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ABU DHABI / WAM
A law on the protection, discovery, preservation, management and promotion of the emirate’s cultural heritage and non-UAE physical cultural heritage was issued by President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan in his capacity as Ruler of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.
The law governs the mandate of the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi) and the scope of its supervision over the emirate’s cultural heritage, which includes increasing national awareness about the importance of the cultural heritage and promoting it by fostering the emirate’s cultural identity. The law also governs the preservation of distinctive customs and traditions of the local community, initiating measures to safeguard the emirate’s cultural heritage, as well as granting permits for establishing museums.
The law set provisions for the ownership and acquisition of the physical cultural artefacts and regulations for transfer, export, loan or temporary shifting of these artefacts out of the emirate. Measures to be taken in case of sudden archaeological discoveries and time-frame of reporting such findings to the competent authorities were also defined.
The law authorised the Abu Dhabi TCA to establish two records, one for tangible cultural heritage and another for intangible cultural heritage.