Liwa Mazayin Al Ratb Festival kicks off

The Liwa Mazayin Al Ratb Festival this year will include a group wedding, an evening of poetry, religious lectures, a special session to educate children on how to care for date-palm, and crafts competitions.

Ratb is the name given to dates that are half-ripe.

The Festival also will mark a new Guinness World Record for having the largest ratb dish, five to six meters long and three meters wide.

The Festival aims to encourage the improvement of the quality of UAE dates, which are also seen as part of the country's heritage, said Rakan Maktoum Al Qubaisi, Secretary General of the Consultative Council, Head of the High Committee of the Festival, during a press conference.

Each year more participants take part in the Festival, said Al Qubaisi, noting that the first Festival had a participation of 1,200 people whereas last year 3,800 people took part.

The programme of the festival, which offers many prizes, will include popular games, a ratb auction, and evenings of poetry.

Only ratb that is produced by Abu Dhabi farmers, and is of good quality, will be accepted to participate in the Festival.

The festival is organized by the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH) and is sponsored by Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.