On 9 July 2024, at the headquarters of ICCROM, a significant step was taken towards enhancing the representation of Africa's rich heritage on the UNESCO World Heritage List. ICCROM and Fondazione Scuola dei beni e delle attività culturali have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on the project "World Heritage in Africa – Fostering Practitioners for Nomination Processes and Strategies" (WHAPS).
This MoU marks a new chapter in the long-standing relationship between ICCROM and Fondazione, both of which have a history of successful collaboration in heritage management and education. This partnership has consistently aimed to enhance the capacities of heritage professionals, with a special focus on Africa.
ICCROM's Director-General stated: “In ICCROM, we are fully dedicated to empower young heritage leaders and connect them through innovative strategies to make their heritage a source of economic and social opportunity for them, so that, in turn, they can increase their support for heritage and, as a positive knock-on effect, contribute to a better trajectory of change for their entire community.”
This joint initiative aims to address the underrepresentation of African heritage on the World Heritage List and promote intercultural professional exchanges. The project aligns with ICCROM's flagship programmes, World Heritage Leadership and Youth.Heritage.Africa, and with Fondazione Scuola dei beni e delle attività culturali international programmes, seeking to ensure that the work on World Heritage and Intangible Cultural Heritage contribute to the broader conservation agenda benefiting local communities.
ICCROM's Director-General expressed enthusiasm about the collaboration, stating, "This MoU is of great importance to us as it will strengthen even further our already solid collaboration and expand the good work we are doing together in Africa and for Africa. [...] I am very confident that through our meaningful collaboration we will see many more African young professionals join our networks and lead the way for better managed and better represented African sites in the World Heritage List for a brighter future and greater prosperity for Africa!”
Alessandra Vittorini, Director of Fondazione, highlighted the relevance of the joint collaboration for the internationalization of Italian institution and and emphasized the great potential impact of the initiative: "This MoU marks a significant milestone in our ongoing efforts to increase opportunities for exchange and for the development of cultural policies and relations between our country and the African continent. By fostering a reciprocal learning environment and exchanging diverse realities and visions, we aim to empower practitioners with the knowledge and skills necessary for effective heritage management."
The project includes a five-day international forum to be held between February and March 2025, followed by a six-month mentorship programme. The forum will focus on World Heritage nomination processes, impact assessments, and enhancing management capacities for World Heritage sites. The Mentorship programme, involving 30 participants, will feature bi-weekly online sessions with specialist instructors on the foundations of World Heritage, with a particular focus on heritage impact assessment. The project will wrap up with a closing workshop to finalize and promote the outcomes of the Forum and the Mentorship Programme.
WHAPS aims to enhance the skills of African professionals with a focus on key World Heritage processes, such as ensuring the effective management of sites, conducting impact assessments that will contribute to building stronger World Heritage nominations. It also seeks to promote intergenerational and intercultural dialogue among participants.
This MoU signifies a promising step towards strengthening the professional capacities of heritage practitioners in Africa, contributing to the conservation and recognition of the continent's invaluable heritage. We look forward to further collaboration, especially given the recent success of our joint initiative Fostering Italy-Africa relations: enhancing business and cultural exchange
