In partnership with University College London Qatar (UCL Qatar), we have produced new research in the Gulf to identify skills gaps in the museum/ gallery sector. These new findings will help us and external stakeholders develop a range of capacity-building opportunities and support the sector in this part of the world.

The research, which surveyed over 61 museum and gallery professionals from across Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, Oman and Saudi Arabia made several recommendations, including:

  • The British Council can play a very important role in providing opportunities for networking. It can become a hub and provide opportunities (online or physical) for people to gather, discuss and exchange views and ideas.
  • There is a need to support and invest in young people’s skills, as well as their awareness of the possibilities offered in this sector. Collaboration with schools, and higher education institutions locally, internships and volunteer programmes are very important, as well as support to the institutions in order to be able to develop such programmes. 
  • For capacity building, professionals are most interested in long-term collaborative projects, peer-to-peer learning and practical learning on the job.
  • There is a strong need for the development of resources in Arabic, as well as the promotion of Arab role models
  • For training, collections management, inter-cultural management, learning and audience development are the areas of priority for all countries

Tune into the hashtags #GulfMuseumSkills #ConnectingCultures to discover the latest findings and happenings around Museum Skills in Saudi Arabia.

About the Research

The Museum and Gallery research took place between June-September 2020 in two phases. In the first phase, we have collected quantitative data through online surveys circulated among museums/galleries professionals in the six Gulf countries. In the next phase that followed, we have conducted series of roundtable discussions around the Gulf that gathered key stakeholders in each country to validate the information from the surveys and collect qualitative data which would complement the quantitative ones.

The Research outlines interesting findings and highlights points of comparison between countries, identifying challenges the sector is facing, as well as opportunities, priorities, and recommendations that would help to strengthen and grow this sector in the future. The research aims to contribute to a better understanding of the cultural sector in the Gulf countries and explore the possibilities for meaningful collaboration with the sector in the UK. A collaboration that will be based on mutual understanding and bi-directional sharing of knowledge and expertise.  

 

We’re interested in connecting with anyone who wants to build on this research or join the conversation. If you would like to be involved, please e-mail  Waseem.kotoub@britishcouncil.org
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