The University of Fort Hare Alice main campus and Nelson Mandela’s childhood home in Mqhekezweni are among 10 potential World Heritage sites under discussion.
The National Heritage Council of South Africa (NHC), as the co-ordinator of the World Heritage Enlistment, is currently embarking on road shows to list 10 sites on the Unesco World Heritage register.
The events comprise consultations and engagements with key stakeholders on the intention to enlist the sites.
The Eastern Cape, which currently does not have a World Heritage site, has the university and Madiba’s old home among the 10 that will be discussed for potential enlisting during these consultations.
“Unlike in the pre-democracy era where the majority of people just saw monuments unveiled in their country, we believe in giving South Africans a voice in preserving our prestigious African heritage,” said NHC chief executive officer Sonwabile Mancotywa.
He said that the consultations were also aimed at giving custodians of heritage an opportunity to express their wishes of how the targeted heritage sites could be preserved.
“We wish to also make the communities understand how the World Heritage system works, especially what is expected of South Africa regarding the care of the heritage site, for example boundaries of the site, management, interaction with the community and economic opportunities,” he said.
Both consultations for the Eastern Cape sites will be held next month, .with the Mqhekezweni consultation scheduled for January 5 at 10am at Mqhekezweni Great Place, KwaMkhuku.
Subsequent to the consultations the sites are expected to be tabled at the World Heritage Committee meeting in 2020 for consideration. Successful consideration of the sites will lead to inscription onto the World Heritage list under the auspices of Unesco’s World Heritage Committee.
Mancotywa said that the NHC would process inputs from all stakeholders and factor them into the management plans of the 10 sites which will be included in the nomination dossier, which is a comprehensive proposal compiled according to the Unesco requirements and World Heritage Convention.
The road show will end on January 10. Some of the other sites include Constitution Hill in Johannesburg, the Sharpeville Massacre site in Vereeniging, the Union Buildings in Pretoria, Walter Sisulu Square in Soweto and the Wesleyan Church, in Mangaung...