Today's Edition
SARA ALZAABI (ABU DHABI)
Amid all the talk of AI, robotics, industrial plants and advanced manufacturing, one pavilion at Make it in the Emirates (MIITE) stands out as it comes alive with the rhythms and textures of tradition.
With about 200 artisans taking part, the Ministry of Culture is bringing UAE heritage into a rapidly expanding landscape of homegrown innovation.
Emirati crafts are finding their place in the new era: they are evolving, but without losing their identity. The weaves move with the waves of a smart, modern age, adding depth, colour, and authenticity to products and outputs that might otherwise risk becoming too uniform in a globalised market.
“Craft becomes a ‘story’ and a ‘product’ because it can evolve, adapt, and integrate with design, technology, and markets,” said Asma Al Hammadi, Acting Assistant Undersecretary of the Creative Development Sector at the Ministry of Culture.
To preserve cultural identity while enabling growth, the ministry puts safeguards in place and adopts a comprehensive approach.
“We are advancing a set of integrated tools: documenting craft knowledge as a living reference and developing standards that safeguard authenticity in both design and production,” Al Hammadi told Aletihad on the sidelines of MIITE 2026.
For the ministry, authenticity springs from knowledge passed down through generations. At the same time, it sees artisans—especially the youth — as economic contributors within an integrated support ecosystem.
“We approach this balance from the understanding that authenticity is not a constraint on growth, but the very source of value,” Al Hammadi said.
At the Ministry of Culture’s Artisans Pavilion, visitors can see this for themselves through an immersive experience that traces Emirati craftsmanship. The pavilion integrates modern technologies as it positions traditional crafts within industrial and creative value chains.
Al Hammadi emphasised that taking traditional crafts into the future goes beyond repackaging them for the modern times.
“We view this transformation not as a mere rebranding of craft, but as a strategic repositioning within the cultural economy, where it evolves from an individual practice into a narrative asset that reflects national identity and integrates into value chains,” she said.
