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Dak Nong Geopark has been officially re-recognized by UNESCO as a Global Geopark for the period 2024-2027. This is a great honor for Dak Nong province and a testament to the efforts to preserve and develop the local geological values over the years.
Professor Nikolas Zorous, Chairman of the Global Geopark Network, will present the UNESCO Global Geopark Dak Nong designation to Dak Nong province at the International Conference on the Global Geopark Network for the Asia-Pacific region, taking place from September 4-11 in Cao Bang.
The decision to recognize Dak Nong as a UNESCO Global Geopark for the period 2024-2027 not only acknowledges the efforts, will, and determination of the government and people of Dak Nong province in the conservation and overall promotion of the value of various types of heritage, but also opens up opportunities to attract resources for sustainable socio-economic development of the locality.
UNESCO Dak Nong Global Geopark
The decision was adopted by the Global Geopark Council at its 8th session, within the framework of the 10th Global Geopark Network Conference, held in the Kingdom of Morocco in 2023.
The decision to recognize Dak Nong as a UNESCO Global Geopark for the period 2024-2027 not only acknowledges the efforts, will, and determination of the government and people of Dak Nong province in the conservation and overall promotion of the value of various types of heritage, but also opens up opportunities to attract resources for sustainable socio-economic development of the locality.
The UNESCO Dak Nong Global Geopark covers an area of 4,760 km2, spanning six districts and cities. It boasts a unique volcanic cave system, the longest in Southeast Asia, where traces of prehistoric habitation have been discovered. It is also a land of diverse cultures, home to over 40 ethnic groups, and is part of the "Gong Culture Space of the Central Highlands"—a masterpiece of intangible cultural heritage of humanity.
Awakening the heritage of the southern Central Highlands
The history of this land dates back 140 million years, when it was part of a vast ocean, with traces found such as sedimentary rocks, ammonite fossils, and other fossils. Tectonic movements of the Earth's crust caused the area to uplift and volcanoes to appear. Volcanic eruptions covered up to half of the area with layers of basaltic lava.
The most distinctive feature of the Dak Nong Geopark area is the system of caves in basalt rock, distributed in the Dray Sap-Chu R'Luh area, discovered in 2007.
This volcanic cave system has been recognized by the Japan Volcanic Cave Association as holding the Southeast Asian record for its scale, length, and uniqueness. The caves also hold many secrets about their formation mechanisms, mineral compositions, biodiversity, and archaeological sites.
The discoveries of prehistoric archaeological sites inhabited within the volcanic cave areas of the Geopark have attracted the attention of numerous researchers and tourists, both domestic and international.
Preliminary research results, along with the collection of a relatively dense concentration of archaeological artifacts, indicate that this is a cultural trace of the Late Neolithic and Early Metal Age inhabitants, dating back 6000 years. The discovered artifacts include stone tools, raw stone materials, and disc-shaped stone tools, short axes, flake tools, chipped stones, grinding stones, and whetstones.
