Abu Dhabi
Colourful performances, appreciation days and a series of mini cultural festivals will this year celebrate the strong bonds between the UAE and India, it was announced here on Tuesday.
The UAE-India Cultural Celebrations Initiative was launched at a ceremony by the UAE Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development, the Indian Business and Professional Group (IBPG) and the Indian Embassy.
Shaikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan |
“Indian citizens living and working in our country have been instrumental in the UAE’s rapid development into a global crossroads for finance, health, transportation, retail and wholesale, education, sports, and tourism,” Shaikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Culture and Knowledge Development, said at the launch event.
“We Emiratis appreciate the many significant contributions of non-resident Indians, whom we have warmly welcomed to the protection of our Arab tent… and the time to celebrate the wonders of our respective cultures has come,” he added.
An estimated 2.6 million Indian citizens live in the UAE at present, making up the biggest expatriate community in the country. In addition, 1.6 million Indian tourists visited the UAE in 2016 alone, while 50,000 UAE tourists travelled to India. According to the latest figures, UAE-India trade has grown to around $60 billion (Dh220 billion) per year, making India the second largest trading partner of UAE.
Gilles Chuyen performs the Agni Nur, a solo dance celebrating the power of fire in both Hindu and Sufi traditions. |
Abdul Rahman/Gulf News |
A number of high-level visits over the last few years have also marked the deepening of bilateral relations between the two nations, starting with the visit of the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the UAE in August 2015. His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, visited India in February 2016, and then was the chief guest at India’s 68th Republic Day celebrations in January this year.
“The UAE and India have already signed a comprehensive strategic partnership covering a range of areas, including trade, defence and politics, but the conversation is incomplete without a cultural exchange,” said Navdeep Singh Suri, Indian Ambassador to the UAE.
In one of the initiative’s first events, more than 6,000 Indian workers will be honoured later this month (April), representatives from the 200-member IBPG told Gulf News. A full calendar of the pan-UAE cultural exchange is also being drawn up.
“Our differing cultures unite in familiar universal values, especially a respect for the rule of law and a commitment to peaceful pluralistic societies. We will see the importance of those values recognised in the many events that will constitute this year of celebrations… and I am eager for them to begin,” Al Nahyan said.
