The Culture and Communication Sector of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) participated in the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the 1972 Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, held by the Ministry of Arts and Culture of the Republic of Cameroon, in partnership with UNESCO Multisectoral Regional Office for Central Africa.

Dr. Mohamed Aba Osman, expert at Culture and Communication Sector, represented ICESCO in the celebration, which concluded on Wednesday (October 19, 2022). Dr. Aba Osman participated in a meeting of heritage experts under the theme “Action and innovation for a world sustainable heritage in the service of central African communities.”

During the celebration, several experts, managers of world heritage sites and officials of heritage ministries from central African countries reviewed the efforts exerted to implement the provisions of the 1972 Convention, which aims to protect heritage and the challenges expected during the next fifty years, and provide guidance to harness the potential of world heritage in achieving sustainable development and promoting peace and dialogue.

The participants made some recommendations based on joint action to preserve heritage sites. They also adopted the Yaoundé Declaration, which emphasizes the importance of world heritage as a locomotive to innovate and build resilient and sustainable societies.