Photo: Courtesy of National Cultural Heritage Administration

China will mark 2026 International Museum Day with its flagship national event in Hohhot, the capital city of North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, returning the main venue to the grassland city for the first time in a decade, authorities from the National Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA) said at a press conference on Monday.

The theme for this year's International Museum Day, coordinated by the International Council of Museums (ICOM), is "Museums Uniting a Divided World," highlighting the powerful role museums play as bridges across cultural, social, and geopolitical divides, fostering dialogue, understanding, inclusion, and peace within and between communities worldwide, according to the official website of ICOM.

Tang Wei, deputy director of the NCHA, told the Global Times at the conference that China's program would focus on preserving history, enriching cultural life, strengthening national identity and promoting dialogue.

Tang said that the opening ceremony will announce the winners of the national museum exhibition awards and showcase a series of achievements by Chinese museums. A project promoting the overseas exhibitions of Chinese artifacts and a signing ceremony supporting smaller-scaled museums will also be launched.

Ji Xiaoqing, director of the region's department of culture and tourism, said at the conference that the main venue as well as regional museums will present a rich slate of 65 exhibitions, educational programs and performances. 

Two flagship exhibitions will anchor the program. One exhibition themed on gold and jade artifacts is set to bring together more than 300 bronzes, gold and jade pieces from over 30 institutions to illustrate cultural interaction among ethnic groups. While the other exhibition will use cultural relics to trace historical exchanges between ethnic communities in China's agricultural-pastoral transition zone. 

Alongside exhibitions, 280 educational and social activities are planned, including 165 youth-focused sessions such as historical script games, archaeology blind-box workshops and intangible cultural heritage craft experiences. 

"Museums across the region will extend opening hours, offer free guided tours and organize pro-bono antique appraisals to widen public access," said Ji.

The press conference also signaled policy priorities for the next five years. Wu Min, another NCHA official, said that the administration would begin drafting a sector-wide development plan for the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) period, revise rules on collection management and prepare for a second national inventory of cultural relics to establish a baseline for museum holdings.

China has held annual events since joining ICOM in 1983. Since 2009, the NCHA has co-organized a national main venue activity with provincial-level governments, with Hohhot last hosting a decade ago. The main celebration in 2026 is set to run for several weeks. Museums across the country will also actively organize diverse and distinctive themed activities to better meet the public's cultural and spiritual needs, organizers said.