Hosted by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the event will include a number of activities such as a sea and island festival, a fair promoting the sea-based economy and a meeting in response to World Environment Day (June 5), World Ocean Day (June 8) and the International Year on Biodiversity.

During the week, a sand painting contest for students, an exhibition of photos on sea and islands and an exchange between young people from the Vietnam General Department of Sea and Islands and Quang Binh Province will be held.

Other activities will include visits to traditional craft villages and outstanding seafood processing companies in Quang Binh Province and exchanges among businesses.

Developing the island economy is one of the government’s priorities Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has approved a ten year master plan for the island economy by 2020 that aims to boost the rapid, effective and sustainable development of the island system, create a breakthrough in developing sea and island economies and turn islands into bases strong enough to defend the nation.

The plan sets a target of raising the island economy’s contributions to the national economy to 0.5% from the current 0.2% and reaching an island economic growth rate to 14-15% per year by 2020.

To reach the goal, around VND162.5 trillion will be needed from now to 2020.