Dubai to Grant Cultural Visas to 1,000 Creators, Artists

 Dubai seeks to draw writers and artists as part of the emirate's project to stimulate the cultural economy (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Dubai seeks to draw writers and artists as part of the emirate's project to stimulate the cultural economy (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Dubai to Grant Cultural Visas to 1,000 Creators, Artists

 Dubai seeks to draw writers and artists as part of the emirate's project to stimulate the cultural economy (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Dubai seeks to draw writers and artists as part of the emirate's project to stimulate the cultural economy (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Dubai Culture and Arts Authority announced that it will grant cultural visas to 1,000 creators and artists from across the world in the upcoming phase.

The cultural visa was launched in 2019 by Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

The long-term cultural visa is granted for 10 years to accomplished creative talent in different fields in the hope of making Dubai a global hub for culture and creativity.

The Authority reported that it received 261 application from 46 countries.

A total of 120 applicants have met the required and optional criteria. A majority of these applicants have been issued visas while the remaining are currently under process.

“Dubai provides a stimulating and supportive environment for creativity and creators. The decision to grant intellectuals, creators and talented individuals a cultural visa enhances the emirate’s position as a global centre for culture, an incubator for creativity, a thriving hub for talent, and a preferred cultural destination," said Hala Badri, the Director-General of Dubai Culture.

"Dubai’s contributions have helped raise the UAE’s position in the global cultural landscape by attracting exceptional writers, artists and creators," she added.

The long-term cultural visa is granted for 10 years to accomplished creative talent in the fields of literature, culture, fine arts, performing arts, and design, and those in the heritage, history and knowledge-related sectors as well as intellectual and creative industries.



Australia’s New South Wales Sweats through Heatwave, Faces ‘Extreme’ Bushfire Risk

A view of the Anzac Bridge and Sydney Tower Eye at sunrise in Sydney, Australia, March 14, 2025. (Reuters)
A view of the Anzac Bridge and Sydney Tower Eye at sunrise in Sydney, Australia, March 14, 2025. (Reuters)
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Australia’s New South Wales Sweats through Heatwave, Faces ‘Extreme’ Bushfire Risk

A view of the Anzac Bridge and Sydney Tower Eye at sunrise in Sydney, Australia, March 14, 2025. (Reuters)
A view of the Anzac Bridge and Sydney Tower Eye at sunrise in Sydney, Australia, March 14, 2025. (Reuters)

Australia's New South Wales on Sunday sweated in a heat wave that raised the risk of bushfires and prompted authorities to issue a total fire ban for state capital Sydney.

New South Wales, coming to the end of a high-risk bushfire season that runs until the end of March, was a focus of a catastrophic 2019-2020 "Black Summer" of wildfires that destroyed an area the size of Turkey and killed 33 people.

On Sunday, the nation's weather forecaster said temperatures would be up to 12 degrees Celsius (21.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above average in some areas of the state, with temperatures in Sydney, Australia's most populous city, set to hit 37C (98.6F).

At Sydney Airport, the temperature was already 29.3C (84.7 F) at 9:30 a.m. local time, more than three degrees above the March mean maximum temperature, according to forecaster data.

Gusty winds, "hot conditions and low relative humidity will result in extreme fire danger over the greater Sydney region," the forecaster said on its website.

The state's Rural Fire Service said on X that a total fire ban was in place for large swaths of the state including Sydney due to the forecast of "hot, dry and windy conditions".

In neighboring Victoria state, a home was destroyed in a bushfire on the outskirts of Melbourne that was being battled by around 200 firefighters, Country Fire Authority official Bernard Barbetti told the Australian Broadcasting Corp on Sunday.

Climate change is causing extreme heat and fire weather to become more common in Australia, a bushfire-prone country of around 27 million, the country's science agency said last year.