Culture

Ramallah is known to be a cultural center in the West Bank . Education in Ramallah is deeply rooted. In 1706 the Greek Orthodox Church opened the first school in Ramallah. There are twenty schools in Ramallah run by the government, Private sector and UNRWA. There are three colleges in Ramallah and the Blrzelt University is in the suburbs of Ramallah. Besides, that there is the The National Music Conservatory which is embarking now on one ambitious program to build and expand their activities in this field .

The Sakakini Cultural Center which was established after the Palestinian National Authority took over is promising to activate the cultural life in Ramallah.

In the immediate plans for the Ministry of Antiquities is the opening of a Museum in the old city of Ramallah. The Municipality established a library in 1956 through donations from Ramallites in the U.S.

The Ramallah Folklore and Cultural Festival

Ramallah has always been Palestine's main summer resort and most beautiful city and has been the focus of the main cultural and folkloric Palestinian activities. Since the early sixties, folkloric festivals were held in Ramallah every summer to celebrate Palestinian heritage and folklore and to increase the awareness of Palestinians to their identity and land and due to the Israeli occupation in 1967, these activities came to a halt. After the Palestinian National Authorities took over, various initiatives were taken to revive these festivities once again.

In 1996, the Ramallah Governorate in coordination with the Ramallah Municipality, ministries and local institutions jointly coordinated and hosted the fifth Ramallah Folkloric Festival. A number of International and Arab folkloric groups performed in front of thousands of anxious crowd and the event marked the successful revival of the longed for Ramallah Festival.

The Governorate of Ramallah, the Ramallah Municipality, and the First Ramallah Group (youth club) coordinated this year and the sixth annual Ramallah Festival was held in August. The Festival included various activities including Movies, theatre shows, folkloric dances, a book fair as well as cultural workshops and sessions.

The Ramallah Book Fare

Purpose:

To strengthen the interest of the Palestinian young and adult public in books, reading and cultural activities.

Goals:

• To raise the awareness of the public about the availability of Arabic and English books on various topics locally

• To encourage debates and discussions of books newly published

• To encourage cultural life in Palestine

• To encourage the young public to engage in reading and book discussions

• To introduce the young public to theatre and movies

Suggested Activities:

A big number of local (West Bank Gaza and Palestinians within the green line) and Arab (Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt and Morocco) publication houses will be contacted for Joint activities on this book fair exhibit.

• Drawing competitions among children will be held.

• The location of the Ramallah first group playground will be set to host this activity.

• Local theatre groups will be contacted to present work for adults and children.

• Cultural night activities will be prepared to include poetry recital and book reviews.

• Films for adults and children will be coordinated and shown.

• Media coverage of the event will be coordinated.

The Ramallah Public Library (RPL) was established in 1957 in response to the late educator Mr. Khalil Abu Rayya's initiative. Ramallah Municipality adopted this project since its establishment to serve a wide sector of students, researchers, teachers and intellectuals in Ramallah and its environs.

Ramallah, as is well known, is rich in educational institutions such as Birzeit University, the Teachers' Training College (UNRWA), several community colleges, a nursing school, and an array of public and private schools .

The above mentioned institutions and thousands of frequenters benefit from RPL services which include.

• Lending Services: With over 18,000 volumes members can borrow books for set periods of time.

• Reference Services: As acknowledged by Birzeit University librarians, reference services at the Ramallah Public Library are outstanding, and up-to-date. This section contains more than 5000 references-and manuscripts.

• Archive Services: This section consists of archives of local newspapers: AI-Quds, AIFajir, AI-Nahar, AI-Haya AI-Jadidah, Al-Ayyam, AI-Bilad and others, in addition to other Arabic and international periodicals.

The Ramallah Public Library

Since its establishment, RPL went through several developmental phases, the most ambitious of which was the expansion which took place in 1995-1996. An additional floor was added and the existing building was expanded. About 500 sq.m. were added,and the reference services hall was furnished with a generous contribution from the European Community

RPL building utility is as follows:

1. The lending section hall: 1st floor.

2. The reference services hall: 2 nd floor.

3. Ramallah Children's Center: Ground floor.

Over 4700 paying members use the library on regular basis, (3,800 adults, 900 children). A large number of non-members also benefit from the Library services.

Ramallah Summer Nights

Ramallah City is located 15 km north of Jerusalem. it is well known to be one of the best resorts in Palestine and is distinguished by its liberal and social spirit.

After the 1967 war Ramallah lost its spirit, and once being the center of cultural and social development, the city became paralyzed economically. socially and enclosed by a ghostly atmosphere. After the signing of the "Peace Agreement" , the city of Ramallah opened its arms once again to embrace all intellectuals, political, and liberal thinkers to help keep the city open and liberal.

Aiming to revive its soul again, the Governorate of Ramallah and Al-Bireh, Ramallah Municipality and First Ramallah Group agreed together to renew the 1966 "Ramallah Summer Nights Festival". The 1966 festival attracted local and Arab audience in the region as well.

In August of last year, the tradition of the Ramallah festival continued for the first time. The festival was carried out by the Ramallah governorate, and organized by a group of volunteering institutions and individuals. Various activities were held during the 10 days of the festival including music, fine-arts, folkloric dance, street shows and folkloric exhibitions. More than 40,000 people attended the festival in its different forms.

This year, the govemorate of Ramallah and Al-Bireh, Ramallah Municipality and First Ramallah Group took the decision to establish a festival institution for taking over the responsibility of implementing the 1997 festival as an introduction to a sustainable festival institution in the future.

Institutional Partners

• The govemorate: The Ramallah and Al Bireh district counts 230,000 inhabitants who are under the responsibility of govemorate of Ramallah.

• Ramallah Municipality: is in charge of managing and directing all services that affect the lives of the Ramallah citizens.These services cover the need of the people in the various sectors.

• First Ramallah Group: is a non-government organization. It was founded in the 930's and carries many cultural activities. Since then, it has been adopting the largest number of members from all age groups and sex.

Supporting Institutions

In addition to the above mentioned institutional partners, many NG0s, ministries and individuals are involved in supporting and organizing the festival. These are:

• The Arab Bank

• Tamer institution.

• The Ministry of Culture

• The Ministry of Information

• The Ministry of Youth and Sport

• The Publishers' Union

• The Writers Union

• Alwasity

• Sabreen Music Center

• The Television production corporation

• The Palestinian branch of the Mediterranean Sea Theater

• Asaiel for Art and folk dance

• AI-Siraj Theatre

Main Objectives of the Festival

• Increase unity and and coordination between all sectors of the community.

• Strengthen the belief in such activities as one of the routs for civil society and free thinking.

• Establish the foundation for a sustainable festival institution that can help to rebuild our national heritage and culture.

• Create and strengthen healthy liberal environment.

• Enhance the artistic and cultural movement in Palestine through the exposure to different and new cultures.

• Train and upgrade the skills of human resources.

Program and Activities of the Festival

• The festival includes the following activities-.

• Theater

• Fine arts

• Music and Dance

• Cinema

• Street shows

• International Book Exhibition