UNESCO launches heritage sites restoration project in East Africa with Oman funding

Muscat: UNESCO has launched a project to support the world heritage sites in East Africa with funding from the Sultanate.

The organization said in a statement published on its website that the UNESCO representatives from Oman, the United Republic of the Comoros, Kenya, Madagascar, Somalia and Tanzania joined the UNESCO World Heritage Center to launch this three-year project.

Dr Hamad bin Saif Al Hamami, Oman’s permanent representative to UNESCO, confirmed Oman’s commitment to providing support to the East African region. He said that the launch of this project represents a good start for a stronger cooperation between Oman and the East African region.

List of sites

Mitchilde Rossler, Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Center, stressed the importance of this project, which is rooted in the UNESCO’s global strategy to encourage countries to become parties to the Convention on Cultural Heritage. This will eventually help in preparing the list of sites to be represented and supported for in the World Heritage List.

She added that this project will also contribute to achieving the main objectives and actions of UNESCO’s work priorities in Africa, and the 2030 Sustainable Development Plan.

Samuel William Shilukindo, the representative of Tanzania to UNESCO, thanked Oman for its support and funding of the project at this time, stressing the urgent need to rehabilitate the House of Wonders in Stone Town, Zanzibar, within this project.