Xishuangbanna festival holds promise for cooperation

A Cambodian official recently visited Xishuangbanna Dai autonomous prefecture in Yunnan province to attend a cultural and arts festival, where he identified opportunities for cultural collaboration.

During the trip, Keo Kann Virak, deputy secretary of state in Cambodia's Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts stopped at the Xishuangbanna Nationalities Museum and Manhena village to explore efforts being made to protect and preserve the region's intangible cultural heritage.

He noted that the event — the 14th Culture and Art Festival of Countries in the Lancang-Mekong River Basin — is important for fostering cooperation in cultural exchanges between countries that share the basin.

"When we come together, we can learn from each other," he said.

The culture and arts festival, which will conclude on Sunday, brought delegates from Bangladesh, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam and showcased the diversity of civilizations coexisting in harmony in the region.