News
Digital Innovation Strengthens Heritage Protection in Africa
More than 50 heritage professionals, students, and technologists gathered in Namibia this week for a landmark regional workshop focused on the use of digital technologies to protect and promote Africa’s World Heritage.
Held in Windhoek and Twyfelfontein, the event empowered African site managers with a new generation of cutting-edge tools to document, monitor, and interpret heritage sites across the continent. The workshop was organized on the sidelines of the development of the , supported by the Government of the Flanders (Belgium).
Organized by UNESCO in partnership with the Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sport, Arts and Culture and the National Heritage Council of Namibia, and supported by the Government of Flanders (Belgium), the workshop builds on the January 2023 “World Heritage Futures Lab” held in Windhoek.
That event brought together creative technologists and community representatives to interpret World Heritage values through digital storytelling using virtual and augmented reality.
Through digital tools such as drones, photogrammetry, 3D mapping, live camera traps, and AI, participants at the workshop explored innovative approaches to safeguard heritage threatened by climate change, urbanization, and conflict.
These tools are not only enhancing conservation but also enabling more inclusive, sustainable, and community-driven approaches to heritage management. The application of such innovations also creates space for rethinking how we balance development needs with heritage preservation.
Speaking during the event, Ms. Eunice Smith, Head of the UNESCO Office in Namibia, emphasized the power of innovation in heritage protection and community engagement.
This technology gives us a rare opportunity to see the threats to heritage before they become irreversible,” said Ms. Smith. “But more than that, it connects our communities and empowers them to be active stewards of the places that define our identity and our shared history.
Reflecting the spirit of cooperation, Mr. Nicolas Vandeviver, the Deputy General Representative of Flanders in Southern Africa, underscored the importance of meaningful partnerships, collaboration and the human connections underpinning digital innovation.
The strength of digital innovation lies not only in its technical capabilities but in its ability to connect people and places across borders. Our shared efforts here are laying the foundation for long-term solutions grounded in solidarity and trust, he said.
With sub-Saharan Africa being home to 108 World Heritage sites, as well as 17 (44%) of the 39 sites on the global List of World Heritage sites in danger, this initiative which recognizes culture as an integral component of sustainable development, and important for fostering identity, social cohesion, equity and environmental protection aligns with UNESCO’s global priority on Africa and the UN Pact for the Future.
The regional workshop also offered a platform to deepen institutional cooperation and localize capacity-building within communities at risk of cultural erosion. The focus on local empowerment and South-South collaboration is also central to Namibia’s approach to heritage management.
Mr. Manfred !Gaeb, the Director for National Heritage and Culture Programs in the Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts & Culture, reaffirmed this vision.
“This workshop equips our custodians of heritage with the digital tools to respond to modern challenges while honoring ancient legacies. It is an investment in the skills and capacities of our people, ensuring that our stories are not only preserved but told in our own voices,” he said.
Supported by the , the World Heritage Online Map Platform (WHOMP) is the Geographic Information System (GIS) for monitoring World Heritage properties. It displays the georeferenced and verified boundaries of World Heritage properties and their buffer zones (if any) on different basemaps as required.
It also allows basic cartographic operations to be performed and provides users with a number of useful tools and features such as area and distance measurements, annotations and drawings, shapefile import, export of highly customized maps, pop-up windows with basic information about each World Heritage property, etc.
In July 2025, an expanded and enhanced version will be unveiled, including other UNESCO designated sites, static and near real-time datasets on factors threatening or promoting sites (many of them via satellite data), an automated alert system for specific natural hazards affecting heritage.
Together, the participants are building a vibrant network of African experts who will lead the continent’s digital transformation in heritage management, preserving the past, protecting the present, and shaping a resilient future.
