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CDF Announces 1st Cultural Financing of its Kind in Saudi Arabia

The Cultural Development Fund (CDF) logo
The Cultural Development Fund (CDF) logo
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CDF Announces 1st Cultural Financing of its Kind in Saudi Arabia

The Cultural Development Fund (CDF) logo
The Cultural Development Fund (CDF) logo

The Cultural Development Fund (CDF) has announced Cultural Financing, the first program of its kind in Saudi Arabia to support and provide essential financing for projects and enterprises across 16 cultural sub-sectors.

The program seeks to drive sustainable growth of the cultural sector, amplify its creative output, and boost its contribution to the Kingdom’s gross domestic product (GDP), thereby driving national economic growth.

Cultural Financing has been designed to support the development of cultural enterprises through flexible, accessible, and competitive packages that maximize profitability while minimizing risks for both the cultural enterprises benefiting from the program and the local banking partners. The program finances micro, small, and medium-sized cultural enterprises, enabling them to launch and scale their operations through a range of financing products available for both short-term and long-term needs, CDF said in a statement.

"The Cultural Financing marks a new chapter in our mission to empower the cultural sector in collaboration with our local banking partners. This financing solution is designed to meet the diverse and evolving needs of the sector’s entrepreneurs and support their aspirations, reaffirming our commitment to building strategic partnerships with the private sector," said CDF Chief Executive Majed bin Abdulmohsen Al-Hugail.

"We look forward to seeing the positive ripple effects of this collaboration in revitalizing the cultural sector and, in turn, bolstering the national economy."
Thursday’s announcement follows the CDF's signing of partnership agreements with five local banks -- Al-Rajhi Bank, Alinma Bank, BSF, Arab National Bank (ANB), and Bank AlJazira -- to provide financing to cultural enterprises.
The partnerships underscore the vital role of the banking sector in the sustainable development of the cultural sector. They also reinforce the CDF's ongoing efforts to spur growth across various cultural sectors in the Kingdom and strengthen partnerships with the private sector to provide attractive financing solutions that support the cultural and creative sector and maximize its impact on economic development and job creation.

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Culture

Madrasat Addeera Empowers AlUla Youth Through Traditional Crafts

The school focuses on empowering girls, teaching craft skills rooted in ancestral trades and presenting them in modern ways that create sustainable and creative opportunities - SPA
The school focuses on empowering girls, teaching craft skills rooted in ancestral trades and presenting them in modern ways that create sustainable and creative opportunities - SPA
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Madrasat Addeera Empowers AlUla Youth Through Traditional Crafts

The school focuses on empowering girls, teaching craft skills rooted in ancestral trades and presenting them in modern ways that create sustainable and creative opportunities - SPA
The school focuses on empowering girls, teaching craft skills rooted in ancestral trades and presenting them in modern ways that create sustainable and creative opportunities - SPA

Madrasat Addeera in AlUla Governorate offers specialized training programs and workshops to develop the skills of local youth in traditional crafts and arts, preserving cultural heritage while connecting it to contemporary life.

The school focuses on empowering girls, teaching craft skills rooted in ancestral trades and presenting them in modern ways that create sustainable and creative opportunities, SPA reported.

Throughout the year, the school contributes to the cultural vibrancy of the governorate by taking part in festivals and exhibitions. Through its workshops, visitors can explore traditional industries such as pottery, weaving, carpets, and natural products.

According to SPA, Madrasat Addeera's programs go beyond training, transforming craft skills into sustainable income, with handcrafted items sold locally and online, all entirely Saudi-made and inspired by AlUla’s culture and environment.

Since its establishment as the first girls’ school in AlUla and as the region’s first center for arts and design, the school has become a hub for nurturing talent, rediscovering heritage crafts, and attracting both local and global expertise.

Culture

British Treasury to Cover Bayeux Tapestry for Estimated £800 Million

This photo provided by Bayeux townhall shows a technician inspecting the famed Bayeux tapestry in Bayeux, Normandy, in 8th January, 2020. (Ville de Bayeux via AP/File photo)
This photo provided by Bayeux townhall shows a technician inspecting the famed Bayeux tapestry in Bayeux, Normandy, in 8th January, 2020. (Ville de Bayeux via AP/File photo)
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British Treasury to Cover Bayeux Tapestry for Estimated £800 Million

This photo provided by Bayeux townhall shows a technician inspecting the famed Bayeux tapestry in Bayeux, Normandy, in 8th January, 2020. (Ville de Bayeux via AP/File photo)
This photo provided by Bayeux townhall shows a technician inspecting the famed Bayeux tapestry in Bayeux, Normandy, in 8th January, 2020. (Ville de Bayeux via AP/File photo)

The British Treasury is set to insure the Bayeux Tapestry against damage for an estimated £800 million while it is on loan to the British Museum next year, reported the BBC.

