JEDDAH: Asir has been nominated as a global culinary region for 2024 to help it qualify for an award from the International Institute of Gastronomy, Culture, Arts and Tourism, which is granted every year to five regions worldwide. The nomination, according to Saudi Arabia’s Culinary Arts Commission, was to encourage local communities to take pride in their culture and their creative capabilities in the culinary sector. It said the decision aimed to transfer the Kingdom’s culinary arts to the world and supported coordination between local bodies to promote the region at a local and international level. The selection of Asir for the IGCAT global award reflects the region’s rich cultural heritage as well as its distinctive dishes. It also stimulates the financing of government and private sectors in a way that contributes to the national economy. The commission added that the step would encourage sustainable tourism through improving local products and enhancing hospitality, while also helping to create small and medium-sized enterprises. It tweeted that the step also played a role in raising awareness of nutritional issues, with the aim of achieving and sustaining a healthy life. Its announcement ended by saying that the step was intended to further promote the use of local food products and protect the environment and biodiversity. The CAC earlier launched the “Our Culinary Legacy” initiative to reflect Saudi culinary culture with the aim of preserving food preparation skills for generations to come. The first-of-its-kind initiative was also intended to encourage amateur and professional Saudi chefs to document and preserve traditional recipes. It seeks to gather different traditional recipes from across the Kingdoms 13 regions into a single cookbook. Established in 2012, IGCAT, a nonprofit institute, aims to empower local communities by raising awareness to safeguard and promote distinct food, culture, arts, and sustainable tourism assets.