Sidon Moves Toward Global Recognition: Details of Meeting with Culture Minister

Culture Minister Ghassan Salamé met at his office in the National Library with Sidon Mayor Mustafa Hijazi, heading a delegation that included municipal council member and head of the Cultural Committee Hisham Jaradi, director of the Sidon Capital of Mediterranean Culture file Wafa Shuaib, and Director of Research and Development at the Hariri Foundation Mohammad Hariri.

The meeting was dedicated to reviewing preparations for Sidon's candidacy as a Mediterranean Capital of Culture and Dialogue, and the partnership the city is establishing with the Spanish city of Córdoba within the framework of the Network of Mediterranean Capitals of Culture and Dialogue (MCCD 2027).

Following the meeting, Hijazi said: "We were honored today to meet with Culture Minister Dr. Ghassan Salamé, where we briefed him on our visit to the Spanish city of Córdoba and the partnership we are preparing with it at the university, cultural, municipal, and institutional levels."

He added: "We informed him about the preparations for signing a twinning agreement with the Mayor of Córdoba during his upcoming visit to Sidon early next year, and we presented the Minister with a copy of the Executive Framework for Sidon's nomination as a Mediterranean Capital of Culture and Dialogue, the programs spanning 12 months, and the anticipated exchange between the two cities regarding visits by artisans from Sidon to Córdoba."

Hijazi continued: "We also discussed ongoing projects in the city that need development, including the Sidon Museum and the possibility of completing it and securing necessary funding, in addition to the Al-Shakariya neighborhood and its street and ongoing restoration works, as well as land and sea games, and the possibility of coordinating with relevant ministries and the European Union to support the city and obtain funding in this context."