In spite of the tremendous rich, tangible cultural heritage of the region, only six CARICOM member states have sites on the World Heritage list, according to Dr Hilary Brown, CARICOM Pro-gramme Manager of Culture and Community Develop-ment.
In opening remarks at the CARICOM meeting on World Heritage initiatives in Barbados on Monday, Dr Brown said that CARICOM, like most other regions in the world, has recognised the importance of safeguarding cultural heritage, promoting cultural diversity and developing cultural and creative industries to the region’s sustainable development. Central to this thinking, Dr Brown noted, is recognition of the need to create opportunities for the full development of the creativity of the people of the Community, and in particular the young people.
The Caribbean is perhaps best known and respected internationally for its many traditional as well as contemporary cultural expressions in areas such as music, art, craft, the literary arts, fashion, a plethora of festivals and theatre. “However, we know that the natural and built cultural heritage of the region is equally valuable and authentic and there are many aspects that could be further developed to strengthen the region’s heritage tourism product in a sustainable way,” Dr Brown added.
Although some member states were very active participants in the process leading to the adoption of several important conventions related to heritage, there are several others that are yet to become state parties to these instruments, Dr Brown noted.
Dr Brown also pointed out that whereas 13 of the 14 independent CARICOM member states are parties to the 1972 World Heritage Convention, only nine member states are parties to the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intan-gible Cultural Heritage, and eight member states are parties to the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. “We recognise that these conventions – among others – are an important part of the foundation for the preservation and promotion of cultural heritage, and the CARICOM Secretariat continues to actively encourage member states to become parties to these conventions,” Dr Brown asserted.
This meeting and those that will follow during the week, especially the workshop on the Implementation of the SIDS World Heritage Programme, is expected to provide the opportunity to review the region’s progress in heritage development and the implementation of the world heritage agenda.
Moreover, the meeting will assess the gaps in terms of the policy framework, the capacity of member states, and the status of the human and financial resources in the implementation of the heritage agenda, while making recommendations for priority areas to be addressed.
According to Dr Brown, the meeting provides a unique opportunity for the Caribbean sub-region to discuss ways of strengthening cooperation and to develop and deliver a better coordinated regional programme for preserving, protecting and leveraging the rich tangible and intangible cultural heritage.
The CARICOM Secre-tariat is holding the meeting in collaboration with the Government of Barbados and UNESCO.
