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Bahrain’s Culture Minister, Shaikha Mai bint Mohammed Al Khalifa, has announced a number of programmes and events that will be held throughout next year to celebrate the Bahraini capital, Manama, as Cultural Capital of the Arab World 2012.
It is the first time Manama has been selected for this honour since the initiative was launched by the Arab League in 1996, as part of UNESCO’s cultural capitals programme.
Speaking at a press conference at the National Museum, Shaikha Mai said: “This title emphasises Manama’s pioneering role in the field of culture and knowledge in the region.”
A broad range of activities incorporating different aspects of Arab culture will take place month by month throughout the year. January will concentrate, for instance, on fine arts, and there are various art exhibitions and a sculpture symposium planned.
February will focus on architecture, and one project will be a competition for proposals to redevelop Bahrain’s most popular market, Bab Al Bahrain. Heritage is the theme for April, when an international conference on the World Heritage Convention will take place.
June will be the month for poetry, and July for literature. A highlight of August will be screening of Arab movies, followed by music as the focus for September.
Events in October will look at the environment and include a forum on traditional knowledge for the management of nature reserves and heritage sites.
Among the events scheduled for November next year, when theatre is the theme, is the staging of play highlighting the history of Bahrain. The whole programme concludes in December with a look at the theme of ‘homeland’, and the launch of a series of books based on the 12 pillars of culture in focus throughout the year.
