RIYADH, 11 November 2021, (TON): The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) signed a long-term strategic partnership with the UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization to develop AlUla’s cultural landscape and promote understanding of the global importance of heritage.

The agreement was signed by Minister of Culture Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Farhan and UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay. Princess Haifa bint Abdul Aziz Al-Muqrin, the Kingdom’s permanent representative to UNESCO, and Amr Al-Madani, CEO of RCU, also attended the meeting at UNESCO’s headquarters in Paris.

The agreement aims to achieve mutual benefits and promote the cultural, social, and economic development of AlUla by strengthening efforts to protect AlUla’s cultural, natural, and historical sites.

To achieve these goals, efforts will focus on promoting capacity building and knowledge transfer with experts from all around the world. They will join RCU efforts to turn the area into a benchmark destination for heritage, nature, arts, and culture.

Prince Badr said the agreement will help the vision of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in transforming AlUla into a global destination for heritage, nature, arts, and culture.

The five-year agreement focuses on 10 programs that include the listing of new natural and cultural sites under UNESCO’s taxonomy to protect and promote the local heritage and natural landscapes and ecosystems.