World Tolerance Summit in Dubai to spread message of peace and solidarity

Thousands of officials, academics and peace campaigners from across the globe will unite for two-day event

Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak, Minister of Tolerance, will chair the World Tolerance Summit in Dubai this week. Victor Besa / The National 

More than 3,000 government officials, peace campaigners, diplomats, ambassadors and academics from more than 100 countries will come together in Dubai for a major conference aimed at spreading a vital message of tolerance and harmony across the globe.

The World Tolerance Summit - a cornerstone of the UAE's Year of Tolerance - aims to deliver an international platform for key decision-makers from the Emirates and overseas to help shape policy on crucial issues facing the planet.

Gender equality, sustainability, community cohesion and strategies on youth and disability will be on the agenda during the two-day event, which gets underway on Wednesday.

The second annual conference, which is to be chaired by Sheikh Nayhan bin Mubarak, the UAE's Minister of Tolerance, is being hosted at Madinat Jumeirah and will feature more than 70 speakers.

The summit is being held under the theme 'Tolerance in Multiculturalism: Achieving the Social, Economic and Humane Benefits of a Tolerant World'.

More than 1,000 students from schools and universities across the Emirates are also expected to attend.

"The event will be a leading platform for government leaders, peace experts and academics to meet and discuss ways of promoting tolerance in multiculturalism, and how to tackle the challenges it faces and instil a culture of dialogue by all possible means to support international efforts for world peace and stability," said Dr Hamad Al Shaibani, managing director of the International Institute for Tolerance and chairman of the Higher Organising Committee of the summit.

An international cast of senior officials and dignitaries will be converging on the emirate, including Mara Cristina Gabrielli, a federal senator in Brazil, Dr Lucy Janet Bermudez, President of the State Council of Colombia and Rustem Nurgalevich Menekhanov, President of the Republic of Tatarstan, part of the Russian Federation.

A variety of workshops, sessions and exhibitions will be held during the high-profile gathering.

Speakers from different countries will participate in the sessions modelled on TED X talks.

Dozens of government agencies and institutions will be highlighting their efforts to promote tolerance.