UAE Harvest 2025/ A cultural scene thriving with cognitive initiatives and achievements
Abu Dhabi, December 27 / WAM / During the year 2025, the UAE witnessed a series of prominent cultural and cognitive achievements that formed an extension of the approach to strengthening national identity, developing the cultural sector, protecting tangible and intangible heritage, and consolidating the country’s position as a global destination for knowledge, creativity and the arts.
Federal and local efforts continued to launch specific cultural initiatives, open major museums, and announce important archaeological discoveries, in addition to enhancing the UAE’s presence in the global cultural scene.
The UAE adopted the Sheikh Zayed Farm site in Al Khawaneej as a third national site, alongside “Dar Al-Ittihad” and “Arqoub Al-Sedira”, due to the historical legacy it carries that witnessed pivotal meetings during the founding phase of the Union State.
The Council of Ministers approved the preparation of a federal law on cultural heritage aimed at protecting and documenting the country’s cultural heritage, revealing, preserving, managing and promoting it, encouraging its study, promoting its cultural exchange and diversity, and ensuring its sustainability.
The Ministry of Culture launched the “National Policy for the Preservation of Modern Architectural Heritage” with the aim of setting a national vision to preserve this heritage and support identity, in addition to the Council adopting the general policy for the civilization sector to enhance cultural communication and consolidate common national values.
The issuance of the Emiri Decree establishing the “Sharjah Creativity District” represented a qualitative addition to the cultural sector. The neighborhood is a new platform for incubating innovative projects that enhances the position of the Emirate of Sharjah as an incubator for knowledge and creative work.
The Emirates Council for Balanced Development, in partnership with the Ministry of Culture, announced the launch of a wide package of programs to support creators and craftsmen and develop cultural tourism, which included supporting 20 creative projects, training cultural ambassadors, and developing markets for traditional crafts.
The year 2025 was marked by the opening of a group of museums, such as the TeamLab Phenomena Abu Dhabi Museum for Digital Arts, the Zayed National Museum, which tells the story of the Emirates from its deep roots to its modern renaissance, and the Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi, in addition to the announcement of the Dubai Museum of Arts (DUMA).
Archaeological discoveries continued in the UAE. The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi announced the discovery of the first Iron Age cemetery in Al Ain, which includes more than a hundred burials and funerary items, shedding light on a previously unknown period in the history of the region. Excavations on Al Ghala Island in Umm Al Quwain also revealed new data showing the extension of the archaeological site to four times the previous estimates, and the discovery of a unique stone terrace composed of dugong bones, in addition to the discovery of pearls and evidence of advanced economic and social activities dating back to the Stone Age. Hadith.
In terms of book fairs, the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair 2025 attracted more than 400,000 visitors, while the Sharjah International Book Fair concluded its 44th session by hosting more than 1,400,000 visitors, continuing to claim the title of the largest book fair in the world in terms of buying and selling copyrights.
The UAE participated in the opening of a number of reconstructed sites in the Iraqi city of Mosul as part of the “Reviving the Spirit of Mosul” initiative, affirming its commitment to protecting world heritage, as it allocated $50.4 million to reconstruct the Al-Nuri Mosque, its humpback minaret, and the Al-Tahira and Al-Sa’a churches.
The Arab Reading Challenge initiative continued to strengthen its global standing, as it has attracted more than 163 million students since its launch, and has contributed to raising reading rates and developing generations’ relationship with the Arabic language.
The initiative received new support through the Sobha Group’s contribution with an endowment worth 500 million dirhams to expand the spread of reading.
The UAE succeeded in including 4 new elements in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity at UNESCO, as the art of “crespers” was included as a national file in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage as one of the popular performing arts inherited in the country, in addition to registering “bisht,” “bride’s wedding,” and “kohl” as joint Arab files.
The UAE was elected Vice-President of the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and the organization also announced the inclusion of the Emirati poet Ahmed bin Sulayem and the UAE University in the celebrations of its anniversary program (2026-2027).
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