UNESCO Director General hails Vietnam as effective cooperation model

Talking with the Vietnam News Agency before her Vietnam visit from September 5-7, Azoulay noted that since Vietnam’s entry to UNESCO in 1976 following its national reunification, both sides have built a solid relationship with various joint scientific projects, most recently two training and research centres for maths and physics that debuted in 2021.

The two sides have also supported education development, especially for girls.

In terms of culture, Vietnam’s eight destinations have been named in the list of World Heritage Sites and 13 others in the list of Intangible Cultural Heritages. The country also has 11 UNESCO-recognised biosphere reserves.

Vietnam is also an active member of the UNESCO Executive Board after being elected in 2021 with a four-year tenure, she said.

According to her, Vietnam has built a development model based on substantial investment in education and made specific commitments to protecting heritages. In both areas, the country has made important progress, but these efforts also need to be sustained to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Azoulay said as for climate change - one of the biggest challenges today - Vietnam in July last year adopted the National Climate Change Strategy to 2050. 

During her visit, Azoulay is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, visit Trang An Landscape Complex – a World Heritage recognised in 2014 in the northern province of Ninh Binh, and tour the south to review cooperation projects and set out action plans, thus realising the cooperation memorandum of understanding she signed with the Vietnamese Government in November 2021 during the Prime Minister’s visit to UNESCO headquarters in Paris.