Africa’s Cultural Heritage: current challenges and future possibilities
On 5th May 2022 the world celebrated African World Heritage Day (proclaimed in 2015 by UNESCO), marking a milestone in the recognition of the continent and its heritage. Towards the end of 2022 there will be further critical reflection points. On 16th November, it will be the official 50th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention , which was born out of the call to cooperate internationally to protect the world’s natural and cultural landscapes and sites for ‘the present and the future of the entire world citizenry’. The Convention has been ratified by 193 member states including almost every African State Party. This November will also see the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 27) taking place in Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt.
All of those milestones have informed this newsletter’s contributions on the future of African cultural heritage sites, which are well known to be underrepresented on the World Heritage List (currently around 139 sites inscribed out of 1154 (AWHF)). Moreover, almost 40 percent have been placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger, and more sites will face increasing threats, many of which are the unprecedented and often unmonitored impacts of climate change.
In this issue, Dr Albino Jopela, Head of Programmes at the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF) provides a personal reflection on the current representation of World Heritage sites in Africa and more significantly where Africa stands today in terms of 50 years of the World Heritage Convention. The theme of climate and heritage is further explored by Professor Joanne Clarke and MAEASaM’s Dr Nadia Khalaf, both of whom are contributors Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 6th Assessment Report. Finally, Mr Kundishora Tungamirai Chipunza, Director of Research and Development for the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe), is interviewed by MAEASaM’s Dr Ezekia Mtetwa in consideration of the challenges and possibilities of Zimbabwe’s archaeological sites and the role of digitisation in future conservation efforts.
Dr Faye Lander
MAEASaM Regional Project Manager, Botswana and Zimbabwe
Origins Centre, Wits University