The Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) participated in the official opening ceremony of the Intangible Heritage Museum in Jemaa el-Fna Square in Marrakesh, Kingdom of Morocco. The museum was established at the former headquarters of Bank Al Maghrib in partnership between Morocco’s National Museum Foundation in and ICESCO, in implementation of the partnership agreement signed between the two parties in October 2020, and in cooperation with a number of partners.

This new pioneering museum combines tourism, culture, heritage preservation and collection valorization with a view to achieving sustainable and comprehensive regional development. It will operate under the auspices of Morocco’s National Museum Foundation, chaired by the artist Mehdi Qotbi, and under the museological and scientific supervision of Dr. Abdelaziz El Idrissi, Director of the Mohammed VI Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Rabat.

Dr. Mohamed Zinelabidine, Head of ICESCO’s Culture and Communication Sector, represented the Organization at the opening ceremony, which was held on Thursday, 23 February 2023, during which he perused the museum’s archeological and art collections and the displayed photographs and videos on the history of Jemaa el-Fna, its rich intangible heritage and its oral artistic, literary, performative practices.

The museum will contribute to promoting Marrakesh as a global tourist destination through a cultural tourism space on Jemaa El-Fna Square as a meeting point between the city and the Kasbah Makhzenia that encapsulates a unique legacy that has been inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List since 1997 as well as on ICESCO’s Islamic World Heritage List.