The Chinese Folk Culture Tour to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations was launched at the ASEAN Secretariat recently.

Speaking at the launching event, Chinese Ambassador to ASEAN Huang Xilian said: "We hope these visits will promote understanding and appreciation of our unique and brilliant cultural assets, and more importantly, explore new platforms and channels for cultural exchange."

Huang said that both China and ASEAN countries belong to the big family of Asian and Eastern civilizations, and had centuries-long history of close interactions between their peoples, which eventually led to the birth of splendid, diverse yet similar folk culture traditions.

Through exposure to Chinese folk culture, ASEAN people will get a glimpse of Chinese civilization, one that appreciates the beauty of other civilizations and the diversity of civilizations in the world, and always seeks nourishment from other civilizations.

Secretary-General of ASEAN Dato Lim Jock Hoi said that culture continues to be one of China-ASEAN important cooperation pillars.

The ASEAN tour of Chinese folk culture builds on the past achievements, including the China-ASEAN Year of Cultural Exchanges in 2014 and the China-ASEAN Cultural Forum organized yearly in Nanning, Guangxi, China, at the sidelines of ASEAN-China Expo, he said.

"It is timely that folk culture is being promoted as a cultural centerpiece because it enriches the diversity of our cultural expressions in the region. Going further, this initiative will serve as an important enabler of tolerance, mutual understanding and cultural appreciation," he said.

In his address, the secretary-general conveyed ASEAN's gratitude for China's generosity to support the ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship Program scheduled to start later this year.

The program would greatly help ASEAN countries in developing their human resources, he said. The logo of ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship was unveiled at ASEAN Secretariat on the event.

The event was attended by distinguished ASEAN senior officials, some 30 well-known Chinese folk culture researchers and professors and Chinese folk artists with their unique expertise.