The Kenya Heritage Hub was officially launched on 12 June in Nairobi, marking an occasion for cultural heritage and youth empowerment in Kenya. The event brought together an esteemed assembly of diplomats from various countries.
The Launch Ceremony
The launch ceremony was a vibrant event, featuring speeches, cultural performances, and the unveiling of the state-of-the-art facilities that will house the Kenya Heritage Hub.
Aruna Francesca Maria Gujral, Director-General of ICCROM: “We in ICCROM conceive and implement transformative capacity-building initiatives in the cultural heritage sector as we believe they are a powerful tool for creating better opportunities for the youth of today and for the generations to come.
Under my mandate as Director-General of ICCROM, I will be fully and tirelessly devoted to catalyzing and amplifying the impact of our interventions toward concrete trajectories of change on the ground in Africa and for Africa.
It is with great honor and immense satisfaction that today, in Nairobi, I officially declare launched and fully operational the Kenya Youth Heritage Hub.”
Dressed in traditional clothes, the Director-General expressed her gratitude to the National Museums of Kenya for their unwavering commitment to supporting Kenyan youth in leveraging cultural heritage for significant social and economic development.
The Kenya Heritage Hub
The Kenya Youth Heritage Hub is a knowledge-based space that fosters the potential of Kenya’s heritage by and for its youth. It will also serve as a base for regional heritage communications and collaborations.
The Hub is open to the youth and any youth heritage space within the country interested in working together towards a common goal of nurturing their talents and skills in the heritage sector. Its vision of cultural and natural heritage will be presented, co-curated, discussed, restored, enriched, cherished, and protected for the present and future generations. Currently, Jenga IT Hub, Swahili Pot Hub, Ileret Youth Heritage Hub and Kijumwa Heritage Hub-Lamu are the four identified Heritage Innovation Hubs integrated into the Kenya Youth Heritage Hub.
Kenya joins the network of ICCROM Hubs
The Kenya Heritage Hub is one of several ICCROM Heritage Hubs established in Africa, including in Rwanda, Egypt, and South Africa, with more planned plans. These hubs aim to create economic value, invest in social and human capital, and foster innovation and creativity within the heritage sector.
The launch of the Kenya Heritage Hub represents a significant step towards empowering African youth through preserving and promoting cultural heritage.
Support us
By empowering youth to become leaders in heritage preservation and innovative entrepreneurs in the creative industry, we bridge the gap between heritage and local communities. Help us create job opportunities, boost socio-economic growth and enhance the economic significance of cultural heritage, in line with the creative economy policy and the Kenyan government’s current agenda, the African Union Agenda 2063 and the 2030.
Photos by Marc Mukunya