The 70m-long embroidery depicting the Battle of Hastings in 1066 will travel from France to London as part of a deal between the two nations' governments.

The artifact's transit and its time in storage and on display will be covered under the Government Indemnity Scheme (GIS). Indemnity insurance covers situations like loss or damage.

The Treasury said without the long-standing scheme, “public museums and galleries would face a substantial commercial insurance premium, which would be significantly less cost effective.”

There are concerns about the move, as some French art experts have suggested the nearly 1,000-year-old work was in far too a delicate state to be transported - something French officials have denied.

It is understood the Treasury has received an initial valuation for covering the Bayeux Tapestry that has been provisionally approved. The loan will not be formally confirmed until it receives the final valuation.

That final valuation is estimated to be around £800 million.

The Bayeux Tapestry will be displayed in the Sainsbury Exhibitions Gallery of the British Museum from next September until July 2027 while its current home, the Bayeux Museum, undergoes renovations.

Comprising 58 scenes, 626 characters and 202 horses, the huge masterpiece charts a contested time in Anglo-French relations when William The Conqueror took the English throne from Harold Godwinson, becoming the first Norman king of England.

The government's indemnity scheme allows art and cultural objects to be shown publicly in the UK which "might not have been otherwise because the cost of insurance would have been too high".

The scheme - first set up in 1980 - has facilitated numerous high-value loans, including Vincent van Gogh's 1888 work "The Bedroom" to the National Gallery.

In exchange for the Bayeux Tapestry, the British Museum will loan items to France, including the 7th Century Anglo-Saxon artifacts discovered at the Sutton Hoo burial site in Suffolk and the 12th Century Lewis chess pieces.

Culture

Kolkata’s Iconic Trams Face Final Stop as Modernization Rolls in

Passengers sit inside a decorated tram during the 152nd anniversary celebrations of trams in Kolkata, India, February 24, 2025. (Reuters)
Passengers sit inside a decorated tram during the 152nd anniversary celebrations of trams in Kolkata, India, February 24, 2025. (Reuters)
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Kolkata’s Iconic Trams Face Final Stop as Modernization Rolls in

Passengers sit inside a decorated tram during the 152nd anniversary celebrations of trams in Kolkata, India, February 24, 2025. (Reuters)
Passengers sit inside a decorated tram during the 152nd anniversary celebrations of trams in Kolkata, India, February 24, 2025. (Reuters)

For more than a century, trams have rumbled past Kolkata's crumbling colonial facades, with their chiming bells contributing to the city's soundtrack as they ferried generations of ​commuters.

Now, Asia's oldest tram network is on the brink of disappearing as authorities consider pulling the plug on a mode of transport that has become more nostalgia than necessity.

The West Bengal government plans to shut down the 152-year-old system, keeping only a short heritage route. The decision has sparked a court battle as residents and heritage advocates fight to keep ‌the trams ‌rolling.

"As children, we would take the ‌trams ⁠for ​fun, ‌but as I grew older it became a necessity," said Abha Maity, 44, recalling rides to school and college. "I can’t imagine Kolkata without them."

Once a highlight of the city's streets, the wobbly trams now struggle for space amid traffic jams - competing with buses and yellow taxis - as Kolkata builds modern infrastructure and seeks faster transport.

Kolkata introduced ⁠horse-drawn trams in 1873 and electrified them in 1902. At its peak, the ‌network boasted more than 340 trams and ‍covered the entire city. Today, ‍only two routes remain, with a fleet of about 10.

"When ‍I joined, more than 340 trams were running. Now it's down to seven or eight," said Bacchu Sidda, a conductor for 36 years who still checks his duty roster pinned on a board ​at the last functioning depot in Gariahat.

The government began selling depots and scrapping cars years ago, prompting a citizens' ⁠group called Calcutta Tram Users Association (CTUA) to take the fight to court. CTUA has campaigned since 2016 to save what remains of the system.

"I love my trams more than myself," said Deep Das, 19, a journalism student and CTUA member. "If they disappear, it will be like a part of my body has left me."

Despite resistance, authorities are pouring billions into upgrading Kolkata's infrastructure, focusing on metro expansion, wider roads and new highways to ease congestion.

For now, the fate of Kolkata's aging trams awaits a ‌court review, as they continue carrying some passengers who view them as living memories of the city's past.