Doha is among the 49 cities that have joined the Unesco Creative Cities Network (UCCN) following their designation by Unesco Director-General Audrey Azoulay, in recognition of their commitment to placing culture and creativity at the heart of their development and to sharing knowledge and good practices.
Doha’s designation in the field of 'Design' comes in recognition of its commitment to cultural activities and creativity, the Permanent Mission of Qatar to the United Nations said in a tweet Monday. "We are glad that Doha city in Qatar was designated by the Unesco DG, Audrey Azoulay, as a new member in Unesco's Creative Cities Network."

We are glad that #Doha city in #Qatar ???? was designated by #UNESCO DG @AAzoulay as a new member in @UNESCO’s Creative Cities Network. Doha’s designation in the field of “Design” comes in recognition of its commitment to cultural activities & creativity. @QatarAtUNESCO https://t.co/HIR6wZqYyF

— Qatar Mission to UN ???? (@QatarAtUN) November 8, 2021

On its website, Unesco says the UCCN now numbers 295 cities reaching 90 countries that invest in culture and creativity – crafts and folk art, design, film, gastronomy, literature, media arts, and music – to advance sustainable urban development.
Newly designated Creative Cities such as Bohicon, Doha and Jakarta will join forces with existing member cities, including Brazzaville, Dubai, Mexico City and Montréal, to develop innovative urban policies and solutions that place people and sustainability at the centre of the development process, echoing the Urban Solutions launched by the Unesco Cities Platform on the occasion of World Cities Day 2021.
"A new urban model needs to be developed in every city, with its architects, town planners, landscapers and citizens. We are urging everyone to work with States to reinforce the international co-operation between cities, which Unesco wishes to promote," said Azoulay in a statement.
The collaborative spirit of the UCCN’s members is reflected in the publication Unesco Creative Cities’ Response to Covid-19 in 2020. This year, too, the network is collecting and disseminating information about the culture and creativity-based responses to Covid-19 that have been taken by members of the UCCN, which Unesco will publish as part of its continued support to cities’ recovery from the pandemic.
The new members of Unesco's Creative Cities Network are: Doha (Qatar) – Design; Abu Dhabi (UAE) – Music; Batumi (Georgia) – Music; Belfast (UK) – Music; Bida (Nigeria) – Crafts and Folk Art; Bohicon (Benin) – Gastronomy; Buraidah (Saudi Arabia) – Gastronomy; Bursa (Turkey) – Crafts and Folk Art; Campina Grande (Brazil) – Media Arts; Cannes (France) – Film; Cluj-Napoca (Romania) – Film; Como (Italy) – Crafts and Folk Art; Covilhã (Portugal) – Design; Gdynia (Poland) – Film; Gimhae (South Korea) – Crafts and Folk Art; Gothenburg (Sweden) – Literature; Hamar (Norway) – Media Arts; Huai’an (China) – Gastronomy; Huancayo (Peru) – Music; Ibagué (Colombia) – Music; Jakarta (Indonesia) – Literature; Kermanshah (Iran) – Gastronomy; Kharkiv (Ukraine) – Music; Kuching (Malaysia) – Gastronomy; Lankaran (Azerbaijan) – Gastronomy; Launceston (Australia) – Gastronomy; London (Canada) – Music; Manises (Spain) – Crafts and Folk Art; Modena (Italy) – Media Arts; Nakuru (Kenya) – Crafts and Folk Art; Namur (Belgium) – Media Arts; Pasto (Colombia) – Crafts and Folk Art; Perth (UK) – Crafts and Folk Art; Phetchaburi (Thailand) – Gastronomy; Port Louis (Mauritius) – Music; Recife (Brazil) – Music; Rouen (France) – Gastronomy; Saint Petersburg (Russia) – Gastronomy; Santa Maria da Feira (Portugal) – Gastronomy; Santiago de Cuba (Cuba) – Music; Srinagar (India) – Crafts and Folk Art; Tallinn (Estonia) – Music; Tbilisi (Georgia) – Media Arts; Thessaloniki (Greece) – Gastronomy; Usuki (Japan) – Gastronomy; Vilnius (Lithuania) – Literature; Weifang (China) – Crafts and Folk Art; Whanganui (New Zealand) – Design; and Xalapa (Mexico) - Music.