Background

In 1998, AFRICA 2009 was introduced at a regional meeting of African cultural heritage professionals held in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. This programme is a joint effort of Africa cultural heritage organizations, ICCROM, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, and CRATerre-EAG. It is rooted in the notion that the problems facing conservation in Africa must be addressed not only through technical solutions, but also through better taking into account the relationship between the immovable heritage and its relevant communities and overall environment.

In 1996, a preliminary needs assessment was carried out to determine the present state of conservation of immovable cultural heritage in Africa. The survey was distributed to 44 countries in the region, and had a response rate of over 60%. Based on this survey, a Training Strategy for Immovable Cultural Heritage in Africa South of the Sahara was prepared. The results of the survey and discussions carried out during the programme development phase, led to the identification of a number of problems regarding the conservation and management of immovable cultural heritage in Sub-Saharan Africa. These problems have been verified and expanded on during the past three years during Directors Seminars, regional courses and other programme venues. The following list presents some of the problems facing professionals in the region.

1. Conservation policies: where they exist, conservation policies are not well integrated into a framework for sustainable development.
2. Legislation: legislation aimed at protecting immovable cultural heritage is often outdated and ineffective.
3. Institutional structure: institutional structures for conservation need a stronger degree of stability to be able to incorporate conservation into the development process.
   Human resources: there are insufficient human resources and capacity (professionals, support staff, skilled craftsmen) to carrying out management, conservation, and maintenance using traditional methods and materials.
4. Planning and management: immovable cultural heritage continues to undergo a process of degradation due to a lack of conservation planning and management.
5. Participatory mechanisms: local communities, and especially youth, are not involved in the conservation planning and management process.
6. Awareness: politicians, decision makers, and local communities are not aware of the role that conservation can play within rapidly changing economic, social, and environmental situations.
7. Economic development and conflicts: there is a lack of effective strategies for economic development (including tourism) that take into account conservation needs within the context of benefit to local communities.
8. Financial and infrastructure resources: there are insufficient resources for maintaining an acceptable level of conservation.
9. Documentation and inventory: national inventories of immovable cultural heritage are incomplete or non-existent.
10. Networking: professionals in the region face problems sharing information, specialized knowledge, and best practices.