As the World Cup approaches, Doha is leading a cultural push, including the construction of numerous pieces of public art and the opening of the Qatar Olympic and Sports Museum earlier this year.
The Community Days Festival at Flag Plaza was launched on Thursday to showcase Qatar’s cultural diversity, featuring performances from various countries.
This is part of the Year of Culture initiative, an international cultural exchange programme that aims to improve understanding between nations and their people, which was first announced when Qatar won the bid to host the FIFA World Cup in 2022.
The programme will run until October 15 and will feature stage performances and exhibit panels from 37 embassies.
“The performances are quite diverse and we’ll be able to showcase India’s diversity and plurality through the display of cultural performances,” Indian Ambassador to Qatar Dr. Deepak Mittal told The Peninsula, stressing that the festival is an avenue to showcase his country’s rich culture.
“I think the Flag Plaza will be a melting pot for different cultures and provide opportunities to communities to experience the vibrancy of Qatar,” he added.
The Flag Plaza, inaugurated on Wednesday, displays 119 flags from countries with authorised diplomatic missions, including flags of the European Union, the United Nations, and the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Food trucks are also available at this venue, serving diverse cuisines from Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania.
Eritrea and Yemen will perform on Sunday, and in the days to come, other nations such as Cuba, Palestine, Kenya, and Algeria will also perform.
The daily performances will run from 4 pm to 9 pm on stage.
Upcoming performances
October 9: Eritrea, Yemen
October 10: Cuba, Palestine, Nepal, Greece
October 11: Kenya, Algeria, Sri Lanka, Syria
October 12: Yemen, Iraq, Tunisia, Turkey.
October 13: UN, Egypt, France, Italy
October 14: Sudan, Ukraine, Indonesia, Philippines, Ecuador; and
October 15: Morocco, Palestine, Russia, Pakistan, and Thailand.
