Emirates News Agency – National Library and Archives completes preparations to host ICA Congress in Abu Dhabi 2023

ABU DHABI, 20th March, 2023 (WAM) – The National Library and Archives (NLA) has announced that it has completed preparations for the International Council on Archives Congress (ICA Congress Abu Dhabi 2023) to be held from 9-13 October on the theme “Enriching Knowledge Societies”.

Dr. Abdulla Al Raisi, Chairman of the 2023 ICA Abu Dhabi Conference Senior Organizing Committee and Cultural Advisor to the UAE Presidential Court, said that the 2023 ICA Abu Dhabi Conference will be held in the UAE for the first time, which is the first time in the Middle East and the Arab world.

Dr. Al Raisi revealed details of the preparations for the Congress at a seminar organized by the NLA, whose program has been developed to fit well with the UAE’s approach as an oasis of human coexistence and tolerance.

Archives, he said, are the memory of their country and can also enrich societies by promoting peace, tolerance and cooperation in all missions.

According to him, the program will develop themes around peace and tolerance; emerging technologies: e-records, e-solutions; sustainable knowledge, sustainable planet: archives, records and climate change; trust and evidence; and access and memory.

More than 100 countries will be participating in the five-day conference, and the organizing committee has received more than 500 working papers, he added.

She noted that the ICA Congress in Abu Dhabi in 2023 will also commemorate the ICA’s 75th anniversary.

Held every four years since its inaugural meeting in 1950, the ICA Congress is now globally recognized as the most important forum for professionals, institutions and industry involved in archives, records and information management.

The theme of the ICA Congress was to acknowledge the transformative power of access to reliable information in the modern world.

It highlights the important role archives play in preserving and accessing government and institutional records and the multimedia documents that embody our society. These archives constitute authoritative evidence of decisions and achievements and form part of our social memory.

For sponsors and exhibitors, ICA Abu Dhabi Congress will provide a rare and valuable opportunity to network with professional delegates and visitors from all over the world.

It will also be an opportunity to establish direct links with key players in the Middle East at a time when the areas of archive collection management, digital record keeping and education and public programming are receiving unprecedented attention.