During an official mission in Tanzania, UNESCO’s Director-General Audrey Azoulay announced a strengthened partnership between UNESCO and the Zanzibar Archipelago for the protection of heritage and the environment, as well as the creation of sustainable economic activities in these two areas.
Zanzibar’s Stone Town is celebrating this year the 25th anniversary of its inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List. While numerous actions have been implemented for its protection over the past two and a half decades, significant challenges remain in terms of conservation that require international support.
Together with the President of Zanzibar, Hussein Ali Mwinyi, we have agreed to strengthen the cooperation between UNESCO and the archipelago starting this year. Our organization will deploy experts to develop a comprehensive project for the enhancement of Stone Town. This project will attract new funding, accelerate the restoration of buildings, and ensure the sustainable management of this heritage with outstanding universal value.
The Director-General visited several restoration projects supported by UNESCO. These include the House of Wonders, the former ceremonial residence of Sultan Barghash, and the Majestic, Zanzibar’s last cinema, which is set to become a cultural and community center promoting Swahili culture.
Together with the Zanzibar authorities, our goal is to complete the renovation of the Majestic by next year and to have it host major events such as the Sauti za Busara festival and the International Film Festival by 2027.
During a visit to the Slave Market Memorial, the Director-General of UNESCO also emphasized her commitment to preserving and transmitting the memory, history, and unique identity of Zanzibar, which witnessed the cultural blending of Swahili, Arab, Persian, Indian, and European influences. To achieve this goal, UNESCO will provide training for guides, tourism professionals, heritage site managers, and local associations.
UNESCO’s support for Zanzibar will also focus on the environment, particularly in the Jozani Chwaka Biosphere Reserve, where UNESCO and local authorities have agreed to work together to protect marine and coastal ecosystems. Their efforts will focus on two main priorities: safeguarding biodiversity and creating sustainable activities in the blue economy sector to improve the livelihoods of the local population. Audrey Azoulay also encouraged the authorities to establish a second UNESCO biosphere reserve in the archipelago.
With its coral reefs, seagrass beds, and mangrove forests, the new Tanzanian Rumaki Biosphere Reserve, designated by UNESCO in 2023, serves as an exemplary model.
Here, the knowledge and traditions of local communities, particularly women’s cooperatives, have helped develop activities such as seaweed farming, better marine life protection, and strengthened ecotourism. This is a model worth replicating elsewhere.
The Director-General also proposed to the President of Zanzibar to mobilize the UNESCO International Center on the Blue Economy – created during the Decade of Ocean Sciences and currently being set up in Barcelona – to connect Zanzibar’s professionals with those from other regions of the world.
Source: unesco
