Qatar is leading the collective effort in preserving Arab heritage, according to senior officials.
The conservation and promotion of Arab heritage require mutual and conscious efforts in the face of rapid transformations occurring across the region, a senior Qatari official has said.
Dr. Ahmed Abdullah Al Buainain, the Secretary-General of Qatar’s national archive, has emphasised taking concrete steps to tackle Arab-specific issues related to preservation, documentation and digitisation.
“Preserving Arab documentary heritage is a collective responsibility that requires institutional coordination and strategic vision,” the Qatar News Agency quoted Al-Buainain as saying.
Al-Buanain also chairs the Arab wing of UNESCO’s Memory of the World programme, which aims to preserve and raise awareness about documentary heritage as well as make it accessible globally.
Qatar was elected the chair of the Memory of the World Committee for the Arab Region in January and has led the coordination between the Arab nations.
“Qatar’s efforts through an ambitious strategy and pioneering projects are built on advanced infrastructure and strong technical expertise in digital preservation and preventive conservation,” Al-Buanain said, hailing the country’s status as a “regional model” in preserving national memory.
However, the Arab world remains underrepresented in the program’s register established in 1992. Only four per cent of the database comes from the region, which does not reflect the “richness, long history, and geographic breadth of Arab heritage,” Al-Buanain added.
Documenting and making Arab heritage could have profound effects with its capabilities of shaping collective memory as well as national and regional identity, he added.
“A document is more than a static record: it embodies identity, builds historical awareness, strengthens knowledge, and preserves national and cultural identity for future generations.”
To do so, the committee has also been organising regular training, specialised programs, as well as an awareness drive.
“Regular meetings, training workshops, and partnerships with regional and international bodies ensure a high level of technical and institutional coordination, enabling flexible and integrated field responses,” he added.
In addition, the Qatar National Library was recently selected as the first regional office of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) in the Middle East and North Africa.
It represents a historic achievement for the Arab world, according to QNL’s director of national collections and special initiatives, Abeer Saad Al-Kuwari. “It reflects the library’s leading role in spreading knowledge and safeguarding heritage,” she added.
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