Abu Dhabi: «The Gulf»
Mubarak Al Nakhi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Culture and Youth, stressed that culture is an important driver of global social and economic growth because of its ability to address many of the problems facing humanity, and contribute to achieving the aspirations of sustainable development for societies, explaining that the UAE attaches great importance to culture; Being one of the active tributaries of the process of construction and social and economic development.
This came during his participation in a discussion session held within the activities of the fourth edition of the Global Forum for Arts, Culture, Creativity and Technology, which was hosted by the city of Medellin in Colombia over a period of three days, in the presence of a group of prominent personalities and officials from the cultural sector, as well as influencers in the creative industries sector from various around the world.
Jose Igancio Argot, Deputy Minister of Heritage and Regional Development at the Ministry of Culture of Colombia, and Carolina Pereira, Executive Secretary of the Creative Economy at the Ministry of Arts, Culture and Heritage in Chile, and the session was moderated by Victoria Contreras, Director General of Conecta Cultura Mexico.
During his speech, Al-Nakhi pointed out that the UAE constitutes a remarkable model in the field of interest in culture, its pride in its Arab identity, its acceptance of the diversity of other cultures and the promotion and development of the reality of cultural and creative industries in it, pointing out that the UAE government recently adopted the national strategy for cultural and creative industries, with the aim of promoting the sector and enhancing its size, and increasing its potential, and motivating it to be among the ten most important economic industries in the country, and working to increase the contribution of cultural and creative industries to reach 5% of the gross domestic product, explaining that the state offers many incentives to creative and talented people, and provides them with opportunities and all the ingredients for success that ensure the achievement of its vision and strategies developmental.
He said: “Our country has developed an integrated system of policies and legislation aimed at promoting culture, especially the cultural and creative industries, as it believes that talent is the core of any successful cultural project, so it has continued to support and qualify talented creators to be able to implement their projects, and to share with their counterparts around the world various ideas, This will enhance the reality of the cultural and creative industries, and multiply their effective impact on the local economy.”
He added, “Culture not only gives us a sense of belonging to the world and humanity; Rather, it is an original way to enhance communication between societies, and an exceptional value for addressing the various issues the world faces today. The cultural diplomacy pursued by our country has created another formula for communicating with the world and its societies, and the best example of this is the Expo 2020 Dubai, which is considered the largest cultural event held on the country’s land, and around it mobilized about 192 countries that shared their cultures and intellectual and cognitive privacy.”