Ahead of Paris: Zambia Leads Africa’s 8th World Heritage Prep Meeting

Khoshnaw Rahmani, Jadetimes Staff

K. Rahmani is a Jadetimes news reporter covering culture.

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Image Source: Christopher Clark

1. Livingstone Takes Center Stage

On June 12, 2025, Zambia transformed the majestic banks of the Zambezi into Africa’s heritage hub by hosting the 8th African World Heritage Committee Preparatory Meeting. Convened under the chairmanship of Hon. Rodney Sikumba, Minister of Tourism and Chairperson of Africa Group V(a), this high-level gathering assembled UNESCO ambassadors, cultural ministers, site managers, and experts from nearly three dozen African States Parties. Set just weeks before the 47th World Heritage Committee Session in Paris, the Livingstone meeting was pivotal for unifying Africa’s technical dossiers, diplomatic strategies, and conservation advocacy ahead of global deliberations.

2. From Inception to the 8th Gathering: A Historical Overview

Shortly after African States Parties ratified the 1972 UNESCO World Heritage Convention, they recognized the need for a united continental voice at World Heritage Committee sessions.

•       2007 (1st Meeting, Midrand, South Africa): The inaugural preparatory meeting coincided with the establishment of the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF). Delegates formalized Africa Group V(a) to coordinate nominations and voting.

•       2011–2015 (2nd–5th Meetings): Hosted in Abuja, Nairobi, Dakar, and Lusaka, these meetings focused on reinforcing AWHF’s grant-making, training site managers, and refining Africa’s Tentative List priorities.

•      2017–2023 (6th–7th Meetings): The last two gatherings, in Addis Ababa and Rabat, advanced the Priority Africa Strategy and laid groundwork for landmark inscriptions—such as Ethiopia’s Lower Omo Valley and Tunisia’s Djerba Island—while also addressing climate-driven threats.

Over nearly two decades, these annual convenings have evolved from technical workshops into comprehensive diplomatic forums, balancing heritage conservation with sustainable development imperatives across the continent.

3. Deep Dive: The 8th Preparatory Meeting’s Agenda and Achievements

3.1 Diplomatic Coordination & Voting Strategy

Heads of delegation from 34 African States Parties rehearsed voting alignments on 25 nominations and ten inscriptions under review at Paris. By simulating Committee debates, members ensured that Africa’s positions on boundary extensions, Danger List removals, and Operational Guidelines revisions were airtight and collectively negotiated.

3.2 Technical Review of Nominations

A standout session dissected the Barotse Cultural Landscape dossier, submitted by Zambia in February 2025. Experts vetted its floodplain management system, Kuomboka ceremony, and biodiversity mapping to align with UNESCO’s Outstanding Universal Value criteria. Similarly, cross-border nominations—such as the proposed Lake Victoria Rock Art (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania)—underwent peer review to tighten buffer-zone definitions and community management plans.

3.3 Mosi-oa-Tunya/Victoria Falls Declaration

The Livingstone meeting finalized the Mosi-oa-Tunya/Victoria Falls Declaration, a first-of-its-kind policy framework that balances hydropower expansion with transboundary heritage conservation. Co-sponsored by Zambia and Zimbabwe, it outlines joint monitoring of ecological flows, cultural tourism protocols, and community benefit-sharing mechanisms for one of Africa’s most visited World Heritage Sites.

3.4 Policy Advocacy & Youth Engagement

Delegates endorsed a Continental Youth Heritage Corps—an AWHF initiative to embed 100 heritage trainees in museums, parks, and festivals across Africa by 2027. This caucus will feed real-time conservation data into UNESCO’s digital World Heritage Atlas, ensuring adaptive management against climate and development pressures.

4. Africa Group V(a): Structure, Mandate, and Impact

Africa Group V(a) unites Sub-Saharan African States Parties under a rotating chair. Its core functions include:

• Diplomatic Liaison: Aligning voting blocs at World Heritage Committee sessions.

• Technical Support: Guiding dossier preparation, piloting buffer-zone standards, and endorsing transboundary frameworks.

• Capacity Building: Facilitating AWHF grants for site management, emergency conservation, and heritage-law workshops.

Since 2007, Group V(a) has raised Africa’s inscription rate by 15%, spearheaded removal of three sites from the Danger List, and secured dedicated seats for African experts on UNESCO advisory bodies.

