On the afternoon of July 23 (local time), within the framework of the official visit to Senegal, at the capital city Dakar, President of the National Assembly Trần Thanh Mẫn and his spouse Nguyễn Thị Thanh Nga, along with the high-level Vietnamese delegation, visited a Vovinam club.

Also in attendance were President of the Senegalese National Assembly Malick Ndiaye; Senegalese Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Khady Diène Gaye; President of the Vovinam Federation of Senegal Dr. Diomaye Dieng; and Director of the Senegal National Theatre Oumy Diakhaté.

President Trần Thanh Mẫn, his spouse Nguyễn Thị Thanh Nga, the President of the Senegalese National Assembly, and other delegates enjoyed impressive performances by Senegalese Vovinam practitioners, full of the spirit of Vietnamese martial arts philosophy (Việt Võ Đạo).

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President Trần Thanh Mẫn presented a symbolic gift representing the Vietnamese National Assembly House to the Vovinam Federation of Senegal.

Introducing the performances, Dr. Diomaye Dieng, President of the Vovinam Federation of Senegal, emphasized that to contribute to society, one must possess good health. Through martial arts, practitioners are trained physically and mentally to actively participate in the nation’s development.

23 7 ctqh xem vovinam 1 1The President of the National Assembly and his spouse took commemorative photos with the Vovinam practitioners.

According to Dr. Dieng, Vovinam has helped promote Vietnamese culture in Senegal and strengthen the friendly ties between Vietnam and Senegal, spreading humanistic values, peace, and kindness.

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vovinam 2 1Performance by practitioners of the Vovinam Federation of Senegal. Photo: Doãn Tấn/Vietnam News Agency (TTXVN)

The cultural influence of Vietnam in Senegal has extended beyond traditional diplomacy. Vietnamese Vovinam is a combination of martial techniques and martial philosophy, aimed at comprehensive physical and mental training.

Vovinam has become increasingly popular in Senegal. Currently, there are around 3,000 practitioners across the country, and a national association affiliated with the World Vovinam Federation WVVF – making Senegal the country with the second-largest number of Vovinam students in Africa, after Algeria. Notably, Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye and Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Khady Diène Gaye are both Vovinam practitioners.

On this occasion, President Trần Thanh Mẫn presented a symbolic gift of the Vietnamese National Assembly House to the Vovinam Federation of Senegal. In return, Dr. Diomaye Dieng presented a souvenir to President Trần Thanh Mẫn.

According to Lê Tuyết/VOV