The program was attended by Governor of Kanagawa Prefecture (Japan) Kuroiwa Yuji, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Ho An Phong, Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Pham Quang Hieu; along with representatives of agencies, organizations, businesses of the two countries and a large number of Kanagawa residents and international tourists.
Speaking at the Festival Opening Ceremony, Kanagawa Governor Kuroiwa Yuji emphasized that 2025 marks the 10th anniversary of the Festival being held in Kanagawa.
When the Festival was first held in 2015, there were only about 10,000 Vietnamese people living in Kanagawa, but now the number has increased to about 40,000 people, ranking second after the number of Chinese citizens living in Kanagawa.
According to Mr. Kuroiwa Yuji, this cultural event not only connects the people of the two countries through culture but also economically . After 9 times of organizing the Festival, its effectiveness and attraction have been clearly demonstrated.
From the time when there were no Vietnamese enterprises in Kanagawa, by 2025 there were 34 Vietnamese enterprises investing and operating in Kanagawa and many Vietnamese enterprises intending to invest in Kanagawa province. More importantly, the Festival has increasingly strengthened the affection of Kanagawa people with Vietnam, as well as Vietnamese friends with Kanagawa province.
According to Governor Kuroiwa Yuji, in November 2025, Kanagawa province will organize the Kanagawa Festival in Hanoi, continuing to create highlights and strengthen bilateral relations in the fields of culture, trade, tourism , investment, commerce, etc.
For his part, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Ho An Phong affirmed that the Vietnam Festival in Kanagawa is a special event, not only creating an opportunity for people of the two countries to exchange and introduce the beauty of culture, cuisine and art to each other, but more than that, it is an occasion to strengthen the friendship between the people of Vietnam and Japan, and a meeting place for Vietnamese people far from home to meet in the festival atmosphere.
Deputy Minister Ho An Phong affirmed: “Culture is an important bridge that helps us get closer and understand each other better. Culture has no high or low, superior or inferior, only diversity, variety, uniqueness and difference.
Over the past 10 years, the Vietnam Festival in Kanagawa has continuously developed, becoming one of the most anticipated large-scale cultural events of Vietnam in Japan. The event connects people, gathers communities, and strengthens the friendship between Vietnam and Japan. Art and culinary activities not only bring the quintessence and identity of Vietnam to Japan, but also create a space for exchange, learning, and complementing each other between the two cultures of Vietnam and Japan.
Expressing gratitude and deep thanks to Governor Kuroiwa Yuji - who has devoted much love to the people and country of Vietnam and initiated the organization of the Vietnam Festival in Kanagawa over the years, the Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan through the periods, Deputy Minister Ho An Phong hopes that the Kanagawa Provincial Government and the Vietnamese Embassy in Japan will continue to accompany and cooperate closely with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Vietnam, together contributing to the sustainable development of the Vietnam-Japan relationship.
Sharing at the event, Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Pham Quang Hieu believes that the Vietnam Festival in Kanagawa is a comprehensive cultural and economic event; a model, with great influence; a bond connecting Vietnamese people and Japanese people in Kanagawa.
The festival also contributes to promoting the image of the country, people, and good traditional values of Vietnam to the Japanese people, especially in Kanagawa province, thereby strengthening the friendship between the people of the two countries, continuing to open up new opportunities for economic and trade cooperation between the two countries.
The Vietnam Festival in Kanagawa 2025 is an annual cultural exchange event, taking place from September 13-14, attracting a large Vietnamese community and Japanese friends in Kanagawa province.
The event is an important forum to promote Vietnamese culture, tourism and economy, including cuisine, folk arts and investment promotion programs. During the two-day festival, there are hundreds of booths introducing Vietnamese cuisine, handicrafts and products.
Along with that, there will be art performances, water puppetry by the Vietnam Puppetry Theatre, Quan Ho singing and special cultural activities; tourism promotion programs, introductions to destinations and Vietnam's tourism policies; seminars and forums on investment and tourism cooperation between Vietnam and Japan; Japanese speech contest for international students...
That same evening, the Vietnamese delegation attended a reception hosted by the Governor of Kanagawa Prefecture.
In his opening speech, Governor Kuroiwa Yuji expressed his deep gratitude to the Vietnamese Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism for coordinating and sending a puppet troupe to attend and perform at the Festival, which not only enhanced cultural exchange between the two countries, but also brought traditional Vietnamese folk art closer to the Japanese people.
In his reply, Deputy Minister Ho An Phong believed that with the support and cooperation of Kanagawa province, the Vietnam Festival in Kanagawa in 2025 will continue to be a special event, contributing to the friendship and effective cooperation between Vietnam and Japan, as well as being a symbol of the model of cooperation and cultural exchange between Vietnam and Japanese localities.
At the reception, the Vietnam Puppetry Theatre performed many special performances, bringing a unique traditional cultural and artistic space of Vietnam that is also very close to the Japanese people, continuing to be a bridge of friendship between the people of Vietnam and Japan.
Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/van-hoa/cau-noi-giao-luu-nhan-dan-viet-nam-nhat-ban-168003.html
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