International cooperation to illuminate Hue’s Huong riverside
The City of Hue and the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) have developed and illuminated the pedestrian areas along the Huong river in a collaborative project.
The City of Hue in Vietnam is one of the most active partners of the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA). On request from the City of Hue, KOICA embarked on the ”Huong Riverside Planning Pilot Project”. The project aims to improve the riverside tourist area, contributing to the economic development of Hue and Vietnam.
The Huong River, also known as the Perfume River, runs through Hue. The City and KOICA chose a pilot area of around 400m along the Huong riverbanks to illustrate the effect of the project. The existing infrastructure such as trees, lighting and pavement was in poor condition, and required systematic improvement. In particular, people could not enjoy the riverside area at night due to inappropriate lighting.
Therefore, KOICA decided to install a wooden walkway along the river, as well as a new high quality and aesthetic lighting system. It aimed to create a space for entertainment and leisure, connecting riverside parks to help people and visitors move comfortably during day ime as well as night time.
The lighting plan sought to produce beautiful, comfortable and safe lighting. Lighting was designed not only to harmonize with the general landscape of the area, but also to highlight landmarks, bridges and riverside buildings.
To reduce the cost of operation and maintenance, efficient and long-lasting LED lighting luminaires under 18W were chosen. Railing lighting as well as lighting poles were installed to increase the beauty and safety of the walking-deck area.
The City of Hue also involved local inhabitants in the initiative – enabling them to participate in selecting and designing the pilot area – in order to ensure that the project incorporated the opinions of citizens and tourists who actually use the space.
The pilot project walking-deck was inaugurated on January 2019. “The investment efficiency of the process and operation of the project over the past years has been highly appreciated by local people and tourists,” says Ms. Phan Huong from the Hue City Centre for International Cooperation.
The budget for the pilot project was USD 2.8M which was all funded by KOICA as non-refundable aid.