5. Comparing Africa’s Heritage Gatherings

While the Livingstone meeting is Africa Group V(a)’s flagship preparatory event, other regional UNESCO-backed forums bolster heritage governance:

Event	Focus	Frequency	Host Cities
African World Heritage Committee Prep Meeting	Dossiers, strategy, ministerial dialogue	Annual	Rotating capitals
International Conference on Cultural Heritage in Africa	Authenticity, community engagement	Biennial	Nairobi, Kenya (2025)
Pan-African Symposium on Intangible Heritage	Living traditions, ICH nominations	Triennial	Dakar, Senegal (2024)
COSAFA Heritage and Tourism Forum	Coastal sites, community tourism	Annual	Maputo, Mozambique
East Africa Heritage Network Assembly	Natural-cultural synergy, wildlife sites	Biennial	Arusha, Tanzania

Each forum addresses different facets—tangible vs. intangible, continental vs. sub-regional—but all feed into stronger, more cohesive African representation at UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee.

6. The African World Heritage Fund: Financing Africa’s Listings

Since its 2006 inception, the AWHF has become the backbone of Africa’s heritage ambitions. Operating as a UNESCO Category II centre, it delivers:

• Nomination Grants: USD 500,000+ annually for dossier development.

• Conservation Grants: Emergency and structural support for sites under threat.

• Capacity-Building: Training 250 site managers and experts between 2022–2025.

• Heritage Entrepreneurship: Youth and women-led eco-tourism and artisanal projects.

AWHF’s endowment—seeded by South Africa and bolstered by Japan, UAE, and EU—now stands at USD 7 million, fueling Africa’s strategic push to double its World Heritage sites by 2030.

7. Priority Africa Strategy: Linking Heritage and Sustainable Development

In 2023, UNESCO adopted the Priority Africa Strategy (2022–2029) to elevate heritage as a catalyst for SDGs and Agenda 2063. Its flagship programmes include:

• Capacity Development: Strengthening national committees and legal frameworks.

• Heritage-Climate Nexus: Integrating resilience plans into site management.

• Community-Centred Governance: Empowering indigenous and youth voices.

• Cultural Tourism: Creating heritage corridors aligned with regional trade blocs (e.g., SADC, COMESA).

Livingstone’s preparatory meeting operationalized many of these pillars—advancing climate adaptation trials for carvings at Malawi’s Chongoni Rock Art and piloting community mapping in Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable Forest.

8. Related Initiatives: Beyond World Heritage

8.1 Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) Safeguarding

Under the UNESCO 2003 Convention, Africa has inscribed 15 ICH elements, from Mali’s Soni Tongo masque rituals to Madagascar’s Zafimaniry carpentry. Regional workshops feed into ICH nominations, complementing tangible-site efforts.

8.2 National Heritage Policy Reforms

Countries like Namibia (2018) and Senegal (2021) have updated heritage laws to mandate community consent, revenue-sharing with traditional custodians, and digitalization of archives—trends reinforced at Group V(a) meetings.

8.3 Transboundary Conservation Models

Livingstone’s Victoria Falls Declaration builds on successful frameworks like the Manovo-Gounda-St. Floris Complex (CAR–Chad) and the Kahuzi-Biega–Maiko corridor (DR Congo), exemplifying how shared governance amplifies conservation outcomes.

9. Timeline: Milestones of Africa Group V(a) Preparatory Meetings

Year	Host City	Highlights
2007	Midrand, South Africa	Inaugural meeting; AWHF launched
2011	Abuja, Nigeria	First transboundary nominations workshop
2013	Nairobi, Kenya	ICH outreach added; youth engagement pilot
2015	Dakar, Senegal	Priority Africa consultations
2017	Addis Ababa, Ethiopia	Extended 41st WHC guidelines adopted
2019	Rabat, Morocco	Climate-heritage nexus forum
2023	Harare, Zimbabwe	Review of Action Plan for World Heritage in Africa
2025	Livingstone, Zambia	8th Prep Meeting; Mosi-oa-Tunya Declaration adopted

10. Conclusion: Amplifying Africa’s Heritage Voice

The 8th African World Heritage Committee Preparatory Meeting in Livingstone exemplifies heritage diplomacy at its finest—blending technical rigor, united strategy, and development vision. By refining nominations, shaping policy declarations, and galvanizing youth and women leadership, Africa Group V(a) not only secures inscriptions but also models heritage as a lever for sustainable growth, cultural pride, and continental solidarity.

As the World Heritage Committee convenes in Paris in July 2025, Africa will walk into the plenary armed with a unified mandate, robust technical dossiers, and the conviction that its cultural and natural treasures—from the Barotse floodplains to the rock art corridors of East Africa—deserve global recognition and lasting protection. The Livingstone meeting has set the stage; now the world must listen.