Prague (VNA) – The Vietnamese community across the Czech Republic celebrated the Mid-AutumnFestival for children from September 21 with lion dances, music performancesand gift giving.

In major citiessuch as Prague, Ostrava, Brno and Plzen, hundreds to more than 1,000 peopleattended each of the events.

Notably,certificates of merit were presented to children with outstanding academic andextracurricular performances.

This year, theCentral Committee of the Vietnamese Association in the Czech Republic approvedthe presentation of certificates of merit and thousands of gifts to children,part of activities to encourage kids to study.

The VietnameseEmbassy in the Czech Republic, leaders of the Union of Vietnamese Associationsin Europe and the Vietnamese Association in the Czech Republic also partneredin the effort.

Hoang Dinh Thang, Chairmanof the Union of Vietnamese Associations in Europe and Honourary Chairman of theVietnamese Association in the Czech Republic, said via the festival, Vietnamesechildren are expected to speak and improve Vietnamese language skills, thus preservingtraditional customs.

TheVietnamese community is currently the third largest foreign community in theCzech Republic after those from Slovakia and Ukraine.-VNA