By Faten Omar
KUWAIT: The National Council for Culture, Arts, and Letters (NCCAL) held an event on Thursday, on the occasion of International Museum Day, with the participation of the Kuwait Heritage Society, the International Council of Museums in Kuwait (ICOM), the Museum of the National Bank of Kuwait, and the Quttainah Medical Museum at the Kuwait National Museum.
During her speech, Siham Al-Dawas Al-Azmi, Assistant Secretary-General for the Antiquities and Museums Sector at NCCAL, said, "Today’s event was held because of its great importance to the culture of peoples and the protection of our heritage. The National Council, at the Department of Antiquities, aims to celebrate this day to enhance the spirit of awareness and culture and its role in developing society, preserving and disseminating heritage, and learning to use the latest means and technologies to preserve these documents so as not to lose them.”
Sundus Al-Rashed, President of ICOM Kuwait, stated that ICOM celebrates International Museum Day, which is an international day held annually on May 18. It is coordinated by the International Council of Museums since 1977. "Each year, the International Museum Day has a specific theme; this year it will be about sustainability and wellbeing.” "Here in Kuwait, we are focusing on the sustainability of heritage, so the exhibition displayed objects from the Islamic heritage, and we have a panel discussion about different subjects regarding sustainability and wellbeing and how these affect humans,” she pointed out.
She affirmed that museums are shaping societies. They contribute to people’s lives. The exhibition at the Kuwait National Museum will be open to the public until May 25th. Fahad Al-AbdulJalil, president of the Kuwait Heritage Society, indicated that International Museum Day is celebrated for the second year in a row, adding, "Today’s exhibition contains rare pieces. On this occasion, we aim to spread the museum’s culture and encourage the participants to take interest in the museum’s sector.”
"To get acquainted with the museum sector, which today has become a science itself, it needs to train Kuwaiti youth cadres to join this sector in terms of museum security systems, piece restoration, examination of artifacts, and the best way to display the pieces,” he said. AbdulJalil called on the private sector to establish more museums. "We are pleased that NBK has started in this regard by establishing a museum and activating the role of the private sector, which has a major role in the modern history of Kuwait. We are also pleased that the Quttainah Medical Center has its own museum, and this diversity in the participants indicates that there is an awareness of the establishment of museums,” AbdulJalil.