Qatar pledges USD 10 mlllion to World Heritage Fund
Doha : Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani announced a donation of USD 10 million to UNESCO’s World Heritage Fund.
The donation, part of Qatar’s contribution to the UNESCO efforts to conserve the world heritage in area hit by natural and man-made disasters, makes Qatar the first country to donate for this fund, he said.
Prime Minister Sheikh Abdullah made the announcement while inaugurating the 38th session of the World Heritage Committee, being held at Qatar National Convention Center until June 25. A number of ministers of culture from the UNESCO state parties, and members of the diplomatic corps accredited to Qatar attended the event.
The Prime Minister underscored the State of Qatar’s keenness on promoting heritage, out of the belief that it is one of the main pillars of Qatar’s cultural identity, QNA news agency reported. “Qatar’s heritage must be passed on to the younger generations to introduce them to aspects of their ancestors’ history and their long struggle to present-day in order to achieve progress and prosperity we are enjoying under the guidance of the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani,” he said.
The Prime Minister added that the efforts of Qatar in preserving heritage were acknowledged by the World Heritage Committee in the previous session when they added Al Zubarah on the World Heritage list. UNESCO plans to establish the fund to place proactive emergency plans to preserve world heritage in the face of natural disasters or armed struggles.-MENAFN/ KUNA
June 2014
