Vietnamnet is carrying an article that discusses how Vietnam can develop its cultural industries. It notes that cultural industries generate up to 10 percent of global GDP, however, in 2021, Vietnam’s cultural industries accounted for 3.61 percent of the country’s GDP.
The publication carries comments from Nguyen Phuong Hoa, head of the International Cooperation Department at Vietnam’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MoCST). Nguyen argues that to grow the sector:
- Public–private partnerships are needed with greater financial support from the state; and
- That Vietnam should continue to participate in as well as host international cultural events.
Of note, Vietnam generally has a very narrow definition of culture in which traditional dance, costumes, and art works feature prominently. Modern culture, however, is often stymied by regulations and producers are penalised when they go outside of the bounds of how the authorities would like Vietnam portrayed in the international arena. For example, the producers of the Vietnamese film Vi, which won the Special Jury Award at the Berlin International Film Festival, were fined VND 35 million (US$1,500) for entering the film in the competition without certification from the MoCST.
Any discussion of developing Vietnam’s cultural industries, therefore, needs to include a discussion of the risk versus reward for producers with respect to Vietnam’s censorship regime.