Quarterly Review 2020
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Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani & Songo Mnara World Heritage Site (Tanzania) ©MercyMbogelah QUARTERLY REVIEW 2020 [July – September] African World Heritage Fund 1258 Lever Road, Headway Hill 1 | African World Heritage Fund Midrand 1685, South Africa www.awhf.net TABLE OF CONTENT POST COVID-19 PERSPECTIVES FOR AFRICAN HERITAGE – Opinion Piece by Professor Shadreck Chirikure……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………3 - 5 1. HIGHLIGHTS ..................................................................................................................... 6 1.1 AWHF SIGNS A FIVE (5) YEAR AGREEMENT WITH THE GOVERNMENT OF CAMEROON .................................... 6 1.2 27TH AWHF BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING……………………………………………………..…………………………………………….7 2. CONSERVATION ACTIVITIES .............................................................................................. 8 2.1 AWHF SERVES AS CO-CHAIR FOR AFRICA IN THE CLIMATE HERITAGE NETWORK (CHN)…………………………...……8 2.2 3RD CYCLE OF PERIODIC REPORTING EXERCISE FOR THE AFRICA REGION - COORDINATION TEAM PERIODIC REPORTING MEETING…………………………………………………………………………………….……………………………………………….…..9 3.3 MORDEN HERITAGE OF AFRICA (MoHoA) PROGRAMME - VIRTUAL BRAINSTORMING SESSION…………..………..9 3. UPSTREAM SUPPORT ..................................................................................................... 10 3.1 THEMATIC STUDY ON THE UPSTREAM GAPS OF AFRICAN PROPERTIES ON THE WORLD HERITAGE LIST: VIRTUAL VALIDATION WORKSHOP ON THE GAP STUDY……………………………………………………………………………….…….10 3.2 VIRTUAL WORLD HERITAGE NOMINATION TRAINING WORKSHOPS: TENTATIVE LISTING WORKSHOPS - …....10 3.3 WORLD HERITAGE NOMINATION WORKSHOPS: VIRTUAL WORLD HERITAGE NOMINATION WORKSHOP FOR ADVANCED DOSSIERS…………………………..…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….11 4. PARTNERSHIP ENGAGEMENTS ..................................................................................... ..13 4.1 AWHF CONVENES WITH THE PRESIDENT OF THE AFRICA GROUP (AMBASSADOR AND PERMANENT DELEGATE OF KENYA TO UNESCO) .......................................................................................................................... 13 4.2 AWHF HOLDS AN INTRODUCTORY MEETING WITH THE AMBASSADOR OF THE KINGDOM OF MOROCCO TO SOUTH AFRICA ......................................................................................................................................................... 13 4.3 AWHF MET WITH THE AMBASSADOR OF THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO (DRC) TO SOUTH AFRICA……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….14 4.4 AWHF MEETS WITH THE CEO OF FREEDOM PARK SITE & MUSEUM……………………………………………..………………14 4.5 AWHF HOLDS AN INTRODUCTORY MEETING WITH THE CEO OF ZINDZI MANDELA FOUNDATION………………..14 4.6 COORDINATION MEETING WITH THE WORLD HERITAGE CENTRE…………………………………………………………………15 5. COMMUNICATION ........................................................................................................... 15 5.1 AWHF SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN FOR AFRICAN WORLD HERITAGE SITES………………………….……………………………15 6. UPCOMING ACTIVITIES .................................................................................................. 17 2 | African World Heritage Fund POST COVID-19 PERSPECTIVES FOR AFRICAN HERITAGE OPINION PIECE BY PROFESSOR SHADRECK CHIRIKURE … Department of Archaeology, University of Cape Town and School of Archaeology, University of Oxford 1. Introduction These many success stories were achieved against a background of African thinking, and African solutions to Using thoughts by some scientists, a BBC online report global problems. Under normal circumstances, Africa is questioned why South Africa (and by extension Africa) not always given a chance to be itself, and to try its own had so few deaths from covid-19 given that the pandemic initiatives. The covid-19 pandemic partly cut off Africa wro ught, and is still wreaking havoc, in some of the from the rest of the world, allowing the continent to world’s most advanced economies (Harding 2020). What implement its own solutions and to good effect. On this followed, especially from African quarters, was an point, it is vital to think about what the post covid-19 avalanche of outrage. A fundamental question was why future for heritage conservation on the continent might must Africa always experience the worst, and must the look like and what opportunities and constraints it might continent also not shine and lead? To be fair, the author bring to heritage. made attempts to correct the offensive headline, but the damage had already been done. For centuries, Africa has 2. Risk management in African heritage unjustifiably been seen in negative light, and never with conservation – what