Dubai CommerCity, part of the Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority (DIEZ) and the region’s first and leading e-commerce free zone, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) to create a healthy ecosystem and further stimulate the growth of Dubai’s creative sector and enhance the emirate’s attractiveness as a global hub for the creative economy.

The partnership aligns with the Dubai Creative Economy Strategy launched in 2021 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai. The strategy aims to double the creative industries’ contribution to Dubai’s GDP to five per cent, increase the number of Dubai-based creative enterprises to 15,000, and provide 140,000 jobs in various creative economy sectors by 2026.

The agreement will see both parties offering services to help establish new businesses in select creative economy sectors and support their long-term growth in Dubai CommerCity. These services include applying for a long-term cultural visa, a first-of-its-kind 10-year residency offered to creative talents. The selected cultural and creative sectors covered in this MoU to operate in Dubai CommerCity are music, fine arts, photography, film and video production, video game development, fashion design, graphic design, product design, interior and landscape design, architectural services, advertising services, and IT and software services.

The partnership will provide creative businesses with special incentives, including creative activities, logistics, consultation, banking solutions and services, and access to creative workspaces such as studios, conference rooms, and exhibitions.

Dr Mohammed Al Zarooni, Executive Chairman of DIEZ, said, “This agreement reflects DIEZ’s commitment to supporting all economic sectors in Dubai, including the creative economy. The cultural and creative sectors play a strategic role in the national economy, empowering businesses based on knowledge, innovation, and creativity.” Welcoming the partnership as another step toward realising the emirate’s cultural vision, Hala Badri, Director-General of Dubai Culture, said, “We recognise the positive impact of cooperation between public and private entities. Through such collaborations, we seek to enhance the cultural sector in Dubai and actively empower its creative economy.” The MoU is part of both organisations’ commitment to providing innovative services to help set up and develop new creative enterprises in Dubai. It will also help attract highly creative companies, motivate them to establish branches in the emirate, and help them expand their operations across the Middle East and Gulf Cooperation Council.

Dubai Culture develops mechanisms, strategies, legislative frameworks, regulations and policies to ensure the ease of doing business in the creative field through the authority’s partnerships with governmental, semi-governmental and private entities, experts and consultants, and representatives of the creative sector.

Dubai Culture is the government entity in charge of safeguarding Dubai’s rich heritage and promoting it, as well as sponsoring creative talents and supporting cultural diversity in the emirate. Dubai Culture’s vision is based on its strategic roadmap, which aligns with the Dubai Creative Strategy that aims to transform the emirate into the world’s creative economic capital by 2026.

Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), has participated recently in the 2022 Smithsonian Folklife Festival that was held at the National Mall in Washington under the theme ‘United Arab Emirates: Living Landscape | Living Memory.’ The Authority took visitors on an innovative journey to explore the emirate’s heritage, traditions and history.

This festival is one of the world’s most prominent artistic and cultural events and is organised annually in Washington. After suspending its activities for two years, this year’s festival hosted the UAE, with the full support of the Ministry of Culture and Youth and in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the UAE Embassy in the United States of America.

Witnessing the participation of 80 artists from the UAE, the festival celebrated Emirati heritage, identity and cultural, artistic and creative achievements, highlighting the UAE’s hosting of many prestigious cultural events that bring the intellectual world together.

Dubai Culture’s participation included a presentation of traditional Emirati sailing boats from its collections, in addition to a group of heritage collectables that were loaned from Al Shindagha Museum, as well as collections related to the culture of the sea, such as marine navigation and pearl diving tools.

WAM