13 April 2020
H.E Shaikha Mai Participates in UNESCO’s Ministers of Culture Online Meeting, H.E: The World is in urgent need today to an increased international cooperation to safeguard the historical and cultural assets
H.E Shaikha Mai Participates in UNESCO’s Ministers of Culture Online Meeting, H.E: The World is in urgent need today to an increased international cooperation to safeguard the historical and cultural assets
UNESCO is launching initiatives to support Cultural industries and cultural heritage as billions of people around the world turn to culture for comfort and to overcome social isolation during the COVID-19 sanitary crisis, which is hitting the culture sector hardly.
In a remarkable response to this pandemic, UNESCO will bring together the world’s Ministers of Culture in an online meeting on COVID-19 and its impact on culture on 22April 2020 . The meeting will help Ministers exchange information and views on the impact of the health crisis on the cultural sector in their countries and identify remedial policy measures appropriate to their various national context. Indeed, “UNESCO is committed to leading a global discussion on how best to support artists and cultural institutions during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond, and ensure everyone can stay in touch with the heritage and culture that connects them to their humanity.” said Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO.
Taking part in this online meeting, H.E Shaikha Mai Bint Mohammad Al-Khalifa, President of Bahrain Authority for Culture & Antiquities, lauded UNESCO initiatives, arguing that the world is in urgent need today to an increased international cooperation to safeguard the historical and cultural assets.
H.E said that she is looking forward to participate in this meeting, arguing that culture is facing its biggest challenges and that all those who are in charge of the cultural sector are entitled to adapt with these critical current circumstances in order to preserve the cultural action and achieve synergy in streamlined way, with regard to contact with the large public and stay in touch despite the factual day to day disruption.
On Thursday, UNESCO launched a global social media campaign, #ShareOurHeritage to promote access to culture and education around cultural heritage during this time of mass confinement. UNESCO is also launching an online exhibition of a dozens of heritage properties across the globe with technical support from Google Arts & Culture.
Commenting on these encouraging efforts, H.E Shaikha Mai Bint Mohammad Al Khalifa said that Bahrain Culture Authority through its strenuous efforts deployed locally, clearly reflects UNESCO’s worldwide vision in this tendency. Indeed, BACA offers an array of virtual online visits to archaeological and heritage sites, H.E asserted, adding that the Culture Authority will held an online press conference to reveal the latest Archaeological discoveries, pointing out that this event would coincide with the International Day for Monuments and Sites, also known as World Heritage Day, on 18 April 2020.
H.E also said : “ We have taken the lead in the Kingdom of Bahrain since the very beginning of this mass confinement crisis and we have invested in our online interned based platform, which has become a limitless cultural action space , promoting our archaeological sites, our art and international exhibitions, surfing to new untrodden cultural horizons with our public , as well as providing interactive activities, enabling us to get closer with our loyal followers and public in the kingdom of Bahrain and the region as a whole “.
Bahrain Authority for Culture & Antiquities continues, in line with the worldwide efforts deployed by UNESCO to support the cultural sectors and domains, to work relentlessly in response to these challenges facing the cultural action and events after the outbreak of this pandemic; BACA is implementing a pioneer visionary strategy by moving into the virtual online world through initiatives targeting all social classes and categories , offering knowledge based cultural content that enriches the surfers’ hearts and minds via its websites, in addition to the interactive activities, assuring the streaming contact between Culture Authority and its followers all the time .