might the future look like? positive illumination, especially by some Westerners There is a general sense that the covid-19 pandemic (Chirikure 2015). If it is good, then it cannot be Africa or introduced a new normal, totally different to what African. Well, in the 1890s and 1900s, Great Zimbabwe preceded it (Chirikure 2020; Douglass 2020; had to be built by people from outside the continent. Fast Ogundiran 2020). Risk and uncertainty were always forward in the year 2020, African success at handling a essential variables in the management of cultural and pandemic that troubled the developed nations is raising natural heritage in Africa. Before covid-19, many questions about how and perhaps why the continent long heritage places had disaster and risk management equated with darkness has been so successful. From an plans as part of, or in addition to, integrated African centred pivot, varying degrees of success were management plans. Under the previous ‘normal’, such achieved from Algeria to Senegal and South Africa and 3 | African World Heritage Fund plans covered the likely impact of man-made and other countries. natural factors and sought ways of managing them. However, the risk that was not covered was the one International tourists are welcome, but it is local tourists introduced by unforeseen events such as pandemics. The who will bring in more impact in terms of revenue, spend lockdowns imposed to manage pandemics were and also promoting peace, social cohesion and many unprecedented. It is not yet clear what the impact on other good things. Local tourism if well-developed is museum collections and heritage places, especially those bound to be more sustainable and underscores the that required constant care has been. On one level, pre- forgotten fact that Africa must consume its heritage. It existing risk management tools contributed towards must not look after the heritage for those from other alleviating some of the impact of this unanticipated threat. continents to enjoy. This reaffirms the importance of risk management in the 4. Local knowledge and resilience sens e that it helps heritage places to weather any storm. At another level, very few heritage managers anticipated In most cases, the lockdown reduced connections or interrupted them, which opened unprecedented space for lockdowns and associated measures. The question then local solutions. Because this has worked, it is time to become s how might the heritage fraternity rethink risk apply African solutions to global problems in the post management to ensure that unanticipated risks are covid-19 period. Part of the concern and debate has been factored so that the heritage and those that it employs can that the 1972 Convention and Operational Guidelines do not fully capture African sensibilities. The success of weather the storms? Part of the answer lies in detailed Africa in managing the pandemic and heritage during the studies aimed at understanding the effects of the same pandemic suggests that African knowledge has pandemic and opportunities it brought. potential to produce solutions for the rest of the world. It can only achieve that when space is opened for it. This 3. Tourism and heritage in Africa will not be politely bestowed on Africa and Africans – rather adequate and robust research and theorisation Related to the above, is the fact that heritage is about must be performed to persuade others of the merits of the livelihoods (Chirikure 2020). It also brings revenue African experiences. Meanwhile, that resilience and risk through tourism. Before the pandemic, most tourism in management resting on local knowledge is better than Africa, especially that at places such as the Victoria Falls, that resting on imported solutions needs no emphasis. Serengeti, Virunga and others was based on the spend of Such knowledge was applied by communities, by women international tourists. Covid-19 resulted in lockdown and and by youths and resulted in sustainable heritage closing of borders. In most cases, it was only the local management. Therefore, more work needs to be done to tourists who could visit heritage places and museums. incorporate these groups and African values locally and Consequently, this motivates added and renewed efforts globally. Gone must be the pre-covid-19 situation when aimed at promoting local heritage tourism. Adequate ignorance promoted the undermining of some African investments into products that attract local visitors are knowledge, ushering in a new era where African extremely essential in the post-covid-19 world. We need 4knowledge | African can be World mixed with Heritage other knowledge Fund to produce to teach each other how to love Africa and to show that by solutions for humanity. visiting our own places. World Heritage has a language, an approach and traditions that emphasise universals and often not particulars. Covid- 19 has