World Cup opens a window to Arab culture: al-Hanzab

HE the Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) Dr Nasser bin Hamad al-Hanzab underlined that Qatar’s hosting of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 represents an exceptional opportunity for the world with all its cultural and civilisational spectrums to meet in Doha and get acquainted with the authentic Arab culture.

In a special ceremony held for the first time at Unesco headquarters on the occasion of the launch of the World Cup, HE al-Hanzab outlined the determination of Qatar years ago, and before winning the honour of organising the World Cup on Dec 2, 2010, to harness all possibilities for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 to be a model for the convergence of all the different cultures, which represent the people of the world.

He said that Qatar believes that global sports, such as the World Cup, play a fundamental role in promoting constructive cultural dialogue between peoples, acceptance of the dialogue, and cultural convergence as a civilised way of life.

He stressed that the world is in dire need of dialogue, more than ever before, especially in light of the current global conditions, which calls for accepting each other without any prejudices that may cast a shadow on humanity. He pointed to the Arab region’s cultural and civilisational richness, which represents the legacy of the successive civilisations in the Arab region thousands of years ago. Also, Qatar’s Permanent Representative to Unesco noted that such tournaments are an opportunity for all those coming from all over the world to get acquainted with the Islamic civilisation and the ancient Arab culture, rooted in the metropolis and the desert, pointing to the direct interest that Unesco attaches to the sport.

Several leaders and employees of Unesco and ambassadors of the member states of the international organisation attended the ceremony.