Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, Minister of Culture and Knowledge Development, chaired a virtual extraordinary meeting of ministers of culture of member countries of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, ICESCO, entitled, “Sustainability of Cultural Action in the Face of Crises, COVOD-19.”

The meeting addressed several issues, including the future of digital culture, tourism culture, the relationship between sports and culture, the challenges to sustainable cultural action in the face of crises (COVID-19) and the inscription of historic sites on the Islamic World Heritage List, IWHL.

In her opening speech, Al Kaabi thanked ICESCO for launching relevant initiatives while pointing out that the conference discussed several challenges that faced cultural action before the coronavirus pandemic and have become more prominent.

“We are in critical need of innovating modern visions and directives to face the economic and social challenges resulting from the pandemic,” she said.

The conference discussed new trends in cultural tourism and the necessity of employing digital applications in cultural activities, which confirms the required cooperation in exchanging expertise and innovating solutions, she added.

Al Kaabi delivered the UAE’s speech during the session, titled, “Culture in post-COVID-19 period,” when she presented the UAE’s future cultural vision, which is based on monitoring opportunities and challenges and drafting required policies and legislation.

“The innovation industry is witnessing rapid changes and is being exposed to new concepts that we need to adapt and support. The Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development is constantly studying the challenges facing the innovation economy, and our preliminary results have shown the future growth of the freelance economy. Independent workers in this economy require laws and regulation to ensure the protection of their creations. We are discussing, with our partners in the cultural sector, convenient ways of supporting independent innovators and drafting digital policies to protect property rights,” she said in conclusion.