PARIS — The executive council of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) unanimously backed on Tuesday a draft resolution proposed by Saudi Arabia. The resolution called for the continuation of a cultural ministerial meeting to be held within the framework of the G20 summit, which is held annually and is concerned with discussing financial, social and economic issues. The meeting of culture ministers seeks to enhance and highlight the role of culture in socioeconomic development and ensure continuity of cultural dialogue among the G20 countries in close cooperation with UNESCO. The draft resolution also included the Saudi proposal to organize a regular intergovernmental conference that would include the ministers of culture from the 193 member states of UNESCO, to formulate international cultural policies. The draft resolution was presented during the 210th session of the executive council of UNESCO at its headquarters in Paris, the Kingdom's permanent representative to UNESCO. Commenting on the draft resolution, Princess Haifa Bint Abdulaziz Al-Muqrin, the Kingdom's permanent representative to UNESCO said it widely welcomed by the member states and many countries praised the proposal, which will contribute to the revival of multilateralism with the formulation of international cultural policies. The first meeting of G20 culture ministers was organized by Saudi Arabia in November on the sidelines of the G20 Summit under the chairmanship of Minister of Culture Prince Badr bin Farhan. Under the title "The rise of the cultural economy: a new model," the meeting underlined the importance of culture and dialogue. The meeting included a discussion on a number of cultural policies, such as the protection and preservation of the cultural and natural heritage, the preservation of living heritage and cultural expressions, issues of digitization and innovation, in addition to the challenges facing the cultural sector in the world. The meeting resulted in Saudi Arabia's announcement to establish a center dedicated to the protection of cultural heritage submerged under the waters of the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf. The unanimous approval of the Saudi proposal reflects the Kingdom's pioneering and leadership role in international cultural affairs.
