Attending the event are delegates from departments and branches in 4 pilot localities: Hanoi, Haiphong, Quang Ninh province, Hue province and delegates from 27 Departments of Information and Communications of provinces and cities in the North and North Central region, and journalists from a number of news agencies.

The conference focused on guiding and helping localities in implementing promotional communication in a new way, communicating what the world wants to know about Vietnam, similar to the criteria ranked by international organizations based on a common framework of 22 elements. Thereby, promoting the image of Vietnam abroad in a consistent, synchronous and unified manner.

This new way of doing things is to take the locality as the "foundation", the "nucleus" to build and communicate the national image. It can be understood that the national image “is an overall image or a combination of impressions about a country or a locality formed from various factors such as economic and social development, national and cultural values, or about products of the nation or locality.

In other words, the national image is the combined image of localities, strengths and core values ​​of the nation existing in 63 provinces and cities across the country. Therefore, the national image in media is to promote the strengths, advantages and values ​​of the localities.

Speaking at the opening of the conference, Nguyen Thanh Lam, Deputy Minister of Information and Communications affirmed: “The new situation requires a new, proactive, creative, positive and effective way of doing things. Information must break through first in this spirit. Communication to promote the national image is a major content of international dissemination work, which requires urgent work in a new way, creating an innovative step - proactive, positive, ahead - promotional communication. What the world needs and wants to know about Vietnam is based on a unified and universal communication framework, so that the world can easily focus on identifying images, thereby supporting diplomatic, tourism and trade activities, attracting foreign investment, enhancing the national competitive advantage, serving the country's socio-economic development," he said.

Deputy Minister Nguyen Thanh Lam also emphasized that due to the new way of doing things, the Ministry of Information and Communications will focus on pilot training for 8 localities including: Hanoi, Haiphong, Quang Ninh province, and Hue province; Ho Chi Minh City, Danang, Cantho, Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province. These are localities that have diverse economic and cultural bases,   great potential and are willing to participate in pilot implementation. The remaining 4 localities will be trained by the Ministry of Information and Communications in Ba Ria - Vung Tau in October 2022.

Every year, the Ministry of Information and Communications will take stock  and evaluate the pilot implementation, on that basis, will propose additional localities with the same criteria and ready to implement the program.

After the pilot phase (until 2025), it will be implemented synchronously throughout the country.

At the conference, Nguyen Thanh Son, Chairman of MVV Academy of Entrepreneurs, discussed 3 main content areas: Specific dissemination of the communication framework to promote Vietnam's image abroad in a new way, including 22 elements to promote local image; Guide localities on what to do, prepare conditions and develop plans on how to organize effective communication and promotion according to international practices.

The conference also spends time organizing practice and discussion.