Promoting Dong Nai cultural values

After years of coordinated implementation of legislation in the fields of libraries, cinema, and cultural heritage, cultural activities in Dong Nai have undergone a significant transformation and achieved positive outcomes.

Students in Binh Phuoc Ward read books at the Dong Nai Library - Facility 2. Photo: My Ny

In addition to establishing a necessary legal framework that provides a foundation for cultural development, the implementation of cultural laws has also contributed to improving the spiritual life of the people and adapting to the demands of development in the new period.

Promoting reading culture in the community

In the final days of the year, the Dong Nai Library - Facility 2 (located in Binh Phuoc Ward) remains open continuously from Sunday to Friday each week. The facility preserves, displays, and artistically arranges more than 140,000 items, including books, newspapers, magazines, and other documents, serving the public’s needs for reading, research, and knowledge acquisition.

Vu Ngoc Bich, Deputy Director of the Dong Nai Library and Head of Facility 2, said that the library has actively collaborated with local authorities, schools, and organizations, particularly in the northern areas of Dong Nai Province, to implement a mobile library model integrated with school libraries. Facility 2 has also applied technology to digitize all local historical materials, effectively supporting lifelong learning, research, and information access for residents across the province.

Following the implementation of the two-tier local government model, Dong Nai now has 20 libraries within cultural institutions assigned to commune and ward-level People’s Committees for management and operation. However, many local libraries still face challenges, including the lack of independent premises, limited specialized personnel, and facilities that do not yet meet standards set out in the Library Law.

Despite these difficulties, the provincial library system has organized dozens of mobile library trips serving students, residents in border areas, ethnic minority communities, industrial park workers, and vulnerable groups such as children with disabilities and individuals undergoing rehabilitation. Alongside direct services, libraries have actively digitized resources and expanded access to electronic books, digital documents, and audiobooks, enabling millions of readers to access information online.

According to a report by the Provincial People’s Committee submitted to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism evaluating the implementation of specific provisions of the Library Law, Law on Cinematography (2022), and Cultural Heritage Law, since the enactment of the Law on Libraries (2019), Dong Nai Library has strengthened legal dissemination through professional training sessions, thematic activities, book exhibitions, and video clips. Between 2021 and 2025, the library added more than 80,400 book copies, 242 newspaper and magazine titles, along with various audiobooks, electronic materials, and Braille books. Nearly 2,000 documents were digitized, and 477 QR codes were generated for books and selected excerpts from newspapers and magazines, serving more than 33 million online readers.

Connecting and promoting heritage and cinema

Alongside library development, the fields of cinema and cultural heritage in Dong Nai have also recorded positive progress as legal frameworks gradually take effect. Beyond fulfilling political and communication tasks, these activities are increasingly becoming bridges that bring heritage and cinema closer to the public, particularly at the grassroots level.

Nguyen Tien Dung, Head of the Cinema Department at the Dong Nai Culture and Cinema Center, said that mobile film screening activities have received special attention in recent years. Each year, seven mobile screening teams actively select new and engaging films, focusing on themes related to President Ho Chi Minh, history, culture, and revolutionary traditions, to serve audiences at the grassroots level. These screenings not only provide entertainment but also integrate public education on policies, guidelines, and the development of a new cultural lifestyle.

In the field of heritage, the implementation of the 2024 Law on Cultural Heritage (effective from July 1, 2025) has created an important legal corridor for conservation and the promotion of heritage values. Dong Nai Province has accelerated efforts to inventory and restore traditional festivals and handicrafts of ethnic minority communities, while digitizing nearly 100 documentary films on festivals, crafts, and folk knowledge. Notably, on January 13, 2026, the Provincial People’s Committee issued regulations on decentralized management, protection, and promotion of historical and cultural relics and scenic sites, establishing a synchronized legal framework with clearly defined responsibilities for heritage management at the local level.

Based on the practical implementation of these laws, the province has submitted several proposals to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. In addition to improving mechanisms and policies, recommendations include increasing central budget support for local film production serving political missions and prioritizing human resource development in the cultural sector, contributing to the comprehensive development of Dong Nai’s people, in particular, and Vietnam as a whole in the new era.

The production and dissemination of the documentary Bien Hoa Provisional Provincial Party Committee – Historical Milestones in 2024 marked a significant achievement. Produced and archived by Dong Nai Radio and Television (now Dong Nai Newspaper and Radio, Television), the film has been broadcast across provincial channels and widely shared on digital platforms, vividly recreating heroic historical moments and bringing local history closer to officials, Party members, and the broader public.

By My Ny – Translated by Minh Hong, Minho