There is no weakness in the GCC identity!

Ithink that whether a culture is thriving or not, it will always be in the best interest of the nation to push cultural awareness and cultural relevance. In observing the UAE culture, its expatriates and its nationals, I don’t believe that there is any weakness in the GCC cultural identity. It is strong and it is all around us. Expatriates will find it in the restaurants and shops around them, the religious holidays, the cultural opportunities to take part in desert tours, fishing, dhow tours and abra rides. The list is long and what I mentioned barely scratches the surface of the countless opportunities to understand and take part in the GCC culture. As UAE nationals, we are all deeply proud of our country and this can be seen through the pride we take in wearing our national dress, the music, the food, our national day and the love that we all share for our Rulers. All these things are all very outwardly expressed cultural pride. I don’t believe there is any weakness in the GCC culture, but I do believe that the continual push of its presence is important for the sake of the region and keeping our heritage alive.

In the globalising world we live in, it will always be important to push regional culture consistently. We can’t rely on a culture to simply last with the outside pressure from other nations. I believe GCC culture is alive and well, but it would be unwise in the global pressure for dominance and power to cease from establishing cultural relevance. From Mr Salah Al Marzouqi Business student based in Brisbane, Australia