Da Lat and Hoi An named in UNESCO Creative Cities Network

Thus, up to now Vietnam has 3 creative cities: Hanoi, Da Lat, Hoi An.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) announced on October 31 on the occasion of World Cities Day that 55 new cities have been designated by Director-General Audrey Azoulay to join the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN).

The new cities are recognised for their strong commitment to harnessing culture and creativity as part of their development strategies, and for demonstrating innovative practices in people-centred urban planning. With the latest additions, the Network now includes 350 cities in over 100 countries, representing seven creative sectors: Crafts and Folk Arts, Design, Film, Gastronomy, Literature, Media Arts and Music.

The city of Lyon, City of Creative Media Arts since 2008, has been awarded the title of Creative City of Literature, following the changing demands of the creative sector.

The newly designated cities will work with Network members to increase their resilience to growing threats such as climate change, rising inequality and rapid urbanization, with 68% of the world's population predicted to live in urban areas by 2050.

“Cities in our Creative Cities Network are leading the way in enhancing access to culture and harnessing the power of creativity for urban recovery and development,” said Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO.

A forthcoming document titled “The Added Value of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network at the Local, National and International Levels” will demonstrate the leading role of cities in achieving the goals of the 2030 Agenda, and demonstrate the ways in which UNESCO supports UCCN members by promoting dialogue, learning and peer-to-peer collaboration.

It is understood that the newly designated Creative Cities will be invited to participate in the UCCN 2024 Annual Conference (1-5 July 2024) in Braga, Portugal, with the theme “Involving Youth in the Next Decade”.