UNESCO Designates 58 New Creative Cities
UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay has designated 58 Creative Cities, which now join the Organization’s dedicated Creative Cities Network. With these new designations, the Network now includes 408 cities in more than 100 countries, recognized for their commitment to creative industries and cultural life.
Location pictured: Quito, Ecuador — Creative City of Architecture
Photo credit: Shutterstock
Date: 30 October 2025
Last update: 31 October 2025
Learn more about the 58 new cities.
“UNESCO Creative Cities demonstrate that culture and creative industries can be concrete drivers of development. By welcoming 58 new cities, we are strengthening a Network where creativity supports local initiatives, attracts investment and promotes social cohesion.”
— Audrey Azoulay, UNESCO Director-General
A New Creative Theme: Architecture
This year, a new theme — Architecture — has been added to the seven existing ones:
Crafts and Folk Art, Media Arts, Design, Film, Gastronomy, Literature and Music.
The newly designated cities stand out for their strong commitment to culture and creativity, as well as their innovative approaches to urban planning.
Diverse Cities, Shared Creative Vision
From Kisumu (Kenya) and New Orleans (United States of America), selected for the vitality of their music industries, to Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) for Design, Matosinhos (Portugal) for Gastronomy, Giza (Egypt) for Film, Cuenca (Ecuador) for Gastronomy, Rovaniemi (Finland) for Architecture, Malang (Indonesia) for Media Arts, and Aberystwyth (United Kingdom) for Literature, each city promotes a distinct cultural expertise rooted in its local context and generating social cohesion and economic dynamism.
Promoting Cultural Enrichment
Launched in 2004, the UNESCO Creative Cities Network supports cities that leverage culture and creativity as drivers of development. At the local level, this dynamic comes to life through the promotion of skills, support for creative professionals, and the engagement of residents. These efforts help cities create jobs, boost local economies, and strengthen social cohesion.
By investing in cultural sectors—from Music and Design to Gastronomy and Media Arts—Creative Cities develop concrete strategies that respond to local needs while contributing to broader global objectives, including those set out in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The Network also encourages cooperation among cities, the sharing of experiences, and the pooling of solutions, enabling members to inspire one another and strengthen the economic, social, and environmental impact of their cultural policies.
Upcoming Network Activities
UNESCO Creative Cities will be invited to participate in the Network’s 2026 Annual Conference, to be held in Essaouira (Morocco), a UNESCO Creative City for Music since 2019.
The complete list of newly designated UNESCO Creative Cities is available here.
More Information
UNESCO Creative Cities Network
About UNESCO
With 194 Member States, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) contributes to peace and security by leading multilateral cooperation on education, science, culture, communication and information.
Headquartered in Paris, UNESCO has offices in 54 countries and employs over 2,300 people. The Organization oversees:
more than 2,000 World Heritage sites, Biosphere Reserves and Global Geoparks;
networks of Creative, Learning, Inclusive and Sustainable Cities; and
over 13,000 associated schools, university chairs, training and research institutions, supported by a global network of 200 National Commissions.
UNESCO’s Director-General is Audrey Azoulay.
“Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defenses of peace must be constructed.”
— UNESCO Constitution, 1945
More information: www.unesco.org