Moroccan actor and cultural entrepreneur Brahim El Mazned has won the 21st UNESCO-Sharjah Prize for Arab Culture, which celebrates music this year, according to UNESCO, which launched the Prize with the support of the Government of Sharjah (UAE).
Brahim El Mazned, who shares the prize with the Dhow Countries Music Academy (Tanzania), was recognized as a leading figure on the Arab and international cultural scene “for his commitment to music as a vehicle of transmission, dialogue and cultural influence,” according to a press release from the Paris-based UN organization.
Through his initiatives, the founder of Visa For Music and artistic director of the Timitar Festival “has worked for many years to showcase the wealth of Moroccan and Arab musical expression far beyond borders,” the press release adds.
The jury particularly praised “the transnational reach of his work, his role in strengthening intercultural dialogue, his contribution to structuring the artistic sector, and his unwavering commitment to youth.”
A leading figure in the Moroccan and Arab cultural landscape, Brahim El Mazned has for many years worked, as founder of Visa For Music and artistic director of the Timitar festival, to promote Moroccan and Arab music internationally, forging lasting ties between artists, festivals, as well as professional and public networks.
“His career reflects a deep conviction: music is at once a vehicle of transmission, a space for dialogue, and a powerful means of cultural outreach,” UNESCO emphasizes.
Reacting to the announcement, Brahim El Mazned stated that he received “this honor with deep emotion and great humility,” describing it “above all as recognition of the collective work carried out over many years in the service of culture, music, and intercultural dialogue.”
“It is also an encouragement to pursue, with even greater conviction, this commitment to promoting our heritage, contemporary creation, and supporting new generations of cultural actors,” he added in a statemen to the media.
Established in 1998, the UNESCO-Sharjah Prize for Arab Culture aims to reward the work of two individuals, groups, or institutions from Member States that have significantly contributed to developing, raising awareness of, and disseminating Arab culture in the artistic, intellectual, and promotional sphere.
The award ceremony for this edition will take place on June 24 at UNESCO headquarters in Paris.