In a new decision, Dubai has been shortlisted to host the 27th International Council of Museums (ICOM) General Conference 2025. One of the largest international conferences in the field of museums, Dubai is amongst the three cities shortlisted to host the event.

The decision was made at the virtual meeting of ICOM’s Advisory Council that was held on June 17. During the meeting, it was announced that three cities, out of which Dubai would be one of them in the shortlisted cities. A total of 170 members from 118 countries took part in the meeting. The final take on who will host the event will be decided by the members of ICOM in November 2021.

Three government entities –Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), Dubai Municipality, and Dubai Tourism in cooperation with the UAE chapter of ICOM (ICOM-UAE) had submitted the UAE’s bid to host the ICOM General Conference 2025 in Dubai under the theme ‘The Future of Museums in Rapidly Changing Communities.’ The other two countries shortlisted with Dubai is Stockholm (Sweden) and Kazan (Russia) in the final round of voting.

Established in 1946 under the umbrella of the United Nations, ICOM is a global organisation of museums and museum professionals committed to the promotion and protection of cultural heritage. The organisation includes members of nearly 50,000 specialists from 122 countries and nearly 20,000 museums from all over the world.

Dawoud Al Hajri, Director-General of Dubai Municipality, said that UAE’s and Dubai’s selection to the shortlist of candidate cities bidding to host the 27th ICOM General Conference 2025 reflects the high standing that the country has built over the years in the global cultural sector as well as the quality of its cultural infrastructure and its track record of hosting major international events successfully.

The ICOM General Conference is held once every three years. The 25th edition held in 2019 in Kyoto, Japan, saw the participation of about 4,500 specialists in the field of museums from all over the world and the 26th edition is scheduled to take place in Prague, the Czech Republic in 2022.