November 14, 2025
Web desk
On 31 October 2025, the UNESCO added two Saudi Arabian cities to its Creative Cities Network: Madinah (al-Munawwarah) was recognised under Gastronomy and Riyadh under Design.
Madinah’s designation highlights its rich culinary traditions, distinctive local ingredients like ajwa dates and historic food culture with the goal of boosting tourism and local producer income.
Riyadh’s recognition underscores its growing role as a hub of architecture, industrial and digital design, in line with Saudi Arabia’s development and creativity agenda.
These inclusions bring Saudi Arabia’s total number of UNESCO-Creative-Cities to five, reinforcing the Kingdom’s cultural and creative positioning globally.
