Liwa Date Festival concludes its 17th edition

The 2021 edition, which allowed only participants to attend to protect the health and safety of visitors and organisers, featured 11 date beauty contests, seven fruit competitions, three ‘best farm’ competitions, and a fruit basket beauty contest.

The festival was held from 15th to 25th July, 2021, in Liwa, Al Dhafra Region, under the patronage of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs.

Obaid Khalfan Al Mazrouei, Director of the Festival and Director of the Planning and Projects Department of the Cultural Programmes and Heritage Festivals Committee, said that the festival is organised annually upon the directives of the UAE’s leadership, with the aim of preserving the country’s heritage and developing agriculture.

It is also being closely monitored by Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler's Representative in Al Dhafra Region, and supported by Sheikh Mansour, he added, stressing that it achieved success despite the extraordinary global conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The event’s various competitions witnessed the participation of competitors from all emirates, showcasing distinguished varieties of dates and fruits, including dozens of types of premium dates locally produced in the UAE, he added.

Al Mazrouei pointed out that this year’s festival included 22 dates, fruits and model farms competitions, awarding 253 prizes with total prize money of over AED8.2 million.

The palm tree plays a crucial role catering to the daily needs of Bedouin communities in the desert. It represents an integral part of the UAE’s deep-rooted heritage and is the source of the most beloved fruit that is the very focus of the festival.

For centuries, palm trees and half-ripe dates have been an integral part of Emirati society and its deep-rooted traditions.