UNESCO Regional Office for Southern Africa (ROSA) recently organized an inception mission of the two-year Great Zimbabwe Development Project in Masvingo, Zimbabwe as part of the three-month Inception Phase of the project. The event saw 40 stakeholders meet to fine-tune the detailed project scope of work and activities, capture emerging issues, concretize the roadmap and the implementation strategy to achieve project objectives effectively and efficiently. The Great Zimbabwe Development Project is funded by the Agence française de développement (the French Development Agency), coordinated by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) and implemented by UNESCO and the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe.
Event participants included experts from the UNESCO World Heritage Center (WHC) and ROSA, the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM), the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF), UNOPS, Agence française de développement and National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe, governmental authorities (heritage and tourism), traditional leaders and academia.
During the inception meeting, participants took time to familiarize with the World Heritage site, including the museum, the conservation center and the spiritual center and interacted with key stakeholders and local community members.
The Executive Director of the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe, Dr Godfrey Mahachi, commended the collaboration between the stakeholders.
The Great Zimbabwe National Monument is our flagship site and a center of cultural activity. This project aims to make sure that Great Zimbabwe is raised in terms of its infrastructure and service delivery. There is very huge responsibility that is shared amongst all the partners involved and collaboration is key.
The Great Zimbabwe Development Project aims to stimulate sustainable inclusive tourism development and cultural heritage of Zimbabwe. The specific objectives of the project are to enhance the value of the Great Zimbabwe site, strengthen the site's cultural and educational programming, diversify the associated tourism offerings, and attract a wider audience, thereby providing multiple benefits in terms of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Throughout the project, UNESCO will implement activities to enhance the conservation and management of the Great Zimbabwe National Monument World Heritage site in a sustainable manner; adequately interpret and present the site and its associated intangible cultural heritage elements; support the development of sustainable tourism practices and develop community-based cultural programming and tourism offers, thereby contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. UNESCO will endeavor to increase the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe's capacity to carry out conservation and documentation activities at the site, enhance sustainable tourism of the site and develop a rural land management plan to improve community-based management of the site and ensure compliance with World Heritage Protocols.