute for Social Development Studies.

Mrs Vietnam, Nguyen Dieu Hoa, made the top five in the Mrs World Contest held in Kaliningrat, Russia from June 14-29.

The Ministry of Health has launched Action Month for Population and Family Planning from July 1 – 31 on the occasion of the World Population Day (July 11).

Vietnam ’s first national association dedicated to protecting the rights of Vietnamese children made its debut in Hanoi on June 10.

A series of strong mechanisms and policies have brought about remarkable gender equality achievements in Vietnam , earning international praise, said an official of the Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA).

Very few nations in the world have the custom of worshipping the mother of the country, as is done in Vietnam . This custom not only reflects the Vietnamese people’s traditional culture and belief but also their gratitude and respect for the loyalty to the ancestors.

Located more than 20km from Cao Bang Township, Cao Bang Province, along road 203, Nuoc Hai Town in Hoa An District has for a long time been famous for the brocade weaving craft. Its products, including bags, shawls, bedspreads, blankets, etc., not only serve in the daily life of local people but also become beautiful souvenirs for tourists.

For the first time, the huge 220KV-transformer, 140 tonnes in weight with nearly one thousand separate parts, was produced by a female Vietnamese engineer.

Sociologists have rung the alarm bell at the current significantly higher rate of male newborns over female newborns in Vietnam

Model-actress Thanh Hang has turned heads and dropped jaws cat-walking her way onto the world stage.

Award-winning artist Thanh Ngoan is renowned for her cheo (traditional opera), xam (folk music) and ca tru (ceremonial singing) performances. Ngoan speaks with Hien Ngoc about her passion for her art and her ideas on preserving Vietnamese culture.

Negative male attitudes towards women have been blamed for the prevalence of domestic violence in Viet Nam.

The cold weather couldn’t keep thousands of pilgrims and tourists away from the Huong Pagoda Festival, the nation’s longest and most elaborate annual festival that opened on February 12 morning in the northern province of Ha Tay.

Ha Long Bay, Mt. Fansipan and Phong Nha Cave have been nominated as “new natural wonders of the world” in the first round of a contest sponsored by the New Wonders organisation.

A meeting was held on February 12 in Me Linh district, northern Vinh Phuc province to mark the 1968th anniversary of the Two Trung Sisters' Uprising.

The US Ford Foundation has granted US $100,000 to a biennial festival in the imperial Hue City which is scheduled for June 3-11.

A festival was held at the Dong Da Park in Dong Da district, Hanoi, on February 11 to mark the 219th anniversary of Ngoc Hoi-Dong Da Victory led by national hero Nguyen Hue.

A special programme combining light effects, music and fashion named “Hanoi – a City of Peace, Hoan Kiem Lake – a Shining Pearl” will be performed at the Ngoc Son Temple and Hoan Kiem Lake during the New Year’s Eve.

The mortality rate for mothers has dropped from 95 per 100,000 in 2001 to 80 per 100,000 this year and from 35 per 100,000 to 17 per 100,000 for infants.

A trend in gender imbalance among newborns has risen in many Asian countries, including Vietnam, said Ian Howie, representative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Vietnam, at a seminar in Hanoi on December 20.

Legislators at the 12th National Assembly said on November 1 that a Family Violence Prevention Law is urgently needed.

Kontum Ko Pang Village in Kon Tum Province has led the area not only in economic and cultural development but also in successfully carrying out new family planning policies.

In the urban centres of Viet Nam, the battle for gender equality has already been waged; for women in Kien Lao Commune, Bac Giang Province, un-muting the feminine voice is a contemporary revolution.

Miss Vietnam Pham Thi Thuy Duong has won the Miss International Image 2007 with a record voting of 65%, under the Miss International Beauty Pageant held in Japan from October 1-15

A training course for speakers from northern provinces and cities on the Gender Equality Law was held from 20 to 21 August, 2007, at the Center for Women and Development (20 Thuy Khue Street, Tay Ho, Ha Noi).

Confucian prudery reigned supreme in Vietnamese classic literature – until Nguyen Du and Ho Xuan Huong came along in the 18th century to spice up the selection.

Having lived in Viet Nam for more than 10 years, Ando Seako is enchanted by Vietnamese lacquer art and has devoted her career to creating work in this medium.