Vietnamese museums to be open for free on International Museum Day

Museums in Vietnam are set to be open to visitors free of charge on the International Museum Day (May 18).

The National Museum of Vietnamese History. (Photo: Wikimedia)
The National Museum of Vietnamese History. (Photo: Wikimedia)

This is among the activities suggested by the Department of Cultural Heritage under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in response to the International Museum Day.

The agency called on museums nationwide to diversify their introduction and exhibition of intangible cultural heritage and to organise more cultural events.

The museums should increase coordination with the educational sector to introduce cultural heritage, especially intangible ones, to students, it said.

They were suggested to step up communications activities, focusing on those going via websites, social networks and mobile apps.

The International Council of Museums chose the theme “Museums as Cultural Hubs: The future of tradition” for this year’s International Museum Day.

The Cultural Heritage Department said the theme aims to promote museums’ role in joining hands with the community to preserve and bring into play values of cultural heritage.

There are 162 museums in Vietnam at present, including 126 owned by the State and 36 non-State ones, keeping nearly 3 million objects.