Saudi Arabia: The Saudi Ministry of Culture and the Korea Heritage Service signed an executive program for cooperation at National Palace Museum, Seoul, South Korea, further strengthening collaboration in the field of intangible cultural heritage.

The agreement builds upon the memorandum of understanding signed in Seoul in June 2019 between the Saudi Ministry of Culture and the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, which established a framework for cultural cooperation between the two countries, said the MoC.

The executive program represents a concrete step forward in putting the MoU into practice, with a focus on knowledge exchange, institutional development, and the safeguarding of intangible heritage.

The program was signed by Dr. Maha Abdullah Alsenan, deputy minister of research and cultural heritage, on behalf of the Ministry of Culture, and Yun Soon-ho, director general of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Bureau, representing the Korea Heritage Service.

Under the program, areas of cooperation include capacity building in the digitization of records, development of training programs in digital archiving, and collaborative research on intangible heritage.

In addition to joint research and conferences, the program includes mechanisms for implementation such as the formation of a joint working team, knowledge exchange, and the hosting of professional workshops for heritage practitioners in both countries.

The signing of this executive program reaffirms the Kingdom’s broader commitment to fostering mutual learning and advancing the preservation of intangible cultural heritage through collaboration.

The Ministry of Culture is developing Saudi Arabia’s cultural economy and enriching the daily lives of citizens, residents, and visitors. Overseeing 11 sector-specific commissions, the ministry works toward the support and preservation of a vibrant culture within the Kingdom.