AFRICA RISES TO THE CHALLENGES

The President of the General Conference of Unesco, Prof Omolewa,
The Assistant Director General for Africa, Mr Tidjani-Serpos,
Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee, Mr Wakashe,
The Director of the World Heritage Center, Mr Bandarin,
Your Excellencies, Members of the Diplomatic Corps, Representatives of State Parties,
Government Officials,

Distinguished guests, Ladies and Gentlemen.

Fifty years ago, during the dark and very difficult days of apartheid, on June 26, the people of South Africa came together at Kliptown at The Congress of the People to adopt the Freedom Charter.

The people of South Africa had had enough of being treated like strangers in the land of their birth and of being denied a sense of identity by the colonial masters. All around them were symbols and images of another culture they were not familiar with, their own culture and heritage were being distorted and used as a political strategy to divide and rule them. They were silenced.

But on that historic day at Kliptown they could no longer be silenced. They declared that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, black and white.

Thus on the 27 April 1994, our people freed themselves from the shackles of apartheid after a long and arduous fight for freedom and democracy.

Our people reclaimed their heritage, and their dignity was restored. As a consequence, South Africa was welcomed and admitted into the family of nations of the world.

On the 10 July 1997, South Africa became a signatory to the World Heritage Convention (i.e. the1972 Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage). This convention, as you know, plays an important role in the preservation of our collective heritage and also serves as a record of tracing human development.

Last year South Africa was elected to the Chair of the World Heritage Committee. This was a great honour, not only for South Africa, but also for the African continent. We therefore want to take this opportunity to thank the World Heritage Committee for affording Africa an opportunity to host the 29th Session of the World Heritage Committee and for showing such confidence in our continent.

So, we meet at this time, as Africans, to deliberate on a very critical issue, to examine how we can preserve our own heritage and identity among the nations of the world for posterity.

We are doing this, not to isolate ourselves from the rest of humanity, but to rededicate ourselves to the conservation of African history and memory. We are here to recommit our intellectual energies and creativity to the development of our continent so that it can be a better place to live in for all its peoples and future generations.

Distinguished guests, Ladies and gentlemen, colleagues - as Section 14 of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) so aptly puts it:

“Modern science recognises Africa as the cradle for humankind. As part of the process of reconstructing the identity and self-confidence of the peoples of Africa, it is necessary that this contribution to human existence be understood and valued by Africans themselves. Africa’s status, as the birthplace of humanity, should be cherished by the whole world as the origin of all its peoples. Accordingly, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development must preserve this common heritage and use it to build a universal understanding of the historic need to end the underdevelopment and marginalisation of the continent”.

South Africa is honoured to host this significant Pre-Committee Workshop, which is a significant landmark for Africa’s quest to re-assert her greatness and to rise to the challenges she faces.

One of the most significant aspects of this meeting is that it is an African initiative, designed by Africans, for the common good of Africa’s heritage.

This is, indeed, a strategic meeting to discuss issues pertinent to the preservation, protection and promotion of Africa’s world heritage. It is a meeting to seek ways, means and better approaches that are essential to the implementation of the 1972 Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (World Heritage Convention).

In areas, other than heritage, it is important to acknowledge the significant strides our continent has made to ensure that the 21st century is, indeed, an African Century. Through the Partnership for Africa’s Development and the African Union, Africa has consciously decided to shape her own destiny. The African Heads of States and leadership have worked tirelessly to address conflict situations and to promote peace and prosperity on the continent.

We have joined hands as the peoples of Africa in a bid to reverse the colonial inequities that almost destroyed our heritage, our sense of being and our sense of identity. The peace and stability which we are striving for, therefore, becomes sine qua non in our efforts to preserve our heritage.

We are also tackling poverty and under development through the utilisation of our own resources, which include our heritage. Throughout the world we increasingly see the sustainable use of heritage in social development to unlock its economic potential.

The challenge facing us today is turning our heritage as an under performing economical asset, to one which can contribute towards prosperity and stability on our continent.

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The principles of democracy and human rights are the cornerstone of our political institutions. They foreground and promote the participation of women in our political institutions, as well as in all spheres of our socio-economic life. The African Heads of States have thus declared their commitment to gender equity and a gender-sensitive approach to development.

It is, therefore, important for all of us meeting here today to recognise that this initiative, of preserving, conserving and promoting our natural and cultural heritage, is not an isolated initiative, but that it is intrinsically linked to the broader development goals of Africa.

As I indicated earlier, this workshop highlights Africa’s potential to meet the challenges that she faces in the preservation, conservation and promotion of her natural and cultural heritage. It is one of those significant occasions where the entire African continent is mobilized to take charge of its own destiny, develop its own identity and carve its own future. It is an occasion that seeks to galvanise our Continent into action. What we need to do right now is to implement the programmes we have already developed.

This meeting also gives us an opportunity to consider and analyse The Africa Periodic Report of 2002 that noted, with concern that in 2002 almost a quarter of the African sites were on the List of World Heritage in Danger. Of the thirty sites on that List, thirteen are in Africa, thus constituting 43% of properties on the List of World Heritage in Danger. The report further noted that Africa is seriously under-represented on the World Heritage List, accounting only for 7% of the properties listed.

