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On August 23 and 24, UNESCO organized a two-day workshop to train Yemeni content creators to become advocates for culture.

The workshop, Advocacy for Culture, is held within a larger program to promote cultural heritage in Yemen. The UNESCO-EU-funded project,  is supporting the rehabilitation of Yemen's unique heritage and promoting creative industries as vital forms of income generation for the youth.

To continue promoting Yemen’s diversity, UNESCO invited five Yemeni content creators from Aden, Sana’a, and Hadramout to the advocacy workshop. , a traveler and producer, , a presenter and producer, , Youtuber and TV presenter, , a Youtuber, and , content creator, have attended the two-day workshop. The influencers will be sharing content with their audience on various cultural issues.

During the workshop, Mohammed Jumeh, the Permanent Delegate of Yemen to UNESCO, discussed with content creators cultural heritage in Yemen and the government ongoing efforts to protect it.

"The Permanent Delegation of Yemen to UNESCO is a link between the Yemeni people and the organization. We have been leading an effort to promote and preserve Yemeni culture with our partners, we are happy to collaborate with Yemeni content creators to collectively strengthen our efforts,” said Jumeh.

Junior Professional Officer at UNESCO’s Culture Policies and Development Department, Alhanouf Almogbil, introduced UNESCO’s work in culture and development.

“I did not know about the scale of efforts being held to preserve culture and use it as a peace building and economic force until I attended the workshop,” said Gamal.

During the second day, local partners from Yemen, SMEPS and Manasati30, informed influencers about advocacy strategies. Farah Al-Wazeer, Communication and Advocacy Specialist at SMEPS, discussed different ways to advocate for culture, and how to select goals for advocacy campaigns.

“Culture in Yemen needs advocacy the most, in order for you to be an effective advocate you need to believe in the cause. Promoting both social engagement and a wider understanding of the key role that Yemen’s diverse cultural can play as a valuable contributor to economic growth is a strong message,” said Al-Wazeer.

Shaima Al-Mehdhar, Manasati30's Country Coordinator, shared with attendees the organization’s previous cultural media campaigns in Yemen, and the main takeaways from effective media campaigns. Afterwards, content creators brainstormed ideas to promote cultural heritage in Yemen, and they received feedback from UNESCO’s colleagues and partners.

“I have listened to brilliant ideas those young Yemeni influencers have to spread awareness and advocate for Yemen’s culture and I am looking forward to see them happening,” said Al-Wazeer.

Each content creator will produce and share two videos on Yemeni culture across social media. The campaign is to increase awareness of cultural issues as part of the EU-UNESCO project. The project, as of August 2021, has employed 2993 Yemeni workers to rehabilitate heritage sites in Sana’a, Aden, Zabid, and Shibam, funded 14 civil society organizations in Yemen, and distributed awareness-raising material to 7M Yemenis.  

“I am excited to see how the videos I am making will turn out under the influence of all new knowledge I just absorbed during the workshop, and hoping that this collaboration is the beginning of more to come,” said Gamal.