The northern province of Bac Ninh is showing great efforts in conserving its intangible cultural heritage, looking towards the development of cultural tourism.
Among the province's cultural heritage, love duet singing (Quan ho) and ceremonial singing (Ca tru) are the most outstanding. In 2009, Quan ho was recognised by UNESCO as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity. The same year, Ca tru was also listed by UNESCO as an intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent safeguarding.
Bac Ninh has spent 13.5 billion VND (more than 600,000 USD) implementing a project to preserve Quan ho. So far, apart from 44 original Quan ho villages, the folk art has been practiced at 329 more villages. In particular, the folk singing is being taught in various schools in the province.
At the same time, many Ca tru clubs were also established in Thuan Thanh, Gia Binh, and Yen Phong districts with almost 100 regular members.
With 547 festivals held annually, Bac Ninh is considered the locality with the most festivals in the country. Among them many have become national events, such as Ba Chua Kho Festival, Lim Festival, Dau Pagoda Festival, Kinh Duong Vuong Festival and Phat Tich Pagoda Festival, attracting tens of thousands of visitors.
Over the past time, the province has carried out many measures, aimed to preserve and develop the traditional festivals, and at the same time, prevent superstition and the commercialization of these events.