This is the challenge that should be borne in mind when we deliberate on the Africa Position Paper and the African World Heritage Fund or Foundation, depending on what is decided in this meeting, whether it will consider establishing an African World Heritage Fund or an African Heritage Foundation that I leave to the meeting to decide.

General assemblies of UNESCO, the World Heritage Committee Meetings and Regional Workshops have met and deliberated on matters essential to the conservation and promotion of World Heritage sites in Africa as well as in other developing countries.

States Parties to the World Heritage Convention have used various fora and platforms to raise concerns, not only about representivity on the World Heritage List, but also about the state of conservation on the continent. Among these voices were those from the developing countries in general and from Africa, in particular. The challenge that is facing us is to ensure that the deliberations, recommendations and decisions taken since the World Heritage Committee’s Global Strategy of 1994, are incorporated in the Africa Position Paper.

One of the objectives of this meeting should be to produce a plan of action on the Africa Position Paper and the African World Heritage Fund (or Foundation, whichever) that have clear deliverables and specific time-frames. I hope that this meeting will also prepare a declaration for a ten-year plan. A plan that talks to the strengthening of our capacity to identify our heritage sites through research and the development of national inventories. A plan that will enhance our abilities and capabilities to develop tentative lists which are precursors to the submission of nomination dossiers. A plan that will facilitate the development of an integrated conservation management strategy to ensure the sustainable use of our heritage resources for present and future generations.

Such a plan should integrate the development and consolidation of policy, legislative and institutional frameworks that are indispensable in the proper management of our heritage. Of course, plans are implemented by people. So, we will need a formidable Human Development Strategy to ascertain that we are able to deliver on our plan.

Linked directly to our human resources must be the availability of adequate financial resources to ensure that our plan is effectively and successfully implemented. We are happy to note that there is going to be a full session that will be looking at the modalities of setting up the African World Heritage Fund. This must be seen as a ground-breaking initiative. An initiative that will, among other things, if we may suggest:

This initiative has the potential to enhance our abilities to implement the World Heritage Convention, thus catapulting the heritage landscape of our continent to greater heights.

Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, may I take this opportunity to commend the good work undertaken by the drafting team (Benin, Egypt, Nigeria, South Africa and Zimbabwe) under the sterling leadership of Mr Munjeri. The drafting team worked long hours to ensure that both the Framework Structure for the Africa Position Paper and the Draft Africa Position Paper were completed within the set time-frames.

May I also take the liberty of reminding delegates at this meeting that both the Africa Position Paper and the African World Heritage Fund or Foundation concept paper will be tabled, firstly, at the Council meeting of African Union (AU) Ministers of Culture in May 2005.

Secondly, it will also be tabled for consideration by the African Heads of State at their Summit during the first week of July 2005. Thereafter, we will present the Position Paper at the 29th Session of the World Heritage Committee in Durban in July 2005. Therefore, it is important that we should all work meticulously to ensure that the products of these deliberations are of a very high quality.

As a host country, South Africa would like to extend a word of thanks to the support and leadership of UNESCO, in particular, the Director-General Mr Matsura, capably assisted by Assistant Directors-General, Mr Bouchenaki and Mr Tidjani-Serpos. Mr Tidjani-Serpos, who is present at this meeting today, has given us guidance and unwavering support to ensure that this meeting does indeed take place.

May I also express our gratituted to Professor Omolewa, the President of the General Conference of Unesco, for being here also to support this meeting.

Also to Mr Bandarin and his team at the World Heritage Centre, thank also for your support. Mr Bandarin and his team are the champions of African World Heritage conservation. Most importantly, we thank all the delegates to this meeting, for your dedication, your commitment to the African Renaissance and to African heritage. This augurs well for building a better Africa and a better world.

Equally, I would like to extend our appreciation to specifically two South Africa missions – our embassies in Paris and Addis Ababa. Under the leadership of former ambassador Skweyiya, our mission joined hands with other African missions to champion the cause of African heritage. Ambassador Skweyiya played a pivotal role in proposing that South Africa be a host of the 29th Session of the World Heritage Committee.

Of course, we are also extremely heartened by the enthusiasm and dedication of her successor, Ambassador Sibanda-Thusi, with regard to matters relating heritage. Ambassador Sangqu continues to be a critical link in our efforts to ensure that the African Union is kept abreast with all the initiatives and preparations for the 29th Session. Thank you to Ambassador Sangqu, as well.

To members of the media, we would like to thank you also for covering this very important meeting. We would like to stress that you have an obligation to ensure that the public and organs of civil society are kept informed about such important developments and are thereby encouraged to participate in efforts to preserve our heritage.

To my colleague, Premier Rasool, in absentia, thank you for making us feel welcomed in this beautiful part of our country, the Province of the Western Cape. I hope that all delegates and distinguished guests will find some time to enjoy the magnificent South African heritage, our heritage sites – Robben Island, Cape Flora and South African traditional cuisine.

May I wish you all the best and success in your deliberations.

Thank you.

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