Progress towards the development of an African Modern Heritage Programme

In response to the outcome of the UNESCO’s Modern Heritage Programme, the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF) is coordinating the development of the Modern Heritage of Africa (MoHoA) Programme in collaboration with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) and International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), to promote modern heritage in Africa.

Two brainstorming sessions for the development of the Modern Heritage of Africa Programme were held online the 20th and 27th August 2020. The African World Heritage Fund and University of Cape Town, organized the workshops to raise awareness and build capacity amongst key stakeholders on identification, protection and promotion of modern heritage of Africa. The initiative also aims to contribute to improving Africa’s representation on the World Heritage List and highlight the role of modern heritage in promoting urban sustainability, in line with the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and the African Union’s Agenda 2063.

The goal of the Programme is to support the sustainable agenda in Africa through the research, protection and reinterpretation of modern heritage and to contribute to improving the implementation of the World Heritage Convention in the Africa region. Specifically, the Programmes aims to : examine the meanings of Modern Heritage of Africa and to understand the role this heritage can play in promoting the sustainability of African cities notably SDG 11 ; develop skills among heritage practitioners and other public and private sector stakeholders in associated fields, including research, conservation, advocacy and management ; raise awareness about the significance of Modern Heritage of Africa amongst different stakeholders, including academics, heritage practitioners, developers, policy makers and civil society, especially amongst women and youth ; and address the underrepresentation of the Modern Heritage of Africa in the World Heritage List by building capacity amongst heritage practitioners in the identification and presentation of properties to be inscribed on Tentative Lists and potential future World Heritage nominations. Read more here