Rabat: The State of Qatar has joined countries registered for the “Date palm, knowledge, skills, traditions and practices” file on the List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco).
This came during the 17th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of the Unesco in Rabat, which will continue until December 4, where Qatar is participating.
Qatar is represented in the session by Permanent Representative of the Qatar to Unesco, Dr. Nasser bin Hamad Al Hanzab and Head of the Heritage Department in the Heritage and Identity Department at the Ministry of Culture, Abdulaziz Al Mutawa.
Dr. Al Hanzab stressed that Qatar attaches great importance to preserving and protecting tangible and intangible cultural heritage, and has placed the protection of intangible heritage at the core of its national policies and international efforts within the scope of the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
He added that the accession of Qatar to the countries registered for the Date palm file is a testament to the fact that the history and culture of the country is associated with this important element, which has a cultural, social and economic dimension in the local society, especially that the date palm tree has a long and authentic heritage in the culture of Qatari society and the Arab region.
It also has an exceptional symbol of giving around which many foundations in our culture revolve, as it represented the backbone of the economic and social life of the ancestors in the past and throughout the generations until our time, and through it they were able to build and communicate with other cultures. The date palm tree remained a basis in the Qatari and Arab society through the ages.
Qatar’s Permanent Representative to Unesco also appreciated the efforts of the Ministry of Culture, represented by the Department of Heritage and Identity, for its efforts to prepare the date palm tree file, and many files that are in the process of being prepared.
To date, the countries registered under the Date palm file are 13. Arab countries include: Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Palestine, Oman, and Yemen.
