According to Italian Ambassador Lorenzo Angeloni, apart from creating opportunities for artists, businesses and people from both countries to meet, the programme will highlight all factors and fields that symbolise the relationship between the two countries.

Specifically, the two sides will deepen mutual understanding, promote the teaching of Italian, and strengthen bilateral cooperation through development programmes, he said.

It will kick off with an event to mark the decade-long operation of the Italian Language and Culture Faculty of the Hanoi University , the only one of its kind in Southeast Asia.

Various activities will be held in April, including the opening of the "Casa Italia" (Italian House), a centre to promote Italian culture and products, as well as a venue to bring Italian culture, businesses and living styles closer to Vietnamese people.

A photographic exhibition will be organised, and an architecture and design contest will be launched for Vietnamese and Italian architects.

Besides, many artists from Italian orchestras and the Rome Concert Association will perform in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.