According to Mr. Dang Thanh Tung, Director of the State Records and Archives Department, part of the documents from the French colonial period (1858 - 1954) are being stored in Vietnam and part in France.
The documents from the French colonial period (1858 - 1954) are preserved at the National Archives Centers I, II and IV. The total volume amounts to 9,000 meters of shelves, including 84 document folders. The remainder is preserved at the French National Archives Overseas in Aix-en-Provence, according to the terms of the Agreement signed in 1950 between French High Commissioner Leon Pignon and Bao Dai.
The document block includes administrative documents of Indochina-level agencies, regional-level agencies (Northern Vietnam, Central Vietnam, Southern Vietnam), provincial-level agencies; the technical document block (basic construction) includes nearly 150 architectural works such as office buildings, hospitals, schools, irrigation works, traffic works in all three regions of the North, Central Vietnam, and South; more than 20,000 maps of the Indochina Geography Department, administrative maps of provinces, etc.
To build a dossier to submit to UNESCO for recognition as a documentary heritage, the Vietnamese and French archives will digitize the documents.
The Director of the State Records and Archives Department expressed: “If all goes well, in 2026, we will have the fourth World Documentary Heritage recognized. The three World Documentary Heritages previously recognized by UNESCO include the Nguyen Dynasty Woodblocks, Nguyen Dynasty Royal Records, and the Doctoral Steles at the Temple of Literature.”
In addition, the State Records and Archives Department will organize more than 20 activities including exhibitions, publications, scientific seminars, art competitions, football tournaments, etc. in 2025 to celebrate the 80th anniversary of Vietnam Archives Day (January 3, 1946 - January 3, 2026).
Earlier this year, the exhibition “Archives, Archivists, Archives Day” was the first activity in the series of activities in 2025. The exhibition introduced about 200 archival documents, images, artifacts, quotes, text, materials... provided by the State and Party archives, specialized archival training institutions and archival staff.
At the 7th Session, the 15th National Assembly passed the 2024 Archives Law. On July 1, 2024, the President signed Order No. 03/2024/L-CTN promulgating the 2024 Archives Law No. 33/2024/QH15 (hereinafter referred to as the 2024 Archives Law), which will take effect from July 1, 2025. The 2024 Archives Law has designated January 3 of each year as "Vietnam Archives Day" to affirm the role and importance of archival work and recognize the merits and contributions of archivists.
