Partnering in heritage conservation fruitful
Published On August 28, 2015 » 1769 Views» By Davies M.M Chanda » Features
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By Maxwell Zulu –

Ask most people what heritage is and a myriad answers ensue. Some conjure up images of primordial churches like the Niamkolo Church in the Northern Province or castles such as Castle Hotel (commonly referred to as Lundazi Castle) in the Eastern Province.
Others go further to say heritage is one of the conditions (at least one of the most important ones) for the maintenance of a communicable memory and their effects.

• Lundazi Castle

• Lundazi Castle

They contend that people preserve their heritage to maintain and reinforce its cultural identity. Alternatively, they say people preserve their heritage as it’s a part of the process of memory conservation, and linking the present to the glorious history of the community. From this you can see that heritage is explained differently but understood in the same way.
So one may wonder why the National Heritage Conservation Commission (NHCC) is passionate about conserving heritage and working with the community. In the first instance, NHCC is an institution that was established by an Act of Parliament Cap 173 of the Laws of Zambia with a mandate to conserve and manage Zambia’s heritage on behalf of the people of Zambia for tourism, education, and enjoyment.
In a nutshell, to us heritage simply entails legacy: What we have done in the past, and what we will pass on to the future. Hence images stated above, along with family heirlooms such as photographs, personal letters and documents, combine to give a personal heritage which is cherished, appreciated and often shared with others.
Premised on this aspect, as an organisation we realise that heritage is the life blood of our lives.  It is important to so many people, as a way to strengthen family bonds, and create personal meaning and direction.  For instance, when an individual learns of their family stories it helps them discover who they are, and give meaning and direction in their life. In order to conserve and preserve this heritage, we endeavour to do so not in isolation but with community participation.
By community I mean almost any collection of individuals – a town, a church, a synagogue, a fraternal organisation, an apartment complex, a professional association – regardless of how poorly those individuals communicate with each other. NHCC believes community is and must be inclusive. In that light we more often than not involve communities near heritage sites in the cleaning and maintenance of them. In other places, communities keep watch of sites likely to be adulterated by wanton vandalism, dumping or sacrilegious activities.
This partnership occurs because communities feel part of us and also realise that heritage can promote tourism thereby improving their livelihood. Our idea is to support and interact positively with these individuals who share a vested interest in our heritage. Heritage sites have a very positive influence on many aspects of the way a community develops. Regeneration, housing, education, economic growth and community engagement are examples of the ways in which heritage makes a very positive contribution to community life.
We believe an attractive heritage environment assists in attracting external investment as well as maintaining existing businesses of all types, not just tourism-related. What we have come to notice is that people are very proud of their local history, but don’t always express how much they value a place until it’s threatened. Because it adds character and distinctiveness to an area, heritage is a fundamental in creating a ‘sense of place’ for a community.
Heritage places are a potent driver for community action. They are an excellent local educational resource for people of all ages. Learning about the history of a place is a good way of bringing communities together through a shared understanding of the unique cultural identity heritage places give to an area. Areas where the heritage is understood and valued tend to be better looked after than those where heritage items have no link with the community.
Such links help to foster civic responsibility and citizenship and contribute to everyone’s quality of life.
Because we appreciate community involvement, it is little wonder we have actively promoted conversion of old buildings into commercial spaces, such as shops, offices, restaurants, and open tourism-related businesses etc. Livingstone the tourist capital a reserve for the “living museum” is a good example donned with historic buildings on the Mosi-oa-Tunya road, John Hunt Way and Mambo Way.
The Lundazi Castle is yet another example of a building converted into a hotel, whereas the Old Lusaka Boys School is the NHCC offices.
While this has been successful in terms of generating tourist revenue, we are not doing this at the cost of degrading the integrity of the heritage assets. Instead, would-be developers who want to convert any historic building into some other adaptable use do so by engaging NHCC for technical advice to ensure that the structure retains its facade.
Thus it is exciting to see the exterior and the structure of old buildings in Livingstone are well conserved, the functions of buildings and the living environments having not radically changed. The town is indeed a museum display, bursting with life and more tourists.
This achievement is because communities are formed more around shared interests, common agenda, cause and the desire to have a sense of identity that can only be achieved by being part of a larger group.
This resonates well with Jane Adams writing on the importance of community when she said: “The good we secure for ourselves is precarious and uncertain until it is secured for all of us and incorporated into our common life.”
True, for generations a community serves a vital role in terms of offering camaraderie and acting as a support system to heritage conservation.

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