Linking African World Heritage and Sustainable Development: Appraisal of Policies, Concepts, Principles and Approaches to Agenda 2030

Abstract

The common use of natural resources conservation indicators as a base approach for cultural heritage management (as opposed to conservation), has facilitated a delay in the identification and recognition of the significance of cultural heritage indicators as relevant for the broader environmental conservation of African landscapes. By virtue of its focus on addressing social development challenges through the seventeen (17) identified goals, the sustainable development (SD) framework comes across as compatible with culture-based approaches given that culture and cultural heritage are located within society. African communities are more local and resident within African geographical landscapes conflated with heritage resources, hence their production and consumption of heritage is heightened. However, the most explored and popular discourse relating to sustainable development and cultural heritage is through sustainable tourism discussions which address cultural heritage resources in a passive and narrow scope. At international levels however, institutions such as the World Bank Group, and more substantially United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) are fielding significant initiatives that aim to specifically link sustainable development with world heritage. This chapter explores and discusses existing concepts, principles, policies from these institutions and others and critically discusses how these initiatives can be operationalized in a way that is compatible with African heritage resources characteristics as well as aligned to the sustainable development framework. Topics include the UNESCO’s mid-term strategy (2014-2021); UNESCO 2015 policy on integrating sustainable development into world heritage operations; Agenda 2063: The Africa we want document; and the Agenda 2030 for sustainable development amongst others.