Activities >> Seminars

1st Directors Seminar
Kenya 1999

In conjunction with the regional course, a Directors Seminar was held from 30 August through 1 September. The general objectives of the Directors Seminars are:

• to disseminate information about AFRICA 2009 to heads of institutions in the region to better enable them
• to take advantage of the activities of the programme;
• to provide a forum for input from directors to ensure that the AFRICA 2009 programme is meeting the
• needs of the African institutions which it serves;
• to support the work of the directors by acting as a forum/networking mechanism which brings directors together on a periodic basis;
• to provide support for participants of the regional courses upon their return to their countries by informing directors of the activities and discussions that took place during the course.
  

For the 1999 seminar, the following objectives were articulated to the invited participants:

• to present the Africa 2009 Programme and its links with the activities undertaken by the WH Centre to increase the representatively of African Heritage on the World Heritage List;
• to allow participants to present various aspects of the course to the Directors;
• to allow the Directors to explore the important issues related to improving communication and networks in Africa for the conservation and better international recognition of immovable cultural property;
• to work with the Directors on the future orientations of AFRICA 2009, including exploring their future role in the programme.
  

Directors were invited from each of the 17 institutions represented by participants of the regional course. Of that number, 12 were able to attend. The seminar was divided into three parts. The first, constituted a welcome to the seminar and an introduction to AFRICA 2009 and the Global Strategy of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre. The second part of the seminar consisted of site visits and presentations by the course participants to inform the directors of the work that had been carried out during the course and to discuss the results with them. The third part consisted of discussion and group work on the topics of networking and the future of the AFRICA 2009 programme.

At the conclusion of the Directors Seminar, a series of recommendations were adopted by the participants at the meeting.

Within the framework of the regional course, the following results were obtained:

• 12 Directors representing 12 Countries in Africa participated in the event;
• 22 course participants took part in the event;
• 4 representatives from the partner organizations or other institutions took part in the event;
• participants outlined the main results from the regional course;
• a brainstorming session resulted in a list of ways to improve networking at the Directors, Professional, and Institutional levels;
• group work resulted in an indication of future directions for the AFRICA 2009 programme;
  a series of recommendations were adopted by the Directors at the close of the seminar.
  

For more information on the Directors Seminar, see the final report (Pdf 837 KB).