BAKU, Azerbaijan, January 24. On January 21, 2026, within the framework of an official visit to the Kyrgyz Republic, a meeting was held between Mrs. Aktoty Raimkulova, President of the Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation, and Mrs. Sabira Soltongeldieva, Secretary-General of the National Commission of the Kyrgyz Republic for UNESCO, TurkicWorld reports via Arab News.
During the meeting, the parties discussed issues of cooperation between the Foundation and the National Commission in the field of preservation, development, and promotion of the cultural heritage of the Turkic world at the global level, including through the expansion of cooperation with international organizations.
Within the framework of the meeting, the President of the Foundation expressed her gratitude to the National Commission of the Kyrgyz Republic for UNESCO for its active support and assistance in promoting the Foundation’s initiatives at the international level. In turn, the Secretary-General highly commended the Foundation’s activities, noting its systematic and consistent efforts to strengthen cooperation with UNESCO in order to further promote the rich cultural heritage of the Turkic world worldwide.
It is worth noting that during 2024–2025, under the auspices of the Foundation and in cooperation with the Permanent Delegations and National Commissions of Turkic countries to UNESCO, as well as relevant governmental bodies of the Turkic states, a number of significant events were organized for the first time at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris (France). These included: the International Conference “Mapping the World in Lexicography: The 950th Anniversary of Dīwān Lughāt al-Turk,” dedicated to the invaluable work of Mahmud Kashgari-Barskani; the Exhibition “Sources of Inspiration: The Legacy of Nurgisa Tlendiyev,” organized in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the great Kazakh composer and conductor; the Presentation of the book “The Genius of Azerbaijani Architectural Heritage: Ajami Nakhchivani – 900,” accompanied by an exhibition dedicated to the architectural legacy of the outstanding architect of the Turkic world. All of the above-mentioned anniversary dates were included in UNESCO’s List of Memorable Dates.
In addition, in partnership with UNESCO, the Foundation organized the project “Aitysh / Aitys” at UNESCO Headquarters, dedicated to the 10th anniversary of the inscription of this element on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, as well as the international conference “Chingiz Aitmatov and UNESCO: A Shared Heritage Uniting the World.”
With the support of the Foundation, applications were submitted for the inclusion of the Turkic elements of Intangible Cultural Heritage – the epic “Alpamysh Batyr” and the art of Gurama – in a multinational nomination to UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
A major milestone in the Foundation’s activities was the successful and highly acclaimed presentation of the Foundation’s work at the 43rd UNESCO General Conference in Samarkand. This presentation contributed to strengthening the organization’s international image and to enhancing the global significance of preserving and promoting the rich cultural heritage of the Turkic world.
