As part of its foreign policy and the strategy to narrow gaps between nations by adopting cooperative and cultural exchange programmes, the State of Qatar runs every year a cultural exchange programme that aims at introducing Qatar, its heritages and culture to the international audience. In order to materialize this vision through a variety of cultural activities including exhibitions, festivals, competitions, events; Qatar launched in 2012 the Years of Culture initiative which started with the Qatar-Japan Year of Culture.
The following year 2013 was marked as Qatar-UK Year of Culture then Qatar-Brazil Year of Culture in 2014, Qatar-Turkey Year of Culture in 2015, Qatar-China Year of Culture in 2016, Qatar-Germany Year of Culture in 2017, Qatar-Russia Year of Culture in 2018 and Qatar-India Year of Culture in 2019. Qatar-France Year of Culture was scheduled for 2020, but unfortunately the repercussions of the coronavirus cast a shadow over all aspects of life, including cultural activities.
On Friday, Qatar-USA 2021 Year of Culture was officially inaugurated at the Katara Cultural Village in the presence of the Minister of Culture and Sports H E Salah bin Ghanem Al Ali, and Chairperson of Qatar Museums H E Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and other officials. The event was hosted by Qatar Museums and the United States Embassy and witnessed a special concert by the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra (QPO) and the US Air Forces Central Band (AFCENT Band).
The Qatar-USA 2021 Year of Culture is intended to enhance cultural and artistic exchange and exemplifies the renewed commitment of the two nations to foster mutual understanding and promote intercultural dialogue. The launch follows the signing of a cooperative agreement on September 14, 2020 between Qatar and the United States during the 2020 Qatar-United States Strategic Dialogue in Washington, DC.
The cultural programmes every year are intended to promote mutual understanding, recognition and appreciation between countries while inviting people to explore their cultural similarities, as well as their differences. They also promote cultural diversity and protect and enhance the diversity of cultural expressions.
“We expect this Year of Culture to deepen the understanding between the people of our two nations, expressing our shared humanity and strengthening the already substantial ties between Qatar and the United States” said Sheikha Al Mayassa commenting on the event.
A similar comment was made by H E Ambassador Greta C Holtz, Chargé d’Affaires of the US Embassy in Qatar, saying, “The Year of Culture program provides an extraordinary framework within which our two nations can come together to celebrate our longstanding relationship and forge new connections through people-to-people exchanges.”
