Vice State President Vo Thi Anh Xuan attending the opening ceremony of the festival, which takes place on the occasion of the 115th anniversary of International Women’s Day.

In his opening remarks, Chairman of HCM City People's Committee Nguyen Van Duoc, highlighted the festival’s role in celebrating Vietnamese culture and honoring the contributions of women to the nation.

This year’s event coincides with the 50th anniversary of the South’s liberation and reflects the city’s growth, he added.

The festival features nearly 60 ao dai designers and over 30 ambassadors from various fields.

The highlight is a mass folk dance with around 3,000 participants, expected to draw over 50,000 attendees from across the city.

Activities include art performances, a painting contest, an online photo competition, and exhibitions focused on the national dress.
In addition, there will be a programme donating ao dai to women’s union members.

The southern metropolis considers event-based tourism one of the seven pillars of its tourism development strategy. This year, it aims to attract 8.5 million international visitors and 45 million domestic tourists, with projected tourism revenue reaching VND260 trillion (US$10.18 billion ), or approximately 13% of the city's GRDP.

First Vietnamese Ao Dai festival held in Fukuoka

VOV.VN - The beauty of Ao Dai, the traditional long dress of Vietnamese women, has bene promoted at the first ever Vietnamese Ao Dai Festival which is getting underway in Fukuoka, Japan, from January 18 to 21.