The 15th session of the Intergovernmental Committee of the 2005 Convention for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions was held at the Unesco headquarters under the chairmanship of HE Permanent Representative of Qatar to the Unesco Dr Nasser bin Hamad al-Hanzab, representing the Arab Group.
The meeting will run through today with the participation of representatives of the States Parties to the Convention. Qatar was represented at the meeting by Director of the Culture and Arts Department of the Ministry of Culture Mariam Yassin al-Hammadi. Through the work of the Committee and the 2005 Convention, Unesco formulates international cultural policy with regard to the protection and promotion of various forms of contemporary cultural expressions produced by artists, professionals and intellectuals through the formulation, design and implementation of policies and measures that support the creation, production, distribution and access of cultural goods and services.
Al-Hammadi praised the efforts of the Unesco in achieving the desired goals through the implementation processes carried out by countries in the form of continuous practices, initiatives and activities; stressing that Qatar has adopted cultural diversity in all fields, where institutions present joint cultural events such as Doha International Book Fair, which was held last month with the participation of 45 foreign publishing houses and 319 publishing houses from Arab countries from 37 Arab and foreign countries.
She noted that the event took into account all categories of children, women, nationalities, religions and languages. Nine European, Asian and Arab embassies participated in the book fair to display their different cultures. The Director of the Culture and Arts Department said that Qatar, since its accession to the Convention for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions in 2009, has been working to promote cultural diversity, pointing to the celebration of Doha 2010 Capital of Arab Culture, followed by the establishment of the Doha Forum for Arab and International Relations in Qatar 2011, and then the Years of Culture program which mark its 10th anniversary this year. The programme was launched in 2021 with Qatar-Japan Year of Culture; followed by Qatar-UK 2013, Brazil 2014, Turkey 2015, China 2016, Germany 2017, Russia 2018, India 2019, France 2020, and the United States 2021.
Mariam al-Hammadi added that the Year of Culture programme will be launched with a group of countries of nearly 27 countries in 2022 coinciding with the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. Al-Hammadi also highlighted several initiatives launched by Qatar with the aim of promoting cultural diversity, including the establishment of Katara Centre for Public Diplomacy in the context of spreading culture and awareness of the importance of popular friendship through public diplomacy and building bridges of communication between peoples; and the opening of cultural centers to promote dialogue and communication with civilisations such as the Doha International Center for Interfaith Dialogue, Qatar Committee for the Alliance of Civilizations, Qatar Global Award For Dialogue Among Civilizations; in addition to launching prizes such as the Sheikh Hamad Prize for Translation and International Understanding. She noted that all these cultural centers offer various cultural, artistic and heritage events that enhance diversity, in addition to the centers that aim to introduce the State of Qatar and its heritage.
She noted that the Qatari initiatives do not include culture only, but also include many other areas such as health and education which are held under the umbrella of Qatar Foundation for Education, Culture and Community Development, with the aim of supporting cultural diversity and making education and health above everyone and above everything. These initiatives honour winners from all world countries regardless of any diversity or any difference. In this regard, she referred to the Education Above All initiative which provided education for a large number of children from different countries around the world.
The meeting will run through today with the participation of representatives of the States Parties to the Convention. Qatar was represented at the meeting by Director of the Culture and Arts Department of the Ministry of Culture Mariam Yassin al-Hammadi. Through the work of the Committee and the 2005 Convention, Unesco formulates international cultural policy with regard to the protection and promotion of various forms of contemporary cultural expressions produced by artists, professionals and intellectuals through the formulation, design and implementation of policies and measures that support the creation, production, distribution and access of cultural goods and services.
Al-Hammadi praised the efforts of the Unesco in achieving the desired goals through the implementation processes carried out by countries in the form of continuous practices, initiatives and activities; stressing that Qatar has adopted cultural diversity in all fields, where institutions present joint cultural events such as Doha International Book Fair, which was held last month with the participation of 45 foreign publishing houses and 319 publishing houses from Arab countries from 37 Arab and foreign countries.
She noted that the event took into account all categories of children, women, nationalities, religions and languages. Nine European, Asian and Arab embassies participated in the book fair to display their different cultures. The Director of the Culture and Arts Department said that Qatar, since its accession to the Convention for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions in 2009, has been working to promote cultural diversity, pointing to the celebration of Doha 2010 Capital of Arab Culture, followed by the establishment of the Doha Forum for Arab and International Relations in Qatar 2011, and then the Years of Culture program which mark its 10th anniversary this year. The programme was launched in 2021 with Qatar-Japan Year of Culture; followed by Qatar-UK 2013, Brazil 2014, Turkey 2015, China 2016, Germany 2017, Russia 2018, India 2019, France 2020, and the United States 2021.
Mariam al-Hammadi added that the Year of Culture programme will be launched with a group of countries of nearly 27 countries in 2022 coinciding with the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. Al-Hammadi also highlighted several initiatives launched by Qatar with the aim of promoting cultural diversity, including the establishment of Katara Centre for Public Diplomacy in the context of spreading culture and awareness of the importance of popular friendship through public diplomacy and building bridges of communication between peoples; and the opening of cultural centers to promote dialogue and communication with civilisations such as the Doha International Center for Interfaith Dialogue, Qatar Committee for the Alliance of Civilizations, Qatar Global Award For Dialogue Among Civilizations; in addition to launching prizes such as the Sheikh Hamad Prize for Translation and International Understanding. She noted that all these cultural centers offer various cultural, artistic and heritage events that enhance diversity, in addition to the centers that aim to introduce the State of Qatar and its heritage.
She noted that the Qatari initiatives do not include culture only, but also include many other areas such as health and education which are held under the umbrella of Qatar Foundation for Education, Culture and Community Development, with the aim of supporting cultural diversity and making education and health above everyone and above everything. These initiatives honour winners from all world countries regardless of any diversity or any difference. In this regard, she referred to the Education Above All initiative which provided education for a large number of children from different countries around the world.
